The Washington Informer - December 3, 2020

WASHINGTON INFORMER Vol. 56, No. 7 • December 3 - 9, 2020

WINNER OF FIVE SOCIETY OF PROFESSIONAL JOURNALISTS D.C. AWARDS

Accelerating our commitment to affordable housing There’s a shortage of affordable housing in America, especially in communities of color. The impact of this health and humanitarian crisis has intensified the need for increased action.

As part of our commitment to invest $1 billion over four years to advance racial equality and economic opportunity, Bank of America is accelerating our investment in development in neighborhoods of color — including right here in Greater Washington, D.C. We’re working side by side with nonprofits and community leaders to help revitalize neighborhoods, expanding on work we’ve had underway for many years.

My teammates and I remain committed to addressing Greater Washington, D.C.’s affordable housing gap and helping build the community in which we live and work.

Lawrence Di Rita Greater Washington, D.C. Market President

Building together Here in Greater Washington, D.C. we’re partnering with organizations that are expanding affordable housing options. They include: Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing National Housing Trust

To learn more, please visit bankofamerica.com/community Bank of America, N.A. Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender

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© 2020 Bank of America Corporation. All rights reserved.

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Around the Region................4-11 Prince George's County.....12-13 Capture the Moment.............. 14 Business................................16-17 National............................... 18-19

6 Book Review Lifestyle / Page 42

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5 John Wall Foundation

Education........................... 26-27

Capture the Moment / Page 44

OpEd.................................... 29-31 Lifestyle............................. 32-42 Sports...................................... 43 Capture the Moment ............ 44 Religion............................... 46-47

5Sammy Davis, Jr.

3Ella Fitzgerald Christmas Album

Black Facts / Page 6

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Women the Cycle of wi hotBreak topics Domestic Violence D.C. Council Approves Bowser’s FY21 Green Book

Revised Incarceration Boasts $917 M Spending law enforcement. She said they threat,” she said. had come together to bring a Among the programs Marlow Reduction Amendment Act Goal for Small Businesses sense of uniformity in the way wants to see implemented are

By Tia Carol Jones WI Staff Writer

When L.Y. Marlow's 23-year- domestic violence victims and stricter restraining order policies, 3 D.C. Counold daughter told her the father survivors are treated. more rights for victim's families cilmember Charles of her daughter threatened her “She's using her own personal to intervene on behalf of Allen a vic-serves as the life, and the life of their child, story, her own personal pain to tim, a domestic violence assesschairman of the she knew something had to be push forward,” Davis-Nickens ment unit coupled with further Committee on done. Out of her frustration said about Marlow. training for law enforcement the Judiciary and with law enforcement's handling Davis-Nickens said anyone agencies, a Child's Life ProtecPublic Safety. (WI of the situation, she decided to who reads Marlow's book will tion Act and mandatory counselfile photo) start the Saving Promise cam- “get it.” She said she “puts the ing for batterers. paign. case in such a way, the average we arepassed ever going to eradiThe D.C. “If Council an adjusted Incarceration “It seems to be a vicious cycle person can get it.” She saidReduction at the cate domestic Act violence, we first mustintroduced Amendment [IRAA], Mayor Bowser recently thatD.C. won't turnMuriel my family end of released the day, the the book will during look the at both of the coin. by unanin 2019, Dec. 1sides legislative meeting “Small Business Enterprises Opportunity Guide loose,” Marlow said. Marlow help people beginfor to haveimous a dia- voteWe to address the vic-not before onneed its first reading.both However, Fiscal her Yearstory 2021,” the “Green Book,” violence. shared withalso theknown audi- aslogue about domestic timamendments and the batterer,” rejecting two

by D.C.Marlow Councilmember which a comprehensive at the spending ence at provides the District Heights look Also present at the event wasChehsaid.

Mary (D-Ward 3). goals for Violence District agencies and outlines resources to inDomestic Symposium Mildred Muhammad, the D.C. ex- Councilmember Marlow would also like to (D-Ward see Charles Allen 6), procurement according oncrease May 7access at thetoDistrict Heightsopportunities, wife of John Allen Muhammad, programs designed to raise who chairs the Committee on Judiciary and Public Safeto a Nov. Center.

23 press The release.

Municipal sympo- who was sentenced to six consecawareness in felons ty, sponsored the revisedamong IRAA inchildren which convicted Green Book release a goallife of $917 siumThewas sponsored by includes the utive terms milwithout who parole public and private schools.

She committed a violent crime prior to the age of 25 lion for and FY21 Youth to be spent on SBEs.by InaFiscal Year 2020, Family Services Maryland jury for hiswould role inhavefeels children need to be educatthe opportunity to petition a court for early the Bowser committed to spendSniper $910 attacks in ed about domestic violence.

Center of theAdministration city of District the Beltway release after being incarcerated for 15 years. Supporters of Heights theSBEs, National Hook- that millionand with and exceeded goalMildred by spending 2002.

Muhammad is bill argue “We that haveoffenders to stopwho being pas- crimes the Allen committed Up of Black more than Women. $976 million. the founder of After the Trauma, sive-aggressive with poor chilin their youth but have rehabilitated themselves should Marlow written are a book, “Small has businesses the backbone and driving an organization that helps the dren about domestic violence,” have the chance for a reduced sentence. Opponents of “Color Butterfly,” which is a When survivors domestic violence Marlow said. force Me behind our local economy. theyofsucceed, Allen’s legislation, which include the U.S. Attorney for story about four generationsand of residents,” and theirBowser children.

Marlow has worked to break so do our neighborhoods said the Six District of Columbia and the D.C. Metropolitan domestic violence.

The book is “I lived in fear for six years. the cycle of abuse in her family, in the release. “This year’s Green Book is about giving Police, it would provide early release for inspired by her own experiences, in fearinis them a long time.

It issay and is confident the policies sheviolent ofour small businesses a fair shot byyears investing fenders. and those the of procurement her grandmother, not an easy thing through process. And, each year, we’veto come out is pushing for will start that Cheh’s amendments her motherour andspending her daughter. said. equity process. would have mandated that judgincreased goal so weof,” canshe enhance es give “substantial to victims or to the victims’ She said every time she reads Mildred for Muhammad said “I planweight” to take these policies and create even more economic opportunities our families when considering a sentence reduction excerpts from her book, she still people who want to help a Congress and implore them to and the entrepreneurs. We will continue to support our small nature of the offenses should be considered before an adcan not believe the words came domestic violence victim must change our laws,” Marlow said. business community, no matter the economic climate.” justment takesuntil place.

Allenpolirejected both from her. “Color Me Butterfly” be careful of how they go into in“Ipunishment will not stop these of Cheh’s amendments saying the victims or their famiwon the 2007 National “Best the victim's life, and understand cies are passed.” lies have a voice during judges routineBooks” Award. that she may be in “survival Tia Carol sentencing Jones can beand reached ly consideratthetiacaroljones@sbcglobal.net nature of the offense when considering “I was just 16-years-old when mode”. my eye first blackened and my “Before you get to 'I'mchanging going an inmate’s length of sentence. Both Cheh’s lips bled,” Marlow said. failed, 11-2, with only D.C. Councilmemto kill you,' it started as aamendments verbal WI Elaine Davis-Nickens, presiber Brandon Todd (D-Ward 4) supporting her changes. dent of the National Hook-Up The council will vote on the act for second reading on of Black Women, said there is no Dec. 15. If approved, it would then go to them mayor for consistency in the way domestic her approval or veto. violence issues are dealt with by Internet users in the U.S. vastly underestimate how often their home networks malicious threats targeting their home networks and the devicare targeted by cyber threats. es connected to them.

That’s one of the key find“The cyber threats facing even the most lightly connected ings of the first ever Xfin- homes have grown so numerous and so complex, that ordiity Cyber Health Report, nary people can barely keep track, much less protect themwhich combines data from selves,” said Noopur Davis, chief product and information a new consumer survey with security officer, Comcast. “That’s why it’s essential that we actual threat data collected provide people with smart, powerful tools, like xFi Advanced by the xFi Advanced Secu- Security, that can spot and stop threats before they ever make rity platform. Since January, it inside the home.” xFi Advanced Security has Comcast suggests the following tips on easy ways to keep blocked nearly six billion cybersecurity threats – represent- your home safe: use multifactor authentication; enable auto ing an average of about 104 cybersecurity threats per home updates on devices; think before you click on that link; broadper month – protecting Xfinity Internet consumers from band connection security; strong passwords.

Comcast: Consumers Underestimate How Often Home Networks are Targeted by Cyber Threats

“

We have to stop being passive-aggressive with poor children about domestic violence. I plan to take these policies to Congress and implore them to change our laws. I will not stop until these policies are passed.

“

SOMETHING NEW EVERYDAY

COMPILED BY WI STAFF WRITERS DORORTHY ROWLEY, JAMES WRIGHT AND WI EDITOR D. KEVIN MCNEIR

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L.Y. Marlow

Bill Cosby’s Attorney Appears to Score Points in Supreme Court Argument Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer @StacyBrownMedia Comedian Bill Cosby and his supporters expressed confidence after his lawyer presented oral arguments to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Tuesday, December 1.

Attorney Jennifer Bonjean appeared to score multiple points with the seven justices.

She skillfully pointed out that Cosby had agreed to waive his Fifth Amendment rights to sit for a civil deposition that former Montgomery County District Attorney Bruce Castor promised would never be used against the entertainer.

However, Castor’s successor.

Kevin Steele, ignored the agreement and prosecuted Cosby using the deposition.

“If the prosecutor’s word is not his bond, what is the lesson that emerges beyond this case?” Justice Max Baer asked, seemingly concurring with Bonjean’s argument.

The high court also wanted prosecutors to answer the implications for thousands of other deals made by prosecutors if the justices ruled against Cosby.

The justices appeared frustrated with prosecutor Adrian Jappe who rambled for more than 25 minutes about how the trial court was correct in allowing the testimony of five women who said Cosby drugged and/or sexually assaulted them decades ago.

Several of the justices pointed out that at least one of the women never claimed to have been sexually assaulted.

None appeared to have enjoyed the same kind of relationship Cosby allegedly had with Andrea Constand, the victim in the trial court case.

“Why did you need prior bad acts testimony at all?” Justice Saylor asked prosecutors during the hearing, questioning the strength of the District Attorney’s case against Cosby.

“It was a good day,” Cosby spokesman Andrew Wyatt told

Black Press USA during a livestream interview that took place at the same time as the court hearing.

The Black Press and The Washington Informer streamed the court proceedings as Wyatt participated in the exclusive interview.

“I thought Attorney Bonjean did a phenomenal job. This is what Mr. Cosby had been hoping for,” noted Wyatt who shared a text message from Cosby’s wife, Camille Cosby, during the broadcast.

“Mrs. Cosby said, ‘finally, finally, finally, at last, now we must move onward to vindication.’”

A spokesperson for the court said the justices usually average about 150 days before issuing a decision but one could come sooner.

“I do feel that this is vindication for Bill Cosby,” Wyatt said.

Following the proceedings, Bill Cosby released a statement through Wyatt.

“This morning, people around the world witnessed a beautiful presentation by Attorney Jennifer Bonjean regarding two important issues: immunity and the misuse of a law called, 404 (b) or PBAs (Prior Bad Acts Witnesses),” Cosby offered.

“This was not just a historic day for me but it became a beacon of hope for those countless American citizens of the Keystone State in Pennsylvania Correctional Facilities whose constitutional rights might have been grossly abused because they lacked resources and means to fight prosecutorial corruption. I’m so happy because I hope and truly believe that justice will prevail.”

“Thank you to the Pennsylvania State Supreme Court for agreeing to hear and review my appeal; my wonderful wife, Camille; my family and friends; my millions of loyal supporters (social media and beyond); my legal team (Atty. Jennifer Bonjean, Atty. Barbara Zemlock and Atty. Brian Perry); Debbie Meister and Kia Soto; and my publicist and crisis manager, Andrew Wyatt,” Cosby said in a written statement.

WI

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AROUND THE REGION

3 Attorney Jennifer Bonjean during a virtual interview with Dr. Benjamin Chavis, Jr., president and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA). (Courtesy photo/John Michael Reefer for NNPA)

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black facts

SOURCE: BLACK AMERICA WEB

DEC 3 - 9, 2020

DEC. 3

1847 – Frederick Douglass starts The North Star, an anti-slavery newspaper.

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1906 – Alpha Phi Alpha, the first Black Greek Letter fraternity, is founded at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York.

1909 – The New York Amsterdam News, a weekly African American newspaper, is founded by James H. Anderson.

1969 – Black Panthers Fred Hampton and Mark Clark are killed by Chicago police.

DEC. 5

1784 – Phyllis Wheatley, the first published African American female poet, dies in Boston at 31.

1931 – Singer James Cleveland, "The King of Gospel Music," is born in Chicago.

1932 – Music icon Little Richard is born in Macon, Georgia.

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1932 – Richard B. Spikes patents the automatic gearshift.

1936 – Richard Francis Jones becomes first African American certified in urology.

1949 – Blues legend Huddie "Leadbelly" Ledbetter dies in New York City at 60.

1967 – Madame Lillian Evanti, famed African American opera singer, dies in Washington, D.C., at 77.

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1935 – Mary McLeod Bethune (right) founds National Council of Negro Women in New York City.

1957 – New York became the first city to legislate against racial or religious discrimination in the housing market with adoption of Fair Housing Practices Law.

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1942 – Reginald Lewis, the first African American business owner to build a billion-dollar company, is born in Baltimore.

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DEC. 8

1868 – Henry Hugh Proctor, a minister, author and lecturer who formed the basis for the Atlanta Music Festival, is born outside Fayetteville, Tenn.

1925 – Famed singer and entertainer Sammy Davis Jr. is born in New York City.

DEC. 9

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6 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

1872 – Pinckney Benton Stewart Pinchhack becomes the governor of Louisiana, the first Afri­canAmerican to serve as governor of a U. S. state.

1922 – Comic legend Redd Foxx (top) is born in St. Louis.

1972 – Ralph Bunche, the first African American to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, dies in New York City at 68. WI

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WALLACE MOSLEY / WASHINGTON, D.C.

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The World According to Dominic

The Best Thing about Christmas? The Music

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Music was always prevalent in my home. My mother sang all the time – sometimes singing songs from her Top Ten list – a hodgepodge of gospel, R&B, Motown and tunes from the 40s and 50s that I never really liked.

And yes, she could sing, serving as a soloist in one of the choirs at our family’s place of worship, St. Andrews AME in Detroit. But the music which seemed to energize her, and by extension me, my sister and my dad, was Christmas carols.

Back in the day, long before there were things like early holiday shopping deals, Black Friday or Christmas advertisements which bombarded the public as early as late October and Halloween, my mom would begin to dust off the covers of her favorite Christmas albums and begin playing them during the week of Thanksgiving on our trusty record playing situated in the family dining room.

I can still hear the sounds of the scratch and hiss that the needle made as the album rotated on the turntable. In fact, while technology has since provided us with improved methods of ways to listen to music – from eight-tracks and cassettes to CDs, there’s been a recent resurgence of and demand for albums.

I can only imagine the money I could make today on e-Bay if I hadn’t sold my collection of LPs decades ago. Anyway, back to the music! Just like when I was a little boy anxiously waiting for Santa to arrive on December 25th, I still love the sounds of Christmas.

Johnny Mathis was the MAN and we had every Christmas album he ever released. Sometimes, while shopping in a mall or visiting someone’s office, you’d hear, ever so softly, Johnny’s voice serenading you with carols that have become fixtures for the season.

Before there was “the voice,” there was Mathis.

And while I didn’t like Barbra Streisand as a child, I have since become a real fan. Prior to my mother’s death, while trying to make her laugh during a moment when she was feeling really badly, I acted out Streisand’s rendition of “Sleigh Ride,” followed by “My Favorite Things.” My good friend, Christopher, captured my antics on his phone. But he’s been warned not to share it.

Then, there was the Jackson 5. Michael and Jermaine took the lead on that album and every song was fantastic. I would

8 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

bounce and jump and leap and twirl around the house, singing soprano while Mom took the alto line. That was a long time ago – now I’m a bona fide bass.

From “Up on the Housetop” to “Christmas Won’t Be the Same This Year,” to “Give Love on Christmas Day,” the Jackson 5 could do no wrong.

Later, I would add other more contemporary singers to my list.

Whitney Houston’s album, “One Wish” remains my ultimate favorite. She was at the top of her game when the recording broke in 2003. Actually, I play it in March, July and September if I need a pick-me-up. And the couple of songs on which Houston was accompanied by her only daughter, Bobbi Kristina Brown, are heartwarming.

I cannot overlook one of the classiest and most-talented sisters in the business, Fantasia. The last time we spoke, she actually called me to talk about a recent release.

But, as I’m known to do, I asked her about her Christmas CD. Her singing, as the choir with whom I sang years ago at Big Bethel AME in Atlanta would say, was so

DOMINIC Page 23

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Coronavirus Pushes Street Vendors to the Edge Erica Johnson WI Contributor With COVID-19 still claiming lives and jobs, there are few groups more vulnerable than street vendors.

Last November, when 15-year-old unlicensed street vendor, Genesis Lemus, was hurt in a confrontation with police as she sold plantain chips and atole de elote, a sweet corn and milk dish, on a Columbia Heights sidewalk, the incident caught on video, went viral.

Several groups banded together, including Many Languages, One Voice, and Vendadores Unidos, to fight for change and to address the dilemma many vendors face from heavy-handed enforcement of city regulations by police.

In D.C., Councilmember Brianne Nadeau (Ward 1), who represents Columbia Heights, a primarily Black and LatinX community, along with six other council members introduced bill B23-0875 to decriminalize street vending without a license.

“Unlicensed vending is not a public safety issue and our response should not be to send armed police officers to enforce these regulations,” Nadeau said in a press release.

While this new bill will provide some reprieve, that’s only part of a more complex issue. “There are still varying community expectations when it comes to enforcement of street vending. We collaborate with our District government partners including the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs (DCRA) to ensure vendors are provided the opportunity to operate with a valid license”, said Alaina Gertz, Public Affairs Specialist, Office of Communication, Metropolitan Police Department.

However, the regulatory process to obtain or maintain a street vending permit can be cumbersome and pricey, with some costs exceeding $1,000.

For vendors like Michael Habtelesse known colloquially as Popcorn Mike, owner of L’efante Inc. to sell food in public places, pursuit of proper credentials means trip down a rabbit hole of agencies that include DCRA for licensing; D.C. Health Code for compliance and

inspections; and the Department of Transportation (DDOT) for permitting, in which a sidewalk permit cost $1,200 for only two years.

Street vending is a $3.4 billion dollar industry in the U.S., according to IBISworld, a global industry research firm. But that figure doesn’t account for the millions of immigrants, undocumented workers, and others who can’t afford or are too scared to apply for licenses through regulatory agencies.

Street vending for many is the only way to provide for their families in areas that don’t offer other opportunities for advancement. Limitations on education, language and structural poverty restrict some street vendors from getting ahead.

In 2020, the challenges faced by vendors has trimmed their presence throughout the country, according to IBISWorld. The sharp decline is mainly attributed to the global pandemic and the lack of government resources available for street vendors, which included being ineligible to apply for the Paycheck Protection Program loans provided to small businesses earlier in the year.

While society often overlooks the importance of street vendors, D.C. has taken a novel approach by deputizing street vendors as community health ambassadors. Street vendors often work the same blocks to build relationships with their customers and they are one of the most effective modalities to provide communities with the right information.

Street vending for many is the only way to provide for their families in areas that don’t offer other opportunities for advancement.

Limitations on education, language and structural poverty restrict some street vendors from getting ahead.

5 Mike Habteselasse works his popcorn vending stand at 7th and D Streets in Southwest. (Shevry Lassiter/The Washington Informer)

During the pandemic, using street vendors as community health ambassadors was an effective strategy to get the word out about COVID-19.

They speak the language and know the culture of the communities they serve making them trusted sources of reliable information. These clinics trained street vendors to teach their customers and communities about hygiene and methods to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus.

The importance of street vendors in D.C. pushed Councilmember Brianne Nadeau along with At-Large Councilmembers Elissa Silverman and Robert White to introduce another bill called the Sidewalk Vending Zones Amendment to help street vendors. This new legislation amends the Vending Regulations Act of 2009 to create designated zones where sidewalk vendors can legally operate.

In an effort to minimize interactions with police, this bill also provides amnesty for unpaid civil fines.

The fines are retroactive for up to five years as an incentive for vendors to get a license or register with a vending zone manager.

With D.C. on the verge of inauguration and an expected flood of visitors and protesters, in addition to a daily surge of local customers, to Washington’s streets, the measure, if enacted, is likely to define the dimensions and the role of street vendors in the District.

One thing is certain, street vendors are an integral part of D.C. culture. WI

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WORDS TO LIVE BY “People always say that I didn’t give up my seat because I was tired but that isn’t true. I was not tired physically, or no more tired than I usually was at the end of a working day. I was not old, although some people have an image of me as being old then. I was 42. No, the only tired I was, was tired of giving in.”

– Rosa Parks

“My Story” [1992]. On Dec. 1, 1955, she defied the segregated transportation ordinance in Montgomery, Ala., igniting a 382-day bus boycott and launching the Civil Rights Movement in the U.S. 10 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

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AROUND THE REGION Newsham’s Exit Fuels Talk of His Legacy and His Replacement Assistant Chief Robert Contee Touted as a Successor James Wright WI Staff Writer @JamesDCWrighter The announcement by D.C. Police Chief Peter Newsham that he will be become the new leader of Prince William County, Va.’s police department next year has District leaders and residents talking about his departure and contributions and who will replace him permanently.

On Nov. 25, District residents learned of Newsham’s departure to the suburban county. D.C. Councilmember Anita Bonds (D-At Large), who sits on the Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety that oversees the police department, was among the first of the city leaders who have scrutinized him to react.

“Many will miss his service, as his career spans three decades, of which a portion was engaged in modernizing the department and rebuilding morale within the force following the decade-ago findings by the U.S. Justice Department of police brutality against the force,” Bonds said in a statement.

“In fact, when Chief Newsham followed Chief Cathy Lanier in the role, many assumed that robust community support would automatically follow this position. Many others remember with frustration his immediate tenure marred by the continuous escalation of gun activity, violence and countless murders plaguing neighborhoods and taking the lives of our youth. And so, for many he departs without broad confidence in his style of policing. I wish him the best.”

Ronald Hampton, a retired District police officer who serves as a member of the city’s police reform commission said Newsham’s departure didn’t surprise him.

“The life span of a D.C. police chief is three to five years,” he said.

“Chief Newsham is [associated with] some good things, such as emphasizing racial understanding in the ranks. He has decided to move on.”

Kathy Henderson, a former Ward 5 advisory neighborhood commissioner who has twice been

hailed by Newsham for her support of the police department’s efforts in the community, said she’s not happy about Newsham’s departure, hailing him as “an excellent law enforcement officer.”

“In doing his job he had the patience of Job. He had the ability to connect to the community in a variety of settings. He had the respect of the rank-and-file officers,” she said.

Retired D.C. police officer Lowell Duckett said Newsham knew the city and how it worked.

“Newsham understood the dynamics of the Black and white communities,” he said. “He worked well within the structure of the police department and in the political system.”

Newsham said he will start his new job on Feb. 1, 2021. In the meantime, Bowser said she plans to have an interim police chief in place “soon.” Hampton thinks Newsham’s replacement should be Robert Contee, the assistant chief of the investigative services bureau, a D.C. native and Spingarn High School graduate.

“Assistant Chief Robert Contee knows the city well,” Hampton said. “He is respected by the politicians and the residents. Contee should be the interim chief and the chief in my opinion.”

Contee’s career with the Metropolitan Police Department began in November 1989 as a cadet. He was sworn in as a patrol officer three years later and has climbed through the ranks steadily including command positions in the Second, Sixth and First districts and posts in the Special Operations Division, the professional development bureau and the recruiting division.

In April 2017, Contee became the Chief of Patrol Services South which encompasses the First, Sixth and Seventh Districts. In March 2018, he received the promotion to his present position from Newsham.

Contee holds a bachelor’s degree in professional studies with a concentration in police science from George Washington University and has completed the Management College at the Institute for Law En-

forcement Administration and the Senior Management Institute for Police at the Police Executive Research Forum in Boston.

Duckett agrees with Hampton, saying Contee would be an excellent choice for police chief.

“The next police chief should be someone who is best for the city,” he said. “Contee grew up in D.C. around cops and he is aware of what is going on in the Black community. He has the temperament to be the chief and is second to none in that regard. Contee is very intelligent and knows the streets.”

Henderson said she knows Contee.

“He is a stellar law enforcement officer,” she said. WI

5 Assistant D.C. Police Chief Robert Contee is considered a strong candidate to be the next police chief. (Courtesy Photo)

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DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 11

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY Panelists Urge Taking Care of Mental Health in the Face of COVID-19 William J. Ford WI Staff Writer @jabariwill As the number of confirmed coronavirus cases continue to rise in Prince George’s County, a forum emphasized one integral part of a person’s well-being that must be protected: Mental health.

