Issuu

VOL. 52, NO. 39 • JULY 13 - 19, 2017

Tributes Pour in for Martha Rivera Chavis / Page 20

Jealous Focuses Bid for Governor on Health Care, Education

Nation's Football Classic Cancelled

Organizers Cite 'Shift in Corporate Priorities'

Seeks to Create a Movement

By Tatyana Hopkins WI Staff Writer For the past six years, the football teams of historically black colleges and universities faced off in the annual AT&T Nation's Football Classic at the historic RFK Stadium in Southeast. But this year, the fledgling fall tradition will not take place. Events DC, the official convention and sports authority for the District and manager of the grounds that house RFK Stadium, announced late last month the discontinuation of the game

CLASSIC Page 11

BBQ Means Business Page 14

By William J. Ford WI Staff Wirter @jabariwill

with an appropriations rider. Several cities and states have debated legislation similar to the District's law regulating the labeling of personal hygiene products, particularly wet wipes, as safe to flush, Holmes' office noted in a news release. Under the Commerce Clause, Congress has the legitimate authority to regulate the labeling of consumer paper products shipped in interstate commerce, and could preempt state and local labeling laws. "This is the first time in memory that multinational corporations have challenged a local D.C. law in Congress," Norton said. "While we have previously faced conservative

Maryland gubernatorial candidate Ben Jealous says the state has promise in industries such as solar energy, cyber security and hi-tech, but can thrive even more. The former president of the NAACP with an extensive background in community activism has already received an endorsement from the national progressive organization Democracy for America, and anticipates a few more in the near future. But he admits the run for governor is the biggest challenge he's ever pursued. He touted Johns Hopkins University and its hospital in Baltimore as one of the top research campuses in the world, but acknowledged that the state isn't without its problems. Maryland has the nation's third-highest foreclosure rate — one in every 997 units — trailing only New Jersey and Delaware, according to www.realtytrac.com. And two years ago, the Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University School of Law released a report on how the state spent $1.3 billion on corrections in 2013 — about 10 times more than education — despite imprisoning 390 per 100,000, below the national average of nearly

HOME RULE Page 40

JEALOUS Page 46

5 Ben Jealous launched his bid for Maryland governor in front of his cousin's boutique in Baltimore on May 31. /File photo by Travis Riddick

Norton Defends D.C. Home Rule By Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer

5 D.C. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton /WIFile Photo

Ultimately, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton wants statehood for the District of Columbia. For now, though, she has continued to vigorously oppose and fight colleagues and others when it comes to home rule. The longtime Democrat has called on her congressional colleagues to pursue national labeling legislation if they disagree with the merits of local labeling laws, doing so in the face of powerful multinational corporations led by Kimberly-Clark, which continue to aggressively lobby both parties in both chambers to block D.C.'s new wet-wipes labeling law

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W I HBreak O T the T OCycle P I C of S Women Domestic Violence

SOMETHING NEW EVERYDAY

COMPILED BY D. KEVIN MCNEIR / WI EDITOR WILL FORD AND TATYANA HOPKINS, WI STAFF WRITERS

FTA Releases Metro Inspections Report law enforcement. She said they threat,” she said.

By Tia Carol Jones

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WI Staff Writer

Visit our updated Web site and give us your comments for a chance to win a gift from The Washington Informer Email comments to: rburke@ washingtoninformer.com

comeTransit together to bring a praised Among programs Marlow Thehad Federal Administration Metrothe workers when they consense of uniformity in thebut way see implemented are of a ducted several safety trainings, foundwants some to defects including pieces When L.Y. Marlow's 23-year- domestic violence victims and stricter restraining order policies, Metrorail track and other debris near the Pentagon Metro station in Arlington. old daughter told her the father survivors are treated. more rights for victim's families The FTA recently released inspection documents from examinations conductof her daughter threatened her “She's using her own personal to intervene on behalf of a viced in story, April. her In one the pain administration Metro officialsassessto deterlife, and the life of their child, ownreport, personal to tim, advised a domestic violence mine push why parts of a ceiling fell on tracks between Union Station and Chinashe knew something had to be forward,” Davis-Nickens ment unit coupled with further town said in Northwest. Another report showed Metro for personnel followed agency done. Out of her frustration about Marlow. training law enforcement regulations when they conducted an inspection at the CapitolLife Heights Metro with law enforcement's handling Davis-Nickens said anyone agencies, a Child's Protecof the situation, she decided to station. Thereads FTA Marlow's has conducted and safety directives who bookmonthly will inspections tion Act and mandatory counsel-since start the Saving Promise camthe administration the temporary 2015 to oversee safety of the “get it.” She took said over she “puts the ingrole forinbatterers. paign. case in transit such aagency. way, the average “IfDistrict, we are ever going to beleaguered Officials from the Maryland anderadiVirginia “It seems to be a vicious cycle can get it.” She said at the Metrorail cate domestic we must agreedperson this year to form a Washington Safetyviolence, Commission but the that won't turn my family end of the each day, jurisdiction’s the book will at both sides of the coin. FTA must certify safetylook program. loose,” Marlow said. Marlow help people begin to have a dia- We need to address both the vicshared her story with the audi- logue about domestic violence. tim and the batterer,” Marlow ence at the District Heights Also present at the event was said. Domestic Violence Symposium Mildred Muhammad, the exMarlow would also like to see on May at the the District of John AllenatMuhammad, programs toafter raise Khizr7 Khan, fatherHeights who made wife national headlines last year’s Democratic Nationaldesigned Convention he critMunicipal Thecandidate sympo- Donald who was sentenced consec- awareness children in rally icized thenCenter. presidential Trump’s stancetoonsiximmigration, was amongamong the speakers at unity sium was sponsored by the utive life terms without parole public and private schools. She Wednesday, July 12 in Towson. Family Youth Muslim Services by a Capt. Maryland jury for his role children need educatKhan’sand 27-year-old son, Army Humayun Khan, wasinkilledfeels in Iraq in 2004 aftertoabe suicide bomber Center of the city of District the Beltway Sniper attacks in ed about domestic violence. approached his camp. Khan’s family and others who lost loved ones in the military are considered Gold Star families. Heights and the National Hook- 2002. Mildred Muhammad is have to against stop being received a citation from Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenentz“We for his stance hatredpasand disUp Khan of Black Women. the founder of After the Trauma, sive-aggressive with poor chilcrimination against the immigrant community. Kamenenz also proclaimed Wednesday as “Unity Day” in the county. Marlow has written a book, an organization that helps the dren about domestic violence,” Kamenentz, a potential Democratic gubernatorial candidate,violence led the event with the Baltimore County Human “Color Me Butterfly,” which is a survivors of domestic Marlow said. Relations to support in thechildren. Baltimore area and the nation.Marlow has worked to break story aboutCommission four generations of diversity and their In January, Trump signed anisexecutive called theSixnation Foreign Terrorist Entry into the domestic violence. The book “I order lived in fear“Protection for six years. thefrom cycle of abuse in her family, United States” people from countries Somalia,the Sudan, Syriashe and Yeinspired by her that owndisallows experiences, yearssix, in Muslim-related fear is a long time. It is– Iran, andLibya, is confident policies and of her grandmother, menthose – to visit the U.S. It created protests throughout the country the world.for will start that not atanairports easy thing to come out and is pushing her Last mother andtheher of,” she said.the law considered as a travel month, U.S.daughter. Supreme Court allowed ban to go forward but the Trump process. She said every time shepartreads Muhammad said “I plan in-laws, to take these policies to administration rescinded of the ruleMildred to allow immediate family members (parents, spouses and children) excerpts herban. book, she stillgrandparents, people who to help exempt from from the However, cousinswant and other relativesa areCongress barred. and implore them to can Trump not believe theofficials words who camedefy domestic mustlaw change our laws,” Marlow said. has said an executiveviolence order tovictim not support enforcement and house undocumented from her. “Color Me Butterfly” be careful of howfederal they funding. go into Some “I jurisdictions will not stophave until these poliimmigrants in so-called “sanctuary cities” will not receive considered Trump’s won the 2007 National “Best the victim's life, and understand cies are passed.” rule discriminatory. Books” Award. that she may be in “survival Tia Carol Jones can be reached “I was just 16-years-old when mode”. at tiacaroljones@sbcglobal.net my eye first blackened and my “Before you get to 'I'm going lips bled,” Marlow said. to kill you,' it started as a verbal WI Elaine Davis-Nickens, presi-(DCOA) “Good Food” pilot is set to The D.C. Office of Aging’s dent of the National The Hook-Up launch in mid-July. pilot will provide three meals a day, four ofdays Black Women, said there no out of the week, to 75is District seniors who are most at need. consistency in the way domestic “We’re really excited about this because a normal food delivery violence issues are dealt with by program is one meal a day,” said DCOA Director Laura Newland. “We wanted to dig a bit deeper with our program.” Forty slots have been allocated to residents of the highest level of need based on a scale developed by DCOA which includes race, isolation and socio-economic status. All the residents are from Wards 7 and 8 where food insecurity remains a widespread issue. The remaining spots have been allocated to others with less urgent needs. The Good Food pilot concludes in September at which point DCOA will determine how it will move forward with the program.

Khizr Khan, Father of Deceased Vet, Visits Maryland

Wilhelmina J. Rolark In Memoriam Dr. Calvin W. Rolark, Sr. Wilhelmina J. Rolark THE WASHINGTON INFORMER PUBLISHER NEWSPAPER (ISSN#0741-9414) is NEWSPAPER (ISSN#0741-9414) is published THE WASHINGTON INFORMER Denise Rolark Barnes published on each Thursday.postage weeklyweekly on Thursday. Periodicals paid at Washington, D.C. and additional Periodicals Washingmailing postage offices. paid Newsat and advertising deadline is Monday prior to publication. ton,Announcements D.C. and additional mailing of- twoSTAFF must be received weeks prior to event. Copyright 2000 by The fices.Washington News andInformer. advertising All deadline rights reserved. POST McNeir, MASTER:Editor Send change of addressD. Kevin is Monday to publication. Anes to Theprior Washington Informer, 3117 Martin Luther King, Jr. Ave., S.E. Washington, Ron Burke, Advertising/ Marketing D.C. 20032. Nobe partreceived of this publication may be reproduced without writtenDirector permisnouncements must two Shevry Lassiter, Photo Editor the return of sionprior fromto the publisher. The2016 Informer Newspaper cannot guarantee weeks event. Copyright Subscription rates All are $30Lafayette per year, two years $45. willPhoto be received by photographs. The Washington Informer. Barnes, IV, Papers Assistant Editor notreserved. more than a week after publication. Make checks payable to: rights POSTMASTER: Send John E. De Freitas, Sports Photo Editor change of addresses to The WashDorothyINFORMER Rowley, Online Editor THE WASHINGTON ington Informer, 3117 Martin Luther 3117 Luther King, Ave., S.E. • Washington, D.C.&20032 King, Jr. Ave., S.E.Martin Washington, D.C. Jr. ZebraDesigns.net, Design Layout Phone: 202 • Fax: 202 574-3785 20032. No part of this publication may561-4100 Mable Neville, Bookkeeper E-mail: news@washingtoninformer.com be reproduced without written permisDr. Charles Vincent, Social Sightings columnist www.washingtoninformer.com sion from the publisher. The Informer Tatiana Moten, Social Media Specialist Newspaper cannot guarantee the return of photographs. Subscription rates are Angie PUBLISHERJohnson, Circulation $45 per year, two years $60. Papers will Denise Rolark Barnes be received not more than a week after REPORTERS STAFF REPORTERS publication. Make checks payable to: Brooke N. Garner Managing Editor Tia C. Jones, Ed Laiscell,Will Ford Stacy Brown (Senior Writer), Carla Peay Assistant Managing Editor Odell B. Ruffin, Larry Saxton, THE WASHINGTON INFORMER (Prince George’s County Ron Burke Advertising and Marketing Mary Wells, JosephWriter), Young 3117Mable Martin Luther King, Jr. Ave., S.E Bookkeeper Whittaker Hamil Harris, Tatyana Hopkins, Jade JamesWashington, D.C. 20032 LaNita Wrenn Administration PHOTOGRAPHERS Gist, D. Kevin McNeir, Lauren Poteat, Phone: 202De561-4100 John E. Freitas Sports Editor Lafayette Barnes, IV, Dorothy Rowley, Sarafina Wright Fitzgerald, (General Fax:Victor 202 Holt 574-3785 Photo Editor John E. De Freitas, Maurice news@washingtoninformer.com Zebra Designs, Inc. Layout & Graphic Design Joanne Jackson, Roy Lewis, Robert Assignment Writer) Ken Harris /www.scsworks.com Webmaster www.washingtoninformer.com Ridley, Victor Holt