“One of the things we found when COVID-19 hit is by no stretch of the imagination does technology serve as an adequate replacement for true, genuine, authentic physical interaction,” said Ninah Jackson, a senior at Oxon Hill High School and student member of the county school board.

PGCPS BRIEFS

“What we’re missing is the comfort that we took in knowing that we had assemblance of normalcy in our dayto-day lives.”

Jackson participated on a virtual panel Monday, Nov. 30 on the topic of mental health as part of ongoing series hosted by County Council member Monique Anderson-Walker (D-District 8) of Fort Washington.

The discussion focused on improving mental health during the coronavirus pandemic. Prince George’s leads the state of Maryland with more than 41,500 confirmed cases and nearly 920 deaths.

Jackson, 18, wasn’t the only person Compiled by Dorothy Rowley WI Staff Writer

3D SCHOLARS

The Prince George's 3D Scholars Program is a specialized program through which students earn credits towards an associate's degree while in high school, then immediately transition to Prince George's Community College to

5 (Courtesy photo/Monique Anderson-Walker Facebook grab)

at the hearing to offer advice. While she spoke from a student perspective, the matter was also addressed by a motivational speaker, a clinical psychologist and a mental health therapist.

Jackson, 18, said adults can share their personal struggles with young people.

“It teaches the student how to deal with it that talking and venting and sharing your grievances is one of the many ways that you can utilize your feelings productively,” she said. “Tough times always create opportunities for bonding and openness, if utilized correctly.”

Don’t forget about young adults, says Jonathan Harris, a native of Fort Washington who works as an area coordinator in the office of residence life at Lincoln University in Pennsylvania. complete their associates degree and are then awarded a scholarship to University of Maryland Global Campus to earn their bachelor's degree.

Available courses of study: Business Administration, Criminal Justice and Computer Networks and Cybersecurity.

The title "3D" stands for the three degrees earned in the program; high school diploma, associate's degree and bachelor's degree, University of Maryland Global Campus. Only 50 seats are available for incoming ninth graders.

BUILDING REOPENINGS, CLOSURES

5 The title "3D" stands for the three degrees earned in the program: high school diploma, associate's degree and bachelor's degree, University of Maryland Global Campus. (PGCPS photo)

12 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

The PGCPS’ online database below captures some of the system’s school and office building closures related to incidences of COVID-19 since March 2020.

Please note this list only includes traditional public schools; public charter schools are responsible for

In the first four months of the pandemic presence in Maryland, about 125,000 Prince George’s residents filed for unemployment.

While on the campus, Harris, 30, delivered meals to students quarantined who contracted COVID-19.

Harris, 30, said before the Thankstheir own cleaning and sanitizing.

The database does not include incidences that did not require cleaning or sanitizing (i.e. employees who work remotely or individuals who have not worked on-site recently).

Building Buck Lodge MS Disinfected 11/27/2020 Reopened 11/30/2020 Building Northwestern HS Disinfected 11/27/2020 Reopened 11/30/2020 Building Judge Sylvania

Woods ES Disinfected 11/25/2020 Reopened 11/29/2020 Building Dwight D.

Eisenhower MS Disinfected 11/25/2020 Reopened 11/29/2020

PGCPS Page 13

giving holiday, he hadn’t seen his family since July.

“There were several phases throughout the semester I felt kind of homesick,” said Harris, also a motivational speaker and author of three books including “Girls with Pearls.” “I know those who lived in other states might have felt the same way.”

Harris also said the job market can bring anxiety and depression.

In the first four months of the pandemic presence in Maryland, about 125,000 Prince George’s residents filed for unemployment.

A family atmosphere can boost a person’s spirits, said Monica Banks Greene, a clinical psychologist who runs a private practice that addresses mental health issues.

For instance, her clients will have a therapist, psychiatrist and a life coach “to help people achieve their goals and provide support as a team.”

Green suggested people start a “gratitude journal” to jot any thoughts before going to bed to restore and heal yourself.

In the latter part of the virtual discussion, Tyreese McAllister, a therapist and a first responder who helps with mental health crises, lead a breathing exercise.

McAllister asked everyone to inhale through the nostrils, hold your breath for a few seconds and then breathe out through the mouth.

She also recently started to rub essential oils in her masks and recommended the practice to a client who suffers from anxiety.

“It really helped me keep a good balance,” she said. “Essential oils in my mask is extremely helpful.”

McAllister summarized how mental health should be just as important as people brushing their teeth every day.

“If you don’t take care of your mental health, it can take you out of here,” she said.

WI

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PGCPS from Page 12

dents who are residents of Prince George’s County.

Building Facilities Service Base Disinfected 11/25/2020 Reopened 11/29/2020

SPECIALTY PROGRAMS APPLICATION DEADLINES

Building Isaac Gourdine MS Disinfected 11/25/2020 Reopened 11/29/2020

High School Specialty Programs: Through Dec. 18;

Building Greenbelt MS Disinfected 11/25/2020 Reopened 11/29/2020

Creative and Performing Arts, Grades 6 - 8: Through Dec. 18;

SPECIALTY PROGRAMS

Career and Technical Education: Through Jan. 8, 2021

The 2021-22 Charter Schools and Specialty Programs Lottery will be available through Friday, Jan. 29, 2021. Through the PGCPS lottery process, parents and students have an opportunity to secure an available seat in one of the Specialty Programs established in selected schools throughout the county. Space limitations require that admission is governed by a random placement lottery.Applications are available to all stu-

PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY

K-8 Specialty Programs and Public Charter Schools Lottery: Through Jan. 29, 2021

REID TEMPLE CHRISTIAN ACADEMY

Since 2005, Reid Temple Christian Academy has been preparing young men and women to succeed in higher education and to make their place in society. The

3 The 2021-22 Charter Schools and Specialty Programs Lottery will be available through Friday, Jan. 29, 2021. (PGCPS photo)

state-funded program expands access to free high-quality public Pre-Kindergarten for three- and four-year-olds with priority given to (a) students from families within the household incomes provided by the State of Maryland Department of Education and; (b) students with special education needs regardless of income.

The curricula use national standards in reading, language arts, mathematics and science. Reid Temple Christian Academy use the

Creative Curriculum and Connect4 learning. The school hours are 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Students must be: three-years-old

by September 1st for Pre-Kindergarten 3; four-years-old by September 1st for Pre-Kindergarten 4. This program is offered on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Parents will need to provide: two most recent pay stubs; first page and the signature page of your 2019 tax document; copy of your 2019 W-2; copy of your child's birth certificate.

DECEMBER SAT, ACT CENTER CLOSINGS

Due to the updated restrictions put in place for safety precautions and the continued need for social distancing, PGCPS has canceled the SAT and ACT administrations for the month of December.

Students should check their College Board and ACT accounts for updates on what to do if their test center has been closed.

WI

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DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 13

CAPTURE the moment

For more photos, visit www.washingtoninformer.com

Shop 'til You Drop

5 Cye Penn checks out the newest gear at Shooters Athletics in District Heights.

(Anthony Tilghman/The Washington Informer) 3 Renee Burns of Bowie, Md., shops at Shooters Athletics in District Heights on Nov. 28. (Anthony Tilghman/The Washington Informer) 5 Isaiah Womack of Oxon Hill at Spizzy Smoothies & Teas in Camp Springs, Md., shows of his Prince George’s County gear also sold at the store. (Anthony Tilghman/The Washington Informer)

4 Veronica Cooper (left), owner of Culture Coffee Too, speaks with a customer about her special coffee on Nov. 28. (Roy Lewis/The Washington Informer) (Far right) Parks Main Street Executive Director, Edwin D. Washington, stops by Culture Coffee Too on Riggs Road in Northeast DC. (Roy Lewis/The Washington Informer)

14 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

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DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 15

BUSINESS Jesse Williams Invests in Banking Platform for Black and Latinx People

Greenwood is a New Black-Owned Banking Service Sarafina Wright WI Contributing Writer Actor and activist Jesse Williams has become the latest celebrity investor in Greenwood, a new digital banking platform aimed at Black and Latinx customers and business owners in mind.

Williams, a key actor in the long-running ABC-TV series “Grey's Anatomy,” joins Greenwood founders like Andrew Young, civil rights legend, former congress-

man, mayor of Atlanta and former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations; rapper and activist Killer Mike and Ryan Glover, chairman of Greenwood and founder of Bounce TV network.

“I'm excited to join the Greenwood team and work to advance economic prosperity for people of color,” Williams said. “The time has come for Black and Latinx communities in America to strengthen our economic condition and influence.

By increasing access to essential

5 Actor and activist Jesse Williams (left) joins Bounce TV founder and Greenwood Chairman Ryan Glover as an investor in the new digital banking platform. (Photo courtesy of Greenwood)

banking services and financial education, Greenwood is a key part of that movement.”

The Greenwood name pays homage to “Black Wall Street,” a community in the Greenwood District of Tulsa, Okla., during the early 20th century.

It was a center of African American enterprise, entertainment, wealth and capital before it was destroyed by white mobs in 1921.

The company says the Greenwood District remains an enduring symbol of the economic potential of community solidarity.

Just a month after launching, more than 200,000 people have joined the Greenwood communi-

ty and the waiting list for Greenwood's digital banking platform, according to the group.

Its initial product is a limited edition black metal debit card and account for customers who sign up by the end of the year. Advanced features include Apple Pay, Samsung Pay and Android Pay, virtual debit cards, peer-to-peer transfers, mobile check deposits, and free ATM usage in over 30,000 locations with no fees.

Greenwood says customers who invite their friends to open accounts are eligible for cash rewards and all deposits will be FDIC-insured by a partner bank.

Additionally, the financial platform says it plans to provide depos-

its to help strengthen historically Black banks.

Williams, an activist for humanitarian and racial justice causes, won the BET Humanitarian Award in 2016 and an NAACP Image Award in 2019.

He along with Greenwood have produced a series of videos about its burgeoning financial empowerment movement, the first spot titled “You Ready,” is available on Greenwood's social media channels now.

“Jesse Williams has long been a voice for equality and opportunity,” Glover said. “We are thrilled to have the chance to work with him.

He is a perfect fit for the mission of Greenwood.” WI

The Washington Convention and Sports Authority (t/a Events DC) Bid Opportunity The Washington Convention and Sports Authority (t/a Events DC) is soliciting proposals from qualified contractors to provide abatement and demolition services for Robert F. Kennedy Stadium. Interested parties can view a copy of the Request for Proposal (RFP) by accessing the Event DC’s E-procurement website (“APEX”) at www.wcsapex.com and opening APEX BID #21-S-003-671.

Key Dates: Optional Site Visit: 10:00 AM EST, Friday, December 11, 2020 Proposal Due Date: 3:00 PM EST, Monday, January 25, 2021 Notification of intent to attend be provided via e-mail to Kiara Short, Contracts & Procurement Analyst at KShort@eventsdc.com.

16 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

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BUSINESS

Muhammad Ali Childhood Home Museum Launches Campaign Seeking to Raise $1 Million by Feb. 2021 Sarafina Wright WI Contributing Writer The Muhammad Ali Childhood Home Museum has launched a restoration campaign with the goal of raising $1 million for renovations and community initiatives in preparation for its fall 2021 grand opening.

Last month the museum announced the initial $1 million will be needed by Feb. 2021 — a fraction of the overall goal of $5.8 million for the historic childhood home dedicated to the preservation of Ali's legacy as a cultural leader, civil rights advocate, humanitarian and world-class boxer.

Ali, born Cassius Clay Jr., was five years old when his parents purchased the home that is now a museum at 3302 Grand Ave, Louisville, Ky. For 15 years, Ali and his family resided in the modest home in the city’s west end where he first dreamt

of being a boxer, according to museum officials.

“When we came upon the opportunity to acquire the childhood home of Cassius Clay Jr., George Bochetto and I were ecstatic to begin a non-profit museum for all Ali fans,” said Jared Weiss, founder and CEO, Muhammad Ali Childhood Home Museum.

“Muhammad Ali shook up the world and we are better because of it. Restoring his home is an honor to him and a reminder to us to fight for the world we want, no matter who we are or where we are fighting from.”

Weiss adds that funds used from the restoration campaign will be used to restore the Clay family home, and to build a welcome center for the museum.

Donations will also be used to expand the museum footprint, improve the grounds, create communi-

ty programs and establish a financial endowment.

With a commitment to the community, sponsorships and scholarships dedicated specifically to the youth of the Louisville community will also be a priority of the organization and restoration campaign, according to Weiss.

The campaign is seeking donations ranging from one-time micro giving, to reoccurring monthly gifts starting as low as $5, to higher funding levels, like the $500 welterweight level and $2.5 million G.O.A.T (for greatest of all time) level.

The museum organizers said donors are encouraged to give now and be part of the legacy by receiving commemorative plaques, owning a small piece of the home itself, video tributes, funding scholarships or providing naming rights to the welcome center, depending on the donation amount.

5 Muhammad Ali’s childhood home in Louisville, K.Y. (Photo courtesy of The Muhammad Ali Childhood Home Museum)

They added that the goal of The Muhammad Ali Childhood Home Museum, a 501(c)(3) non-profit, is to help guests relive Ali's triumphs and struggles.

“To know that others can step into the room we grew up in, or the backyard he played in, and the back room he and I shadow boxed in is incred-

ible. It's like stepping back in time,” said Rahman Ali, Ali's brother.

“This museum, my childhood home, is meant to inspire all of us to reach what my brother Muhammad fought so hard for – opportunity for all. I'm confident we can hit the first million in record time and kick off this very important project!” WI

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DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 17

NATIONAL Trump Continues to Flip Flop on Conceding Election and a Peaceful Transition Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer @StacyBrownMedia

Lame-Duck President Donald Trump continues to flip flop on conceding the 2020 presidential election to Joe Biden.

After weeks of falsely claiming he’s the winner, Trump authorized the General Services Administration to turn over critical presidential transition material to Biden.

However, within days of that

decision, Trump reverted to false claims that he’s the victim of widespread and unproven voter fraud despite numerous court rulings to the contrary.

Desperate to hang on to power, Trump lashed out at a journalist, yelling, “I’m the President of the United States. Don’t ever talk to the President that way.”

The Republican demagogue then engaged in a tweetstorm egging on his tens of millions of followers while casting doubt on

5 Lame-Duck President Donald Trump (Courtesy photo)

the election’s legality.

“Five more ways Joe Biden magically outperformed election norms,” Trump tweeted. He captioned the tweet: “A must-read. Impossible for Biden to have overcome these, and even greater, odds!”

And to cement his status as the only modern-day president to blow up American democracy, Trump pressed on: “Primary point made was that the 2020 Election was

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RIGGED and that I WON!” Speaking to news crews gathered to watch the traditional holiday conversation with the military, Trump denounced officials in battleground states he’d lost as “communists” and “enemies of the state.”

The Associated Press [AP] reported that Trump also announced he’d be traveling to Georgia to meet with what he said would be tens of thousands of supporters on Dec. 5 ahead of two runoffs there that will likely determine whether Republicans or Democrats control the Senate.

According to the AP and other outlets, the end goal for Trump remains to try and prevent enough states from certifying election results which would keep Biden from claiming the 270 Electoral College votes needed to win the presidency.

Biden currently has 306, well above the margin of victory.

If Trump were to convince the states not to certify the election, the U.S. House of Representatives would choose the next president.

“I think the strategy of the Trump team is not to get him to 270 but to keep [Joe] Biden from getting to 270,” Dershowitz told Zenger News in a video interview, referring to the minimum number of Electoral College votes required to capture the White House.

Today, Biden would have 306 electoral votes if all 50 state governments were to certify their unofficial vote totals.

“I don’t think this is a charade of some kind,” he said of the many legal efforts of Trump’s legal team now spread thin across Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

“He believes the legal claims ad-

vanced by the Republicans appear to be largely sound,” Dershowitz said.

“Vice President Biden is not yet the president-elect. He hasn’t gotten the 270 certified votes yet.

There are so many contingencies that could occur, that anyone who tells you now with 100 percent certainty they can predict the outcome is not being straight with you.”

If Biden were limited to 269 or fewer votes when the Electoral College meets, the U.S. Constitution’s 12th Amendment requires members of the newly-elected House of Representatives to go into session immediately and resolve the presidential stalemate through a “contingent election.”

Only 50 votes would be cast in the House, one from each state’s congressional delegation. Democrats will continue to occupy more than half of all House seats but Republicans will hold majorities in 26 of the 50 delegations—the bare minimum required to elect a president.

However, Trump’s attempts to stop certification has so far fallen short. Among his latest attempts, a federal appeals court in Philadelphia rejected his effort to challenge the state’s election results.

The Philadelphia judges ruled that Trump’s claims of voter fraud had no merit.

“Free, fair elections are the lifeblood of our democracy. Charges of unfairness are serious. But calling an election unfair does not make it so. Charges require specific allegations and then proof. We have neither here,” Judge Stephanos Bibas wrote for the threejudge panel.

WI

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NATIONAL Smoking’s Bad for Your Health but Some Say, ‘So is the Pandemic’

Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer @StacyBrownMedia

Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles, and Cedars Sinai Medical Center recently conducted a study that suggests smoking increases the risk of more severe lung disease in cases of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus infection.

While the U.S. Surgeon General and scientists have long established that smoking remains a deadly habit, the current pandemic poses an even more significant threat for smokers.

Across the globe, Turkey’s government has banned smoking in outdoor spaces to try and blunt the rise of COVID-19 cases.

But given the potential health risks, why do people pick up the habit?

“Our lives are being dictated by outside forces leaving many peo-

ple depressed and feeling out of control. While smoking can make people feel more relaxed, a bigger reason why more people are smoking is that they can feel in control,” Dr. Andrew Selepak, a program coordinator at the University of Florida’s College of Journalism and Communications, said in an email.

“People know smoking and tobacco is bad for them but while they are being required to wear masks and social distance, smoking is a form of rebellion, although not a very smart one during a respiratory pandemic,” he said.

Selepak called smoking a legal form of rebellion from government mandates.

“It is a misguided way to take back power over your own life and have control over your own death and health, especially at a time when thousands are dying from a disease that we still don’t understand,” he declared.

“In a way, smoking cigarettes is a way to take back control over the most important thing in our lives, our death, by being the one who decides what that death will be caused by rather than the unknown of a global pandemic,” Selepak concluded.

With the pandemic’s stress, many people have grown overcome with boredom and find smoking a way to escape the chaos of everyday life, offered Mariam Simmons, a fashion trendsetter.

“Smoking makes people physically and mentally dependent on nicotine, so trying to quit results in symptoms like headaches, depression, anxiety, slower heart rate, and so forth. So, they start using tobacco again,” Simmons opined.

According to the National Cancer Institute, the average cost of a pack of cigarettes is $6.28, or $2,292 per year.

As a psychiatrist, Rhonda J. Mattox said she spends a great deal

(RealTime Images/ABACA/PA Images)

of time addressing smoking cessation and believes there’s a significant relationship between tobacco use and mental disorders.

Her assessment can be supported from a report released by the National Institute of Mental Health which noted that those

with mental illness smoke at twoto-four times the general population’s rate.

“I am witnessing a surge in a relapse in nicotine use in many of my patients who had kicked the

SMOKING Page 26

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Sudan Needs $150 Million to Tackle Refugee Crisis Some $150 million is needed to tackle the refugee crisis in Sudan, the UN Refugee Agency boss said on Saturday, Nov. 28.

Tens of thousands of Ethiopians have fled from the embattled northern Tigray region to seek refuge in Sudan, and UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filipo Grandi appealed for donor support during a visit to a refugee camp in Sudan, AfricaNews reported on Sunday, Nov. 29. ''Five hundred people per day,” Grandi said. “This is what we got in the last few days.

Five, six hundred refugees coming into the country per day. In rich countries, this would bring governments down. In here, the government of Sudan has kept the border open.

UNHCR, the UN and humanitarian community need about 150 million dollars for the next six months to help the government of Sudan manage this refugee crisis."

The Tigray conflict broke out on Nov. 4 between Ethiopia's federal forces and leaders of the region's ruling party.

Sudan has since become a refuge for over 43,000 Ethiopian refugees fleeing from the intense fighting. The East African nation is accommodating the mass refugee influx as it struggles with its own economic crisis. The country is also going through a fragile transition since the April 2019 ouster of long serving-leader Omar al-Bashir, after unprecedented mass protests, triggered by economic hardship.

Meanwhile, Ethiopia’s army said on Saturday that it had taken control of Mekele, the capital of the embattled northern Tigray region and officials said they were now hunting for the dissident leaders. The announcement came after heavy shelling was reported in Mekele. Ethiopian Chief of General Staff Berhanu Jula [OB1] told the press that over 7,000 soldiers have been freed.

"We are looking for anti-peace forces hiding in every nook and cranny,” Jula said. “We freed more than 7,000 North division soldiers. We control our North division camp and all tanks and heavy weapons."

Earlier on Saturday, the local government said that heavy shelling had rocked the center of Mekele.This statement was confirmed by two humanitarian officials with staff in the city, AFP reported.

More than three weeks of fighting in Tigray has left thousands of people dead, with tens of thousands more fleeing to Sudan for refuge.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, winner of last year's Nobel Peace Prize, announced Nov. 4 that he had ordered military operations against the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF).

On Thursday, he ordered a "final" offensive against the Tigray military. The TPLF was contacted Saturday after the army's statement but could not be reached immediately. WI

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The swift deportation of 160 Venezuelans by Trinidad’s Ministry of National Security late Saturday came on the cusp of a planned meeting between Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley and Venezuela's President Nicholas Maduro. The deportation also follows the fiasco last week in which 27 Venezuelans, including 16 minors, were escorted back to Venezuela on the order of Trinidad officials last Sunday, only to return two days later.

That incident, which has attracted international headlines, prompted Maduro to request a meeting with the Trinidad &Tobago government to address matters of "security, human mobility, crime, and drug trafficking," according to a tweet posted by Venezuela's Foreign Affairs Minister Jorge Arreaza. The time and details of that meeting are yet to be ironed out.

Trinidad & Tobago Minister of National Security Stuart Young in a media release on Saturday stated that it had come to his attention, via a media report, that certain lawyers approached a High Court Judge and that the judge made certain orders pertaining to some Venezuelans who are in T&T illegally.

Young said the state was not represented at this hearing and he has spoken to Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi for this particular matter to be appropriately addressed.

In a statement to Guardian Media, Al-Rawi said the office of the attorney general has noticed unconfirmed reports in the media that proceedings were allegedly filed in High Court on Saturday relative to immigration and deportation matters.

“I can confirm that no proceedings have been served on the Attorney General, Minister of National Security or even the Immigration authorities as far as I am aware, and have been advised nor has for that matter, any order as reported in the media been served upon us,” Al-Rawi said. “If there are indeed proceedings they may have been filed and heard ex-parte without the State’s involvement.” WI

THE WASHINGTON INFORMER / WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

Urgent Versus Emergent Care: When Is the ER Right for You? Submitted by AmeriHealth Caritas District of Columbia

Imagine your child has been up since 3 a.m. with an earache.

Or your niece has fallen while playing basketball and may have sprained her wrist. Or perhaps you have burned yourself while cooking dinner. When do you head to an urgent care clinic, and when to a hospital ER? When does the problem need urgent medical care, and when is it a medical emergency?

When you or someone you love becomes sick or injured, you need to decide how serious it is and how soon to get care. You can follow this rule of thumb:1 • If the problem threatens a life or could cause a permanent disability, seek emergency care right away • If the problem does not threaten a life or risk disability, but you are worried that you can’t see a health care provider soon enough, seek urgent care

Which health problems are emergencies?

Emergency care is medical care you need right away. An emergency illness or injury can cause your whole body or parts of your body to stop working or to not work correctly. If you have an emergency, call 911 or go to the ER. Call 911 immediately for any of these problems, because they cannot wait:1 • Choking or stopped breathing • Head injury with confusion, fainting, or passing out • Neck or spine injury, especially if the person loses body feeling or can’t move • Severe chest pain or pressure • Severe burn • Electric shock or lightning strike • Seizure that lasts at least three minutes Go to the ER or call 911 for any of these problems:1 • Trouble breathing • Severe pain anywhere on the body • Dizziness or weakness that

does not go away • High-grade fever with headache, stiff neck, or no improvement with medicine • Unusual or bad headache, especially if it came on quickly • Coughing or throwing up blood • Severe allergic reaction with trouble breathing, swelling, or hives • Poisoning or overdose of a drug or alcohol • Suicidal thoughts Which health problems need urgent care?

Urgent care is medical care you need within 24 hours for a problem that may not be an emergency.

Go to an urgent care clinic for any of these problems:1 • Common illnesses, like colds, the flu, earaches, and rashes • Less serious injuries, like sprains, minor cuts and burns, or back pain

Source: “When to Use the Emergency Room — Adult,” MedlinePlus, https://medlineplus.gov/ency/patientinstructions/000593.htm All images are used under license for illustrative purposes only. Any individual depicted is a model

#BestMe Getting Urgent Care When You Need It • Use the MYidealDOCTOR app Unsure whether to go to urgent care, the ER, or your primary care provider’s (PCP’s) office? If you are an AmeriHealth Caritas District of Columbia (DC) enrollee, we can help you choose the best place for your medical needs. We can also help you get a ride to your medical care. Call our 24/7 Nurse Call Line at 1-877-759-6279, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Urgent care by phone MYidealDOCTOR is an AmeriHealth Caritas DC provider that offers enrollees access to urgent care health professionals, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

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on your mobile device* • Call MYidealDOCTOR at 1-855-879-4332 • Visit www.myidealdoctor.com * Standard messaging and data fees may apply.

The information in this material is to help you learn more about this topic. It is not to take the place of your health care provider. If you have questions, talk with your health care provider. If you think you need to see your health care provider because of something you have read in this information, please contact your health care provider. Never stop or wait to get medical attention because of something you have read in this material.

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DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 21

HEALTH COVID-19 UPDATE

Whitman-Walker Launches Major Exhibit in Wake of World AIDS Day 2020 Hamil R. Harris WI Contributing Writer World AIDS Day Dec. 1 drew global observances in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic and one of the most colorful came just a few days later with the opening Dec. 5 of the Whitman-Walker Clinic’s new cultural center--The Corner –and curtain-raising exhibition: “See You There: Making History at Whitman-Walker”!

The exhibition of photos, artwork and documents marks an effort by Whitman-Walker to

launch a “an ambitious long-term program at the intersection of art, health and education, determined to contribute to social justice and equality.”

Inspired by the Whitman-Walker Oral History Project, officials say that the exhibition tells the story of a clinic that was one of the earliest U.S. healthcare institutions focused on the LGBTQ community as well those fighting for HIV/AIDS. The exhibition runs from Dec. 5 to March 28, 2021 and is available for in-person visits (with required

mask use, limited capacity, contact tracing and social distancing in place to help prevent the spread of COVID-19).The exhibition is also available online for those who cannot attend in person.

“Our goal of ending the AIDS epidemic was already off track before COVID-19. We must put people first to get the AIDS response back on track. We must end the social injustices that put people at risk of contracting HIV,” said Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations Winnie Byanyima, executive director of UNAIDS. In a statement for World AIDS day, Byanyima said in a statement, “There is no excuse for governments to not invest fully for universal access to health. Barriers such as up-front user fees that lock people out of health must come down.”

The event comes more than three decades after Acquired Immune-Deficiency Syndrome exploded into the global consciousness as an incurable disease associated with homosexuality.

But more than three decades later HIV/AIDs is no longer a death sentence and on Dec. 1 residents in the District and around the globe celebrated World AIDS Day with a series of events where world leaders focused on the intercon-

5 A sculpture by British-Nigerian artist Yinka Shonibare, located outside of the Whitman Walker clinic in Northwest. (Screen grab/WhitmanWalker IG)

nectedness between Coronavirus pandemic and HIV/AIDS. Advocates are still fighting indifference. Phil Pannell, 70, executive director of the Anacostia Coordinating Council and a long time gay in Southeast Washington., “Here in Ward 8 World AIDS Day is hardly known very much beyond those who are not connected with the Max Robinson Center.”

“In my mind AIDs in the black community has gone the same

‘Love Up’ Family, Friends Living with HIV/AIDS William J. Ford WI Staff Writer @jabariwill

5 Stephen Bridges of the District offers advice for people living with HIV and how families can offer support during a virtual discussion Nov. 30 on eliminating HIV/AIDS. (Screen grab: Prince George’s County Health Department and WUSA9)

22 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

5 Harold J. Phillips, senior HIV advisor and chief operating officer of “Ending the HIV Epidemic: A Plan for America” with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, gives remarks during virtual discussion Nov. 30 on eliminating HIV/AIDS. (Screen grab: Prince George’s County Health Department and WUSA9)

Stephen Bridges received more than his share of negative treatment growing up as a gay Black man, especially living with HIV/ AIDS. Bridges, who became diagnosed with the virus 31 years ago, said he got bullied by Black people and those in the Black church who “made it clear [I’m] going to hell.”

Now at 58, living in the District, he says there’s at least one person who has his back: comedian and radio personality Joe Clair.

“Yes, we do have different last names. This is my older brother.

My advocacy really comes from him,” Clair said Monday, Nov. 30 during a virtual discussion on eliminating HIV/AIDS. “He set a great example for me as a young man. I have him to thank for that.”

Clair headlined a one-hour discussion sponsored by the Prince George’s County Health Department along with WUSA9-TV with up to 115 people logged on.

According to a September report from the Maryland Department of Health, about 31,630 residents lived with HIV/AIDS in 2019.

Last year, the state reported about 931 people received HIV+ diagnoses with 74 percent of them Black and 11 percent each white and Latino.

The majority Black jurisdictions of Prince George’s and Baltimore City recorded the highest rate of new HIV+ diagnoses last year with at least 25.8 per 100,000 people. The state average rate: 18.6.

The county’s Health Department has joined the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in a goal to reduce new

way as sickle cell. Today sickle cell is not the disease de jure,” Pannell said. “Everything pales compared to the corona pandemic. When was the last time you see someone wearing a red ribbon?”

“The situation with AIDs is because of the advancements has gone in the same way as sexually transmitted diseases went in our generation. You go get your medicines and you keep getting up, but there still a problem in our community.” WI HIV infections by 75 percent in five years and at least 90 percent over the next decade.

Prince George’s will join 47 other targeted areas nationwide to secure funding and other resources in fighting the epidemic.

It especially helps during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic with nearly 42,000 confirmed cases in the county, which continues to lead the state.

Diane Young, a registered nurse and associate director with the county’s Family Health Services Division in the health department, said HIV services are now gender neutral and those who aren’t diagnosed with the virus can also access various housing, financial assistance and job training support.

“We offer a range of services to try and keep people healthy,” she said. “COVIE-19 has really highlighted what’s going on [with] the disparities in health care and

THE WASHINGTON INFORMER / WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

HIV Page 23

HIV from Page 22 it crosses all social and economic demographics,” she said.

Health agencies define HIV, which stands for human immunodeficiency virus, as an infection that attacks the immune system.

Medication can control the virus allowing people to live long, productive lives.

Contracting HIV can lead to the development of AIDS, or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, and cause other infections in the body such as pneumonia, tuberculosis and lymphoma.

The conversation took place one day before World Aids Day on Tuesday, Dec. 1, which commemorates those who died from the deadly disease while continuing to seek ways to fight the disease and celebrate those who live with HIV. Although medications such as PrEP and PEP (pre- and post-exposure prophylaxis) help prevent HIV infection, Bridges said people living with the virus should receive therapy and support from loved ones.

“I recommend therapy and being honest – not +++being ashamed about the disease and your infection,” he said. “To families, I strongly encourage that you embrace the family member or friend and let them know it’s going to be ok. Love up on your family member and friend and hold them close and, as best you can, guide them through the process so that they never feel alone.”

WI

Last year, the state reported about 931 people received HIV+ diagnoses with 74 percent of them Black and 11 percent each white and Latino.

HEALTH

DOMINIC from Page 8

moving that you couldn’t help but “take off your shoe and throw it at her.”

Rounding up my list – Mervyn Warren’s (a founding member of the incomparable a cappella group, Take 6) “Handel’s Messiah: A Soulful Celebration.” I guess al-

But for Black folk who consider themselves vocalists, there was nothing better than the nuanced, if not spectacular arrangements on what we referred to as the “Soulful Messiah” – a gospel album that featured various artists... most everyone’s either heard Handel’s masterful “The Messiah” in its original form. Perhaps you’ve even had the joy and pleasure of attending a church service or concert where you were able to sing along as his masterpiece was performed by orchestra, choir and soloists.

But for Black folk who consider themselves vocalists, there was nothing better than the nuanced, if not spectacular arrangements on

You’re Invited! Open House Event

what we referred to as the “Soulful Messiah” – a gospel album that featured various artists including Stevie Wonder, Tevin Campbell, Take 6, Vanessa Bell Armstrong, Daryl Coley, Tramaine Hawkins and Dianne Reeves, Patti Austin and Howard Hewitt.

I could list more but I hear the music playing. It’s beginning to “sound” a lot like Christmas.

WI

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DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 23

HEALTH

Train your Brain: Tackling Alzheimer's Disease Brigette Squire WI Contributing Writer

Reverse cognitive decline with healthy habits.

Over 5 million Americans have Alzheimer’s disease. Out of those millions the majority age from 60 and over and rely on close family members and assisted living caregivers to aid them.

According to ALZ.org, Dementia is a general term for a decline in mental ability severe enough to interfere with daily life. Alzheimer's is a specific disease. Dementia describes the condition. ”Often people are confused about the difference between Dementia and Alzhiemers. A patient can have signs of dementia two to three decades before being diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. It happens slowly over time heavily due to lifestyle choices,” expresses Dr. Daniel Amen.

Amen, founder of Amen Clinics in Reston, Va., has worked

24 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

with thousands of mental health patients providing psychiatric and brain health care to the greater Washington, D.C. area for 30 years. He is a brain expert and author of “Change Your Brain, Change Your Life.”

The clinic uses brain imaging technology to identify specific brain types, tailoring a targeted treatment plan to enhance their patient’s quality of life. “Our brain imaging work has made it clear that “mental health” conditions are actually “brain health” issues that steal your mind. These issues often go undetected or are misdiagnosed, and symptoms can be debilitating for years. We use a brain imaging diagnostic tool called SPECT (Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography) to help accurately identify underlying brain issues that can contribute to symptoms. This means you get the right diagnosis and most effective treatment for faster healing,” said Amen.

Researchers say that the workings of the heart and the mind are interconnected with about 80 percent of individuals with Alzheimer’s also having some form of heart disease.

"Nobody cares about their brain. Because you can't see it.

The heart, however, you can at least feel. Based on a study of 8,000 patients we did, the brain gets less active as individuals age.

Sort of like when your skin starts falls off your face. The exact same process is happening in your brain. It's all about blood flow; the brain does not have to deteriorate, ” shares Dr. Amen.

If you are genetically predisposed to Alzheimer's disease you are more likely to also inherit the behaviors that trigger the disease which leads you to be more at risk.

“My book ‘Rediscovering Dad & Discovering Myself ’ provides a path for Alzheimers caregivers to follow so that they know they

5 A slide showing Brain SPECT images of a healthy brain and one with Alzheimer’s disease from Dr. Amen’s lecture titled “Train your Brian” given to a crowd of Integrative Institute of Nutrition students in New York. (Pre-recorded video screen grab/Brigette Squire)

are not alone. Often caregivers are unsung heroes. I also wanted to highlight the bond between father and son,” said Brandon Burke.

Burke is a native Baltimorean and a graduate of Hampton University, residing in the Washington, D.C. area. He is an active supporter of the local Alzheimer's Association NCA that provides hope and help to families that are impacted by dementia. Burke's first battle with Alzhiemer’s started with his grandmother and subsequently when his father was diagnosed in 2015. ”I’m extremely worried about me and other members of my family getting it and it’s difficult because when caring for a loved one, you are longing and hoping they will show some glimmer of what they used to be. It’s like a slow death. I want people to know that they are not alone,” Burke said.

When people think of a ”developing brain” they think of the adolescent but new research is showing that there is a way to grow your brain and reverse some of the self-imposed and environmental damages. .John Assaraf, best selling Author and founder of NeuroGym, introduces the idea of improving your intelligence. ” Your intelligence can be changed. There are 80 million to 100 billion neurons that should

be working in your brain at all times. When you go to the gym and exercise your muscles you don’t work on things that are easy for your muscles to do. You do things that your muscles have to struggle with. Then they rebuild themselves and come back stronger. By struggling it is a signal to your body that you need to devote more resources to that part of the body. Stimulate the mind with new ideas,” said Assaraf.

You must ask challenging questions to have a stronger; more able brain. Although your brain isn't a true “muscle,” its complex cellular structure and grey and white matter do function in a similar way to “training” your body's muscles. The IQ is not fixed; you can activate your genius parts of your brain and reverse cognitive decline and retain memories for longer periods of time.

With the holidays nearing, know that the best gift you can give yourself and your loved ones is to exert your brain. Start adding small steps to your daily routine to be proactive when it comes to mental health. ”You have to make wise decisions over time to decrease your vulnerability to Alzheimers. The best prevention is to decrease illnesses that increase risk, such as obesity, diabetes, depression, sleep apnea and heart disease, ” encourages Dr. Amen.

WI

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The Most Important Factor in Your Family’s Education is

YOU

Give your family the best chance for success by supporting their education at home and at school.

Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, sticking to a schedule, partnering with teachers and administrators, utilizing culturally sensitive best practices, and tapping into local resources are just a few of the ways that you can support distance learning at home and keep your family on track for educational success.

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DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 25

EDUCATION District's School Leaders Showcase CARE Classrooms Sam P.K. Collins WI Contributing Writer @SamPKCollins Toward the latter part of November, hundreds of elementary schoolers returned to District classrooms as part of an arrangement that D.C. Public Schools (DCPS) officials said will meet the needs of parents struggling to balance work obligations and the facilitation of their children’s virtual learning experience.

Despite some community members’ apprehensions about the launch of Canvas Academics and Real Engagement (CARE) classrooms amid a resurgence in COVID-19 cases, some school leaders who’ve embarked on this journey said they’ve taken the proper measures to protect students and staff members.

“We had to ensure that our custodians were being trained, going to webinars and receiving the right type of professional development on how to keep a building safe and

DCPS

BRIEFS

26 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

secure,” said Lisa Rosado, principal of Savoy Elementary School in Southeast, one of 25 District public schools that launched CARE classrooms on Nov. 18.

Rosado recently led DCPS Chancellor Lewis Ferebee on a tour of Savoy, during which the duo and others watched three groups of no more than eight students, at socially distanced desks, engaging in virtual learning while under the supervision of a staff member.

Each classroom had copious amounts of hand sanitizer, wipes and other cleaning materials. In the hallways, staff members stationed at desks helped coordinate the movement of students between their classroom and a specifically designated restroom. As has long been the case, visitors also had their temperatures taken before entering the premises.

Rosado said these plans jelled together immediately after Ferebee and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser approached her about hosting Compiled by Dorothy Rowley WI Staff Writer

EMERGENCY COMPLIANCE

The collection of daily attendance for both in-person and remote instruction remain vital as the District continues to respond to the ongoing COVID-19 health emergency in compliance with the Office of the State Superintendent of Education’s proposed regulations. The State Board will discuss the proposed regulations in preparation for a vote at its Dec. 16 public meeting.

(Courtesy photo/wjla.com)

CARE classrooms at Savoy.

“We were given a wait-list and called each parent to ask if they wanted to join us,” Rosado told The Informer.

“We had to create a master schedule that meets the needs of our CARE and virtual students.

We did a building walk-through with our LSAT and WTU members,” added Rosado, in her fourth year as principal at Savoy.

As of Nov. 28, the District has recorded more than 21,300 coronavirus cases and 678 COVID-related deaths.

Earlier this year, the DCPS central office and Bowser revealed that, despite reneging on reopening plans for Term 2, they would maintain CARE classrooms as a resource for students in need of supervised instruction.

The second phase of CARE classrooms launched this week with subsequent phases scheduled

to begin during the weeks of Dec. 9 and Jan. 6. Other sites that joined Savoy include Brightwood Education Campus in Northwest, and Stanton Elementary, Moten Elementary and Excel Academy in Southeast.

With nearly 50 CARE classrooms currently open, DCPS officials are hinting at the addition of spaces to meet parents’ demands. During Phase I of this experience, classroom facilitators are staff members from the school in which the CARE classroom is located. Subsequent phases will most likely include temporary hires and additional DCPS staff.

These plans differed from DCPS’ initial plans that, much to the chagrin of Local School Advisory Teams (LSAT), would have transferred middle and high school staff members to the elementary schools hosting CARE classrooms.

In response to that proposal, McKinley Technology High School’s LSAT, after conferring with another on-campus parent group and others around the District, railed against the proposed reshuffling of staff members. In October, parents wrote a letter requesting a meeting with Bowser and Ferebee about the issue, and the overarching question of how to safely reopen schools. That, in addition to other complaints, compelled the DCPS central office to change direction.

“We will likely at some point have staff members from our middle and high schools but we have changed the scope of that work based on the feedback from our principals who thought it would compromise their operations,” Ferebee told The Informer.

“We’re still working with our middle and high school principles to identify the right people.” WI

‘GUIDING PRINCIPLES’

SMOKING from Page 19

sponse to the pandemic and social isolation.

“We have lost connectivity and I don’t mean zoom. We have been masked and socially distanced,” Gross said. “Smoking, for some, relieves anxiety and creates a connection between oneself and the cigarette in one’s hands.”

“And, since trauma abounds, we show trauma symptomology, and that lets us resort to “bad” habits because we are not exactly in control – our autonomic nervous system is on high alert. The bottom line: Yes, smoking is bad for our health. So is the pandemic. So is trauma,” Gross said.

WI

The Office of the State Superintendent of Education’s “20 Guiding Principles” focus on ensuring that revised D.C. social studies standards will include fewer, higher and clearer rigorous requirements for coherent, developmentally appropriate and vertical alignment across grades Pre-K–12.

The Guiding Principles push for revised standards that expand on the types of skills and knowledge to which all D.C. students should be guaranteed, as well as recognize

HEALTH Page 34

habit years ago,” Mattox said.

“I’m also seeing an increase in nicotine use in those already using nicotine. The natural leap is that anxiety and emotional stressors appear to be contributing to an increase in nicotine use. I have especially seen this more in patients who are unable to afford their psychiatric medications or have chosen to stop taking their medications.”

Karen Gross, an educational commentator and senior counsel at Finn Partners in Northwest, attributed the increase in smoking due, in part, to individual’s re-

THE WASHINGTON INFORMER / WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

EDUCATION

Proposed Study May Open Doors for Minority Firms to Win City Contracts James Wright WI Staff Writer @JamesDCWrighter

Alfred Swailes, owner of A&A Premium Painting Distributor, LLC in Northeast D.C., also is a key architect of the D.C. Black Business Task Force, which has long contended that Black businesses are not being served well by the District’s existing Certified Business Enterprise (CBE) program.

The Black firms are often left out of contracting opportunities, Swailes and the task force argues, by systemic or covert racial discrimination and, absent documentation, can’t prove discrimination is occurring.

However, there’s hope on the horizon. Nov. 17, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser announced the city’s economic planning office

will conduct a city-wide study “to examine the availability and utilization of minority-and women-owned businesses under D.C. procurement and contracting activities” since 2017 and create a minority business enterprise program.

When Swailes heard about the proposed study, he said, he began to believe there’s light at the end of the tunnel. “This is great,” he said. “The disparity study will show that Black businesses are largely missing out in the District government’s contracting program. D.C. is the only jurisdiction on the East Coast that doesn’t have a minority business enterprise program and that is what is needed, a true minority business program.”

The disparity study is funded by a bill authored by D.C. Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie (D-Ward 5), who chairs the Com-

mittee on Business and Economic Development. McDuffie said the coronavirus in the District adversely affects the city’s economy and minority-owned businesses need the support of the District government.

“I funded a disparity study in Fiscal Year 2021, understanding that it is a necessary step to create a true minority business enterprise program, a desperately needed tool to keep the District moving forward as leaders for racial equity and economic issues,” McDuffie said.

The RFP will be open for those interested in it until Jan. 5, 2021.

The solicitation will be a set-aside for CBEs or a joint venture with a CBE as a partner to conduct the disparity study. A pre-proposal conference for those interesting in 5 Kenyan McDuffie represents Ward 5 on the D.C. Council and chairs the Committee on Business and Economic Development. (WI File Photo)

CONTRACTS Page 46

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For at-home, on-demand care and COVID testing, call (202) 602- 0814 Ready comes to your home, is open 8am to 8pm, seven days per week, and serves all 8 Wards

SAVE TIME IN THE LINE Before you go, register to save time in line: You do not need a doctor's note or an appointment for any of the District’s walk-up testing sites. But to save time in line, first visit coronavirus.dc.gov/register to create a profile from your smartphone, tablet or computer.

NEED A TEST? GET A TEST. THEN QUARANTINE. DC residents, 3 years of age and older, experiencing any COVID-19 symptom (fever, cough, sore throat, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, congestion, body aches, chills, runny nose) or with known exposure to COVID-19 should get a COVID-19 test. You DO NOT need a doctor's note for any of the walk-in sites. Testing and quarantine go together. While you wait for your results, protect our community by staying home.

Learn more about testing options and for a full list of testing sites: go to : coronavirus.dc.gov/testing Learn more about COVID 19 information go to: coronavirus.dc.gov or RBCDC.org DC HOPE PROJECT/DC COVID 19 Sponsored by

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621 Alabama Avenue, S.E. Washington, DC 20032 Reverend Curtis L. Staley, Pastor

DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 27

Over the last decade, Comcast has connected 4 million students from low-income homes to low-cost, high-speed Internet.

And now we’re partnering with hundreds of school districts across the country to sponsor free Internet and laptops to help more students learn from home and be ready for anything.

Learn more at comcast.com/education ©2020 Comcast. All rights reserved.

28 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

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OPINIONS/EDITORIALS

EDITORIAL Rename it HH Mason Senior High School

A debate is brewing over the renaming of Woodrow Wilson Senior High School in D.C. It is not the first, nor it will be the last of such debates among local residents over the more than 150 D.C. facilities under renaming consideration. The initiative is the result of a study by D.C. Facilities and Commemorative Expressions [DCFACES], a working group established by Mayor Muriel Bowser in July, to ensure District-owned facilities are named for individuals who reflect “contemporary D.C. values,” according to the group’s executive summary.

Renaming the lower portion of 16th Street to Black Lives Matter Plaza was a direct result and a noteworthy beginning of an effort sparked by the unrest following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minn., and numerous other Black lives lost to police killings.

While statues were being dismantled, Bowser brought together eight working group members to research the histories and make recommendations for eligible facilities and individuals for whom they could be renamed.

“Our decision-making prism focused on key disqualifying histories, including participation in slavery, systemic racism, mistreatment of, or actions that suppressed equality for, persons of color, women and LGBTQ communities and violation of the DC Human Right[s] Act,” wrote Beverly Perry and Richard Reyes-Gavilan, chairs of the working group, in a letter to the mayor.

Despite the discomfort and unreadiness some may have over the changes soon to come, we believe this to be a long-overdue opportunity to give honor to those who gave their all to the District, including Dr. Calvin W. Rolark, founder of The Washington Informer and United Black Fund, and Wilhelmina J. Rolark who served 16 years on the D.C. Council and whose legislation benefits District residents today.

But we’re talking about Wilson Senior High School, named after the former U.S. president with a racist legacy. Of the individuals for whom the school will be renamed (see https://bit. ly/2I06vmB), our vote is for Hilda Howland Mason – a teacher, counselor and administrator in the D.C. Public Schools for 19 years. Mason, the self-proclaimed “Grandmother of the World,” was elected to the Board of Education from Ward 4 from 1972 – 1977 and later appointed to the D.C. Council to fulfill the unexpired term of Julius Hobson, Sr. of the Statehood Party. A forceful Statehood advocate, beloved across the District’s eight wards, she was later elected to the at-large Council seat in a special election in July 1977, later winning reelection four more times.

Hilda Mason is a forgotten D.C. heroine whose contributions to the District should be taught and whose legacy should not be forgotten. While DCFACES’s efforts are commendable, it appears that an extra effort must be made to ensure that women are given equal consideration for renaming opportunities in D.C., as well. WI

Take the ‘Darned’ Vaccine

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan has made the phrase, “wear the damn mask” one of the most quoted requests in 2020. And now, as both Moderna and Pfizer have recently submitted an Emergency Use Authorization [EUA] for two vaccines which would immediately benefit frontline workers and those hospitalized, it looks like real life-saving measures remain just weeks away.

On Monday, Vice President Mike Pence told governors during a conference call with the White House Coronavirus Task Force that some doses of the vaccine could begin to be distributed as early as mid-December.

But the U.S. won’t be the first nation to approve a vaccine and began administering it to the public.

Breaking news on Tuesday confirmed that the United Kingdom has become the first country in the West to approve a COVID-19 vaccine for public use. British officials say the vaccine, developed jointly by American drug maker Pfizer and Germany’s BioNTech, will be distributed starting next week.

In the coming days, many predict that EUA will be approved for either Pfizer, Moderna, or both pharmaceutical companies.

At that point, the arduous task of distributing the vaccine will begin – and not a moment too soon.

Florida recently joined California and Texas as the only U.S. states or territories to record over one million cases of COVID-19. As for those who will receive the vaccine first, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officially voted Tuesday to recommend that health care workers and long-term care [LTC] facility residents should be the first Americans to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

Their decision remains prudent with many hospitals facing a severe shortage of doctors and

TO THE EDITOR Keep Distancing for Holidays

Give a Child a Home in Pandemic

Totally agree with the editor's column!

Our family had a virtual Thanksgiving this year and I'm so glad we did. Turns out a few family members we would normally gather with have COVID-19 symptoms and are awaiting their results. I'm glad my family decided to follow CDC recommendations and stay safe.