D.C. to Roll Out Meals on Wheels Pilot Program

“

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 Groundbreaking for Family Kickstart laws. Shelters I will not stop until Closing of D.C. General these policies are passed.

“

In Memoriam The Washington Informer Dr. CalvinNewspaper W. Rolark, Sr.

Mayor Muriel Bowser pledged to close the troubled family homeless shelter during her 2014 mayoral campaign L.Y. Marlow and on Thursday, July 6, she finally took the first steps to the groundbreaking of the first of six replacement homePHOTOGRAPHERS CIRCULATION Paul Trantham less shelters. Construction of the Ward 4 shelter will take 14 months. An empty office building off Kennedy Street John E. DeFreitas, Shevry Lassiter, Northwest will house 45 families upon its completion. Roy Lewis, Demetrious Kinney, Mark Construction for the Wards 7 and 8 shelters are scheduled to begin in the coming weeks with several months Mahonny, Lateef Mangum, Travis Riddick following before construction for shelters in Wards 3, 5 and 6 begins. “In a city as prosperous as ours, we can end homelessness . . . and that’s what we intend to do,” Bowser said. 4 / May 15 - 21, 2008 The Washington Informer / www.washingtoninformer.com The replacement shelters have faced a number of political and legal battles since they were announced a year ago including Council opposition and lawsuits from groups of residents who say they were not consulted in site selection.

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FBI Relocation Project Canceled Maryland Officials Say Reason for Decision ‘False’

By William J. Ford WI Staff Writer @jabariwill It looks like a $2.1 billion project for which Prince George’s County officials anxiously waited to get approval this year may not happen at all. But State and County officials aren’t giving up that easily, claiming that the reason attributed to halting the project, a revenue shortfall, simply isn’t true. The General Services Administration and the FBI announced Tuesday to cancel the selection and procurement process to relocate the FBI headquarters and remain at the 43-year-old J. Edgar Hoover building in Northwest until further notice. The joint statement on the GSA website states the $523 million Congress appropriated this year doesn’t fully fund the rest of the $1.4 billion needed from the federal government. “The cancellation of the project does not lessen the need for a new FBI headquarters,” according to the statement. “GSA and FBI will continue to work together to address the space requirements of the FBI. Maryland, Virginia and District officials have blasted President Donald Trump’s administration for leading the effort to cancel the project. After the GSA released the statement, members of the Maryland Congressional delegation and Prince George’s County Executive Rushern L. Baker III held a press briefing on Capitol Hill to express their displeasure with the decision. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Maryland) called Trump’s decision “an

abuse of power.” “He’s acting [like] he is the legislature as well as chief executive and he is not,” Cardin added. Cardin says the federal government not only allocated $523 million in this year’s fiscal budget but another $390 million in the 2016 budget. The state committed $220 million for each of the two possible sites in Prince George’s, he said. Baker said at least $1 million came from the county. “We have taken definitive action. The reasons given for cancelation just aren’t true,” Cardin said. “There’s adequate revenue to clear the way [for the project] to move forward. A decision on whether Prince George’s, or Springfield, Virginia, would house all 11,000 FBI employees at a 2.1-millionsquare-foot building got set for this spring, but the GSA delayed it. Currently, employees are displaced in offices throughout the D.C. region. Meanwhile, Baker said after the briefing the connection to Trump and the FBI investigating his ties to Russia could’ve been a reason to withdraw the relocation project. “I think you can make that connection. This is coming from the Trump administration,” he said. “For the Trump administration to arbitrarily make the decision and pull the plug on a building that is needed . . . doesn’t make sense. This is one project I can remember since I’ve been involved in politics in Maryland where everyone agreed we are all in on this one. We’re going to keep pushing.” WI

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WEEK OF JULY 13 - 19, 2017 JULY 13

1966 – R&B singer Gerald Levert, son of O'Jays lead JULY 17 1862 – Congress passes the Militia Act of 1862, which singer Eddie Levert, is born in Canton, Ohio. allowed African-Americans to participate as war laborers and soldiers. 1935 – Famed actress Diahann Carroll is born in New York City. 1959 – Legendary jazz singer Billie Holiday dies in New York City at 44. 1967 – Jazz icon John Coltrane dies of liver cancer in Long Island, New York, at 40.

JULY 18

Billie Holiday

1753 – Lemuel Haynes, an influential African-American religious leader and first black minister to serve for a White congregation, is born in West Hartford, Connecticut. 1918 – Nelson Mandela, former South African president of South Africa, Nobel Peace Prize laureate and civil rights icon, is born in Mvezo, South Africa.

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JULY 14

1891 – Inventor John Standard of Newark, N.J., receives a patent for the refrigerator. 1934 – Golfer Lee Elder, who became the first African-American to play in the Masters Tournament in 1975, is born in Dallas. 1941 – Professor Maulana Karenga, a major figure in the black nationalist movement and the creator of Kwanzaa, is born in Parsonsburg, Maryland.

JULY 15

1961 – Award-winning actor, producer and director Forest Whitaker is born in Longview, Texas. 1970 – James McGee is sworn in as the first black mayor of Dayton, Ohio.

JULY 16

1862 – Civil rights activist Ida B. Wells is born in Holly Springs, Mississippi. 1947 – Assata Shakur of the Black Panther Party and the Black Liberation Army is born in New York City. 1977 – Janelle Penny Commissiong of Trinidad and Tobago is crowned the first black Miss Universe.

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VIEW P INT By Sarafina Wright

Members of the Ku Klux Klan recently rallied in Charlottesville,Virginia, to protest the removal of a monument of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee. What are your thoughts? ANTHONY G. WILLIAMS /

CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA

You have some people who say Black people need to be quiet concerning racism. But it is thrown in our faces constantly. Man, I wish the police let those protesters beat the crap out of the KKK.

DEANNA G. CARTER / QUEENS, NEW YORK

You cannot compare Black Lives Matter to these sheet-wearing, cross-burning idiots. BLM was started because black lives were being taken by police on the regular basis. This isn't about BLM. It's about these people messing up their wives' sheets to run around doing dumb stuff.

KAWAME SALADIN / DETROIT, MICHIGAN

Irony: Let's keep the Confederate statues erected, the street names and the flag flying of those in history who supported slavery and were slave owners alive simply because it's the history of our country and shouldn't be forgotten. Oh, but quit bringing up slavery because that was so long ago and none of you were slaves and none of us were slave owners. Morons.

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By D. Kevin McNeir / WI Editor @dkevinmcneir

The World According to Dominic “A Farewell to the USA – We’re Now the ‘Divided’ States of America” You don’t have to look too far these days to spot familiar symbols of hatred or to get an earful of bigoted utterances from self-righteous separatists. From unprovoked attacks in which Muslims, gays and Blacks tend to be the desired targets to nooses dangling ominously in the wind right here in our nation’s capital or “alt-right” protests led by white Nationalists hell-bent on protecting iconic monuments of the Confederacy, hatred has gained a new life and energy in America. But then, perhaps what we’re witnessing isn’t so much a resurgence of hatred but rather the belief that it’s now acceptable to express it without shame or remorse – like opening our closets after a very long winter so that our mothball-protected apparel can finally breathe again. So, when 50 members of the Loyal White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan donned their white hoods to lead a march in Charlottesville, Virginia last weekend, the event barely registered on the coun-

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try’s “Richter Scale of Vitriol” – save for about 1,000 counter-protesters who peacefully confronted Robin Hood and his Merry Men, then quickly ushered them on their way amidst shouts of “racists go home.” America, this centuries-old experimental melting pot of humanity – this alleged “land of the free and home of the brave,” has become a place where minorities, particularly Muslims and immigrant communities, fear for their safety, wonder if their rights as citizens are surreptitiously being taken back and whether they can truly trust the police when and if they need help. In this philosophical surge of “us vs. them,” a growing number of white Americans lament over how the country has changed, saying it’s become a place they no longer recognize and promising that they’re going to hold on to the “old ways of life” no matter what it takes – or who gets hurt in the process. But unlike some of my colleagues, I refuse to blame this new

reality on Donald Trump although it’s clear that the deep divisions that exist in America were part and parcel of the recent presidential election, evident at nearly every campaign rally he attended. No, I cannot give Mr. Trump the credit for the way America has devolved into the “Divided States of America” – where the ugly spectrum of hatred has been consciously moved from its hiding place along the margins to prime seating within the mainstream. In fact, I wonder, if this fast-moving train can even be stopped – if indeed the president chose to engage its brakes. I fear what appears to be looming on the horizon. I fear many of my fellow Americans and the hatred that has overtaken them. And what’s worse is . . . “they” behave as if they fear the staccato in my gait, the vernacular which punctuates my words, the booming timber of my voice and the sunkissed gleam of my skin. In today's "Divided" States of America, they seem to fear me. WI

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Lori Parker Promises 'Ward 1 for All' in Council Run By Tatyana Hopkins WI Staff Writer Ward 1 Council hopeful Lori Parker hopes make the area more inclusive. She has served in all three branches of government serving 11 years as a magistrate judge in the D.C. Superior Court, an elected Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner (ANC) and a senior adviser on the former D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams' administration â€” experience she says gives her a "unique perspective of District needs." Now, she hopes to improve constituent services by increasing community engagement. Parker entered the race in June and stands against ANC Kent C. Boese and, presumptively, incumbent Brianne Nadeau. "I don't consider myself as running against someone," Parker said. "I consider myself and my team to be running for something. I'm fighting for Ward 1 for all." She says her slogan means improving constituent services for old and residents and businesses owners alike. "When it's better for everybody, it's better for everybody," Parker said, quoting Eleanor Roosevelt. The ward has seen economic prosperity in recent years. In "Race, Class, and Politics in the Cappuccino City," a book published in May, the ward's Shaw and U Street neighborhoods' turn-of-the-century gentrification and its lasting effects on the historically African-American cultural centers is chronicled. The book's author, Derek Hyra, a notable policy expert and 2014 U.S. Congressional candidate for Northern Virginia, highlighted trends of "political and cultural displacement" of longtime residents. He said new developments and amenities often don't fit longtime residents. "Although [this community] looks very diverse, there are micro levels of segregation," Hyra told American University's Policy Explainer. "The newcomers and the long-term residents don't talk to one another." Parker said her platform priorities are prompt responses to community concerns, developing policy that have long-term sustainability as a goal and increasing constituent participation and engagement in the political process, all areas she said are currently in need of improvement in the ward.