So happy to read that adoptions are still happening despite COVID-19 closing everything down. Children still need homes and I think even more so during this pandemic. Kudos to all the parents providing safe, warm homes this holiday.

Channing Milliard Washington, D.C.

nurses because these frontline workers have contracted the virus – many even losing their lives. As for LTC facilities, the most recent available data reveals that while they make up eight percent of all coronavirus cases, their residents represent more than 40 percent of all COVID-19 deaths.

The CDC routinely publishes recommendations for adult and childhood vaccination which include immunization against influenza, tetanus-diphtheria, human papillomavirus, herpes zoster, measles-mumps-rubella and streptococcus pneumoniae. Still, many American adults remain woefully and inadequately vaccinated.

Hogan’s unforgettable phrase makes sense – we must all be vaccinated. Still, local officials will need

WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM / THE WASHINGTON INFORMER

Paula Alonzo Washington, D.C.

to ensure that neither operational or systemic barriers hinder the process.

Adult vaccination noncompliance has historically occurred because of factors which include low priority, lack of information, fear or opposition to vaccines, cost and availability. We can ill-afford for these factors to keep us cowering in our homes, unable to safely return to a semblance of normal, separated from our loved ones or unable to secure gainful employment – all the while waiting for our “number” to be called.

Protect yourself and others. When the vaccine becomes available, get in line, roll up your sleeve and take the ‘darned’ thing.

WI

DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 29

OPINIONS/EDITORIALS Guest Columnist

Julianne Malveaux

Young Voters Showed Up and Showed Out

Voters between 18 and 29 made history in the 2020 election. According to the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning & Engagement, or CIRCLE (https:// circle.tufts.edu/2020-election-center), at least 52% of them, and perhaps as many as 55%, voted.

That turnout is at least 10 percentage points higher than in 2016 and the highest voting level among that

age group since the 26th Amendment granted those over 18 were granted the right to vote in 1971.

Not only did young people vote in unprecedented numbers, but they also voted heavily in swing states like Georgia and Michigan. Arguably, young people are responsible for the Biden victory. Virtually every population subgroup can claim part of the credit for the Biden victory. Black women voted for him by higher margins than any other group. Latinx voters in Arizona put him over the top n that state. Among young peo-

ple, every group, except white men, voted for former Vice President Joe Biden.

The CIRCLE study of young voters offers lessons for upcoming elections. Young voters made up their minds about their electoral choice later than other votes. Three-quarters of those over 29 had their minds made up from the beginning. CIRCLE also suggests that information about early voting, mail-in ballots, and other procedures was not as available as it might have been. Despite a massive attempt to get out the vote

Guest Columnist

by African American activists, fewer African American youth voted in person, partly because many did not get enough information about voting mechanics. Some of this is due to voter suppression, and some may be due to insufficient outreach. Also, many who are students may have faced barriers in voting.

Those of us who are elders have often lamented that young folks don't vote, but the CIRCLE study suggests we need to hold our powder. Young voters did not vote as much as the rest of us (total voter participation hovers

at 70%), but they voted more than they ever had, and they had more significant barriers than older voters did. And for those of us who lean left, we must acknowledge that this summer's Black Lives Matter protest may have pulled young people to the polls. According to the CIRCLE studies, young people are concerned about COVID, climate change, racism and the economy. If federal, state, and local governments manage these issues and offer young people

victories won for me by these women. Black men in my campaigns were strong and forceful, the physical image the organization needed, I don't deny that. But diligence was more often worn by the women.

I remember one election when I needed 20 new people registered as voters in each precinct. The young volunteers would bring back three or four and a handful of excuses. But there were elder women, some who did not walk easily, who would return with the full number. One of them said to a

young person, "You don't win elections with good excuses — you need voters!"

Women like Bessie Jones, Elaine Dunn or Luetta B. Wooldridge, who were managers and coordinators for my campaigns. And they stood with me in difficult times when very few had the will.

Rev. Sarah Goshen, an older Black woman with a calm but convincing demeanor, stood up in a storm of attacks on my character during a contro-

MALVEAUX Page 53

Chuck Richardson

The DNA of a Black Woman

There is something magical about a fearless, intelligent, incorruptible Black woman. A woman willing to sacrifice and face any obstacle she must for a greater cause than herself. Black women have been, and continue to be, the crucible of fortitude. Harriet Tubman, Ida B. Wells, Mary McLeod Bethune, Fannie Lou Hamer and thousands beside them have been the bedrock of

African-American progress.

I realized in my late twenties that if you want to get it done — you better have Black women involved. That was when I, in 1977, ran for and won a seat on the first majority Black city council in Richmond, Va. It was the determination of Black women, some more than twice my age, that made the history possible.

When those Black women spoke, weathered by storms of racism, deprivation and personal abuses, it changed the atmosphere. A crowd of timid, doubt-

ful or unfocused lambs became ferocious lions. People today might speak of my legacy of achievements in Richmond, but they don't know the source of my confidence. I can't recall the number of times strong Black women lifted me and forged new inspiration.

From the late '70s to the early '90s, I won nine consecutive reelections. Any success reached by fighting the good fight, including my relentless efforts over two decades to remove the Confederate monuments on Monument Ave, were only possible because of the

Guest Columnists

RICHARDSON Page 53

Gary H. Gibbons and Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable

The Power of Trust and Truth

COVID-19 has killed more than 260,000 people in the U.S., and the death toll continues to rise at a rate of about 1,000 per day. We know, however, that families and communities don't count their losses in thousands or hundreds; they count them one by one — a father, a teacher, a sister, a friend, a nurse, a son, a Tribal elder, a church member. And these losses hurt.

30 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

But some communities feel the impact of COVID-19 more than others. Latinos, along with African Americans and American Indians, account for more than half of all COVID-19-related cases, even though they represent just a third of the population. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), these groups require hospitalization at a rate

about five times higher than whites, due to the severity of their illnesses or lack of early access to health care.

And the mortality outcomes reflect this as well: Latinos and American Indians die at 1.5 times the rate of whites, and African Americans, at 2.4 times the rate.

As scientists and NIH colleagues with more than 60 years of combined research experience in health disparities, we are not surprised by these discouraging statistics.

But these awful numbers also feel deeply personal: they represent our

friends, our family, our loved ones, too, as our roots are in these very communities — Philadelphia's African American neighborhoods, Miami's Cuban immigrant diaspora.

COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus SARSCoV-2, has simply shone a spotlight on health disparities that have long affected underrepresented communities like ours. We know, for example, that obesity, diabetes, and heart disease are more prevalent among people of color. If you

have any of these conditions and contract COVID-19 you run a much higher risk for severe complications and death.

But biology and behavior are just part of the picture. Where we work, whether we have access to quality health care, what we eat, and other socio-economic conditions also drive health disparities.

As we grapple with the effects of these health inequities on our daily lives, we can take simple public

GIBBONS Page 53

THE WASHINGTON INFORMER / WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

OPINIONS/EDITORIALS Guest Columnist

Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr.

Get Ready for Donald Trump's Shadow Government

Leave it to Donald Trump to run brazen subversion — refusal to accept the decision of the voters in the presidential election — as a clown show, marked by wingbat lawyers, delusional tweets, and hailstorms of lies. The noise, however, should not delude us: Trump is leading an American counterreformation right to the edge of

secession, if not beyond. And at the core of this is America's continued struggle with race. Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, the president's lapdog, who just survived a challenge by an African-American Democrat, gave the game away when he declared — on Fox TV, naturally — "If we don't challenge and change the U.S. election system, there'll never be another Republican president elected again. President Trump should not concede."

Trump's defeat revives the horrors Republicans felt with the election of Barack Obama: the stark realization that a party built on racial division as the party of white sanctuary could not survive in a multiracial democracy. Beginning with Barry Goldwater, Republicans grounded their party in the South, building a majority with race-bait politics to divide working people.

Trump was the extreme expression of the strategy, rising to no-

Guest Columnist

toriety by questioning Obama's citizenship, winning with a campaign raising racial fears of lawless immigrants, and governing in the interests of the wealthy, the country club and the special interests.

Trump has sought to undermine this election from the start. For years, he and his party engaged in systematic voter suppression — using gerrymandering, voter intimidation, purges of the voting rolls, restricting the time and places for balloting, imposing new ID

requirements and more.

Then, even before a vote was cast, Trump charged there would be massive electoral fraud. If Trump had won, he would have said it was against the odds. Having lost, he claimed it was rigged.

Then he unleashed his clown lawyers to paper the courts with lawsuits challenging votes without evidence. When even Republican judges rejected his claims, he con-

JACKSON Page 54

Marian Wright Edelman

Words to Live By

I recently received a note from my dear and evergreen friend Maria Nhambu with wise counsel that has circulated for many years under titles like "The Balance Sheet of Life" and "Things We Should All Know."

In a world where so much is uncertain and confusing, this message is timeless and includes tenets of all the great faiths that help bind us together as human beings:

The most destructive habit: Worry.

The world's most incredible computer: The brain.

The greatest joy: Giving.

The worst thing to be without: Hope.

The greatest loss: Loss of self-respect.

The deadliest weapon: The tongue.

The most satisfying work: Helping others.

The two most power-filled words: I can.

The ugliest personality trait: Selfishness.

The greatest asset: Faith.

The greatest "shot in the arm": Encouragement.

The most worthless emotion: Self-pity.

The greatest problem to overcome: Fear.

The most beautiful attire: A smile.

The most effective sleeping pill: Peace of mind.

The most prized possession: Integrity.

The most crippling disease: Excuses.

The most powerful channel of communication: Prayer.

The most powerful force in life: Love.

The most contagious spirit: Enthusiasm.

WI

The most dangerous act: Gossip.

Askia-At-Large

Askia Muhammad

Yes, Americans, This IS Who You Are

With every gruesome Black life murdered, beat down, falsely arrested, cheated out of their property that's now captured on camera; with every horror perpetrated by a white person, in uniform or just another "Karen" in a checkout line, someone just like Joe Biden will reassure the American people: "This is not who we are."

Well, Joe Biden is probably the most

decent white man elected to be president of the United States since Jimmy Carter, but the fact of the matter is, he/ white folks just don't get it. Being beastlike, in this paradise they've turned into a wilderness, IS who white people are.

White folks stole this continent from the Native people then committed genocide against their descendants.

White folks stole millions of Black people from Africa, drug them to these same shores in chains, and sold them into chattel slavery like cattle, and worked them for hundreds of years,

then lynched and tortured the descendants of those slaves, who made them rich, like it was a sport. For those crimes against God and humanity, white America must pay a price.

"Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap," says the King James Bible, Galatians 6:7. The Bible that the White Man says is the foundation for this society.

Just because Biden is set to replace the most despicable person ever to wear his neckties too long and pucker his

WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM / THE WASHINGTON INFORMER

mouth under an ugly combover doesn't alter the fundamental sins — the Original Sins — of this nation. And Biden doesn't get an honorary "Black Card" because he's not Donald J. Trump, the narcissistic, impeached loser, openly white supremacist, multiple bankrupted philanderer who cheated on all his wives with porn stars and sex workers.

America is still America. And in terms of historical comparisons, Biden is no better than any of the Pharaohs of the Bible. He's just like his 45 predecessors.

And there is clear evidence that Good Hearted Joe just doesn't get it.

Despite his having chosen Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) to be his running mate, and announcing that Linda Thomas-Greenfield, a Black diplomat who served in the Obama administration would serve as his ambassador to the United Nations, Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.) said what he'd seen of Biden's cabinet announcements in late November "so far is not good."

ASKIA Page 54 DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 31

LIFESTYLE African Diaspora International Film Festival Returns for 25th Anniversary Celebration Concludes Dec. 13 with Entries and Events Available Online Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer @StacyBrownMedia

The African Diaspora International Film Festival [ADIFF] cel-

32 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

ebrates its 28th anniversary virtually nationwide for the first time with 75 narratives and documentaries from 31 countries, including 26 world, U.S. and New York premieres.

5 Will Handy (Nat King Cole) grows up in Memphis with his preacher father (Juano Hernandez) and his Aunt Hagar (Pearl Bailey). His father intends for him to use his musical gifts only in church, but he can’t stay away from the music of the streets and workers. After he writes a theme song for a local politician, Gogo (Eartha Kitt), a speakeasy singer, convinces Will to be her accompanist. Will is estranged from his father for many years while he writes and publishes many blues songs. At last the family is reunited when Gogo brings them to New York to see Will’s music played by a symphony orchestra. (Photo courtesy ADIFF)

The festival, which opened on Nov. 27, concludes on Dec. 13.

Highlights include “St. Louis Blues” by Allen Resiner – a 1958 classic film broadly based on the life of W. C. Handy featuring

Nat King Cole, Eartha Kitt, Pearl Bailey and Juano Hernandez. The film counts as one of five features celebrating Hernandez, the first Afro-Latino actor to work in Hollywood.

Several films directed by young and talented African-American directors, including "Pink Opaque"

by Derrick Perry, are also scheduled for screening during the festival. The film examines the tale of a young university film student struggling with homelessness, romance and family issues.

“Gramercy,” by Pat Heywood and Jamil McGinnis, counts as a short visual exploration of pain and loss, while “Take Out Girl,’

by Hisonni Johnson, offers the compelling story of a young woman's struggle to improve her life and the hard choices she makes during her journey.

For 28 years, ADIFF has spotlighted culturally and socially meaningful feature and documentary films about people of color’s human experiences worldwide.

The films in ADIFF 2020 explore the full humanity and range of the Black and Indigenous experience, giving a multidimensional voice to often misrepresented and misunderstood realities and peoples.

Titles in ADIFF 2020 come directly from important domestic and international film festivals such as Tribeca, Venice, Toronto, Cannes, Berlinale, Durban, the Pan African Film Festival, The Trinidad and Tobago film festival and the International Havana Film Festival of the New Latin Ameri-

can Cinema in Cuba.

Others are independent productions made by filmmakers eager to share their message with an audience.

“2020 has been a real challenge for many of us,” said Diarah N'Daw-Spech, festival organizer and producer at ArtMattan Productions which annually brings the ADIFF to major cities like Washington, D.C. and New York.

“We are grateful that we've been able to adapt and offer a wonderful film festival online at a very affordable rate – just $2 per ticket,” N'Daw-Spech said. “We have a great lineup that, for the first time, we can share nationwide, and that's very exciting. We are looking forward to sharing the festival with as many people as possible.”

For more information about the 28th Annual African Diaspora International Film Festival and to receive the complete lineup, visit www.nyadiff.org.

WI

For 28 years, ADIFF has spotlighted culturally and socially meaningful feature and documentary films about people of color’s human experiences worldwide.

THE WASHINGTON INFORMER / WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

Eight Nights of Holiday Sparkle!

This holiday season ZooLights Express—powered by Pepco—is hitting the road to bring the colorful glow of Washington, D.C.’s beloved Smithsonian’s National Zoo holiday tradition to you!

6 - 8 p.m. on the following days Ward 1 | Friday, Nov. 27 Ward 2 | Saturday, Nov. 28

Ward 5 | Friday, Dec. 11 Ward 6 | Saturday, Dec. 12

Ward 3 | Friday, Dec. 4 Ward 4 | Saturday, Dec. 5

Ward 7 | Friday, Dec.18 Ward 8 | Saturday, Dec.19

nationalzoo.si.edu/zoolights

#DCZooLights

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DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 33

LIFESTYLE

Pepco Asks Customers to Be Aware of EnergyRelated Scams as the Holiday Season Approaches On National Scam Awareness Day, Pepco provides customers with tips to help identify scammers looking to steal money and personal information

WASHINGTON, D.C. (Nov. 16, 2020) – As the holiday season approaches, Pepco recognizes Utility Scam Awareness Day, Nov. 18, by reminding customers to be on the lookout for imposters using energy-related scams to steal money and personal information.

Scams occur throughout the year, but the company generally sees an increase in scam reports during the holiday season. Scammers are using the hustle and bustle of the holiday season to trick customers into providing their personal or financial information and making false payments under the pretense of keeping their service active. Scammers are also attempting to take advantage of the economic impacts of the ongoing pandemic to pressure families and businesses who may be struggling with past-due balances.

“The safety and well-being of our customers and the communities we serve is our top priority,” said Derrick Dickens, senior vice president of Customer Operations and Chief Customer Officer for Pepco Holdings. “Every day, scammers get more sophisticated in their attempts to defraud and steal from our customers. Utility Scam Awareness Day shines a national spotlight on this illegal activity and highlights ways customers can protect themselves from fraudulent activity, especially during the current pandemic and upcoming holidays.”

Common schemes involve scammers’ use of technology to replicate a company’s phone number through caller ID—also known as “spoofing”—threatening to turn off a customer’s service unless they make a direct payment with a prepaid cash card. Some scams involve imposters posing as Pepco employees to gain entry into a customer’s home to steal belongings, with other activities involving scammers sending emails to businesses, requesting that they send Pepco payments to bogus pay sites.

Here are some tips to help identify scams: 1. Pepco will never come to a customer’s home or business to: • Demand a payment.

• Ask for immediate payment with a prepaid cash card.

• Ask for their Pepco account number or other personal information, such as a driver’s license number.

2. Pepco will never call a customer to: • Ask for their account number.

• Ask for personal information such as their Social Security number or bank information.

• Ask them to make a direct payment with a prepaid cash card.

3. To identify an actual Pepco employee, remember: • All Pepco field employees wear a uniform with the Pepco logo, including shirt and safety vest.

• Pepco employees visibly display a company ID badge with the Pepco logo and employee’s name.

If a customer ever questions the legitimacy of the call, hang up and call Pepco at 202-833-7500. Any customer who believes he or she has been a target of a scam is urged to contact their local police and call Pepco immediately to report the situation.

TIPS FOR COMMERCIAL CUSTOMERS

Commercial customers are also advised to protect themselves

from potential scam attempts.

These offenders impersonate Pepco and other trusted organizations through email or other forms of communications to deceive businesses into providing financial information or making an urgent payment.

To help protect their business from scams, employees at local businesses should: • Carefully review emails originating from outside your organization’s network.

• Check the name of the sender and business and make sure it matches the name and business in the email address. Look for misspellings or slight alterations.

To learn more about preventing scams, customers can visit us online at pepco.com for more tips and resources.

BILL-PAYMENT ASSISTANCE TO HELP CUSTOMERS

DCPS from Page 26 that the world our students are growing up in is globally interconnected and culturally and racially diverse. The State Board will review and consider recommendations for its 2020 annual report which summarizes and highlights the agency’s efforts in the social studies standards revisions, teacher retention and COVID-19 response efforts.

TEACHER RECOGNITION

DCPS has awarded the “DCPS 2021 Teacher of the Year” award to a bold and dedicated educator, Alejandro Diasgranados, who teaches fourth- and fifth-grade English language arts and social studies at Aiton Elementary School in Ward 7.

Diasgranados empowers his students to lead and learn in the classroom, inspiring empathy and igniting their passion to advocate for others, for themselves and to develop the skills they need to excel in elementary and beyond, according to the D.C. State Board of Education. The prestigious honor comes with a $7,500 cash prize.

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mental health experts, set out this fall to learn how D.C. students feel about and experience life and school.

As a result, a new blog post on survey results regarding the well-being of D.C. students revealed: D.C. students reported anxiety related to the pandemic report that their family’s financial situation has become somewhat or significantly more stressful due to the pandemic; one of the most common responses by high schoolers to the open-ended question, “What do you like most about school so far this year?” was the word, “nothing;” students who attend schools that serve a majority at-risk student population were less likely to report that they have a friend at school and that they feel loved.

Over the course of four weeks starting in late September, nearly 2,500 students in grades 3-12 from 22 D.C. charter schools anonymously completed the survey.

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WI

5 D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser wants to ensure students have internet at home during this virtual school term. (DCPS photo)

34 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

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DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 35

LIFESTYLE

Valerie Nicholas Elected as Laurel’s First Black Council President

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5 Laurel City Council President Valerie Nicholas. (Photo contributed by City of Laurel)

to help others. Her personal battle began during her youth with her father who allowed his friends to sexually abuse her at 11 years old.

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“Wounded Healer” because of her successfully surviving her experiences of domestic violence survivor and helping other people.

Aside from council meetings, passing local legislation and checking on residents amid the coronavirus pandemic, she helps feed those less fortunate, especially the homeless. WI

Budding Gospel Artist Rekeshia Bennett: ‘There Will Be More Music Coming!’

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Nicholas won re-election last year for a fifth term on the five-member council. Each council member runs every two years.

She made history in Laurel more than nine years ago as the first Black woman appointed to City Council in June 2011 and would be elected to the board six months later in November 2011.

Besides representing the citizens of Laurel as a member of the council, she serves as chair on the city’s Tree Board and Citizens Advisory Committee for Persons with Disabilities.

The native of Roanoke, Virginia, moved to the Greater Washington Area in 1986 and worked for the federal government for 20 years.

She currently works as a patient advocate for Adventist Healthcare System.

But community advocacy remains a passion through her nonprofit organization called “Love is Not Enough” which aids those impacted by domestic violence.

Nicholas uses her experience growing up in an abusive household

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Percy Crawford Zenger News It all started in a church choir in Birmingham, Alabama for Rekeshia Bennett. There she honed her skills and fulfilled her spirit, becoming proficient at her craft at an early age.

Church choirs have produced some of our greatest musical talents, and Bennett seems to be no exception.

Although the coronavirus pandemic stalled some things for Bennett, her ability to release music wasn’t one of them. Earlier this year she released a single, “Rising Star,” and recently fol-

lowed that up with, “God Flow.”

Refocusing on music, she plans to release more music later this year or the first quarter of next year. The Alabama native, now residing in Houston, credits her Southern Baptist upbringing for soulful gospel sound.

Rekeshia Bennett plans to release more music later this year or the first quarter of the year.

I had the opportunity to speak with Bennett about her musical and spiritual journey, her single, “God Flow” and upcoming releases.

therapy through everything that’s going on?

Rekeshia Bennett: Oh yes, for sure. I have a very musical household.

My family… we love music. We listen to all types of music, my children as well. So, music has been a great help for me and my family during this pandemic.

Zenger: The type of music you are delivering is so important because there are so many people out there who have lost hope or given up on it.

How important is it for you to deliv-

Zenger: Has music been your

BENNETTPage 37

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BENNETT from Page 36 er music right now with the message you provide?

Rekeshia Bennett: It’s very important, number one, because I’ve been there. And every now and again, I still go there. But my faith in God and my music just helps me understand. And I feel like that’s a way to help me teach others, another way of coping or dealing with the stress of our environment or our times, or whatever situation they are going through.

Zenger: I love your new single, “God Flow” because it’s relatable Gospel music for a demographic that needs it. It’s upbeat while still being uplifting and serving its purpose. Was that done intentionally?

Rekeshia Bennett: Yes. It was purposely done. To create a more vibrant sound, so that everyone can listen to it, not just the younger crowd, but middle age and the older crowd. If you wanted that musical or dance sound, but you want good lyrics and positive lyrics — you’re going to hear God in it — and yes, it was purposely done.

Zenger: We see so many singers who started in a church choir and they eventually stick with Gospel or go the R&B route. That’s definitely where your roots are. How did being in the choir define you as an artist?

Rekeshia Bennett: First, my faith in God has guided me. That has always tugged on my heart. Growing up in a Baptist choir and singing those songs just brought a different sense of calmness over me. I grew up in low economic standards, poverty and all of that, but something about those Christian words and having God gave me hope to hold on to.

That kind of helped me to keep pushing forward in my day-to-day life and achieving goals. I listen to other types of music. I love R&B, I love hip-hop and rap, but my heart’s message has always been in the Christian faith, always.

Zenger: I think it’s important as a Gospel singer to listen to and draw from other genres of music, and I’m sure what makes your music sound so good is that you listen to other genres.

Rekeshia Bennett: I definitely like to incorporate different genres of music. Of course, I think it is important that we try and create music that is relatable to all audiences. We know for sure that our younger crowd is going to suffer the most and needs the message the most. So, I definitely try to

dib and dab here and there because I like all types of music. I don’t think the genre really matters if the message is clear.

Zenger: You see more people say that we’re getting away from faith and God and righteousness. When you’re creating music, are you conscious of this or do you want to create music off your vibrations and not social vibrations?

Rekeshia Bennett: I’m conscious of it, but I also believe in being authentic to who I am. That’s most important. If I’m relaying an authentic message of what God has been to me and my faith in God, then I believe the message will get across. I believe if I’m being sincere and honest and truthful in my relationship with Christ, the message will get across.

Zenger: You not only provided the “God Flow” single, but you also have a video for it as well. How did the song come together, and what made you go with the black-and-white background for the video?

Rekeshia Bennett: I honestly just wanted to keep it simple. I didn’t want to be over dramatic because I wanted to make sure … like we discussed previously, I wanted to make sure the message got over. I didn’t want to do anything too grand or too flashy. I just wanted to keep it simple, and that’s how it came about with the black and white. I was like, “Let’s just do black and white. Black and white is classic; it’s always in style, let’s stick with that.”

Zenger: Earlier this year you gave us “Rising Star”. We have talked about the new single, “God Flow.”

It appears you are getting into your musical rhythm. Can we expect more music from you to close out the year?

Rekeshia Bennett: Yes! Most definitely! I plan on dropping a new single, if not in November, by the end of December. There will be more music coming!

Zenger: Has COVID interfered with plans you had for the year, maybe a collaboration that’s now pushed back? Or do you feel like it’s given you the opportunity to be creative and get into your own sound?

Rekeshia Bennett: I think it was both. I honestly think God purposely does things. Before COVID, it was a bust life trying to put stuff out and manage everything. But then, God was like, “Look, ya’ll need to be still; be still and take some time out to reflect on me.” And also, it was pre-

LIFESTYLE

5 Budding gospel artist Rakeshia Bennett. (Courtesy photo)

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LIFESTYLE

Vanessa Williams Hosts a New Look at a Christmas Album from Ella Fitzgerald

Maestro Luke Frazier and the American Pops Orchestra Reimagine a Classic Holiday Album Brenda C. Siler @bcscomm WI Contributing Writer Just when you think you have heard every possible holiday album, a 1960s classic from Ella Fitzgerald is re-discovered. “Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas” was Fitzgerald’s only complete album of Christmas tunes released on the Verve label. Taking a new approach of that album, the television special “Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas with Vanessa Williams,” premieres on Dec. 15, 2020, 8:00-9:00 p.m. ET (check local listings) on PBS, PBS.org and the PBS Video App. The concert was filmed in August at the Meridian International Center in the District in front of a small, socially distanced live audience under strict COVID-19 guidelines. One of the most celebrated holiday al-

bums of all time, Fitzgerald’s album featured classic American songs of the season, including “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town,” “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” “The Christmas Song,” “Sleigh Ride” and “Winter Wonderland.”

Maestro Luke Frazier directs the American Pops Orchestra (APO) and arranges performances by Grammy, Tony Award-winner, and 2017 Jazz Master Dee Dee Bridgewater (joining APO from New Orleans); Broadway and jazz vocalist Carmen Ruby Floyd; Broadway star and recording artist Morgan James; and Grammy and Tony Award nominee Norm Lewis who some may remember from the cast of the television show “Scandal.” The holiday special also features performances by Williams, who is a multi-Grammy, Emmy, and Tony Award-nominee.

APO, founded by Frazier in 2015, is based in Washington, D.C. The orchestra has a mission of preserving classic American music and bringing people together to do orchestra differently. Many APO fans remember the concert Frazier arranged and conducted for an Aretha Franklin 75th birthday tribute concert. Since the pandemic, APO has put on 80 performances. Frazier has been tenacious in finding support and venues that can accommodate performances following strict and safe guidelines.

“Everything APO does is brand new. When we started this group, it was about the art and the people that make the art,” said Frazier to illustrate the approach for the new arrangements for the Fitzgerald television event. “We were lucky that the Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation put their belief in us for this fresh take for PBS.”

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Frazier’s enthusiasm for the Fitzgerald project is undeniable. The finished television production reinforces his vision for APO. “To me, it feels more important than ever that we embrace the things that take us back to a simpler time, a time of celebrating the holidays with a sense of nostalgia,” said Frazier.

“This extraordinary holiday album has been the soundtrack for so many of us for decades. To share Ella’s iconic music interpreted by a new generation of extraordinary singers is a gift to us all.”

Celebrated vocalist Nova Y. Payton is featured on “Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas with Vanessa Williams.” Payton, an admirer of Fitzgerald, has performed with APO many times.

“I’ve worked with the American Pops Orchestra for many years and I love that they always find a way to bring freshness and newness to things that are timely,” said Payton about her work with Frazier and the new spin on Fitzgerald’s Christmas album.

“Ella has always been that one for me. I love the way she improvs, I love her style, her sass,” Payton, who lives in Prince Georges County continued her praise for Fitzgerald. “I would venture to say there has not been another like her. You can’t even imitate her. She was that great.”

Payton’s international career is highly regarded through the staged musical, “3 Mo’ Divas.” A former American Musical and Dramatic Academy (AMDA) student, Payton has an impressive catalog of artist collaborations that include performances with Stevie Wonder, Roberta Flack, Bobby McFerrin, Yolanda Adams, The Chi-Lites, the Dramatics and many more.

In addition to being a performer,

5 “Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas with Vanessa Williams” airs on PBS on Dec. 15. (Photo by Kevin Parisi)

she is also a voice teacher and coach.

From a coaching perspective, Payton has analyzed every aspect of Fitzgerald’s vocal quality. She understands why Fitzgerald’s talent will never be duplicated.

“Her breath control and her range were out of sight,” Payton said. “I love the way she knew her instrument.

She knew how to create those sounds to mimic the instruments that were around her. Again, no one can match her.”

The trailer for “Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas with Vanessa Williams” airing on PBS Dec. 15, 2020, 8:00-9:00 p.m. ET is at https://www.pbs.org/video/trailer-6jgbke/ WI

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5 Nova Y. Payton, one of the featured vocalists for “Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas with Vanessa Williams” airing on PBS on Dec. 15. (Photo by Kevin Parisi)

38 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

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DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 39

LIFESTYLE Groundbreaking Scheduled for Universal Hip Hop Museum

Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer @StacyBrownMedia

Hip-hop music has come a long way since its formative years in the early 70s led by a band of innovative sound masters who forged new ground: DJ Kool Herc, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Afrika Bambaataa, RunD.M.C., LL Cool J., The Sugarhill Gang and Kurtis Blow.

Now, nearly five decades later, the ever-evolving genre joins other forms of music that have shaped the American songbook – from rock and roll and jazz to country and the Motown Sound – with a permanent “home” – a museum.

The groundbreaking for the historic Universal Hip Hop Museum takes place later this month (December) – fittingly in the place where most agree hip-hop’s origins

can be traced – New York City.

Officials promise that patrons will receive an untainted view of the culture’s past by using leading-edge virtual and augmented reality technologies for an immersive online and offline experience not found anywhere else.

The museum announcement also comes with news that affordable housing giant L+M Development Partners, Inc. has struck a major hiring deal with Laborers’ Local 79 – one of North America’s biggest labor unions committed to hiring local workers from within its home base of New York City.

According to Real Estate Weekly, the deal will give the job of building and renovating 3,200 affordable apartments in Harlem, East New York and the Bronx primarily to people who live in the aforementioned communities, paying them $40 per hour as well

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“With this agreement [which includes the Universal Hip Hop Museum], we’re setting a new precedent for how to build permanently affordable housing with union labor, hire locally and create more pathways to the middle class in low-income communities of color,” Mike Prohaska, business manager of Laborers’ Local 79, told Real Estate Weekly.

LL Cool J, Chuck D, former Def Jam president and chairwoman of the Board of Trustees for the museum, Nana Carmen Ashhurst and entertainment manager Rocky Bucano, each expressed their delight.

They talked passionately about the fledgling 50,000-square-foot structure that will grace the Bronx.

“I’m just happy to be supportive of this museum and it’s definitely needed – our culture needs it,” said LL Cool J, one of the greatest hiphop artist of all time who currently stars in the hit television show NCIS: Los Angeles and heads the hip-hop dedicated channel, Rock the Bells Radio on SiriusXM. “The reality is, this is something we need desperately – something we’ll need 200, 300, even 400 years from now,” continued LL Cool J, whose real name is James Todd Smith.

“We have to control our own narrative. This is not a popularity contest. It’s about people like Rocky and Carmen who put in the work. They need to be recognized and need to get that respect.”

“Rock the Bells Radio serves the same purpose that the Universal Hip Hop Museum does – it serves our culture.”

“I recently saw a cover of Rolling Stone that featured Paul McCartney and Taylor Swift together. I want to see Chuck D on the cover with Meg Thee Stallion,” he said.

For Chuck D, who has traveled the world with Public Enemy and other artists and runs Enemy Radio, being a part of the Universal Hip Hop Museum is all about being attentive to the culture.

“I pay attention to and learn from people who lay the groundwork,” proclaimed Public Enemy’s

5 An artist’s rendering of the Universal Hip Hop Museum slated for groundbreaking in New York City in December. (Photo courtesy Pinterest)

front man, whose real name is Carlton Douglas Ridenhour.

“With Nana Carmen being president of Def Jam, and following her lead, that’s the way of the future,” Chuck further explained.

“I trusted Kamala Harris with my vote – not an 80-year-old president. I’m a floor general. You have to have that final narrative of what you do. When you understand art forms, having that conversation and the final word is what it’s all about,” he said.

Perhaps best remembered as the first and only woman president in the history of Def Jam Records, Ashhurst helped grow the Russell Simmons-founded label from nine to more than 141 employees. She also helped expand Def Jam to include offices in London, Los Angeles and New York.

“It is important that the history and culture of hip-hop be told by those who created it, lived it, and

continue to change the course of popular culture throughout the world,” Ashhurst remarked.

“At the Universal Hip Hop Museum, we are curating artifacts and stories to tell the full truth of hiphop, ensuring that we, the hip-hop community, tell the history.”

Bucano chimed in that he’s delighted to have Ashhurst as chairwoman.

“She is the best and most qualified to serve in this capacity. Her strong leadership skills and philanthropic experience are just what the museum needs as we prepare to break ground,” Bucano said, adding that he’s also grateful to hip-hop legend Kurtis Blow who serves as chair emeritus for the museum.

For more information about the Universal Hip Hop Museum, visit www.UHHM.org.

WI Editor D. Kevin McNeir contributed to this report. WI

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Washington Gas Cares Let Us Help You When You Need it the Most Submitted by Washington Gas Washington Gas is dedicated to support our customers who are experiencing financial challenges in paying their bill. We recently introduced Washington Gas Cares, a program designed to connect customers with energy assistance programs and a variety of flexible payment plans. We will be there to help our customers every step of the way to support them and meet their essential energy needs. By bringing our solutions together in a single location -www.washingtongascares.com - we are providing convenient access to all payment and energy assistance offerings.

In addition, our Washington Gas Cares team has been busy reaching out to customers proactively to help them find an option that makes the most sense depending on their circumstances. This proactive outreach is a key component of Washington Gas Cares. Our team is hard at work contacting customers by phone, automated messaging or email communication outreach to provide personal guidance and a better understanding of the status of a bill that is past due and how best to get it back on track.

We are here to help guide you through multiple assistance options, simply check out www. washingtongascares.com.

“Washington Gas is dedicated to the communities, families, neighbors and individuals we serve. It’s part of who we are and what the Washington Gas Cares initiative is all about – to lend a helping hand when customers can use it the most,” said Blue Jenkins. “Our team stands ready to support customers facing difficult decisions when paying their bills -- we can identify the right energy assistance option and payment plan that fits a customer’s budget and schedule during a

time of need. Customers can also contact us directly. We are here to help.”

GET HELP

• Customers can apply for payment assistance through several existing programs across Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia.

• Customers can make a payment or choose among many payment arrangement plans using our self-service online option.

as the “current charges” on their gas bill can enter into a deferment/ pay agreement/ or consent order at the request of the customer.

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• Customers can aid those struggling to pay their bill through an act of kindness. For example, through our Gift of Warmth program, customers can help pay a gas bill for their friend, neighbor or fellow customers.

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Washington Gas will continue to bill each month, but, on the payment due date, the bill amount will be automatically deducted from the customer’s checking account which will avoid the need for check writing, postage and/ or waiting in line. If a customer is enrolled in Washington Gas’ eBill program, an electronic notification will be sent every month to the customer’s registered email address with a link to view the electronic bill. However, if a customer prefers to receive a paper bill each month, customers can still pay their gas bill automatically through the Automated Payment Plan (APPL).

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bill amounts because more energy from natural gas is being used to heat their homes. It is recommended that customers take simple steps (such as caulking, weather-stripping and insulating any openings where air may infiltrate) to help manage their home energy costs and stay safe, warm and energy-smart when temperatures begin to drop. The typical low-income home saves an average of 25 percent on energy consumption and saves an average of more than $275 annually in heating and cooling costs after weatherization services.

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DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 41

LIFESTYLE

wi book review "Swish! The Slam-Dunking, Alley-Ooping, High-Flying Harlem Globetrotters"

By Suzanne Slade illustrated by Don Tate c.2020, Little Brown Books for Young Readers $17.99 / higher in Canada 40 pages

By Terri Schlichenmeyer WI Contributing Writer Your favorite player loves getting buckets.

And that's good – that's the goal of the game, after all, right? It's called basketball because that's what you're supposed to do: put the ball in the basket, dunk it right in the bucket. You might need help to do that now, but practice, and maybe you'll be a pro someday. Maybe you'll be like the players in "Swish!" by Suzanne Slade, illustrated by Don Tate.

Ka-thumpa, ka-thumpa, ka-thumpa. that's what people heard all day, if they lived near Chicago's South side. It was "those boys" and their basketballs, doing "nonstop layups, all-net free throws, and sky-high jump shots."

Sure, they were talented boys. Everyone knew that but they were Black and there were not many options for them, so those boys joined a traveling team and they met Abe Saperstein. That was when things really started happening: it was Saperstein's idea to re-name the team the "Harlem Globetrotters," which made it seem like they'd dribbled everywhere around the world.

It was almost as if they already had: the team played ball nearly every night in small towns all over the country, but their style was different. Because people didn't like seeing any Black players beat the hometown White teams, the boys had to learn new tricks. They did a "One-finger ball spinning."

They did their "Rapid-fire mini dribbling." People began to laugh, and they began to enjoy the show as the "Trotters" racked up wins.

But it wasn't all fun: there were lots of places where the Globetrotters weren't welcome. They couldn't get a drink of water just anywhere. Some hotels turned them away. Sometimes, they weren't allowed in restaurants.

And still, they played because they were athletes! Even when most teams in the NBA wouldn't hire Black players, the Harlem Globetrotters were real winners on the court. They proved it by beating the Minnesota Lakers! They could beat anybody!

And then one day, "something incredible happened"....

Everything spherical in your house can be dunked. Your 5-to-9-year-old has proven that, so what next? Well, "Swish!" will give them baskets of joy.

With the kind of quick-paced, wild fun that you get at a Harlem Globetrotters game, author Suzanne Slade brings that fast action to the page with a story of racism, perseverance and resilience. While there's a main focus on just one generation here – roughly the Depression years through the early 1950s – Slade proceeds to show the overall evolution of the team by including a timeline and additional material. She also briefly touches upon individual players, but not more recent ones, which may disappoint grownups; kids whose hands are practically glued to a round, dimpled ball won't notice that omission at all.

This narrative would be the lesser without artwork by Don Tate. Kids will love his movement on the pages; adults will have difficulty not hearing "Sweet Georgia Brown" in their heads. That makes "Swish!" fun, it's fast, and if there's a future NBA or WNBA fan in your house, your child will love it by the buckets. WI

42 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

horoscopes

DEC 3 - 9, 2020

ARIES Your psychic ability is very active today, making this a great day to work on your gifts through techniques like meditation. BTrying to pull yourself out of the mundane and elevate what you're doing today. Slow down and really enjoy your meals. Pause and look at the view from your front window. Put out some food for the birds. Balance your hectic life with a day of simple living. Lucky Numbers: 7, 19, 25 TAURUS It's really good to connect with friends today and talk through some of the ideas you have about your goals and the material things you want. Your friends will let you know they believe in you. They will tell you what you're capable of and support you in your quest. Lucky Numbers: 5, 17, 46 GEMINI A colleague or acquaintance may have a career opportunity to share with you and some career advice to impart. If you're contacted today, respond quickly, even if you're busy. You can also reach out to others you know professionally just to see how they're doing. And the conversation may lead to opportunities for you, Gemini native. Lucky Numbers: 4, 14, 50 CANCER If you're looking for work, you may be dissuaded by the educational requirements on some job listings. But this aspect says to ignore those stipulations and apply anyway. Likewise, if you're considering going back to school, investigate if your company could cover some of the costs. Finally, don't let your lack of education or an unfinished degree stop you from applying for a promotion at your current job. Lucky Numbers: 6, 16, 37 LEO There is a struggle between having a space that's organized and neat and being able to create your art or music. Creativity destroys tidiness. It's good to balance the energies, be organized, and when it's time to create, allow yourself the freedom to make a mess. Lucky Numbers: 13, 19, 38 VIRGO It's possible that someone in your life is going to make a promise to you they can't keep. In fact, today, you may hear several promises. These statements have to be weighed with what this person has done in the past. You may see inconsistencies in their action, giving you pause. There are some people in your life who really come through for you. But on a day like today, you set your hopes on someone who is far less reliable. Examine the promises of others with the discerning eye today. Lucky Numbers: 11, 28, 59 LIBRA You may feel emotionally blocked while at the same time feel overwhelmed by the number of things you have to do each day. Your everyday world may not be manifesting as you want; it feels out of line with your beliefs. You may be self-sabotaging now. For example, you may announce you're going to eat healthy foods and then you bring home a dozen donuts. Notice the difference between your beliefs and actions today. Lucky Numbers: 11, 36, 44 SCORPIO You may be called to do what you have said you're going to do. Your reputation is on the line.

You're at the edge of the diving board, and it's time to leap. That said, there's no reason to rush through negotiations or an agreement just to prove that you are a person of your word. The agreement still needs to make sense, and if the other side is not holding up their end of the bargain, there's no reason for you to jump in the deep end. Lucky Numbers: 6, 24, 30 SAGITTARIUS Today's an amazing day for asking for a raise, doing a sales pitch, or finding a good investment. You have the ability to do something bigger than you've done before, and now you're getting a push from the Universe and a little added luck. It would be better to do something different today rather than use this intense energy for just everyday stuff. Lucky Numbers: 8, 10, 43 CAPRICORN There are some small irritations with people around you at this time. This could be caused by noise, people leaving their trash around, or someone perking their vehicle in an inconsiderate manner. But this is a quick aspect and so if possible, shrug it off. Not much can be solved with the planetary energies you're doing today. Lucky Numbers: 10, 17, 31 AQUARIUS When there is a block in your life, you naturally push against it, and when it gives way, everything tumbles forward. For Aquarius natives, love is near. Your block is the everyday tasks that get in the way of going on online, chatting with people on dating sites, and asking your friends and family to fix you up. Circumstances in the world may not be making love easy to find, but you still have options to connect with someone extraordinary. Lucky Numbers: 2, 7, 23 PISCES Today's an excellent day to reach out to close friends. A friend could give you a new idea and encouragement on a creative or technology project you're working on. This could be the boost you are looking for and help you move forward, installing a die-cut printer to make your own stickers or helping your grandma get on Zoom. Lucky Numbers: 13, 19, 26

THE WASHINGTON INFORMER / WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

SPORTS 4 Terry McLaurin leads the league in receiving yardage after big win over the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving.

Photo by Daniel Kucin Jr./The Washington Informer

SPORTS

Stage Isn’t Too Big for Washington as They Sit Atop Division Daniel Kucin Jr. WI Sports Writer danielkucin88 One of the most storied rivalry games in the NFL took place on Thanksgiving Day, and the Washington Football Team certainly got their fill after blowing out the Cowboys, 41-16 on the road.

Washington leaned on the leadership of starting quarterback Alex Smith and playmaking services provided by rookie running back Antonio Gibson and wide

Wizards Load Up

The Washington Wizards made a splash in the 2020 NBA draft and free agency period after they finished the 2019-2020 campaign with a record of 25-47, desperately looking for a new direction.

Hopefully, the Wizards will find new life after drafting Deni Avdija with their ninth overall pick. Avdija, 19, averaged 12.9 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists last season in the Israeli League and became the youngest MVP in league history with those numbers.

Washington did some wheeling and dealing by acquiring the draft rights of former Michigan State University standout Cassius Winston from Oklahoma City in the second round.

The deal exchanged Winston and a Memphis Grizzlies 2024 second round pick (previously owned by Oklahoma City) from the Thunder in exchange for the rights to Vit Krejci (37th pick) and Admiral Schofield.

Winston signed a one-year contract on Nov. 28. He is one of four players in NCAA Division I history to record at least 1,900 points and 850 assists. He finished his career with 894 assists, the most in Big Ten and Michigan State history.

Washington also resigned Latvian star forward Davis Bertans to a five-year contract year worth $80 million including $69 million guaranteed and an annual average salary of $16 million. The Wizards also brought in Robin Lopez on a one-year deal worth more than $7 million.

Bertans ranks fourth in NBA history with 187 three-pointers as a reserve, and his 200 three-pointers made rank fifth-most in a single season in Wizards history. His 15 games of five or more three-pointers off the bench tied for the second-most during a single season in NBA history.

"My family and I are very proud to be a part of this first-class organization in a worldclass city with great teammates, coaches and fan support," said Bertans. "All of those factors led to my decision to re-sign with the Wizards, and now I'm looking forward to getting back on the court and back to work so we can keep improving as a team."

Lopez fills a hole in the big man department for the Wizards.

In three seasons with Chicago, the 32-year-old averaged 10.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per game while shooting .526 from the field. He averaged a career-high 11.3 points on .534 shooting from the field in 82 games during the 2012-13 season with New Orleans Hornets and has averaged 8.5 points and 6.3 rebounds in 31 career playoff games with Phoenix, Portland, Chicago and Milwaukee. WI

product scored on two big splash plays in the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach with a 23yard scamper off left tackle and then finally busted through the heart of the Cowboys defensive front for a 37-yard score. Gibson eclipsed the century mark for the second time this season against the Cowboys on the ground.

After Washington went threeand-out on its first possession, Dallas jumped out to a three-point

SPORTS Page 45

Maker on the Shelf

Hot off the Press

DANIEL KUCIN, JR. / WI CONTRIBUTING WRITER

receiver Terry McLaurin.

Gibson led the way with 20 carries for 115 yards, including three touchdown runs. An amazing performance, but Washington Football Team Head Coach Ron Rivera thinks that the best is yet to come for the young tailback.

"He's got this skillset that really hasn't developed. You feel really good about that, and he is starting to show the signs of growth and development that we are looking for," Rivera said of Gibson.

The former Memphis University

Howard University (0-3) is still searching for their first win of the season (as of Dec. 2) and will not have the services of forward Makur Maker after suffering a groin injury.

5 Th The five-star recruit only played 19 minutes against Queens University (N.C.) before exiting the game and will be out indefinitely for the foreseeable future. Maker finished the game with 12 points, four rebounds, two assists and a blocked shot.

So far this season, Maker was averaging nearly 12 points per game and six rebounds per game. Head coach Kenneth Blakeney had him on a minute restriction once he heard of his nagging injury.

"He's (Maker) really banged up, and we're gonna shut him down," Blakeney said after the loss. "We're gonna shut him down until he gets healthy, he's not able to move, and I don't want him to be counterproductive right now. “You got the exclusive. You're the first to know that, but we're gonna shut him down man, and just let him get healthy and see if we can get him back to normal because he's not playing or moving, rather anywhere near the way he can move. It's in our best interest and his best interest to let him rest and heal a little bit." WI

ACC Men's Basketball Tournament Leaves D.C. The 2021 ACC Men's Basketball Tournament will leave the confines of Capital One Arena this March. Initially set to be played in Washington, D.C., the conference Nov. 24 announced that they have decided to move the March 9 - 13 tournament to Greensboro Coliseum.

The North Carolina venue was the site of the tournament last year, but the COVID-19 pandemic forced an early cancellation of competition before the quarterfinal matches.

"The ACC men's basketball tournament has enjoyed terrific experiences and hospitality at Capital One Arena," ACC Commissioner John Swofford said in a statement suggesting a return to D.C. in the future. "We look forward to returning to Washington, D.C., and appreciate Greensboro for welcoming and accommodating us during these unique and challenging times." WI

WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM / THE WASHINGTON INFORMER

DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 43

CAPTURE the moment

For more photos, visit www.washingtoninformer.com

JOHN WALL FAMILY FOUNDATION'S TURKEY GIVEAWAY Washington Wizards point guard, John Wall, hosts a turkey giveaway and handed out free hot meals to families in Southeast on behalf of the John Wall Family Foundation in partnership with Henry’s Soul Cafe.

The Foundation also gave over $500K to families struggling with rent payments. (Anthony Tilghman/The Washington Informer)

44 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

THE WASHINGTON INFORMER / WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

BENNETT from Page 37 planned for me to get more music out and do more things. I hadn’t had it out before COVID came. There were things that still needed to be done.

So, with “Rising Star” for example, we pretty much finished that at my home. We didn’t want to let COVID stop us. There was room to grow, and we were just like, “we’re not going to let this stop us.” We weren’t going to be negative about it, and we wanted to get our music out. We wanted to get our message out. So, we did it at home. We did the visuals, that video for “Rising Star” at my house. So, it kind of hindered us a little bit, but I’m so grateful because we still pushed through. We still got it done. Even with “God Flow,” it was very minimal contact with people. We are still very heavily social distancing in my family.

It was a little difficult, but with God’s grace and his permission, we got it done. It worked out.

Zenger: When you look at the positive and negative that social media can attract, how do you approach your navigation to that world?