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5 Lori Parker, a former magistrate judge, hopes to win a seat on the D.C. Council with her "Ward 1 for All" campaign. /Courtesy photo

"The ward is in an upswing, but in order for it to achieve its full potential, we need to make sure that everyone feels a part of the community, feels a sense of belonging and feels that there are opportunities to contribute and participate in a more inclusive and engaged way," Parker said. She says, if elected, some of her legislative priorities would be the passage and funding of greater property tax relief for low- and middle-income senior homeowners, and funding for a law that went into effect in April to establish protections and financial supports for elderly tenants and tenants with disabilities, including a legal limit to rent increases. Parker also wants to continue investment in local businesses and make sure any development in the ward meets the requirements of existing tax abatement including compliance with community benefits and local resident employment requirements. She has already appeared at several community meetings in the ward and plans to keep them as a regular part of her schedule. "A legislator can only be as good as the information he or she receives from the people most impacted by legislation," Parker said. "Our campaign stands for being informed, inclusive and engaging." She says she will work hard over the next year to engage residents and business owners to hear directly their concerns and legislative suggestions. WI

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WARD 7 WALKTHROUGH

Mayor Muriel Bowser leads a community public safety walk in Ward 7 to address neighborhood concerns and speak to residents and business owners on Monday, July 10. /Photo by Mark Mahoney

Who’s Reading the Informer? Kevin Lewis, spokesperson for the 44th President of the United States Barrack Obama, reads the Washington Informer. /Photo by Shevry Lassiter

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AROUND THE REGION

CLASSIC from Page 1 due to "a shift in corporate priorities." Initiated in 2011 in partnership with title sponsorship from AT&T and partnership with Pepsi, the game specifically featured HBCU football teams in an effort to honor the heritage of the participating institutions, drawing crowds of thousands each year. "It was a great recognition to the academic program in the schools, but also to recognized HBCU's," said Prince George's County Executive Rushern L. Baker III, who received bachelor's and law degrees from Howard in 1982 and 1986, respectively. "I can't believe it. It is an event for all us to get together besides homecoming. It is also to raise money for both schools [playing in the game]." But Events DC felt it was time to move on. "Events DC enjoyed the exciting matchups and great relationships with our local partner, Howard University, and visiting schools Hampton University and Morehouse College for the Nation's Football Classic over the past six years," said Events DC President and CEO Gregory A. O'Dell in a statement. "The annual Classic in Washington, D.C., was more than just a game, with ancillary activities celebrating the passion and tradition of HBCUs. As our organization continues to evolve, we feel it is the right time to shift our efforts onto other exciting programming as well as the implementation of our short-term redevelopment project for the historic RFK Stadium-Armory Campus." The renovation of the 190-acre RFK campus it will include a food market, multi-purpose recreational fields, a sports and entertainment complex and revitalization

As the organization tries to drive younger generations to the city and sustain growth in the city's prosperity, it says it seeks more innovation in their projects. "Though we are sad to discontinue one of our primary produced events, we are now able to pivot our investments from one larger event to several smaller ones as we continue to activate the RFK Stadium-Armory campus and beyond," said Erik A. Moses, Events DC senior vice president and managing director of sports, entertainment, and special events.

The organization says hopes to produce and support events that "feature the District's diverse entertainment, sports and culinary scenes." "We would like to thank all the students, alumni, faculty and sponsors whose tremendous support since the Classic's unveiling made this event a staple for the regional HBCU community over the past six years — especially Howard University, a true partner each year since the Classic's unveiling," Moses said. Events DC said it has had

ongoing conversations with the universities throughout the year regarding the future of the game, and the decision to not move forward with it was made in early June. Ancillary events for the game will continue this fall, including Technoir's Innovators Classic, a live pitch completion for minority startups and the Diversity in Sports forum, a panel discussion and career fair for upcoming sports industry leaders. The universities could not be reached for comment. William J. Ford contributed to this story. WI

DGS 6th Launch Pad "Upgrading Security Equipment" of the waterfront area. Following the redevelopment, Events DC plans to host short-term programs they feel better serve the surrounding neighborhood. Events DC's mission is to generate economic and community benefits through promotion of attractions, business, athletic, entertainment and cultural activities. It boasts that it generates over $400 million annually in total economic impact and hosted 2 million guests at more than 320 events across its venues last year. They say they expect their events on the books for this year to generate $600 million in spending in the city. "Events DC's mission is to generate economic impact for Washington, DC, as well as community benefits for our residents," said an Events DC representative. "The Nation's Football Classic, despite never generating enough direct revenue to financially support itself, made a significant economic impact on the city year-over-year. It is our goal to continue to expand our portfolio to further drive community benefits and city's economic engine."

The Department of General Services (DGS) would like to announce that we will be hosting our 6th monthly Launch Pad Event on Wednesday, July 26 at the Franklin D. Reeves Municipal Center. The Launch Pad Initiative is a new innovative engagement program, where local Certified Business Enterprises (CBEs) have the opportunity to compete for small contract awards tied to citywide developments. This initiative also affords participating CBE's the opportunity to network openly with District Government Officials and their fellow CBE community. This month's project will focus on "Upgrading Security Equipment" for the District. DGS seeks a qualified Contractor to upgrade the security equipment at Eastern Market, located at 225 7th Street, S.E. When: Wednesday, July 26, 2017 Where: Franklin D. Reeves Municipal Center, 2000 14th Street NW 2nd Floor Community Room Note: Closest Metro: U Street/Cardozo Metro Station (Green Line) DGS encourages CBE participation and promotes a transparent, competitive process for engagement. Learn more at: The Launch Pad Initiative (https://dgs.dc.gov/node/1220856)

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PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY Black Legislators Seeks Public Input at Town Hall By William J. Ford WI Staff Writer @jabariwill The Maryland Legislative Black Caucus has a laundry list of items for state lawmakers to push when the General Assembly resumes in January, including the elimination of the cash bail system, eradicating pre-kindergarten suspensions and Incorporate blacks into the medical cannabis industry. The Democratic caucus will

explain the seven-item agenda listed on its website and seek public input from residents in Prince George's and Charles counties at a town hall session at 6 p.m. Thursday, July 13 at Prince George's Community College in Largo. The meeting stands as the second of four the caucus will host in the next two months throughout the state. "The main thing is to introduce the community to the Black Caucus so they know who we are," said Delegate Darryl

Barnes of Upper Marlboro and the caucus's first vice chair. "The goal is to go over what we did this pass sessionâ€Śand open it up to the public and [residents] share their ideas and concerns. We're their advocates in Annapolis, but at the same time we need them to be our advocates right here at home." One contentious topic discussed this year in Annapolis focused on bail reform, which the caucus and opponents of the bail bond industry viewed that the traditional cash bail system mainly hurts low-income Blacks who can't afford bail. Another public safety topic of discussion is police practices, according to the caucus. A study released in May by the University of Texas at Dallas highlights that federal consent decrees by the Justice Department may reduce civil rights lawsuits up to 36 percent. The study led by criminologists John Worrall, Michelle Bisaccia Meitl and Zachary A. Powell that looked at 23 jurisdictions that agreed to consent decrees used to reform police departments. Prince George's County Police Department went through the process in 2005 and its current chief, Hank Stawinski, helped

5 Delegate Darryl Barnes (D-District 25) /Courtesy photo

restructure and rewrite the department's policies during that time. Stawinski, who was confirmed as police chief in February 2016 with 25 years in the department, said that work and other reforms have increased

Prince George's Continues Work on Zoning Ordinance By William J. Ford WI Staff Writer @jabariwill For the past year and a half, Prince George's County's Planning Department has dedicated five planners to work strictly on helping to rewrite the decades-old zoning and subdivision ordinance. Although the first public meeting was held more than three years ago, there's still another year before a new zoning code is approved. Residents have another opportunity to present

verbal and written comments at a town hall session Monday, July 17 at the county administration building in Upper Marlboro. "Sometimes businesses are reluctant to come here â€Ś going through the arduous process. It will also give all the stakeholders a say," said planning board Chairwoman Elizbeth Hewlett. "We're really excited because it's a wonderful opportunity for Prince George's County and Prince Georgians." Hundreds of amendments have been added for decades in the nearly

5 Prince George's County officials hope to shrink this nearly four-inch zoning ordinance binder with more 1,200 pages by next year. /Photo by William J. Ford

12 JULY 13 - 19, 2017

four-inch zoning ordinance binder, which officials have said makes it cumbersome for people to understand. For instance, a section under District Council had at least 11 amendments created in the last three decades. Prince George's County Council sits as District Council when it discusses and reviews planning and zoning matters. Some written and verbal comments earlier this year expressed opposing views on the District Council's role to select and review certain projects. According to documents posted online at http://zoningpgc.pgplanning.com, one comment posted states the council "is very inconsistent" when it chooses a particular project to review. Another comment from Progressive Maryland supports the council's ability to review a case because it's difficult for a property owner to challenge a case under state law. The county's consultant, Clarion Associates of Denver, wrote council's role to evaluate some cases "does not provide a consistent and predictable outcome for either the public or the development community. This, is turn, makes investing in the County less desirable since the single-most important thing developers indicate they

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look for is predictability." One major part of the zoning ordinance that County Executive Rushern L. Baker III has championed for several years is transit-oriented development, or construction of residential and commercial properties near the county's 15 Metro stations. Derick Berlage, chief of the county's Planning Division and project manager for the zoning rewrite, said the current ordinance doesn't permit for diverse development around Metro stations. He said work has been done piecemeal that makes it hard to navigate and incorporate. The area at Metro stations are proposed as "Activity Center" zones described in the subdivision regulations document in May to boost economic development and more convenient to walk, bike and use transit. "Basically, we want to create a state-of-the-art best practices to get transit-oriented development that you see throughout the D.C. region," Berlage said. "D.C. has done it recently. Montgomery County has done it. We want to compete and we need the zoning code to help us do that." WI

the current homicide closure rate to 80 percent and the closure rate on commercial robberies at 70 percent. To build personal relationships, he started a "Chief on the Go" initiative in September to talk about the department and listen to any concerns from community leaders and residents. Another one will take place Friday, July 14 at the Centre at Forestville. "What I am trying to do is organize this community against crime," he said. "Having them know me as the leader of the agency [and] have them know the 1,700 men and women who serve them. If you know me, you know them. That fosters the kind of relationship and feedback that we get â€Ś with the community stepping forward." The town hall also plans to discuss education, which has become controversial with the county's school board. State legislation didn't get passed to restructure the board that includes the county executive being allowed to appoint the chair and vice chair. Besides allowing school board members to select their leadership, Prince George's County NAACP President Bob Ross also hopes lawmakers will seek an end to the state's foreclosure crisis. Maryland ranks third in the nation behind Delaware and New Jersey with its foreclosure rate at one in every 997 units. "Those are the kind of things I hope will come out in this forum on [Thursday]," he said. "The year 2018 is a big year and I am getting ready for it." WI

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PGCPS BRIEFS

Compiled by Dorothy Rowley WI Staff Writer

MAXWELL DEFENDS GRADUATION RATES

County schools CEO Kevin Maxwell recently issued the following statement regarding allegations of inflated graduation rates: "There has been no systemic effort, ordered by me or others acting on my behalf, to promote students in order to inflate graduation rates. The changes we have made to provide additional student supports are modeled on best practices in other districts. Our new grading procedure puts us on par with our neighboring jurisdictions. Our credit recovery system is replicated by the majority of districts in Maryland. All of our efforts are focused on providing students with multiple pathways to success. "My team and I remain open to resolving any concerns that are brought to us about what employees may have seen in our schools. We will continue our normal process of grade and credit audits and addressing any irregularities."