Rekeshia Bennett: Oh my God. That’s such a good question. I get so much anxiety from social media — even before I decided to pursue my music wholeheartedly. But just with everyday regular social media, it’s one of those things that gives me so much anxiety. But what I do now, I post because I am trying to get more traction on my music and me as an artist. But I post and walk away. I tell my husband or somebody else, “You can look at it, and tell me what I need to do and not do, but I don’t want to look at it.” It’s so hard to say that

because you need to, right? You need to look at it to see what you’re doing, and it takes so much out of you to look at it. It’s just such a hard place for me mentally sometimes to be in.

But I’m doing it. I’m using my social media platform right now to promote the music and get the message out there. Hopefully, it works out.

Zenger: You have an amazing voice, and you pick amazing production, but there are always intangibles that go along with being an artist.

What are some of the intangibles that you feel you’re gearing toward or working on?

Rekeshia Bennett: Just being more comfortable in myself — trying not to get too much into my own head. Everyone has struggles and their way of doing things, and this is my way. I keep telling myself that this is my way of getting my testimony out there. This is my way of teaching. I’m one of them type of people that want to help. I want to help. But how do I help in my way, and this is my way.

This is what I know how to do, so let me do it in this way. I’ll continue to learn through so many great, great, great artists. I’m such a big fan of a lot of musicians, so I’m always willing to learn and always willing to work.

Zenger: I appreciate the time. I love your message and your music and wish you continued success. Is there anything else you would like to add?

Rekeshia Bennett: Follow me on all my social media platforms and look out for more music from me in the future. Thank you!

(Edited by Stan Chrapowicki and Allison Elyse Gualtieri) WI

5 Rakeshia Bennett's new album cover. (Courtesy photo)

5 Washington Football Team running back Antonio Gibson led the way with 20 carries for 115 yards, including three touchdown runs against the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving. Photo by Daniel Kucin Jr./The Washington Informer

SPORTS from Page 43 lead on their first offensive drive by way of a Greg Zuerlein 33-yard field goal.

However, the Burgundy and Gold answered right back after Smith led a 12-play, 70-yard drive capped off by a five-yard touchdown run by Gibson.

Just five plays later, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Andy Dalton threw a 54-yard bomb to Amari Copper to retake the lead, 10-7.

Washington Football Team Kicker Dustin Hopkins booted a 23-yard field goal to tie the game up with a little over seven minutes remaining in the half during a tightly contested slugfest.

The Burgundy and Gold defensive unit stood tall the next possession, forcing a turnover on downs after Dalton threw an incomplete pass intended for speedster CeeDee Lamb.

With excellent field position on the Dallas 19-yard line, Smith capitalized on the opportunity and found tight end Logan Thomas for a 5-yard touchdown.

After Zuerlein knocked down a 32-yard field goal near the end of the half, Smith took a first-half lead

WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM / THE WASHINGTON INFORMER

into the locker room and his team took complete control over the game in the second half, holding Dallas to just three points the rest of the way.

Washington held Dallas running back Ezekiel Elliott to just 32 yards and forced a fumble on the Cowboys' first possession in the second half, which Hopkins converted into three points.

Zuerlein's field goal two drives later was the last time Dallas found any success the rest of the way.

Near the end of the third and for the remainder of the game, Washington's defensive forced two more turnover-on-downs scenarios, a punt, and a score when defensive lineman Montez Sweat made a spectacular interception. Sweat leaped in the direction of a Dalton throw and subsequently took it to the house from 15 yards out.

Washington's stellar play put them temporarily at the top of the NFC East as they prepared to take on the Pittsburgh Steelers Dec. 7.

Pittsburgh's defense has been nearly impenetrable this season and is ranked top five in the league (as of Nov. 1) and leads the league in sacks.

However, McLaurin is currently

leading the league in receiving yardage (963) and, with Smith tossing him the rock, will test Pittsburgh's defense. Smith has guided the Burgundy and Gold to two consecutive wins after the team lost Kyle Allen to injury.

"Never in my wildest dreams did I ever be here two years later full circle," Smith said after the big win on turkey day. "I'm so appreciative of so much and so thankful to be here...the opportunity to still be doing this and enjoying every minute of it."

Gibson is showing poise as one of the best rookie running backs of the draft averaging 4.6 per carry, and is just behind Clyde Edwards-Helaire (Kansas City) and James Robinson (Jacksonville) in total rushing yards (645) for rookies.

"Thursday on Thanksgiving is about as big of stage as it gets, and it was good to see our guys handle it...I thought they handled it well; I thought they played well," said Rivera. "The stage didn't seem to be too big. I do know next week is going to be a little bit different; it's a different kind of a stage, but it's a different kind of opponent, but we'll see how we handle that."

WI

DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 45

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46 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

David Dinkins, New York’s First Black Mayor, Dies at 93 Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer @StacyBrownMedia David Dinkins, the only Black ever to serve as mayor of New York City, has died. He was 93.

Dinkins died Monday night at his Upper East Side home, police said.

His death came just over a month after his wife of 67 years, Joyce, also died in their home at age 89.

Current New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio remembered Dinkins as “a truly great man.”

“David Dinkins simply set this city on a better path,” de Blasio tweeted Tuesday morning. “He was my mentor, he was my friend, and his steadfast commitment to fight for that ‘gorgeous mosaic’ inspires me every single day. We’ll keep up his fight.”

Dinkins began his public service career in 1966 as a member of the New York State Assembly. He served as president of the New York City Board of Elections and as city clerk for 10 years before his elections as president of the borough of Manhattan in 1985.

Four years later, he was elected as the 106th and first African American mayor of New York City, serving

CONTRACTS from Page 27 working on the disparity study will be held on Dec. 4 by DMPED and the D.C. Department of Small and Local Business Development.

While Swailes praises District leaders for putting in motion the disparity study, not all Black entrepreneurs are as enthusiastic.

“All a disparity study will do is tell what we already know,” Fred Hill, the founder and CEO of Gotta Go Now, LLC, a portable sanitation firm in the District.

“It only shows what the District government has been hiding. We in the Black business community have been asking for this for years.

The mayor talks about supporting small businesses but her administration gives out contracts to a

5 David Dinkins (Martyna Borkowski/Rubenstein via Wikimedia Commons)

until 1993.

As mayor, Dinkins’ administration initiated the revitalization of Times Square, and his policies led to the establishment of numerous widely heralded cultural staples such as Fashion Week, Restaurant Week and Broadway on Broadway.

An avid tennis player who counted Arthur Ashe among his heroes, Dinkins secured an unprecedented deal to keep the U.S. Open Tennis Championships in New York for the

next 99 years — an arrangement that reportedly generates more annually for the city than the Yankees, Mets, Knicks and Rangers combined.

“David was a historic mayor. He showed that a Black candidate can win biracial support in a citywide race,” said David Paterson, who was the first African-American governor of the Empire State from 2008 to 2010. “There’s a special appreciation for him. He tried very hard to be the mayor of all the people.” WI

small group of people.”

Hill said, ironically, that he holds business certifications in six states-- including Maryland and Virginia--but can’t seem to get local government contracts in the District, his hometown.

Swailes said the disparity study can be the start of Black businesses

getting city contracts routinely.

“Setting up this program is significant for Black businesses in D.C. and the Black community,” he said. “The disparity study will tell the true story of how Black businesses have been shut down out of D.C. government business opportunities. The CBE program hasn’t worked well for Black businesses. But we want the District government to go a step further.

We want the council to make the findings of the disparity study as a part of a law. Mayors come and go and they can change contracting practices as they see fit but if it is the law on the basis of the disparity study, Black businesses will have D.C. government contracts from now on.”

WI

Hill said, ironically, that he holds business certifications in six states-- including Maryland and Virginia--but can’t seem to get local government contracts in the District, his hometown.

THE WASHINGTON INFORMER / WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

RELIGION the religion corner WITH LYNDIA GRANT

My People Perish for the Lack of Knowledge (Conclusion) This is the conclusion of my series on Type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. I'm led to talk about how depression will raise your blood glucose (sugar) levels.

Stress can affect people differently.

With the coronavirus pandemic reigning worldwide, I thought it wise to share with the readers the urgency of how stress plays such a vital part and works against those suffering with Type 2 diabetes.

The type of stress that you experience can also have an impact on your body's physical response.

When people with type 2 diabetes are under mental stress, they generally experience an increase in their blood glucose levels.

According to the National Institute of Health's National Center for Biotechnology Information, "Stress is a potential contributor to chronic hyperglycemia in diabetes. Stress has long been shown to have major effects on metabolic activity. Energy mobilization is a primary result of the fight or flight response. Stress stimulates the release of various hormones, which can result in elevated blood glucose levels."

"Although this is of adaptive importance in a healthy organism, in diabetes, as a result of the rel-

ative or absolute lack of insulin, stress-induced increases in glucose cannot be metabolized properly," the center says. "Furthermore, regulation of these stress hormones may be abnormal in diabetes.

However, evidence characterizing the effects of stress in type I diabetes is contradictory. Stress is a potential contributor to chronic hyperglycemia in diabetes. Stress has long been shown to have major effects on metabolic activity. Energy mobilization is a primary result of the fight or flight response. Stress stimulates the release of various hormones, which can result in elevated blood glucose levels."

Finally, the NCBI says, "Although this is of adaptive importance in a healthy organism, in diabetes, as a result of the relative or absolute lack of insulin, stress-induced increases in glucose cannot be metabolized properly.

Furthermore, regulation of these stress hormones may be abnormal in diabetes. However, evidence characterizing the effects of stress in type I diabetes is contradictory.”

Blacks, Indigenous and Latino Americans all have a COVID-19 death rate three times or more of white Americans, who experience the lowest age-adjusted rates.

Of the more than 240,000 U.S. deaths catalogued in a Color of Coronavirus update (document-

Mt. Zion Baptist Church

ed through Nov. 10), here's the breakdown: Asian (8,687), Black (46,211), Indigenous (2,251), Latino (46,912), Pacific Islander (334) and white (123,429).

Readers, allow me to close this month out with my mother's personal story. Mother Fannie Estelle Grant died on Christmas Day 2000. This year is my family's 20th without Mom. Talk about stress! We learned of mother's diagnosis 12 years before she died.

None of us knew what we were in for. When you hear me sign off at the end of my radio show each week, I always say "My people perish for the lack of knowledge.”

Now that I know what we can do to turn things around once you're diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, I cannot repeat these steps enough: one, lose weight; two, change your diet, and three, exercise 30 minutes, five days a week.

My family has slowly started to celebrate Christmas again. Mother Grant suffered for 12 years with Type 2 diabetes, and with major complications as a result of her having had this disease. My family skipped Christmas for nearly 10 years. However, I now cope by using angelic Christmas tree ornaments. The majority of my ornaments are crystal angels, in memory of my mother!

WI

John F. Johnson Reverend Dr.

5101 14th Street, NW / Washington, DC 20011 Phone: 202-726-2220 Fax: 202-726-9089

1306 Vermont Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20005

“A Church with a past to remember – and a future to mold” www.mtzbcdc.org

EMPLOYMENT LAWYERS MCCOLLUM & ASSOCIATES, LLC ADA, Age Discrimination, Benefits, Civil Rights, COBRA, Contracts, Deaf Law, Defamation, Disability Law, Discipline, Discrimination, FMLA, FLSA, FOIA, Family Responsibility, Harassment, HIPPA, OSHA, National Origin Discrimination, Non-Compete, Race Discrimination, Rehabilitation Act, Retaliation, Severance Agreements, Sexual Harassment, Torts, Whistleblowing, Wage-and-Hour, Wrongful Discharge SERVING MARYLAND, DC, & NORTH CAROLINA

www.jmlaw.net

(301) 864-6070

jmccollum@jmlaw.net

Mount Olivet Lutheran Church

Reverend John W. Davis Pastor

Service and Times Sunday Worship Service - 8:00 a.m. & 11:00 a.m.

Children’s Church - 11:00 a.m. (1st & 3rd Sundays) Communion - 10 a.m. 4th Sunday Sunday School - 9:15 a.m. (4th Sunday 8:15 a.m.)

Prayer Meeting & Bible Study - Wednesday 7:00 p.m.

(301) 864-6070

Service and Times Divine Worship, Sunday 10:00 a.m.

Communion 1st and 3rd Sunday “Friendliest Church in the City” Website: mountolivetdc.org Email: mtolivedc@gmail.com

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DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 47

RELIGION The Miracle Center of Faith Missionary Baptist Church

Pilgrim Baptist Church

Bishop Michael C. Turner, Sr. Senior Pastor

Rev. Louis B. Jones II Pastor

9161 Hampton Overlook Capitol Heights, MD 20743 Phone: 301-350-2200 / Fax: 301-499-8724

700 I Street, N.E. Washington, D.C. 20002 (202) 547-8849

Service and Times Sunday Worship Times : 7:30 AM 7 10:00 AM Communion: 1st Sunday Sunday School: 9:00 AM Bible Study: Wednesday, 12 Noon Bible Study in homes: Tuesday 7:00 PM

Service and Times Worship Sundays: 7:30 & 11:00 AM 5th Sundays: 9:30 AM 3rd Sundays: Baptism & Holy Communion Prayer & Praise: Wednesdays @ Noon & 6:30 PM

Website: www.themiraclecenterFMBC.com Email: Miraclecenterfmbs@gmail.com Motto: “We Walk by Faith, Not by Sight”

www.pilgrimbaptistdc.org

Covenant Baptist United Church of Christ

Blessed Word of Life Church

Church of Living Waters

Allen Chapel A.M.E. Church

Rev. Paul Carrette Senior Pastor Harold Andrew Assistant Pastor 4915 Wheeler Road Oxon Hill, MD 20745 301-894-6464 Service and Times Sunday Service: 8:30am& 11:00 AM Bible Study: Wednesday 7:30 PM Communion Service: First Sunday www.livingwatersmd.org

St. Stephen Baptist Church

Rev. Dr. Michael E. Bell, Sr., / Pastor 2498 Alabama Ave., SE - Washington D.C. 20020 Office: (202) 889-7296 / Fax: (202) 889-2198 - www.acamec.org Service and Times Sunday Worship Services: 8:00am and 11:00 AM Sunday Church School - 9:15am & Sunday Adult Forum Bible Study - 10:30 AM 2nd & 4th Monday Women’s Bible Study: 6:30 PM Tuesday Jr./Sr. Bible Study: 10:00 AM Tuesday Topical Bible Study: 6:30 PM Tuesday New Beginnings Bible Study: 6:30 PM Wednesday Pastoral Bible Study: 6:30 PM Wednesday Children’s Bible Study: 6:30 PM Thursday Men’s Bible Study: 6:30 PM Friday before 1st Sunday Praise & Worship Service: 6:30 PM Saturday Adult Bible Study: 10:00 AM “The Amazing, Awesome, Audacious Allen Chapel A.M.E. Church”

Third Street Church of God

Dr. Dekontee L. & Dr. Ayele A. Johnson Pastors

Reverend William Young IV Pastor

Bishop Lanier C. Twyman, Sr. Senior Pastor

Rev. Cheryl J. Sanders, Th.D. Senior Pastor

4001 14th Street, NW Washington, DC 20011 (202) 265-6147 Office 1-800 576-1047 Voicemail/Fax

3845 South Capitol Street Washington, DC 20032 (202) 562-5576 (Office) / (202) 562-4219 (Fax)

5757 Temple Hill Road, Temple Hills, MD 20748 Office 301-899-8885 – fax 301-899-2555 Services and Times Sunday Early Morning Worship: 7:45 AM Church School: 9:30 AM Sunday Morning Worship: 10:45 AM Tuesday: 7:00pm/Kingdom Building Bible Institute Wednesday , 12:30 PM Mid-Day Bible Study Wednesday: Prayer/Praise/Bible Study-7:30 PM Baptism & Communion Service: 4th Sunday – 10:30 AM

1204 Third Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 202-347-5889 office / 202-638-1803 fax

Service and Times Sunday School: 9:30 AM Sunday Morning Worship Service: 11:00 AM Communion Service: First Sunday Prayer Service/Bible Study: Tuesday, 6:30 PM

Services and Times Sundays: 10:00am Worship Services Bible Study: Wonderful Wednesdays in Worship and the Word Bible Study Wednesdays 12:00 Noon; 6:30 PM (dinner @ 5:30 PM) Sunday School: 9:00 AM – Hour of Power “An inclusive ministry where all are welcomed and affirmed.” www.covenantdc.org

www.blessedwordoflifechurch.org E-mail: church@blessedwordoflifechurch.org

Campbell AME Church

Service and Times Sunday Worship Service: 10:00 AM Sunday Church School: 8:45 AM Bible Study Wednesday: 12:00 Noon Wednesday: 7:00 PM Thursday: 7:00 PM “Reaching Up To Reach Out” Mailing Address : Campbell AME Church 2502 Stanton Road SE - Washington, DC 20020

Service and Times Sunday Morning Worship: 11:00 AM Holy Communion: 1st Sunday Sunday School: 9:45 AM Men’s Monday Bible Study: 7:00 PM Wednesday Night Bible Study: 7:00 PM Women’s Ministry Bible Study: 3rd Friday -7:00 PM Computer Classes: Announced Family and Marital Counseling by appointment E-mail: Crusadersbaptistchurch@verizon.net www.CrusadersBaptistChurch.org / “God is Love”

Greater Mt. Calvary Holy Church Bishop Alfred A. Owens, Jr.; Senior Bishop & Evangelist Susie C. Owens – Co-Pastor 610 Rhode Island Avenue, NE Washington, DC 20002 (202) 529-4547 office • (202) 529-4495 fax

Sunday Worship Service: 8:00 AM and 10:45 AM Sunday Youth Worship Services: 1st & 4th 10:45 AM; 804 R.I. Ave., NE 5th 8 AM & 10:45 AM; Main Church Prayer Services Tuesday – Noon, Wednesday 6:00 AM & 6:30 PM Calvary Bible Institute: Year-Round Contact Church / Communion Every 3rd Sunday The Church in The Hood that will do you Good! www.gmchc.org / emailus@gmchc.org

St Marks Baptist Come Worship with us...

Dr. Raymond T. Matthews Pastor and First Lady Marcia Matthews St. Mark's Baptist Church 624 Underwood Street, NW Washington, dc 20011 Services and Times Sunday School: 9:00 AM Worship Service: 10:00 AM Wed. Noon Day prayer service Thur. Prayer service: 6:45 PM Thur. Bible Study: 7:15 PM

(Disciples of Christ) 1812 12th Street, NW - Washington, DC 20009 Phone: 202-265-4494 Fax: 202 265 4340 Service and Times Sunday Worship Service: 11:00 AM Communion every Sunday: 11:00 AM Sunday School: 10:00 AM Bible Study Tuesday: 12 Noon Pastor’s Bible Study Tuesday: 6:30 PM Motto: “Discover Something Wonderful” Website: 12thscc.org / Email: Twelfthstcc@aol.com

Mount Carmel Baptist Church Reverend Dr. Paris L Smith, Sr. Senior Pastor

Virgil K. Thomas, Sr. Senior Pastor/ Teacher

Service and Times Sunday School: 10:15 AM Sunday Worship Service: 11;15 AM Children’s Church: 11:15 AM Tuesday Bible Study: 6:30 PM Motto : “A Great Commitment to the Great Commandment” Website: www.turningheartschurchdc.org Email: gr8luv4u2@gmail.com

www.thirdstreet.org Live Stream Sunday Worship Service begins @ 12:00 noon www.thirdstreet.org

800 I Street, NE - Washington, DC 20002 202-548-0707 - Fax No. 202-548-0703

Reverend Dr. Calvin L. Matthews Senior Pastor 1200 Isle of Patmos Plaza, Northeast Washington, DC 20018 Office: (202) 529-6767 - Fax: (202) 526-1661 Service and Times Sunday Worship Services: 7:30 AM and 10:30 AM Holy Communion: 2nd Sunday at 7:30 AM and 10:30 AM Sunday Church School: 9:20 AM Seniors Bible Study: Tuesdays at 10:30 AM Noon Day Prayer Service: Tuesdays at Noon Bible Study: Tuesdays at 7 PM Motto: “A Ministry of Reconciliation Where Everybody is Somebody!”

Website: http://isleofpatmosbc.org Church Email: ipbcsecretary@verizon.net

Reverend Dr. Paul H. Saddler Senior Pastor

Turning Hearts Church

421 Alabama Ave. SE Washington, DC 20032 Phone: 202-746-0113 Fax: 301-843-2445

“Ambassadors for Christ to the Nation’s Capital”

Rev. Dr. Alton W. Jordan Pastor

Isle of Patmos Baptist Church

Twelfth Street Christian Church

Rev. Dr. Henry Y. White 2562 MLK Jr. Ave., SE - Washington, DC 20020 Adm. Office 202-678-2263 Email: Campbell@mycame.org

“We are one in the Spirit” www.ssbc5757.org / E-mail: ssbc5757@verizon.net

Services and Times Sunday School: 9:30 AM Sunday Worship: 11:00 AM Sunday Community Worship Service: 8:30 AM

Crusader Baptist Church

901 Third Street N.W. Washington, DC. 20001 Phone (202) 842-3411 Fax (202) 682-9423 Service and Times Sunday Church School : 9:00 AM Sunday Morning Worship: 10:10 AM Bible Study Tuesday: 6: 00 PM Prayer Service Tuesday: 7:00 PM Holy Communion: 3rd Sunday 10:10 AM

48 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

themcbc.org

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RELIGION Shabbath Commandment Church Bishop Adrian A. Taylor, Sr. Pastor 7801 Livingston Road Oxon Hill, MD 20745 301-534-5471 Service and Times Sabbath School 9:30 a.m. – 10:30 AM Service 11:00 AM Praise & Worship Preaching 11:30 AM – 1:30 PM Motto: “A Church Keeping It Real for Real.”

Website: Shabbathcommandmentchruch.org Email: Praisebetoyhwh@gmail.com

Zion Baptist Church Rev. Keith W. Byrd, Sr. Pastor 4850 Blagdon Ave, NW - Washington D.C 20011 Phone (202) 722-4940 - Fax (202) 291-3773 Service and Times 9:00 a.m. – Sunday School 10:15 a.m. – Worship Service Wed. Noon: Dea. Robert Owens Bible Study 7 PM Pastor’s Bible Study Ordinance of Baptism 2nd Sunday, Holy Communion 4th Sunday Mission: Zion shall: Enlist Sinners, Educate Students, Empower the Suffering, Encourage the Saints, And Exalt our Savior. (Acts 2: 41-47) www.zionbaptistchurchdc.org

St. Luke Baptist Church Rev. Aubrey C. Lewis Pastor 1415 Gallatin Street, NW Washington, DC 20011-3851 P: (202) 726-5940 Service and Times Sunday Worship: 11:00 AM Sunday School: 9:15 AM Holy Communion: 11:00 a.m., 3rd Sun. Bible Institute: Wednesday - 1:30 PM Prayer Meeting: Wednesday - 12:00 Noon

All Nations Baptist Church Rev. Dr. James Coleman Pastor 2001 North Capitol St, N.E. - Washington, DC 20002 Phone (202) 832-9591 Service and Times Sunday Church School – 9:30 AM Sunday Worship Service – 11:00 AM Holy Communion – 1st Sunday at 11:00 AM Prayer – Wednesdays, 6:00 PM Bible Study – Wednesdays, 7:00 PM Christian Education / School of Biblical Knowledge Saturdays, 9:30 AM – 11:00 AM, Call for Registration Website: www.allnationsbaptistchurch.com All Nations Baptist Church – A Church of Standards

Israel Baptist Church

Rev. Daryl F. Bell Pastor 2324 Ontario Road, NW Washington, DC 20009 (202) 232-1730 Service and Times Sunday School: 9:30 AM Sunday Worship Service: 11:00 AM Baptismal Service: 1st Sunday – 9:30 AM Holy Communion: 1st Sunday – 11:00 AM Prayer Meeting & Bible Study: Wednesday -7:30 PM “Where Jesus is the King”

Dr. Earl D. Trent Senior Pastor

2409 Ainger Pl.,SE – WDC 20020 (202) 678-0884 – Office / (202) 678-0885 – Fax “Moving Faith Forward” 0% Perfect . . . 100% Forgiven!