4-DAY WORK WEEK

All county public schools and offices will be closed on Friday, July 14.

COMMUNITY DAY

Carolyn Boston, Board of Education vice chair and District 6 representative, and the Prince George's County Fire Commission invite middle and high school students and their families join them at "Community Day — A Pathway to the Future." The event takes place Saturday, July 15 from 9 a.m. to noon at G. James Gholson Middle School in Hyattsville.

BUS DRIVERS FAIR

PGCPS will host a bus driver fair from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., Saturday, July 22 at Charles H. Flow-

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY ers High School in Springdale. Interested candidates must meet the following requirements: • High School Diploma/GED • No more than 3 points in your 10-year driving history • Satisfactory past driving record • At least 21 years old • At least five years driving experience • Ability to obtain a Commercial Drivers License (CDL), Class A or B with passenger endorsement or Class B Learners Permit with passenger and school bus endorsements • Ability to meet special training and qualifications PGCPS offers its bus drivers a starting salary of $18.41 per hour, with advancement opportunity up to $35.17 per hour. The system also provides employees with a comprehensive package of benefits, including health, dental, and vision insurance, as well as retirement plans.

ENVIROTHON TEAM

Students from Eleanor Roosevelt High School listed among their peers from several Maryland high schools last month as participants in the annual Maryland State Envirothon Competition at Camp Pecometh. Student teams were tested in the field and classroom in the areas of aquatics, forestry, soil/ water conservation techniques, soils and wildlife. Eleanor Roosevelt High School represented PGCPS in the state competition and received special recognition by placing fifth, the second consecutive year the team has placed fifth. Each member of the team will receive a $1,000 scholarship from the Prince George's County Soil Conservation District. WI

5 Eleanor Roosevelt High School represented PGCPS in the state's "Envirothon" competition. /Courtesy of PGCPS

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JULY 13 - 19, 2017 13

BUSINESS BBQ Bus Opens its First Brick-and-Mortar Location By Sarafina Wright WI Staff Writer

BBQ Bus, the popular eatery that helped pioneer the food truck scene in D.C., has opened their first brickand-mortar store in Brightwood. Six years after leaving their day jobs, BBQ Bus food truck owners Che and Tadd Ruddell-Tabisola held their grand opening Friday, July 7, with notable District food service personnel, Ward 4 Council member Brandon Todd and D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton. "First let me say, if anybody wonders why I am here, they don't un-

derstand how much I love BBQ," Norton said. "I'm excited that Che and Tad decided to do a brick-and-mortar and voluntarily pay even more taxes to the District of Columbia." BBQ Bus, located at 5830 Georgia Avenue in Northwest, serves up the classics of brisket, pulled pork, smoked chicken, baby back ribs, spicy chorizo, house-made pickles and housemade vinaigrette slaw. The side dishes include chorizo mac and cheese, bacon mashed potatoes and barbecue bus beans. "We are here because we've

5 BBQ Bus opens its first brick-and-mortar location on July 7 in the Brightwood neighborhood of D.C. /Photo by Travis Riddick

been able to stand on the shoulders of giants," said Che Tabisola, co-owner of BBQ Bus with his husband Tadd. "Throughout our history street vending has always provided a means for small business ownership and independence." In 2009, Tadd and Che had an idea to leave their jobs to open a business serving smoked meats, sandwiches in a neighborhood store complete with a stocked deli case, just like the butcher shops they knew growing up. They birthed that idea at the

Mented Cosmetics Stops in D.C.

Black Women Entrepreneurs Step into Beauty Biz

By Sarafina Wright WI Staff Writer Mented Cosmetics, a startup beauty brand placing women of color at

the forefront, brought their summer collection to the District for a one-day-only pop-up shop. The brand had a chance to be seen by the diverse clientele

5 Mented Cosmetics founders Amanda E. Johnson and KJ Miller host a pop-up shop on July 8 at Femme Fatale on H Street NE. /Photo by Demetrious Kinney

14 JULY 13 - 19, 2017

of Femme Fatale on H Street NE during its D.C. debut on Saturday, July 8. Mented, short for pigmented, specializes in nude lipsticks for women of color, a wide-open market owners KJ Miller and Amanda E. Johnson saw in the cosmetics industry. "The conception of Mented was Amanda and I trying to solve our own problem," Miller said. "We would get together about what are the things we spend too much time doing that we wish we could figure out and solve for ourselves and beauty sort of immediately rose to the top. "I was spending money on beauty, but so often being disappointed with what we got," she said. "We thought that was ridiculous for two people who have disposable income and are willing to spend on beauty and who are beauty enthusiasts to often feel neglected by the industry."

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height of the recession, which at the time felt out of reach, they said. After maxing out credit cards, cashing in a 401k and borrowing from friends, in 2011 they opened the BBQ Bus food truck and recently graduated to a storefront location. "BBQ Bus Smokehouse is the latest of more than two dozen food truck businesses that have gone on to open brick and mortars since the modern food truck industry entered the DMV area in 2009," Che said. Todd commended the duo for contributing to the District's bus-

tling restaurant economy. "I'm so happy to welcome Che and Tad to Ward 4," he said. "Maybe six or seven years ago when I worked for then-Councilwoman Muriel Bowser, I worked on our legislative board of regulations for food trucks. It was a new thing and people were worried that they would put brick-and-mortar businesses out of business, so I'm even more delighted to see that a number of food trucks are opening brick-and-mortar stores in our great city." WI

Through their research, they found that women of color outspend white women on beauty supplies by up to 80 percent and most of those women are unhappy with some form of the beauty industry. Johnson and Miller, who met while attending Harvard Business School, decided to solve the problem. "We launched nude lipsticks in particular because that was such a big problem area for both of us," Miller said. "Finding a shade that was an everyday shade, go-to classic." In fall 2015, they got to work on what is now Mented Cosmetics. "We would meet up at KJ's house over wine and discuss everything," Johnson said. "We spent six solid months working on the products ourselves in our kitchens, testing it out with our friends, and when we really felt like we had a solid six shades, we started sending it to makeup artists and influencers on Instagram last summer. "Once we built a following and people knew who we were, we launched this January 2017 and its been amazing since," she said. The duo said they want their cos-

metics company to be a mainstay. "We wanted it to feel like a classic luxurious brand," Miller said. "For a lot of brands that come out today, they are all about trends â€”unicorns, pop of color, glow, flash. We wanted it to feel luxurious but also something very timeless that wasn't going to go out of style in a couple months." This fall, Mented Cosmetics will launch four nude lip gloss shades, as well as eye shadow and blush palettes in 2018. They plan to eventually have a full face collection. "I think KJ and I have a really great background she's a retail vet," Johnson said. "I've been in technology and marketing, so together, with our powers combined, we knew that we had the right experience to get it off the ground." The ladies proclaimed the summer of 2017 their pop-up tour. "We are really excited to get out there and meet people and have them try our product on in person," Miller said. "We had a couple pop-ups in New York, now D.C., and we are doing AfroPunk in August in Brooklyn, so we're excited." WI

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BUSINESS Business Exchange

What Do Black Republicans Believe?

by William Reed On any level you examine, President Donald Trump's outreach to blacks is an unenlightened mess. Trump's appointment of Omarosa Manigault, the former "Apprentice" contestant, as White House director of communications for the Office of Public Liaison shows his lack of insight and interest in blacks, or their issues. Manigault is the top-ranking African-American official inside the White House is neither a Republican nor black advocate. Trump pays Manigault a top salary of $179,700, but shows little concern about her problematic relationship and outreach to blacks. While Trump views Omarosa as evidence of his commitment to diversity, blacks see her as a spook who sat by the door. In another "diversity move," Trump has nominated African-American Jerome M. Adams as U.S. surgeon general. A number of black Republicans hold prominent public- and private-sector positions. A common thread among high-profile

black Republicans is a "commitment to colorblind politics." You see this modus operandi with politicians like Rep. Mia Love of Utah and Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina. They acknowledge that being black is part of their life experience but reject that racial identity should orient their political decision-making, often decrying efforts such as affirmative action to address racial inequality. Race-conscious Republicans see themselves as closely linked to the broader black community and view conservative politics as a tool of uplift for blacks. Contemporary blacks' support of Republican policy positions based on motivations based on their black Republican leanings and philosophies. Black Republican publishers have always the way for the race. Abolitionist and ex-slave Frederick Douglass published the North Star as an anti-slavery newspaper in 1846. Later in blacks' trials in America, Robert L. Vann published the Pittsburgh Courier, which developed into one of the leading black newspapers under his leadership. By the 1930s it was the highest circulated black newspaper in the country. The Call & Post was started in 1916 by Cleveland inventor Garrett Morgan. Under influence of publisher W.O. Walker, the Call & Post established itself as the voice for African-Americans. C.A. Scott was a prominent conservative Republican that published The Atlanta Daily World, which in 1944 became the

Congress Restores Community Block Grants Program Hundreds of Cities, including D.C., Breathe Sigh of Relief

By Tatyana Hopkins WI Staff Writer D. Kevin McNeir WI Editor A House Subcommittee on Appropriations approved its fiscal-year 2018 appropriations bill for the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and related agencies, on a voice vote Tuesday evening. The subcommittee forwarded the bill to the full committee

restoring funds to community development programs that were proposed for elimination in the president’s budget request including the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program. President Donald Trump’s “blueprint budget,” unveiled in March, proposed a number of cuts in domestic spending to direct more money to defense, border control and general law enforcement. It called for elimination of the CDBG program. “The bill that we are consider-

GRANTS Page 21

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first black newspaper to have an African-American cover the White House. Scott was powerful political force who opposed sit-ins and other direct actions of the 1960s, arguing that growth of black businesses and wealth would be more effective strate-

gies for ending racial oppression. Blacks' devotion to Democrats has evolved into a dependency on government. Since the mid-1930s, blacks have increasingly voted for Democrats and their progressive economic and civil rights policies. FDR's

New Deal programs and desegregation of the military in the 1940s began the bond Democrats hold with African-Americans. For blacks to be a force in America, we need to understand and nurture capitalism. For the past half-century, blacks have primarily supported the Democratic

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Breach of Fiduciary Duty By Aimee D. Griffin

It was my intention to write an article this month about Business Succession. However, I feel compelled to write another article on financial exploitation due to the recent number of cases that have come into my office lately. Let’s start by identifying the responsibility that a person assumes when being appointed as a Power of Attorney or Trustee. Fiduciary duties include: to (1) act on behalf of and be subject to the control of the principal, (2) act within the scope of authority or power delegated by the principal, (3) discharge his or her duties with appropriate care and diligence, (4) avoid conflict between his or her personal interests and those of the principal, and (5) promptly hand over to the principal all monies collected on principal's behalf. Principal's duties include: to (1) compensate the agent as agreed, and (2) indemnify the agent against claims, liabilities and expenses incurred in discharging duties assigned by the principal. In essence, a person who agrees to act on behalf of another in a fiduciary position MUST deny him or herself and their friends and family to serve the principal. It is truly a tough position. Opportunity to benefit loved ones is enticing especially if you think the principal who has entrusted you will not be negatively impacted. The District of Columbia has enacted the Financial Exploitation of Vulnerable Adults Amendment Act of 2016. It states that “person is guilty of financial exploitation of a vulnerable adult or elderly person if the person intentionally and knowingly: (1) Uses deception, intimidation, or undue influence to obtain the property, including money, of a vulnerable adult or elderly person, with the intent to deprive the vulnerable adult or elderly person of the property or use it for the advantage of anyone other than the vulnerable adult or elderly person; (2) Uses deception, intimidation, or undue influence to cause the vulnerable adult or elderly person to assume a legal obligation on behalf of, or for the benefit of, anyone other than the vulnerable adult or elderly person; or (3) Violates any provision of law proscribing theft, extortion, forgery, fraud, or identity theft against the vulnerable adult or elderly person, so long as the offense was undertaken to obtain the property, including money, of a vulnerable adult or elderly person, or to cause the vulnerable adult or elderly person to assume a legal obligation on behalf of, or for the benefit of, anyone other than the vulnerable adult or elderly person.” It is startling and distressing to see not only the number of career criminals who are committed to stealing from those who have worked so hard to build up resources no matter how great or small but it is heart breaking to see those trusted family members and loved ones take advantage of those who have become vulnerable to the agent and had their assets stolen as a result. I encourage everyone to appoint a Power of Attorney with their estate plan. I share that giving a power of attorney is like giving someone a signed blank check. It is even more powerful than that! I encourage each client to think carefully about the person to whom they are giving this authority. We should be clear of the character of the person. Does this person have a history of integrity, not just a recent past of caring. In many cases it may be prudent to appoint two people that must act in concert to serve as a check and balance precaution. Surely having two people who must work in synch will be cumbersome in many respects but it offers a surety that unless they are in cahoots your interest will be preserved. Another consideration in protecting assets is appointing a Trust Protector in a more comprehensive estate plan. While this could be a more expensive approach it can be established to assure that assets are protected for the best interest of the principal. According to the True Link report on Elder Financial Abuse 2015, elder financial exploitation is considered to be the most common form of elder abuse, costing its victims an estimated $36.48 billion every year to senior fraud, exploitation and financial abuse. Many cases are not exposed. Let’s take steps to protect ourselves and our loved ones as we become elderly and more vulnerable. Aimee D. Griffin, Esq., The Griffin Firm, PLLC 5335 Wisconsin Ave NW - Suite 440 • Washington DC 20015 www.thegriffinfirm-PLLC.com • 202-379-4738

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JULY 13 - 19, 2017 15

NATIONAL Vet Helping Others with PTSD By Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer De'Andre Wells served in the U.S. Army's Special Forces Group from 2001 to 2006 and gained extensive physical and mental training that came with three tours of duty during the global war on terrorism. Wells also suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, gaining 80 pounds, slipping into deep depression and feeling hopeless. However, about five years ago, he tried biking and said the emotional lift he received helped began a turnaround. Now he's focused on helping others.

DCPS

BRIEFS

The state of Maryland, and the Department of Veteran Affairs has partnered with Wells and has granted him startup funds to open American Group Fitness-AGX LLC, which he said will provide veterans with physical and mental difficulties and their families a safe and productive environment in which to lose weight, get fit and be supported. "I served my time and when I came home I had healing to do. The VA helped me and now I want to help others," said Wells, a graduate of Purdue University. "This community has taken me in as one of their own. I need to give back by helping everyone I can." Compiled by Dorothy Rowley WI Staff Writer

SCHOOL COMPLETES FIRST YEAR!

Ron Brown College Preparatory High School in Northeast has just completed its first year – and boats a waiting list for the upcoming academic year. Listing as the District’s only single-sex public high school,

5 De'Andre Wells, an Army veteran, is helping others with PTSD. /Courtesy photo

Wells, whose accolades include the Army's Good Conduct Medal, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, and the National Defense Service Medal, said exercise is therapeutic and raises the serotonin levels in the brain that allows individuals to have focus and a sense of purpose. "Group exercise like a biking class for example, brings about a sense of camaraderie and community, a 'we're in this together' mentality," Wells said. "Vets need to stick together and help each

other. In fact, all of Baltimore needs to stick together and collaborate and while vets are my priority, I also want to help Baltimore metro area." Research has revealed that veterans with PTSD and addiction issues can turn negativity into positivity through group exercise and support. In Wells' team driven setting, the goal is to create a fitness model that challenges the physical, mental and emotional agility of each client, he said. Earlier this year, Wells also

the building which honors the first African-American U.S. Commerce Secretary, is part of DCPS’ “Empowering Males of Color” initiative. At the end of its first year, which was celebrated last month, about 90 percent of the school’s entering freshman class remained enrolled. The school expects to graduate its first senior class in 2020.

SUMMER CALENDAR

5 Ron Brown College Preparatory High School completed its first year this June. /Photo courtesy DCPS

16 JULY 13 - 19, 2017

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The summer break begins on Friday, July 14 for DCPS’ extended year students. Summer school ends for DCPS’ traditional-year students on July 28.

GRADUATION TASK FORCE

The DC State Board of Education has announced the members of its new High School Graduation Requirements Task Force. The 26-member task force, under leadership of Ward 1 representative Laura Wilson Phelan and Ward 8 representative Markus Batchelor, will review, analyze and, as necessary, make thoughtful, implementable recommendations to adjust DC’s high school graduation requirements for both DCPS and public charter school students. “Through our open and transparent process, we received a remarkable 113 ap-

DCPS BRIEFS Page 45

partnered with STM Cycling, an indoor cycling center based in Pigtown that takes spinning seriously by offering a highly scientific program that helps cyclists grow by tracking and monitoring three personal statistics: Heart Rate, Power and Rate of Perceived Exertion. Hitting the goals requires constant mental focus throughout the workout, a practice that Wells said helps veterans keep their mind off negative thoughts. "My goal is to help vets and those that want to use fitness as a catalyst to better health and mental wellness," he said. "I see myself as the connector if you will to bridge the gap between those in the business community and those in the mental health and fitness community. We can create a collaborative effort. It's a slow process for sure, but one day at a time." Wells said veterans from around the world can also participate in the program via livestreaming classes. There is even an app for Wells' classes to track clients' fitness statistics. This is all very symbolic for Wells and his own healing, hard work and true grit. He was named one of Baltimore's 40 Under 40 by Baltimore Business Journal in 2016, among other accolades. "I need to ride this wave, rise above and keep my vision going to get my business where I want it to be," he said. "It also means bridging the gap to make connections so everyone can work together for a greater cause and goal." For more information, go to www.deandrewells.com. WI

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NATIONAL

Tributes Continue Pouring in for Martha Rivera Chavis

By Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer

Martha Rivera Chavis was not just the wife of a civil rights leader. By all accounts, the Dominican-born activist strived just as hard as her beloved husband for freedom, justice and equality for blacks and all other minorities. "I met Martha in 1993 when she was head of the Women in NAACP [WIN] committee and she simply brought new life to that organization," said Zach McDaniels, who served as the strategic adviser to NNPA President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. when he organized the Million Man March. "Martha shook up the NAACP, she had a very vibrant spirit and to be around her and in her presence, was always something special," said McDaniels, whose resume includes working as director of community affairs for famed Baltimore attorney Billy Murphy and holding the title of president and CEO of McDaniels' own Graham Avenue Strategies firm. Rivera Chavis died in her home in Montclair, N.J., early Thursday, July 6. She was 53. The couple met in 1988 after Chavis had spent time in Angola, where American-backed rebels mined civilian areas. At the time, Angola had one of the highest percentages of individuals with blown-off limbs, a fact that moved the couple. When Chavis met Martha Rivera, she employed translating French to Portuguese for Angola's United Nation's ambassador. Angola's U.N. Ambassador Manuel Pacavira introduced the couple at a New York restaurant and Chavis said although she was 16 years his junior, he was impressed with her sense of history and her knowledge of the contemporary movement in African, Latin America and the Caribbean, each striving for independence, freedom and equality. "I was impressed that this young sister from the Dominican Republic had an African conscience," Chavis said. "A lot of times when you come from a place, you know where you are and you know your roots, but Martha knew what was going on in the contemporary world." Rivera Chavis graduated from Paris-Sorbonne University, the main inheritor of the old Sorbonne, which dates back to the 13th century and counts as one of the first universities in the world. She spoke fluently in five languages; Spanish, Portuguese, French, Italian and English and she worked as a translator for the Angolan ambassador. "We had the dinner with the ambassador in early September and by the

20th of September, we got married," Chavis said. "It was not only love at first sight, but marriage at first sight." It was not just Chavis's activism but that of his wife who created a home that allowed her husband to bring home 10 Angolan residents, including six with missing limbs. The visitors would remain in the Chavis home for more than a year, with the couple traveling with them to Capitol Hill to bring to light the atrocities that were happening in Angola and other parts of Africa, including the attempt by the government to spread apartheid. "Martha didn't just show sympathy, she empathized and wanted to do something about it," Chavis said. She supported Chavis' decision to leave his lifetime post as executive director of the United Church of Christ's Commission for Racial Justice to become executive director of the NAACP, even though it meant uprooting the family from Cleveland to Baltimore. "The thought of leaving a secure position meant a lot of soul searching for both of us and Reginald F. Lewis had convinced me to do it and Martha encouraged me to go for the NAACP job," Chavis said. "She would become a strong advocate for the NAACP and, at the time, the organization was struggling to attract younger people to come back and here I was with my young wife, in her late 20s. When I won, I would never forget the famous picture of Martha and I in the New York Times. "She sang 'Lift Every Voice and Sing' with all of us and she always remembered that and I would always use those words, those verses, in my speeches and sermons," he said. Rivera Chavis would become head of WIN, supported the women of the Million Man March and then spoke with actress Jada Pinkett and others at a later Million Women March which she helped organize. She also became friends with African-American icons C. Delores Tucker, Dorothy Height and Coretta Scott King. "Martha will be known for her passion, she was extremely passionate about her family; about her culture and most of all about Dr. Chavis," said Kent Matlock, the chairman of Matlock advertising and public relations in Atlanta. Matlock noted how pivotal a role Rivera Chavis played in the unprecedented "Fair-Share" deal made between the NAACP and Denny's after the restaurant chain had been charged with racial discrimination at several of its properties. The deal in which Denny's pledged to hire and promote minorities and