623 Florida Ave.. NW - WDC. 20001 Church (202) 667-3409 / Study (202) 265-0836 Home Study (301) 464-8211 / Fax (202) 483-4009

Service and Times Sunday Worship: 8:00 AM & 10:45 AM Baptism/Holy Communion: 3rd Sunday Family Bible Study Tuesdays – 6:30 PM Prayer Service: Tuesdays – 8:00 PM www.emmanuelbaptistchurchdc.org

Sermon On The Mount Temple Of Joy Apostolic Faith

Lincoln Park United Methodist Church Rev. Richard B. Black Pastor

Elder Herman L. Simms Pastor

1251 Saratoga Ave., NE Washington, DC 20018 (202) 269-0288

1301 North Carolina Ave. N E Washington, D C 20002 202 543 1318 - lincolnpark@lpumcdc.org www.lpumcdc.org

5606 Marlboro Pike District Heights, MD 20747 301-735-6005

Service and Times Sunday Worship Service: 10:45 AM Sunday School: 9:15 AM Holy Communion1st Sunday: 10:45 AM Prayer Service: Wednesday at 6:30 PM Bible Study: Wednesday at 7:00 PM Bible Study: Tuesday at 10:30 AM

Mount Moriah Baptist Church Dr. Lucius M. Dalton Senior Pastor

Service and Times Sunday Worship: 10:00 AM Holy Communion: First Sunday 10:00 AM Sunday School: 9:00 AM Bible Study: Wednesday @ 12 noon and 6:30 PM Motto: "Faith On The Hill"

Service and Times Sunday Apostolic Worship Services 11:00 A.M and 5:00 PM Communion and Feet Wash 4th Sunday at 5:00 PM Prayer/Seeking: Wednesday at 8:00 PM Apostolic in Doctrine, Pentecostal in Experience, Holiness in Living, Uncompromised and Unchanged.

The Apostolic Faith is still alive –Acts 2:42

New Commandment Baptist Church

Eastern Community Baptist Church Damion M. Briggs Pastor

Rev. Stephen E. Tucker Senior Pastor

1636 East Capitol Street, NE Washington, DC 20003 Telephone: 202-544-5588 - Fax: 202-544-2964

8213 Manson Street Landover, MD 20785 Tel: (301) 322-9787 Fax: (301) 322-9240

13701 Old Jericho Park Road Bowie, MD. 20720 (301) 262-0560

Service and Times Sunday Worship Services: 7:45 AM and 10:45 AM Holy Communion: 1st Sundays at 7:45 AM & 10:45 AM Sunday School: 9:30 AM Prayer & Praise Service: Tuesdays at 12 noon & 6:30 PM Bible Study: Tuesdays at 1 pm and 7 PM Youth Bible Study: Fridays at 7 PM

Service and Times Early Morning Message: 7:30 AM Sunday Morning Worship Service: 10:00 AM Sunday Church School: 9:00 AM Holy Communion: 1st Sunday 7:30 AM & 10:00 AM Prayer, Praise and Testimony: Wednesday 7:00 PM Bible Study: Wednesday 7:30 PM

Service and Times Sunday Worship: 11 AM Sunday School: 10 AM Wednesday Mid-Week Worship, Prayer & Bible Study: Wed. 7 PM

Rehoboth Baptist Church

Reverend Peter R. Blue Sr. Pastor

Rev. Curtis l. Staley Pastor

2001 Brooks Drive District Heights MD. 20744 240.838.7074

621 Alabama Ave., S.E.- Washington, D.C. 20032 P: (202) 561-1111 - F: (202) 561-1112

Service and Times Sunday Worship Experience: 10:15am Sunday School: 9:00am Holy Communion: 3rd Sunday Morning Noontime Bible Study: Tuesday @ 12:00pm Prayer Meeting/Bible Study: Tuesday @7:00pm Theme: "Building On A Firm Foundation"

Service and Times Sunday Service: 10:00 AM Sunday School for all ages: 8:30 AM 1st Sunday Baptism: 10:00 AM 2nd Sunday Holy Communion:10:00 AM Tuesday: Bible Study: 6:30 PM Prayer Meeting: 7:45 PM

Email: revprbstmbc@gmail.com Website: www.stmatthewsbaptist.org

Motto: “Where God is First and Where Friendly People Worship”

“Real Worship for Real People” Website: www.easterncommunity.org Email: ecc@easterncommunity.org

“A Church Where Love Is Essential and Praise is Intentional”

Foggy Bottom - Founded in 1867 728 23rd Street, NW - Washington, DC 20037 Church office: 202-333-3985 - Fax : 202-338-4958

Shiloh Baptist Church

Service and Times Sunday Worship Services: 10:00 AM Sunday Church School: 8:45 – 9:45 AM Holy Communion: Every First Sunday Intercessory Prayer: Monday – 7:00-8:00 PM Pastor’s Bible Study: Wednesday –7:45 PM Midweek Prayer: Wednesday – 7:00 PM Noonday Prayer Every Thursday

Matthews Memorial Baptist Church

4504 Gault Place, N.E. / Washington, D.C 20019 202-397-7775 – 7184 Service and Times Sunday Church School: 9:30 AM Sunday Worship Service : 11:00 AM The Lord’s Supper 1st Sunday Prayer & Praise Services: Wednesday 7:00 PM Bible Study: 7:30 PM Saturday before 4th Sunday Men, Women, Youth Discipleship Ministries: 10:30 AM A Christ Centered Church htubc@comcast.net

Christ Embassy DC

Dr. Joseph D. Turner / Senior Pastor 2616 MLK Ave., SE - Washington, DC 20020 Office 202-889-3709 - Fax 202-678-3304 Service and Times Early Worship Service: 8:00 AM Worship Service: 11:00 AM New Member’s Class: 9:45 AM Holy Communion: 1st Sunday, 11:00 AM Church School: 9:45 AM Wednesday 12:00pm Bible Study Prayer, Praise and Bible Study: 7:00 PM Saturday Bible Study: 11:00 AM Baptism 4th Sunday: 11:00 AM “Empowered to love and Challenged to Lead a Multitude of Souls to Christ”

Peace Baptist Church

Kelechi Ajieren Coordinator 6839 Eastern Avenue, R1 Takoma Park, MD 20912 (202) 556-7065 Service and Times Sunday Worship Service: 10:00 AM Wednesday Bible Study: 7:00 PM Friday Evening Service: 7:00 PM ; Last Friday “…Giving Your Life a Meaning” www.Christembassydc.org Christ.embassy.dc@hotmail.com

Pennsylvania Ave. Baptist Church

Rev. Dr. Michael T. Bell 712 18th Street, NE Washington, DC 20002 Phone 202-399-3450/ Fax 202-398-8836 Service and Times Sunday Early Morning Prayer & Bible Study Class: 8:00 AM Sunday School: 9:00 AM Sunday Morning Worship Service: 10:00 AM Wednesday Service: 12:00 PM “The Loving Church of the living lord “

Rev. Dr. Kendrick E. Curry Pastor 3000 Pennsylvania Ave.. S.E Washington, DC 20020 202 581-1500 Service and Times Sunday Church School: 9:30 AM Sunday Worship Service: 11:00 AM Monday Adult Bible Study: 7:00 PM Wednesday Youth & Adult Activities: 6:30 PM Prayer Service Bible Study

First Rising Mt. Zion Baptist Church

Mt. Horeb Baptist Church

Rev. Dr. Wallace Charles Smith Pastor

Rev. Oran W. Young Pastor

Rev. Dr. H. B. Sampson, III Pastor

9th & P Street, N.W. - W. D.C. 20001 (202) 232-4288

602 N Street NW - Washington, D.C. 20001 Office:(202) 289-4480 Fax: (202) 289-4595

2914 Bladensburg Road, NE Wash., DC 20018 Office: (202) 529-3180 - Fax: (202) 529-7738 Service and Times Worship Service: 7:30 AM Sunday School: 9:00 AM Worship Service: 10:30 AM Holy Communion: 4th Sunday 7:30AM & 10:30 AM Prayer Services:Tuesday 7:30 PM. Wednesday 12 Noon

www.stmarysfoggybottom.org Email: stmarysoffice@stmarysfoggybottom.org

Service and Times First Sunday Worship Service (one service): 10:00 AM Second, Third, Fourth, and Fifth Sunday Worship service: 7:45 AM and 10:55 AM Sunday Church School/Bible Study: 9:30 AM Thursday Prayer Service: 6:30 PM

All are welcome to St. Mary’s to Learn, Worship, and Grow.

Email: sbc@shilohbaptist.org Website: shilohbaptist.org

Service and Times Sundays: 10 a.m. Holy Eucharist with Music and Hymns Wednesdays: 12:10 p.m. - Holy Eucharist

Rev. Dr. George C. Gilbert Senior Pastor

Email Address: admin@pbc712.org

Historic St. Mary’s Episcopal Church The Rev. E. Bernard Anderson Priest

Holy Trinity United Baptist Church

Florida Avenue Baptist Church

Reverend Christopher L. Nichols Pastor

Rev. Dr. Jerryl V. Moody Pastor-Elect

Web: www.mountmoriahchurch.org Email: mtmoriah@mountmoriahchurch.org

St. Matthews Baptist Church

Emmanuel Baptist Church

King Emmanuel Baptist Church

WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM / THE WASHINGTON INFORMER

Service and Times Sunday School for All Ages: 8:00 AM Sunday Worship Services: 9:30 AM Midday Prayer & Bible Study: Wednesday 11:30AM Evening Prayer & Bible Study: Wednesday 7:00 PM Laymen's League: Thursday 7:00 PM Email: Froffice@firstrising.org Website: www.firstrising.org “Changing Lives On Purpose “

Email:mthoreb@mthoreb.org Website:www.mthoreb.org For further information, please contact me at (202) 529-3180.

DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 49

LEGAL NOTICES IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION Nakia Kittrell, as Personal Representative of the Estate of Jonathan Lee Ross 122 Stoney Ridge Avenue Suffolk, VA 23425 Plaintiff v.

Case No. 2019 LIT 000036 The Unknown Personal Representative(s), Heirs, Legatees, Devisees, Successors and Assigns of the Judge Maurice Ross Estate of Alice Virginia Ross (No Estate Opened) The Unknown Personal Representative(s), Heirs, ) Legatees, Devisees, Successors and Assigns of the Estate of Jerdenia Ross Maxwell Marie C. Hart, as Administrator of the Estate of Jerry Lee Ross ) 3007 Kelrae Drive Richmond, VA 23224 Carlton Maxwell 2401 Washington Place, NE, Unit 310 Washington, DC 20018 Michael Ross 8305 Gibbons Drive Fort Washington, MD 20744 Marcus Ross 8305 Gibbons Drive Fort Washington, MD 20744 Cather M. Cooper 9605 Beverly Avenue Clinton, MD 20735 and All unknown property owners of the property described below, their heirs, devisees, personal ) representatives, and executors, administrators, ) grantees, assigns or successors in right, title, interest, and any and all persons having or ) claiming to have any interest in the leasehold or fee simple in the property and premises situate, ) lying and being in the District of Columbia ) described as: Square: 5214, Lot: 72 Also known as: 709 56th Place, NE Washington, DC 20019 Defendants.

AMENDED ORDER OF PUBLICATION There is now pending before the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, Probate Division, an action, case number 2019 LIT 000036, seeking to quiet title and partition a parcel of residential real property located at 709 56th Place, NE, Washington, DC 20019, which is known for taxation and assessment purposes as Square 5214, Lot 0072. A copy of this action is available in the Clerk’s Office of the Court, located at Room 314, Building A, 515 5th Street, NW, Washington, DC. On Motion of the Plaintiff, it is this 1st day of October 2020, ORDERED, that notice be given by publication to Defendants (i) the Unknown Personal Representative(s), Heirs, Legatees, Devisees, Successors and Assigns of the Estate of Alice Virginia Ross; (ii) the Unknown Personal Representative(s), Heirs, Legatees, Devisees, Successors and Assigns of the Estate of Jerdenia Ross Maxwell; and (iii) all unknown owners of the above- described property, their heirs, devisees, personal representatives, and executors, administrators, grantees, assigns or successors in right, title and interest, and any and all persons having or claiming to have any interest in the leasehold or fee simple in the property and premises situate, lying and being in the District of Columbia as above-described, by the insertion of a copy of this Order in the Washington Informer and the Daily Washington Law Reporter twice per month for a period of three successive months; and it is further ORDERED, that the persons herein named are hereby summoned and required to file an Answer to the Amended Complaint in Room 314, Building A, 515 5th Street, NW, Washington, DC between 8:30 am and 5:00 pm, and serve the same the Plaintiff and any other parties named in the Amended Complaint, on or before the date and time of the Initial Scheduling Conference in this action; and it is further ORDERED, that the Initial Scheduling Conference shall be held before Judge Ross in Courtroom A-51 on January 5, 2021, at 10:45 a.m.; and it is further ORDERED, that the Initial Scheduling Conference may be held remotely due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, and the above-named defendants shall be required to contact the chambers of Judge Ross to obtain remote hearing instructions prior to the date of the Initial Scheduling Conference; and it is further ORDERED, that if you fail to serve and file an Answer within the time stated above, or if, after you answer, you fail to appear at any time the Court notifies you to do so, including at the Initial Scheduling Conference, a judgment by default may be entered against you for monetary damages or any other relief demanded in the Complaint. If this occurs, your wages may be attached or withheld or personal property or real estate you own may be taken and sold to pay the judgment. If you intend to oppose this action, do not fail to answer within the required time.

IT IS SO ORDERED. Judge Maurice A. Ross

50 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

LEGAL NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICES SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 2020 FEP 000068 April 3, 2020 Date of Death Franklin Roosevelt Ampy Name of Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT OF FOREIGN PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE AND NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Kenneth Ampy whose address is 14307 Clemons Drive, Midlothian, Virginia 23114, was appointed personal representative of the estate of Franklin Roosevelt Ampy, deceased, by the Orphans Court for Prince Georges County, State of Maryland, on June 8, 2020.

Service of process may be made upon Shirley D. Holmes, 5711 5th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20011 whose designation as District of Columbia agent has been filed with the Register of Wills, D.C. The decedent owned the following District of Columbia real estate.

1250 4th Street, SW, Unit W808, Washington, DC 20024. Claims against the decedent may be presented to the undersigned and filed with the Register of Wills of the District of Columbia, 515 5th Street, NW, Third Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001 within 6 months from the date of first publication of this notice.

LEGAL NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICES

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2020 ADM 000688

2020 ADM 000733

2020 ADM 000533

Gail West Decedent

Robert W. King, Jr. aka Robert Wilton King, Jr. Decedent

Giles H. Jackson Decedent

Aimee D. Griffin, Esq. 5335 Wisconsin Ave., NW Suite 440 Washington, DC 20015 Attorney

Tabitha R. Brown, Esq. Law Offices of Tabitha R. Brown 1200 G. Street SE, Ste. A Washington, DC 20003 Attorney

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Lisa N. Patterson, whose address is 1129 46th Place, SE, Washington, DC 20019, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Gail West who died on February 4, 2020 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., Third Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 5/19/2021. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 5/19/2021, or be forever barred.

Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Mischa E. Carter, whose address is 4500 Connecticut Ave., NW, #201, Washington, DC 20008, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Robert W. King, Jr. aka Robert Wilton King, Jr. who died on June 30, 2020 with a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., Third Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 5/19/2021. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 5/19/2021, or be forever barred.

Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Nakia Gray, Esq. 800 Maine Ave., SW Suite 200 Washington, DC 20024 Attorney

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Rebecca C. Jackson, whose address is 2443 Skyland Place, SE, Washington, DC 20020, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Giles H. Jackson who died on December 10, 2019 with a Will, and will serve without Court supervision.

All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., Third Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 5/19/2021. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 5/19/2021, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 11/19/2020

Date of first publication: 11/19/2020

Lisa N. Patterson Personal Representative

Mischa E. Carter Personal Representative

Rebecca C. Jackson Personal Representative

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Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

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Notice of Special Appearance : | am that | am: “Jeremy Lewis© ",

X SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

natural issue, the beneficiary and heir of: " LEWIS, JEREMY®© ", corp.

2020 ADM 000648

Date of first publication: 11/19/2020 Kenneth Ampy Personal Representative Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

Declaration of Nationality in full life, in propria persona, sul juris, in solo proprio, Haqdar by

sole Dba.: " JEREMY LEWIS© “, having reached the age of majority, being aboriginal to the northwestern and southwestern shores of Africa, the Atlantic Islands, the continental Americas, being duly

certified, hereby affirms to declare my tribal intention to be as my pedigree subscribes,

as a: Moorish American, but not a citizen of the United States. |

declare permanent, and unalienable, allegiance to The Moorish Empire, Societas Republicae Ea Al Maurikanuus Estados, The

Date of first publication: 11/19/2020

Thelma A. Moore Decedent Aimee D. Griffin, Esq. The Griffin Firm PLLC 5335 Wisconsin Ave., NW, Suite 400 Washington, DC 20015 Attorney

Constitution for the united States of America, Article Ill Section 2, The Lieber Code, Hague Conventions of 1899 & 1907, The Geneva Conventions, [ United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous

Peoples J, and all natural laws governing moors, and hereby declare and proclaim my nationality in good faith as a: Moorish American. | am that | am:" Jeremy Lewis© ", from this day forward, in harmony

with my Nationality / Status / Jurisdiction, shall be known as: " prince magnus power horse el© ". Notice of White Flag Surrender: as “hors de combat’, pursuant to The Geneva Conventions, Article Ill, as a minister of The Moorish Empire, and Internationally Protected

Person. Notice of LAWS AND CUSTOMS OF WAR ON LAND (HAGUE, IV), ARTICLE: 45, 46, & 47. Notice of Claim pursuant to Public Law

87-846, TITLE Il, SEC. 203. Notice of Bailment Merging of Legal Title

with Equitable Title : This order is to preserve legal and equitable title , and to reserve all rights, title, and interest, in the property, Re: Office of Vital Records / Bureau of Vital Statistics / New York Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, CERTIFICATE NUMBER: 156-89-

071663, ” JEREMY LEWIS© ", to the depositor: " prince magnus

power horse el© “, nom deguerre: “ Jeremy Lewis© “. All property , of

the same issue and amount, in like kind and specie, is to be returned

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Eric D. Moore, whose address is 4000 Middleton Loop, Apt. 401, Dumfries VA, 22025, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Thelma A. Moore who died on April 25, 2020 with a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., Third Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 5/19/2021. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 5/19/2021, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

2020 ADM 000637 Vincent Villa aka Vincent Joseph Villa Decedent Ethel Michell 8403 Colesville Road Suite 1100 Silver Spring, MD 20910 Attorney

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS David P. Gessert, whose address is 5601 32nd Street, NW, Washington, DC 20015, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Vincent Villa aka Vincent Joseph Villa who died on February 17, 2020 with a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., Third Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 5/19/2021. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 5/19/2021, or be forever barred.

Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 11/19/2020

Date of first publication: 11/19/2021

David P. Gessert Personal Representative

Eric D. Moore Personal Representative

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porated Divine Grantor Trust. This deposit is not to be commingled

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Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

bailee /donee / debtor. This deposit is not limited to, but including:

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

and satisfaction. Inter alia enact fuit. All Rights Reserved.

Washington Informer

fully intact , as a Special Deposit order of the Depositor / Beneficiary / Bailor / Donor / Principal / Creditor: “ prince magnus power horse

el© ", nom deguerre: " Jeremy Lewis© ", as a special deposit order

in lawful money. This special deposit is to be used exclusively for the benefit of : ”House Of Magnus El Trust© ”, an Inter Vivos Unincor-

with general assets of any bank , nor depositary / trustee / agent /

discharge and set off, of any and all outstanding liabilities as accord

2020 ADM 000684 Gertie M. Holmes Decedent

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Arthur I. Linder, Sr.,whose address is 4701 13th Place NE, Washington, DC 20017, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Gertie M. Holmes who died on May 1, 2020 with a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., Third Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 5/19/2021. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 5/19/2021, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 11/19/2020 Arthur I. Linder, Sr. Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY

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Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

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LEGAL NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICES

In God We Trust Declaration of Nationality Notice of White Flag Surrender Notice of Special Appearance: I am that I am: '' Hazine Chermon Chery '', in full life, in propria persona, sui juris, in solo proprio, Haqdar by natural issue, the beneficiary and heir of: "CHERY, HAZINE CHERMON", corp.sole Dba.: " HAZINE CHERMON CHERY", having reached the age of majority, being aboriginal to the northwestern and southwestern shores of Africa, the Atlantic Islands, the continental Americas, being duly certified, hereby affirms to declare my tribal intention to be as my pedigree subscribes, as a: Taino Moorish American, but not a citizen of the United States. I declare permanent, and unalienable, allegiance to The Moorish Empire, Societas Republicae Ea AI Maurikanuus Estados, The Constitution for the united States of America, Article III Section 2, The Lieber Code, Hague Conventions of 1899 & 1907, The Geneva Conventions, [United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples], and all natural laws governing moors, and hereby declare and proclaim my nationality in good faith as a: Taino Moorish American.

I am that I am: '' Hazine Chermon Chery '', from this day forward, in harmony with my Nationality/ Status/ Jurisdiction, shall be known as: " zin rae' el ". Notice of White Flag Surrender: as "hors de combat", pursuant to The Geneva Conventions, Article III, as a minister of The Moorish Empire, and Internationally Protected Person. Notice of: LAWS AND CUSTOMS OF WAR ON LAND (HAGUE, IV), ARTICLE: 45, 46, & 47.

Notice of Claim pursuant to Public Law 87-846, TITLE II, SEC. 203. Notice of Bailment Merging of Legal Title with Equitable Title: This order is to preserve legal and equitable title, and to reserve all rights, title, and interest, in the property, Re: EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR OF FLORIDA, Dba: Health, Florida Department of, Dba: Vital Statistics, Dba: STATE OF FLORIDA,: Birth No.: 109-82-071805, '' Hazine Chermon Chery'', is as a special deposit order conveyed to " Hazine Chermon Chery Trust". All property of the same issue and amount, in like kind and specie, is to be returned fully intact (including HAZINE C CHERY C.U.S.I.P. # 316145812, HAZINE C CHERY C.U.S.I.P.# 316203850, any notes, bonds, or other evidences of indebtedness or obligations, and/ or any security/ derivative in connection thereof) , as a Special Deposit order of the Depositor/ Beneficiary/ Bailor/ Donor/ Principal/ Creditor: " zin rae' el© ",nom deguerre: "Hazine Chermon Chery©", as a special deposit order in lawful money. This special deposit is to be used exclusively for the benefit of: "Hazine Chermon Chery Trust", an Inter Vivos Unincorporated Divine Grantor Trust. This deposit is not to be commingled with general assets of any bank, nor depositary/ trustee/ agent/ bailee/ donee/ debtor. This deposit is not limited to, but including: discharge and set off, of any and all outstanding liabilities as accord and satisfaction. All open accounts (future accounts included) shall be recorded during a regular course of business as Closed Accounts and/ or Offset Accounts to which no further additions can be made on either side, but which remains still open for adjustment and set-off (One of two accounts that balance against each other and cancel each other out when the books are closed). Inter alia enact fuit. All Rights Reserved.

In God We Trust Declaration of Nationality Notice of Special Appearance: I am that I am: “Shedaricka Tonja Jefferson©’, in full life, in propria persona, sui juris, in solo proprio, Haqdar by natural issue, the beneficiary and heir of: ”JEFFERSON,SHEDARICKA TONJA©’, corp.sole Dba.: “SHEDARICKA TONJA JEFFERSON©”, having reached the age of majority, being aboriginal to the northwestern and southwestern shores of Africa, the Atlantic Islands, the continental Americas, being duly certified, hereby affirms to declare my tribal intention to be as my pedigree subscribes, as a: Moorish American, but not a citizen of the United States. I declare permanent, and unalienable, allegiance to the The Moorish Empire, Societas Republicae Ea Al Maurikanuus Estados, The Constistution for the united States of America, Article III Section 2, The Lieber Code, Hague Conventions of 1899 & 1907, The Geneva Conventions, [ United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples ], and all natural laws governing moors, and hereby declare and proclaim my nationality in good faith as a: Moorish Amercian. I am that I am: “Shedaricka Tonja Jefferson©”, from this day forward, in harmony with my Nationality /Status /Jurisdiction, shall be known as: “shedaricka tonja jefferson el©”. Notice of White Flag Surrender: as “hors de combat”, pursuant to The Geneva Conventions, Article III, as a minister of The Moorish Empire, and Internationally Protected Persons. Notice of LAWS AND CUSTOMS OF WAR ON LAND ( HAGUE, IV ), ARTICLE: 45, 46, & 47. Notice of Claim pursuant to Public Law 87-846, TITLE II, SEC. 203. Notice of Bailment Merging of Legal Title with Equitable Title : This order is to preserve legal and equitable title, and to reserve all rights, title, and interest, in the property, Re: TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, STATE OF TEXAS, BIRTH NUMBER : #142-69-222363, “SHEDARICKA TONJA JEFFERSON©”, to the depositor: “shedaricka tonja jefferson el©”, nom deguerre: “Shedaricka Tonja Jefferson©”. All property, of the same issue and amount, in like kind and specie, is to be returned fully intact, as a Special Deposit order of the Depositor / Beneficiary / Bailor / Donor / Principal / Creditor: “shedaricka tonja jefferson el© “, nom deguerre: “Shedaricka Tonja Jefferson©”, as a special deposit order in lawful money. This special deposit is to be used exclusively for the benefit of : “Shedaricka Tonja Jefferson El Trust©”, an Inter Vivos Unincorporated Divine Grantor Trust. This deposit is not to be commingled with general assets of any bank, nor depositary / trustee / agent / bailee / done / debtor. This deposit is not limited to, but including: discharge and set off, of any and all outstanding liabilities as accord and satisfaction. Inter alia enact fuit. All Rights Reserved.

STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA IN THE FAMILY COURT OF THE FIRST JUDICIAL CIRCUIT COUNTY OF DORCHESTER DOCKET NO.: 2019-DR-18-1000 Notice of Adoption ProceedingS TO THE DEFENDANT: John Doe, Birth Father YOU ARE HEREBY GIVEN THE FOLLOWING NOTICE: 1. That an adoption proceeding was filed in the Family Court of Dorchester County on September 18, 2020, and in this Complaint you are alleged to be the father of an African-American, female child born in Alexandria, Virginia, on August 13, 2020.

2. That the Plaintiffs in the above captioned Notice are not named for the purpose of confidentiality; however, the Court knows the true identity of the Plaintiffs and in responding to this notice, you are required to use the caption and the number 2019-DR-18-1000. 3. That if Notice to Contest, Intervene or otherwise Respond is filed by you with the Court within thirty (30) days of the receipt of this Notice of Adoption Proceedings, you will be given an opportunity to appear and be heard on the merits of the adoption. To file notice to Contest, Intervene or otherwise Respond in this action, you must notify the above named Court at Dorchester County Courthouse, Clerk of Court Dorchester Family Court, P.O. Box 1885, Summerville, South Carolina 29484 in writing of your intention to Contest, Intervene or otherwise Respond. The above named Court must be informed of your current address and any changes of your address during the adoption proceedings.

4. That your failure to respond within thirty (30) days of receipt of this Notice of Adoption Proceedings constitutes your consent to the adoption and forfeiture of all of your rights and obligations to the above identified child. It is further alleged that your consent to this adoption is not required under S.C. Code Ann. Section 63-9-310 and that your parental rights should be terminated pursuant to S.C. Code Ann. Section 63-7-2570 (7).

This notice is given pursuant to S.C. Code Ann. Section 63-9-730 (E).

Raymond W. Godwin, Esq. (SC Bar #2162) PO Box 354 Greenville, SC 29602 PH (864) 241-2883 FAX: (864) 255-4342 ATTORNEY FOR PLAINTIFFS Date: November 5,2020

PUBLIC LEGAL NOTICE NOTICE OF CLAIM TO PROPERTY Public Notice No. Date Closing Date 199500939 11/16/20 12/25/2020

THIS IS NOTICE AND A CONTRACT IN ADMIRALTY JURISDICTION (1) LEGAL NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN, according to law that a Superior Claim of rights under Section 8-105 NOTICE OF ADVERSE CLAIM. Section 3-306 CLAIMS TO AN INSTRUMENT. Section 1-308 reservation of rights of the Uniformed Commercial Code. Pursuant to Section 20-343 of the Code of the District of Columbia. We the family hereby giving notice to all parties claiming interest in the ESTATE OF BETTY ROY OSBORNE property known as: 2608 17th street N.E. Washington, D.C. 20018 (LOT 826 SQUARE 4127) NOTICE TO AGENT IS NOTICE TO PRINCIPAL, NOTICE TO PRINCIPAL IS NOTICE TO AGENT. Take a moment to read this before you proceed any further. I do not wish to communicate under any circumstances excluding federal judicial review THIS LEGAL NOTICE IS TO ADDRESS ALL PARTIES IN THE NATURE OF A MIRANDA WARNING TAKE DUE HEED OF ITS CONTENTS. IF, FOR ANY REASON, YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND ANY OF THESE REGULATIONS, STIPULATIONS AND WARNINGS. This notice is to inform all parties that a superior claim to said property as exists and if any person, party, officers of the court, law enforcement officers including representatives, agents, contractors as defined in black’s law dictionary has a superior claim that you wish to communicate in writing, signed under the penalty of perjury as required by your law, and as shown in this instrument. all parties claiming an interest superior to affiant as required by law to respond within (30) days to 2608 17th street N.E. Washington, D.C. 20018, Your failure to timely do so leaves said persons in position of accepting full responsibility for any and all liabilities for monetary damages incurred by affiant, as indicated herein, by any adversely affected injuries cause by your overt or covert actions/ omissions, and/ or the actions/omissions of your fellow public officers and agents in this and/or any relevant matters as described herein.

(2)YOUR FAILURE TO TIMELY RESPOND WITHIN ALLOTED TIMEFRAME you have (30) days from the date of this document is posted by the clerk of the public record to respond and rebut the presumptions of this contract/notice point by point, by submitting to me signed, certified, authenticated documents of the laws that rebut these presumptions point by point ,on and for the public record under the penalties of the law including perjury. this notice is to all responsible parties, i.e. officers of the court, Real Estate Agents, Brokers, Investors and or law enforcement officers including local, state , region, area, country, corporation, representatives, contractors, agencies and any such entity or person that may bring any type of action, whether civil, criminal, contract to purchase, contract to represent by agent or other, against affiant or in effort to buy, transfer or convey said property known as: 2608 17th street N.E. Washington, D.C. 20018 (LOT 826 SQUARE 4127) NOTICE TO AGENT IS NOTICE TO PRINCIPAL, NOTICE TO PRINCIPAL IS NOTICE TO AGENT. Whether in this country, state, region, area, county, corporation, federal zone, or any venue and or/ jurisdiction. Your failure to timely rebut the statements and warnings herein constitute your complete tacit agreement with all regulations and stipulations contained herein. your presumptions that I, the undersigned am a “corporate fiction” or “legal entity” and under your corporate “united states” jurisdiction and The District of Columbia are now and forever rebutted. Furthermore, affiant reserves all rights reserved UCC 1-308, UCC 1-103 all rights reserved to sue such persons in a court of law for all monetary damages, liabilities and/or adversely affected injuries. Said NOTICE declares right to discovery to know if there is in fact any claim, rights or objection by way of sale, exchange, mortgage, charge, gift, maintenance, inheritance, possession, lease, tenancy, sub-tenancy, lien, license, hypothecation, transfer of title or beneficial interest under any trust right of prescription or pre-emption or under an agreement or other disposition or under any decree etc. Falling which the negotiations shall be completed, without any reference to such claims and the claims if any, shall be deemed to have been given up or waived.

Affiant: c/o Mr. Osborne, Saladin (Secured Party) Location: 2608 17th street N.E. Washington, D.C. 20018 Lot 826 Square 4127 Purpose: All parties NOTICE This 16th Day of our Lord in the year 2020. _________________________________________ ______________________________ Saladin Osborne (Secured Party) Notary Public

In God We Trust Declaration of Nationality. Notice of White Flag Surrender Notice of Special Appearance: I am that I am: '' Sully Federico Pimentel Pereyra© '', in full life, in propria persona, sui juris, in solo proprio, Haqdar by natural issue, the beneficiary and heir of: " PEREYRA, SULLY FEDERICO PIMENTEL", corp.sole Dba.: " SULLY FEDERICO PIMENTEL PEREYRA©". Beign trustee of “PIMENTEL, SOPHIA STELLA©”, corp. sole Dba.: “SOPHIA STELLA PIMENTEL©”, having reached the age of majority, being aboriginal to the northwestern and southwestern shores of Africa, the Atlantic Islands, the continental Americas, being duly certified, hereby affirms to declare my tribal intention to be as my pedigree subscribes, as a: Taino Moorish American, but not a citizen of the United States. I declare permanent, and unalienable, allegiance to The Moorish Empire, Societas Republicae Ea AI Maurikanuus Estados, The Constitution for the united States of America, Article III Section 2, The Lieber Code, Hague Conventions of 1899 & 1907, The Geneva Conventions, [United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples], and all natural laws governing moors, and hereby declare and proclaim my nationality in good faith as a: Taino Moorish American. I am that I am: '' Sully Federico Pimentel Pereyra© '', from this day forward, in harmony with my Nationality/ Status/ Jurisdiction, shall be known as: " mack el ©". Notice of White Flag Surrender: as "hors de combat", pursuant to The Geneva Conventions, Article III, as a minister of The Moorish Empire, and Internationally Protected Person. Notice of: LAWS AND CUSTOMS OF WAR ON LAND (HAGUE, IV), ARTICLE: 45, 46, & 47. Notice of Claim pursuant to Public Law 87-846, TITLE II, SEC. 203. Notice of Bailment Merging of Legal Title with Equitable Title: This order is to preserve legal and equitable title, and to reserve all rights, title, and interest, in the property, Re: [1] THE CITY OF NEW YORK, VITAL RECORDS CERTIFICATE BIRTH NO. 156-83-100920, ‘‘ SULLY FEDERICO PIMENTEL PEREYRA© ”, [2] The Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Registry of Vital Records and Statistics, REGISTERED NUMBER: 865, STATE FILE NUMBER: 064122,”SOPHIA STELLA PIMENTEL©” is as a special deposit order conveyed to " Mack El Trust". All property of the same issue and amount, in like kind and specie, is to be returned fully intact , as a Special Deposit order of the Depositor/ Beneficiary/ Bailor/ Donor/ Principal/ Creditor: " mack el© ",nom deguerre: "Sully Federico Pimentel Pereyra©", as a special deposit order in lawful money. This special deposit is to be used exclusively for the benefit of: "Mack El Trust", an Inter Vivos Unincorporated Divine Grantor Trust. This deposit is not to be commingled with general assets of any bank, nor depositary/ trustee/ agent/ bailee/ donee/ debtor.

This deposit is not limited to, but including: discharge and set off, of any and all outstanding liabilities as accord and satisfaction. All Rights Reserved.

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LEGAL NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICES

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2020 ADM 000351

2020 ADM 000647

Earma V. Jackson Decedent

Karen D. King aka Karen Denise King Decedent

Nakia Gray, Esq. 800 Maine Ave., SW Suite 200 Washington, DC 20024 Attorney

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Darrell M. Jackson, whose address is 414 Webster Street, NW, Washington, DC 20011, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Earma V. Jackson who died on November 22, 2017 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., Third Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before June 3, 2021. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before June 3, 2021, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 12/3/2020

Aimee D. Griffin, Esq. 5335 Wisconsin Ave., NW Suite 440 Washington, DC 20015 Attorney

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Evelyn W. King, whose address is 6100 Westchester Park Drive, College Park, MD 20740, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Karen D. King aka Karen Denise King who died on 12/24/2019 with a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., Third Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 6/3/2021. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 6/3/2021, or be forever barred.

Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 12/3/2020

Darrell M. Jackson Personal Representative

Evelyn W. King Personal Representative

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TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

Washington Informer

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2020 ADM 000694

2020 ADM 330

Florence Ramsey Decedent

Jean Marie Abbott Decedent

Nakia Gray, Esq. 800 Maine Ave., SW Suite 200 Washington, DC 20020 Attorney

Shari G. Kleiner 5614 Connecticut Ave., NW #107 Washington, DC 20015 Attorney

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Clarence Ramsey, Jr., whose address is 8534 Coltrane Ct., Ellicott City, MD 21043, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Florence Ramsey who died on April 24, 2020 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., Third Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 6/3/2021. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 6/3/2021, or be forever barred.

Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 12/3/2020 Clarence Ramsey, Jr. Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Shari G. Kleiner, whose address is 5614 Connecticut Ave., NW #107, Washington, DC 20015, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Jean Marie Abbott who died on October 5, 2015 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding.

Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., Third Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 6/3/2021. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before 6/3/2021, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 12/3/2020 Shari G. Kleiner Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 51

LEGAL NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICES

Notice of White Flag Surrender

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

ma’at-el©, nom deguerre: Neosha Latrica Gardner© ”, in full life, in

2020 ADM 000615

the beneficiary and heir of: ‘‘ GARDNER, NEOSHA LATRICA© ’’,

Ronald Simmons aka Isaiah Ronald Simmons Decedent

In God We Trust Notice of Special Appearance : I am that I am: “ neo hatshepsut

propria persona, sui juris, in solo proprio, Haqdar by natural issue, corp.sole Dba.: ‘‘ NEOSHA LATRICA GARDNER© ’’, and Trustee of

‘‘ WOODS, CHANNING KEANU© ’’, corp.sole Dba.: ‘‘ CHANNING KEANU WOODS© ’’, and ‘‘ ANDERSON, NALA DELANI© ’’, corp.sole Dba.: ‘‘ NALA DELANI ANDERSON© ’’, having reached the age of majority, being aboriginal to the northwestern and southwestern shores of

Africa, the Atlantic Islands, the continental Americas, being duly cer-

tified, hereby affirms the following: Notice of White Flag Surrender: as “hors de combat”, pursuant to The Geneva Conventions, Article III, as yamasee aniyunwiya moorish Americans, and ministers of The Moorish Empire, and Internationally Protected Persons. Notice of

LAWS AND CUSTOMS OF WAR ON LAND ( HAGUE, IV), ARTICLE: 45,

46, & 47. Notice of Claim pursuant to Public Law 87-846, TITLE II, SEC. 203. Notice of Bailment Merging of Legal Title with Equitable Title : This order is to preserve legal and equitable title , and to reserve all

rights, title, and interest, in the property, Re: GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH - The State Office of Vital Records - STATE FILE

NUMBER(S) : [1] 110-026507 [“ NEOSHA LATRICA GARDNER© ”], [2] 2014GA000224272 [“ CHANNING KEANU WOODS© ”], [3] 2017GA000090527 [“ NALA DELANI ANDERSON© ”].

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division

Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

Edward G. Varrone, Esq. 1825 K Street, NW, Suite 1150 Washington, DC 20006 Attorney NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Shanequa Terry, whose address is 95 Flower Road, Valley Stream, NY 11581, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Ronald Simmons aka Isaiah Ronald Simmons who died on May 28, 2020 with a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., Third Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before June 3, 2021. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before June 3, 2021, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 12/3/2020

CL ASSIFIEDS

CL ASSIFIEDS

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2020 ADM 000631

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TRUE TEST COPY

Decedent

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

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Samuel Johnson Frazier

1455 Pennsylvania Ave., NW #400 Washington, DC 20004 Attorney

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

Vivian Frazier, whose address is 403 Peabody St., NE, Washington, DC 20011, was appointed Personal Representative

of the estate of Samuel J. Frazier aka Samuel Johnson Frazier who died on 7/28/2008 with a Will, and will serve with Court

supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding.

Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of

decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C.,

Building A, 515 5th Street, N.W., Third Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 6/3/2021. Claims against the decedent

shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to

the undersigned, on or before 6/3/2021, or be forever barred.

Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who

do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.

Date of first publication: 12/3/2020

Vivian Frazier

Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY Nicole Stevens

Register of Wills Washington Informer

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MALVEAUX from Page 30 the opportunity for engagement, the 2020 coalition may stick together.

The 2020 youth coalition is, in some ways, our hope for the future.

Young people mostly voted for Biden along race and gender lines, but the young white male holdout suggests that some of today's race challenges may persist into the future. Meanwhile, within the Democratic-leaning 2020 youth coalition, there are apparent tensions and differences around how we prioritize these concerns and how we emphasize the intersectional-

RICHARDSON from Page 30 versial and profound personal battle.

She admonished the men who chose to disregard my history of service to my country, and more directly, to the African-Americans in Richmond. Rev. Goshen stood with the same solidarity and courage that defined her fore mothers, "Don't abandon the bridge that brung you cross!" she demanded.

My spirit rose to the ceiling.

"Don't abandon the bridge that brung you cross." It has indeed been a bridge, one more river to cross for Black Americans. Two-hundred fifty years of slavery and Jim Crow seems to have developed a certain DNA in Black women. Because, to watch as your child is torn away, or your man absolutely emasculated and denied any dignity, to have your body raped and to endure a brutalized life of labor, something had to evolve in the DNA of Black women.

A new measure of courage, strength, dignity and faith saved them; the crucible of fortitude. They marched on and

GIBBONS from Page 30 health measures to help prevent the immediate spread of this disease, starting with wearing a mask, washing our hands, and maintaining six feet of distance from others. But that won't be enough to end the pandemic in communities of color.

As the leaders of two public health research agencies, we know we can't just devise solutions from Washington, D.C. We must also work with those who are most trusted, respected, and closest to these hard-hit communities.

Through joint local efforts, we believe we can ensure that the best, most accurate information reaches these communities, and that they are informed about, and included in, diverse research studies essential for developing safe, effective treatments, and vaccines for all.

ity of these concerns. It's not either/ or with the economy, COVID, climate change, and racism; it's all of the above. The Biden team will have to walk a tightrope to balance everyone’s needs and concerns.

I am excited about the 2020 youth coalition and look forward to how they may continue to come together for better health care, a more inclusive economy, planet-saving policies to slow climate change, and the dismantling of systemic racism. I'd be even more excited if young Trump supporters dared to stand up to the man who lives in his own delusion-

al world to tell him to concede this election. Our nation, and the world, has been treated to the obscene image of a grotesque toddler throwing a tantrum on the international stage.

If Republican elders don't step up to stop the madness, perhaps young people, especially those who voted for 45, can talk some sense into him. After all, when we say that young people will inherit this world, we don't divide them by party.

Young people showed up and showed out in 2020. For the sake of our future, they need to keep it up.

WI

we march on today. America is more divided perhaps since slavery itself. But Black women have our backs, still enduring, fighting the good fight.

Women like my own sister, Valerie Richardson Jackson, the former first lady of Atlanta, who persevered with myself as one of the first students integrating our high school. Becoming one of the first Black women to attend the Wharton School of Business (now led by a Black woman), working and paying her way through, earning her MBA. She went on to market General Foods products and gained a regional role at Trans World Airlines corporate headquarters in New York. Because a strong, smart Black woman is not to be passed over, she won the heart of and married a man who was certainly the most consequential politician in the history of Atlanta, Mayor Maynard Jackson. Maynard always said of Valerie, "She enables me."

The nation has recently come to know two more amazing Black women: Democratic activist, Stacey Abrams,

and Sen. Kamala Harris, now vice president-elect. Stacey Abrams showed her ability early, in front of the very Atlanta City Hall that Maynard occupied. She led a large group of university students calling on the mayor to address student issues. Maynard was impressed and invited her to meet with him. Afterward, he gave Ms. Abrams her first job in politics. The rest is history: a heroic race for governor of Georgia, and a voter registration movement that is unprecedented, and driving the numbers to heights heretofore unseen — a democratic movement that has already become a model for the nation.

Valerie has always been a strong supporter of both Stacey Abrams and Kamala Harris. Three friends, three Black women, three lessons we should take from them — and history. With a Black woman becoming vice president, we should keep in mind what it took, because we will need it going forward: patience with diligence, courage with wisdom, boldness with conviction. In other words, Black women. WI

That is why the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has issued a $12 million award to support teams in 11 states to establish the Community Engagement Alliance (CEAL) Against COVID-19 Disparities.

This Alliance has already brought together community- and faithbased organizations, doctors, patients, researchers, community advocates and minority-serving educational institutions. For weeks, from Sacramento, California to Jackson, Mississippi, we have been listening carefully — to concerns, fears, very practical questions, and ideas. Our sincere hope is that, working together, we will find ways to overcome COVID-19 in a manner that takes into account the history, cultural differences, and unique input and needs of the people it affects most.

How do we do this? We start

by offering reliable and easily understood information based on science, by dispelling myths, and by explaining the importance of research. CEAL is working with trusted members in communities like yours to ensure access to information that can be shared through virtual town halls, infographics, animated videos, and in many other ways — like social media posts.

Importantly, we also will be encouraging participation in research studies designed to stamp out COVID-19 in high-risk communities. That's because clinical trials, the fundamental part of the scientific process, show whether new medicines and vaccines are effective at protecting you against disease. When a drug gets approved and your doctor prescribes it for

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DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020 53

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54 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

JACKSON from Page 31 tinued to claim the election was stolen, even as he uses his lameduck period to deepen the crises he leaves Biden. He has withdrawn from the open skies agreement with Russia.

His Treasury secretary has closed down loan facilities for small businesses that the head of the Federal Reserve says are important in fighting the recession. He's done nothing to get the Republican Senate to pass a rescue package to aid the millions still unemployed.

Legislators fear he will shut down the government unless he gets big money to build his wall. Trump won't succeed in maintaining power, but he is already succeeding in convincing his followers that the Biden presidency is illegitimate. The last time the election of

ASKIA from Page 31 Clyburn is the guy who did more for Biden's getting the Democratic nomination than anybody when he endorsed him in the South Carolina primary, and led a tide of Black voters who pushed Biden to the top. The 14term representative doesn't need to bite his tongue because he's not looking for anything for himself from the incoming president.

And let's be clear, Clyburn is no Denmark Vesey — another famous Black South Carolinian who was murdered after being accused of plotting a slave uprising in 1822. No. Clyburn is a straight-shooting, loyal, moderate Democrat. So, if he thinks Biden has not done enough for Black people who put him in the victor's chair, then it's

GIBBONS from Page 53 you, you are not wrong to wonder whether it has been tested and shown to work — and especially shown to work for people like you.

This is why it is so important for research studies to include people from all races, genders, ages, socioeconomic classes and more. We simply need to learn who is likely to benefit the most from any given treatment. In other words, we can't develop effective drugs and vaccines to conquer COVID-19 in communities of color without the active participation of the people who live there.

We strongly believe that when done right, inclusive research leads to solutions that get us where we need to be. We already have safe-

a president was contested — with race at the center of the dispute — was in 1860 with the election of Abraham Lincoln, when the slave states seceded and the country descended into the Civil War. The Jefferson Davis of this time, Donald Trump is not likely to lead a formal secession. Instead he seems intent on using this lame-duck period to undermine the incoming administration. As a lame duck, he is essentially unaccountable, particularly with the Republican Senate not willing to provide a check on his misfeasance. Clearly, there should be a bipartisan committee drawn from both houses of Congress to oversee the lame-duck period and limit the damage a bitter untethered president can do. After he leaves office, Trump is likely to set up a sort of shadow government, using

his tweets and media appearances to denounce the Biden administration. Republicans, in fear of the wrath of his supporters, will obstruct Biden at every turn.

What Trump has made clear is that this subversion won't end when Biden is inaugurated. It is likely to get more turbulent rather than less. The stakes are very high.

Will the multiracial majority be able to build a governing coalition that can begin to address the fundamental reforms that Americans so desperately need? Or will the embattled minority sabotage that possibility, divide the country or even move toward secession once more? In rejecting the verdict of the voters, Trump is charting a road to division. Americans must find a way to reach out, come together and go a different way.

WI

clear. Biden is clearly falling short.

This is where the entire white American patina comes into view. Most White Democrats would look at Clyburn's comments as being "extreme," "impatient," "immoderate." And this doesn't even consider the 74 million mostly white folks who voted for The Donald. They consider Biden to be a "tool" of the "radical, Communist, left-wing" taking money from Hugo Chavez and other deceased Latin American leaders.

So, yes, America. This is who you are. You bailed out the 17-year-old murderer who killed Black Lives Matter protesters in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and then told us to buy your disgusting pillows. You acquitted, or never charged, the cops who murdered — oh, you name them — Breonna

Taylor, Philando Castille, Eric Garner, the list goes on and on and on and on.

How is that wickedness any better than giving smallpox-tainted blankets to Native people, or syphilis to Black men in Tuskegee, Alabama, or taking photos at public lynchings and making and selling postcards with the pictures?

This is who you are, Americans! You revile a Black president who gave you a watered-down health insurance protection plan, and you gave 74 million votes to the trifling white president who gutted that plan then played golf while nearly 300,000 of you died — at least 100,000 needlessly — from the coronavirus in the election year.

This IS who you are Americans!

The proper question for you to ask yourselves now: What will you become? WI

guards in place to ensure historic wrongs are not repeated, and that safe and ethical standards are practiced consistently. The Food and Drug Administration, review boards, and expert panels at the NIH — indeed, each institution and company conducting medical research — rigorously review every phase of a clinical trial, from before it begins until after it ends. These review boards include not just scientists, doctors, and experts, but also community advocates who keep a watchful eye on the process.

While these factors are critical to ending this public health emergency, we must keep our eyes on an even bigger prize — a nation without the disturbing health inequities that compromise the health of our whole

society. As clinicians who have cared for countless patients of color, as mentors who have supported underrepresented groups, and as members of communities where each one teaches one, we fully understand the power of community to make a difference in the long fight against this conquerable problem.

We firmly believe that by traveling this journey together — by sharing sound information, by squashing misinformation, by being responsible citizens and building trust in science — we can push this deadly pandemic into retreat.

Hopefully when that happens, we can embark on a path of inclusion that gives everyone in America a fighting chance for a long and healthy life. WI

THE WASHINGTON INFORMER / WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM / THE WASHINGTON INFORMER

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WHAT IS THE AMERICAN DREAM?

A five-part discussion hosted by Carlos Watson.

Join the inaugural conversation on positively resetting the American Dream, together. #realtalk

Aida Rodriguez Producer, Stand-Up Comedian

Jalen Rose Athlete, Commentator

Carlos Watson Host

Jasmine Davis Trans Activist

Eddie Glaude Jr. Princeton Professor

John Kasich Former Governor of Ohio

Angela Duckworth Professor

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12.08.20 ozy.com/realtalk

56 - DECEMBER 3 - 9, 2020

THE WASHINGTON INFORMER / WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

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