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increase purchases from minority-owned business was estimated at more than $1 billion over seven years. "Martha was a strong civic-minded person," Matlock said. "I trace it back to her Dominican roots. She was high-spirited and committed. She had an understanding way about her and was very accepting of other people. The world was a better place with her in it." Among the growing list of those who have offered condolences, NAFEO president and CEO Lezli Baskerville issued a statement saying she knew Rivera Chavis to be a loving and doting wife and mother. "I knew her also as a courageous, strategic, freedom fighter who valiantly helped to shaped and lead campaigns for freedom, justice and human dignity for all persons, in her birth country, on the African continent, Cuba, and in her adopted country of these United States," Baskerville said. A memorial fund has been established for Rivera Chavis, who will be buried in the Dominican Republic. Those wishing to contribute can visit https://nnpamartharchavismemorialfund.mydagsite.com/ WI

5 Martha Rivera Chavis /Photos courtesy of Chavis family

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JULY 13 - 19, 2017 17

INTERNATIONAL Compiled by Lauren Poteat / WI Contributing Writer

Ghana First Sub-Saharan Country to Launch Satellite Ghana became the first sub-saharan African country to launch a satellite "Ghanasat-1" into orbit around the earth. Built by students from the All Nations University in Koforidua, the satellite is equipped with cameras and a device that will emanate the country's national anthem and other independence songs from space. "The successful launch of the satellite into orbit has put Ghana on the International Map as the first country in Sub-Saharan African to launch an academic satellite into space paving way for the country to explore the full benefit of satellite technology," said Ernest Teye Matey, a member of the team of engineers that built the satellite. Released July 7 with over 400 spectators, the satellite will be used to monitor the country's coastline, assist with educational missions and serve as a symbol to 5 Ghana's satellite "Ghanasat-1," was launched increase Ghana's satellite technology, which Ghanian July 7 by a group of students of the All Nations President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo said inspires University with the help of the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. /Courtesy of informationng.com "dedication, enthusiasm and insight."

Somalis Wary of Vaccines Amid Measles Outbreak

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5 A measles outbreak in Minnesota has worried Somali parents wary of links between vaccinations and autism. / Courtesy of Anthony Souffle

As an ongoing measles outbreak in Minnesota affects Somali communities, the Voice of America News Network held a large town hall meeting to discuss concerns that childhood vaccinations are the root cause for many autism cases. The July 8 forum, titled "Vaccine & Autism: Myths and Facts," was held at the University of Minnesota's Humphrey School of Public Affairs. It gave parents the opportunity to dispute medical experts' arguments that vaccines are not responsible for the defects within the Somali community. "I have a child who was normal when I took him to the doctor," said Sofia Osman, a Minnesota parent with an autistic child. "We have videos. … You don't need research. Ask us!" The forum was broadcast live on radio and TV.

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Lesotho Launches 'E-Visa' Program

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The government of Lesotho recently launched a new electronic visa program, joining 13 other African countries with such programs. The technology, which was on display during the recent U.S.-Africa Business Summit in D.C., now allows for the issuing of visas in as little as 72 hours, part of the government's push to attract tourists and businesses to the country. The "E-visa" was developed by the Lesotho government in partnership with Computer Frontiers, a U.S.-based, privately owned IT company, with the hopes of eliminating challenges regarding visas. With this new program, visas can now be printed on a piece of paper with needed information and photos attached for standard costs. The new program aims to make it easier for persons to travel to and from the country while increasing tourism and revenue.

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5Lesotho has launched a new E-Visa program. /Courtesy of evisalesotho.com

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HEALTH PTSD and its Impact on African Americans A Long-Fought Battle for the Mind

By Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer Post-traumatic stress disorder and depression within the African-American community have gone mostly unnoticed or, in many cases, not spoken of, but several experts said research has demonstrated that trauma is passed through the DNA of black people. "The stress and its consequences of being black in America — PTSD, the trauma of poverty and the belief that we, as African-Americans, are more tolerant of pain. … I talk with so many people who feel this sense of heaviness that they cannot explain especially with the use of social media and they are overwhelmed," said Dr. Froswa Booker-Drew, a Public Voices Fellow of the Op-Ed Project and author of two workbooks for women, including "Rules of Engagement, Making Connections Last." Booker-Drew noted a 2016 report that revealed that blacks have PTSD and may not even know it. The report included this observa-

tion from Dr. Monnica Williams, clinical psychologist and director of the University of Louisville's Center for Mental Health Disparities: "PTSD symptoms typically include intrusive thoughts about the trauma, avoidance of thoughts or reminders of the trauma, anxiety, concerns about safety, feeling constantly on guard, fears of being judged because of the trauma, and depression." Williams told the Atlanta Black Star in a recent interview that individuals may also have flashbacks and feelings of dissociation and very severe PTSD can result in psychosis, and PTSD can be temporarily or permanently disabling. "Symptoms specific to race-based trauma in African-Americans may include avoidance of white people, fears and anxiety in the presence of law enforcement, paranoia and suspicion, and excessive worries about the safety of family and friends," Williams said. In addition, the trauma of poverty has been an issue but that too has sel-

5 Dr. Froswa Booker-Drew says there's a belief that African-Americans are more tolerant of pain, which leaves Blacks overwhelmed. /Courtesy photo

20 JULY 13 - 19, 2017

5 PTSD and depression within the African-American community often goes unnoticed or unmentioned. /Courtesy photo

dom been discussed, Booker-Drew said. "Dealing with numerous systems for support and assistance is tiresome. For instance, people who are affluent have social networks that can serve as resources financially, with knowledge and other connections," she said. "For people in poverty, there is a lack of access which compounds the frustration. What might take a person of influence one phone call to a person in power is not the same as someone who is calling automated phone lines and talking to multiple people for answers. It also has an impact on our mental health and brain physiology." According to the United States Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health, adult African-Americans are 20 percent more likely to report serious psychological distress than adult whites. Adult African-Americans living below poverty are three times more likely to report serious psychological distress than those living above poverty. Further, adult African-Americans are more likely to have feelings of sadness, hopelessness and worthlessness than adult whites, and while blacks are less likely than white people to die from suicide as teenagers, African-Americans teenagers are more likely to attempt suicide than white teenagers — 8.3 percent vs. 6.2 percent. The human services report also noted that blacks of all ages are more likely to be victims of serious violent crime than are non-Hispanic whites, making them more likely to meet the diagnostic criteria for PTSD. A September Newsweek article noted two recent influential reports they said cracked open a public conversation on the matter. In one, researchers found that impoverished children had less gray matter — brain tissue that supports information processing and executive

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behavior — in their hippocampus (involved in memory), frontal lobe (involved in decision making, problem solving, impulse control, judgment, and social and emotional behavior) and temporal lobe (involved in language, visual and auditory processing and self-awareness). Working together, these brain areas are crucial for following instructions, paying attention and overall learning — some of the keys to academic success. The study, published in JAMA Pediatrics, examined 389 people between 4 and 22 years old. A quarter of the participants came from homes well below the federal poverty level ($24,230 annual income for a family of four in 2016). Children from the poorest backgrounds showed greater diminishment of gray matter and scored lower on standardized tests. The second key study, published in Nature Neuroscience, looked at 1,099 people between ages 3 and 20, and found that children with parents who had lower incomes had reduced brain surface areas in comparison to children from families bringing home $150,000 or more a year. "We have [long] known about the social class differences in health and learning outcomes," said Dr. Jack Shonkoff, director of the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. But neuroscience has now linked the environment, behavior and brain activity — and that could lead to a stunning overhaul of both educational and social policies, like rethinking Head Start—style programs that have traditionally emphasized early literacy. "There is a rise in schools becoming aware of social-emotional learning to help young people in poverty to develop necessary skills to deal with their feelings," Booker-Drew

said. "This is needed in more schools but adults also need more safe spaces for support, conversation, and selfcare. Without this intentionality to deal with our own PTSD, we will continue to see increases in hopelessness, self-hatred, and mental health issues." WI

REED from Page 15 Party. The results of this political allegiance has created little for blacks, who would function and operate better in America with free-market and Republican ideology. Black Republicans believe in political philosophies that uphold liberty as a core principle. Their objectives are to maximize political freedom and autonomy, emphasize freedom of choice, voluntary association, individual and self-ownership. Black Republicans have faith in the private sector to afford opportunity, reduce poverty and create jobs. In addition to market economies, black Republicans believe in limited government and desire less regulation. We believe in governments having to operate with balanced budgets and have conviction our country's debt crisis is real and must be addressed. We believe in the family structure of father, mother and children for blacks. That the black family structure is predominately female-headed is a matter of interest to us and seek to mitigate links between black family structure and poverty. Like-minded, we know with certainty that civil institutions including families, voluntary associations, churches and synagogues is the lifeblood of society, and is to be protected from government meddling. While whites are united defending Israel, black Republicans' support for Israel is tempered by sympathies for the Palestinians' plight. The majority of Republican-leaning blacks oppose minimum wage and abortion on demand legislation. WI

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HEALTH GRANTS from Page 15 ing today provides $56.5 billion in discretionary budgeting authority,” said the subcommittee Chairman and Florida Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart. “We’re $1.1 billion below enacted level, but $8.6 billion above the budget request.” The appropriations bill allocated $38.8 to HUD overall and $2.9 billion to CDBG, a $100 million dollar decrease in the current year’s funding. “It’s a program the needs significantly more funding,” said Allentown, Pennsylvania Mayor Ed Pawlowski after calling the program a “lifeline” for his citizens. He said the program should return to its 2013 funding level of $3.3 billion. Established in 1974, the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program stands as one of longest continuously run programs at HUD. The program provides annual grants to more than 1,200 local and state governments to address a wide range of community development needs in low and moderate-income communities unique to the area.

Since its inception about $150 billion have been invested into the program. In a March White House press briefing Budget Director Mick Mulvaney said CDBG doesn’t work and is “not showing any results.” But mayors across the country disagree. Members of the U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM) have rallied to outline the positive effects of CDBG by showcasing how they are used in more than 120 cities in a report and call for additional funding for the program. More than 350 mayors have signed letters to Congressional leaders outlining the accomplishments of the program including the District’s Mayor Muriel Bowser. USMC is the official non-partisan organization of cities with populations of more than 30,000 where cities are represented by their mayor or some other chief elected official. “There is not another issue that I know that has such strong bi-partisan support,” said USCM 2nd Vice President and Rochester Hills,

Michigan Mayor Byran Barnnett on a conference call ahead of the markup hearing. “In a largely Republican community, with higher than average income and education levels, we rely on, count on and need CDBG funding.” Barnnett called the program a “very unique tool” his city uses to address concerns for its low-income residents including a shelter for victims of domestic violence. Other uses for the grant include literacy programs, programs to engage at-risk youth, housing rehab programs for in-home seniors and those with disabilities and counseling for those who suffer from mental illness. The highly competitive Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant program, known as TIGER, which allows DOT to invest in road, rail, transit and port projects that promise to achieve national objectives, faced the axe in the appropriation bill. B:10” Though some members called T:9.5” “unfavorable,” cuts to allocations the subcommittee forwarded the bill without any proposed amendments.

CDBG Cuts and Potential Local Impact: DC Department of Housing and Community Development Washington Informer readers may recall a June 22-28 article that highlighted the DC Housing Expo and Home Show which returned for its ninth year on Saturday, June 24 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Northwest. DHCD Director Polly Donaldson, during an interview prior to the Housing Expo, shared her views on how Trump’s budget would “undermine much of the progress we’ve made in Washington, D.C. over the past two years. This proposal would force the city to make some hard choices in order to keep our commitment to expanding prosperity for all D.C. residents,” Donaldson said. Donaldson also provided an overview of potential housing program cuts, based on Trump’s proposed budget. While the allocations approved by the House subcommittee must be factored into the potential cuts highlighted by Donaldson in her comments to the Informer, below please see a list of her concerns.

• HUD cut by 13.2 percent • Eliminates CDBG program • Cut by $2.5 billion • Significant cuts to CDBG which will compromise District’s ability to address affordable housing and will result in less units, additionally • DHCD uses CDBG funds to support 24 non-profits for housing counseling and small business technical assistance and façade improvements • Reduces Public Housing Capital Fund • Cut by $1.3 billion • The city would lose about $4 million in federal HOME Investment Partnership Program grants for DHCD. Those grants fund building, buying and rehabilitating affordable housing for rent or ownership Editor’s Note: According to Director Donaldson, CDBG-funded programs served 60,000 residents in FY 2016 – services that would be lost if the proposed cuts in their entirety were approved. WI

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JULY 13 - 19, 2017 21

HEALTH

Reality TV Damages Black Children, Many Experts Now Warn By Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer Keeping up with the Kardashians might just be keeping African-American children lagging. And watching Jerry Springer and Maury Povich is a rec-

ipe for failure and the antithesis of what black children should be consuming, according to mental health experts and others who said the effects of reality television has been devastating to the growth of young African-Americans. "Last week, I was invited to speak to a group of our girls at a summer camp," said Dr. Froswa

Booker-Drew, an author, adjunct professor at the University of North Texas at Dallas and director of community affairs and strategic alliances for the State Fair of Texas. "The instructors were frustrated because of their behavior. The girls could not see the opportunity before them of a summer of learning and exposure

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for them, by people who look like them and understand their challenges and community." In an incident that started as a play fight among the girls but quickly became real, someone decided to film it to go viral; unfortunately, the individuals involved saw the commotion as an opportunity to do reality television, Booker-Drew said. "Many of their aspirations include being famous and on television," she said. "Sadly, they don't know that most of what they watch is scripted. Nene [Leakes of the reality show "Real Housewives of Atlanta"] could not work on Broadway or sell her clothing line if she was difficult to work with, throwing water on everyone and telling people off." Shannon Mondesir, a Brooklyn College student, wrote a dissertation, "Dismantling the Coonery of Reality Television," in which she argues that shows that make their money by ridiculing black stereotypes have only helped worsen race relations and need to be taken off the air. There are several popular reality television shows including "Jerry Springer" and "Maury," Mondesir noted in her March essay. With African-Americans most commonly appearing as the guests on their shows, Jerry and Maury rake in millions of dollars showcasing "black coonery," Mondesir said. "[The shows] perpetuate the black stereotype, thus keeping African-Americans back from proving the stereotypes wrong altogether," she said. The stereotypes of African-Americans — lazy, ugly, violent and ghetto — are extremely negative, Mondesir argued. Black culture, despite a few aspects emulated in the cultures of other races, has generally been negative. Hip-hop, a black-oriented musical genre, is accused of exploiting gangs and violence, kinky hair has been viewed as ugly and general physical characteristics of the black body are ridiculed and have been for centuries, she said. "Nonetheless, people such as Maury and Jerry Springer, two white men, have profited off African-Americans upholding this stereotype for several years," she said. However, those are not the only shows that should be taken off the air, she said, noting pro-

grams such "Bad Girls Club" and "Love & Hip Hop" are examples of reality shows that perpetuate negative stereotypes. There are many African-Americans, particularly black women, who tune in to watch these shows where black women fight each other and exploit themselves sexually, feeding into the typecast of angry, overtly sexual black women, Mondesir said. The argument continues that black men are generally viewed as menaces to society, and black women are seen as sexual objects. These stereotypes have yet to be altered in today's world, and while television shows continue to air and increase in popularity, it will be harder to get rid of them, she said. "Consider this: the western area of the United States has a lesser population of black people," Mondesir said. "States such as Wyoming, Montana, Nebraska, Oregon and Washington do not have a large population of African-Americans.With a mostly white population, there is a large chance that many of them do not come across black people very often, besides seeing them on television." Booker-Drew related her experiences with students who want to be sexy — desirable to boys whom they've fought over — and are already deciding their value is based on what they look like as well as believing that other females are the enemy. "One told me, 'She better keep my name out of her mouth or I'm going to pop off,'" Booker-Drew recalled. "My response was to the girls, 'A year from now, will this matter?'" She said she talked about hopes and dreams and behavior changes and helping one another for success, noting that it's difficult to reinforce that when television tells the children otherwise. "It's easy to say parents are responsible for viewing but phones have made that a challenge to filter everything and they teach one another ... especially if parents are also embodying this behavior with their children," Booker-Drew said. "There has to be more visible role models who counteract this behavior who demonstrate what reality really looks like," she said. "More of us must step up to the plate and be more involved in the village." WI

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HEALTH

Organization Empowers 'Black and Beautiful' Women at Annual Brunch By Lauren Poteat WI Contributing Writer

Live the BE Life, a California-based organization devoted to positive change and conversation, held its second annual "Black & Beautiful" brunch Saturday in D.C., offering black women a platform dedicated to enhancing the quality of life, self-love, and mental wellness. The event, themed "My Black is Enough: Embodying Self Love, Embracing My Sisters, and Epitomizing Excellence," served as a tool to spark dialogue about contentious issues, including the black diaspora, colorism, cultural appropriation, natural hair, body issues and racism. "Today was just strictly about women empowerment and being around so many beautiful Black women," said Blyse, a D.C. resident and one of the event participants. 'It was therapeutic in the sense of, you think you're the only one going through these struggles and thinking you're the only one who has these issues,

but it was so refreshing to see other women who I could relate to and get that real sisterly bond. Sometimes we just need to take time for ourselves." Tiffany Wright, founder of Live the BE Life and the annual brunch, used the event at the Provision No. 14 restaurant in Northwest to broach stigmatizing topics such as "Name a time someone made you feel ugly because you were black" and "Do you ever feel less than or burdened being a woman of color," in an attempt to rebuild positive images of young black women. "Right now now millennials are in a weird space trying to affirm their identity and what it means to black," Wright said. "I've been in that space before myself and have even battled depression, but through divine inspiration I slowly began to wake up everyday choosing to live my life unapologetically and embrace my most beautiful self. "And that is what I want for these girls, for all women," she said. "Mental wellness is so im-

portant because I find it sets the tone for everything else, so we have to start loving people and ourselves and forgiving others and ourselves." Though the brunch has a different theme every year, Jasmine Thompson, organization co-founder and event coordinator, said she hopes that each one "will resonate with experiences of all black women." The brunch, established in 2015 in Oakland, California, after the death of Sandra Bland, a black woman who died while in police custody in Texas, became Wright's way of providing a free and safe space for women of color to network and express their most intimate concerns. "People don't realize how that affects them mentally and emotionally, so I wanted to create a space where women could talk about these things and give them the tools to take care of themselves," Wright said. After a well-received inaugural brunch in 2015, Wright now takes her events all across the

5 Live the BE Life holds its second annual "Black & Beautiful" event at the Provision No. 14 restaurant in D.C. on June 8. /Courtesy of livethebelife.com

globe. This year's locations include Atlanta and Johannesburg, with future stops planned in Chicago, Los Angeles and Oakland. "Out of my own journey, I was led to build this brand to invigorate the minds, bodies and spirits of feminine beings to understand their strength, beauty, and purpose in this world," Wright said.

"I believe self-love will allow you to walk confidently, give graciously, live fearlessly, and love effortlessly while fulfilling your purpose." Portions of the proceeds support StandUp For Kids, an organization that benefits homeless children. For more information, visit livethebelife.com. WI

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JULY 13 - 19, 2017 23

July Greetings From DC Office on Aging Laura Newland DC Office on Aging Executive Director We are hot! And I’m not talking about the hot July temperatures. At the DC Office on Aging (DCOA), we are celebrating this month after winning two prestigious awards— the Cafritz Foundation Team Award for Innovation and the n4A Aging Innovations Award for Home and Community-Based Services. I am so proud of my team for working hard each and every day to ensure that our programs and services for District residents are working! And it feels great to be acknowledged. In June, DCOA and the Department of Health Care Finance (DHCF) received the 16th Annual Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation Team Award for Innovation. The award is designed to honor the achievements of teams in one or multiple DC Government agencies who implement ongoing customer-focused initiatives that drive innovation and produce measurable and sustainable results. DCOA and DHCF were recognized for creating a new enrollment process for the Elderly and persons with Physical Disabilities Waiver (EPD Waiver) Program. The EPD Waiver allows people who would otherwise receive care in a nursing home to receive care in their own homes and remain in their communities. In 2014, we began working together, brainstorming ideas on how to reduce wait times, increase transparency, and improve customer service for vulnerable District residents in need of long-term services and supports. We created the Medicaid Enrollment Specialists team to conduct home visits and assist applicants throughout the enrollment process. Due to this successful interagency collaboration, significant improvements were made to the Medicaid enrollment customer experience. Later this month, DCOA and its Safe at Home Program will be honored at the n4a Annual Conference in Savannah, Georgia, with the 2017 n4a Ag-

24 JULY 13 - 19, 2017

ing Innovations Award in Home & Community-Based Services. The n4a award recognizes the most innovative initiatives in the field of aging. We know how great the Safe at Home program has been in enabling District residents to continue living in their own homes and communities as they age. Now, Safe at Home is a nationally recognized program and a model for aging in place. DCOA partnered with the Department on Housing and Community Development (DHCD) in January 2016 to create the Safe at Home Program, a program that provides home accessibility adaptions to reduce the risk of falls and reduce mobility barriers in the home. We started the program with a projection to serve up to 100 clients. In its first year alone, we completed projects for nearly 200 residents, and this year, we’re projecting to serve an additional 450! In June 2017, the program expanded to provide increased safety both in and around the home through the Private Security Camera Program, which enables eligible Safe at Home clients to receive private security camera systems at no cost. It’s a huge honor to be recognized for these initiatives because they are both examples of how District agencies work together towards the common goal of serving our residents, whether it’s making important programs like the EPD Waiver more accessible, or developing innovative solutions to promote aging in place. But it’s not about the awards and accolades—it’s about you! Since Mayor Muriel Bowser took office, she has made it clear that “District government is the people’s government.” That means our agencies need to work for our citizens. We’re accountable to you, and we are responsible for ensuring all Washingtonians are on the path to inclusive prosperity. When my team and I think about our programs, we keep these values at the core of all of our decisions—how can we work better, smarter, and more effectively to respond to your needs? Thanks to Mayor Bowser’s commitment to making D.C. the best city in the world to age, we’re working together every day to ensure all residents have access

to supports and services. As I like to say, growing older doesn’t mean getting old. Aging is living. And we want to help you thrive! Those are our D.C. Values. For more information on the EPD Waiver Program or Safe at Home, contact DCOA at 202724-5626. Be well!

S FE HOME AT

The District of Columbia Office on Aging Safe at Home program provides home safety and security adaptations in and around the homes of qualifying seniors and adults with disabilities.

In-home Safety

Safe at Home provides in-home preventative adaptations to reduce the risk of falls. ¡

Handrails

Shower seat

Grab bars

Furniture risers

Bathtub cuts

Chair lift

Home Security

Enables eligible DC seniors and residents with disabilities, to receive a private security camera system without cost. Restrictions apply. Visit: https://dcoa.dc.gov/safe-home.

For More Information Call Home Care Partners at 202-638-0050 for more information on how you can apply for the Safe at Home Program. Applicants who do not qualify for the Safe at Home program may receive referrals to other programs better suited for their specific needs.* * Referrals to other programs are not a guarantee of eligibility.

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JULY 13 - 19, 2017 25

EDUCATION Howard U. Appoints New Executive Vice President By Lauren Poteat WI Contributing Writer

Howard University will welcome a new executive vice president and chief operating officer to the historically black school this fall. Tashni-Ann Dubroy, currently president of Shaw University in D.C., will assume her new position Oct. 2. Her key duties will include working closely with Howard President Wayne A. I. Frederick on items such as strategic planning and addressing initiatives

centered around the school's core values and priorities, similar to her duties at her current institution. "Both Shaw and Howard universities have fostered a high-level of academic success, especially among African-American students," Dubroy said. "Howard is among the finest of higher education institutions and HBCUs and embraces innovation in teaching, learning and service, endowing students with the knowledge and skills they need to be competitive in the workforce.

5 Dr. Tashni-Ann Dubroy will assume her new position as Howard University executive vice president and COO on Oct. 2. / Photo courtesy Dr. Tashmi-Ann Dubroy

"I am excited about supporting ongoing strategic planning and advancing effective inter-departmental collaborations to ensure an integrated approach to fulfilling the research and educational goals of the university," she said. "I look forward to supporting President Frederick in achieving his vision for Howard University, learning from the campus community and being a valuable player with-

in the Bison family." During her time at Shaw University, Dubroy was instrumental in strategic planning, revitalizing campus operations, budget performance and enrollment, helping the university to establish its first enrollment increase in six years. Dubroy also helped to close a multimillion-dollar revenue gap and spearheaded the recent opening of the Shaw University

Maryland Becomes First State to Ban Scholarship Displacement By Lauren Poteat WI Contributing Writer Maryland officially became the first state to ban scholarship displacement by public colleges. Under the new law approved earlier this month, conditions

under which colleges and universities can decrease financial aid based on a student's scholarships are now limited, which may prove to be especially helpful for minorities. Tameka Witcher, a third-year student at the University of

5 Maryland is the first state to outlaw scholarship displacement by public colleges. /Courtesy photo

26 JULY 13 - 19, 2017

Maryland Eastern Shore, welcomes the new financial break. "Accessing funds for college is hard," Witcher said. "I'm always looking for scholarships and loans to help offset costs, but I am always disgruntled whenever my financial aid is affected due to my hard work in searching for additional money. Now I feel a little more relieved knowing that I can perhaps take my search a step further and really pay off these loans." Though the Maryland ban currently only affects state colleges and universities, lawmakers are also considering plans to pursue private institutions as well. Under federal law, a student who wins a private scholarship after receiving a financial aid package from a university must report the scholarship to their institution, some of which then reduces the student's aid equivalent to the scholarship amount â€” much to the dismay of many students. "I work hard to get into college, I worked hard to get these loans and I worked even harder

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to get these scholarships," said Danielle Hicks, a student at Bowie State University. "Hopefully this law will benefit those students who need it the most and make it easier for such as myself to go to college and feel comfortable that their bills are paid for." Officials for the Owings Mills, Maryland-based Central Scholarship organization deemed the passage of the new act as an urgent matter, citing the increased cost of higher level education. "We all view it as a matter of equity," said Jan Wagner, president of Central Scholarship. "For someone who went out and beat the bushes and pounded the pavement and submitted applications to try and get additional grants and make college affordable, the net result of their efforts is zero. That's unfair. Especially when we're talking about low-income and middle-income students." WI

Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center in partnership with the Carolina Small Business Development Fund, helping to expand small-business development and economic empowerment throughout Raleigh and increasing the university's presence in the city. Dubroy holds a bachelor of science in chemistry from Shaw University, a masters of business administration from Rutgers University in New Jersey and a doctorate in physical organic chemistry from North Carolina State University. She has received numerous awards, including the 2017 CEO of the Year from the Triangle Business Journal and the 2016 Presidential Medal of Excellence from Kingsborough Community College. Dubroy is also the first recipient of the Spirit of Excellence in Higher Education Award from the Movement of Youth organization, given in 2016. Frederick deemed her an excellent choice. "Dr. Dubroy brings valuable â€‹ experiences to this position, a proven track record of success, and I'm ecstatic that she is joining my leadership team," Frederick said in a statement. "She comes to Howard at a very critical time. As higher education becomes an increasingly more competitive environment, especially for HBCUs, her ability to advance innovation and strategies that lead to key outcomes and process optimization across the university will continue to drive us to a vibrant future." WI

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EDUCATION

DCPS Chief Dismisses Hubbub About Teacher Resignations By Sarafina Wright WI Staff Writer

The District's newest head of public schools responded to criticism the system received amid reports of a high number of mid-year teacher resignations at Ballou Senior High School, saying the crisis at the Southeast school has been blown out of purportion. "You asked about Ballou, but it needs to be put in context," said DCPS Chancellor Antwan Wilson Wednesday, June 14 at his headquarters. "We retain 92 percent of our effective and highly effective teachers. Between our entire teaching staff, about 80-85 percent of them are in those categories. "We don't have a challenge with the District as a whole retaining teachers," he said. "We actually have talented teachers throughout the District and we have high retention. The next group of teachers are our developing teachers and our teachers have three years to move up. Eighty percent of those teachers move up to effective and highly effective." Wilson said DCPS's numbers are actually very high for an urban school district. "In fact, we've been recognized for our work," he said. "That being the case, it's also true that we have some places where we are not where we want to be." Wilson said that the situation at Ballou speaks to a few things, including the school having more money than it had students this year. "They were given more money than they had students this year, so the idea was that they were going to have more kids," he said. "They are up in enrollment overall, but it's less than what we thought it was going to be this year." He asserted that the numbers at Ballou aren't telling the entire

story. "I have seen the data for every one of the vacancies, some of which were positions where the person never even started," he said. "And they are being counted in that number and that doesn't make sense. They never lost those teachers, because they were never there." Wilson said the rest of exiting teachers told school officials that there wasn't anything Ballou or the District could have done differently. "They tell us that they are moving out of the region or their spouses have gotten promotions," he said. "We as a District can better support Ballou by putting a lot of rigor in our hiring process to make sure that if people are likely to not make it that that is done in our interview process. "It should be hard to get into a school like Ballou because our students there depend upon people coming back and staying the entire year," Wilson said. The chancellor said they also have to ensure that once teachers are hired, they spend enough time with them before the school year starts â€” and stay in contact with them throughout the year. Wilson insists that the reports of mid-year resignations plaguing Ballou is not unique to the District. "As a system there are midyear resignations as there are in every school district. This is not new or unique to us," he said. "You go to every urban school district in this country you're going to find this story. We have to make sure and quickly prepare our students so they are not in anyway impacted. "It is an important issue," Wilson said. "It's one of the reasons why I got in education to make sure there weren't disparities based on geography in terms of their education experience." WI

5 D.C. Public Schools Chancellor Antwan Wilson speaks at a June 14 media roundtable about the high number of Ballou Senior High School teacher resignations. /Photo by Lateef Mangum

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FREE

EDUCATIONAL BOAT TOURS These free, guided motorboat and canoe tours of the Anacostia River are funded by the District’s disposable bag fee. Public and private tours are available. Hear about the river’s history, wildlife, environmental threats, and the solutions that are helping it realize its full potential.

For more information visit: doee.dc.gov/service/anacostia-river-explorers or call: 202-535-2239.

28 JULY 13 - 19, 2017

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OPINIONS/EDITORIALS

EDITORIAL Prince George’s County Confronts Surge in Violent Crime Just a few years ago, officials in Prince George’s County were touting the fact that efforts to improve safety had resulted in the fourth straight year of crime statistics declining. County Executive Rushern Baker III attributed the results to the ongoing support from then Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley along with the County’s Transforming Neighborhood Initiative – designed to improve safety by providing government and social services to six key communities along with a greater focus on policing. But clearly something has gone afoul as a recent string of violent crimes has resulted in 10 deaths in just over a month. The stories behind these deaths can only be described as heartbreaking including one County family who must face the unimaginable pain and burden of burying 18-year-old Tyrek Walker, shot and killed several days ago in front of a Suitland apartment building by unknown assailants – four years after Tyrek’s then 15-yearold brother Charles lost his life because he refused to relinquish a pair of shoes. Police Chief Hank Stawinski has placed his department on notice, increasing shifts to 12-hour periods effective immediately, but will it be enough? One has to wonder if there’s something in the air or in the water reverberating within the entire county where anger, greed, frustration and desperation – ultimately, the lack of respect for human life – have all reached a boiling point and caused the uptick in crime. Whatever the cause, time is of the essence. The solution, we know, will not be found without resolute determination by every resident, every police officer, every politician, preacher and teacher. Increasing the shifts of those within the police department serves as a good first step. But let’s be clear, violent crime increases when the community remains silent. The entire community must become more proactive – serving as the eyes and ears of law enforcement officials. As for the ridiculous notion that “snitching” is anathema to being a “down” member of the Black community, put yourself in the shoes of the family of Charles and Tyrek Walker. Then decide. WI

Council Says No to Trump Commission It comes as good news, but no surprise, that the D.C. City Council voted unanimously on Tuesday not to submit to demands by the Trump administration’s Commission on Election Integrity to turn over information about local voters. Not only is it good news, but it was the only sensible move the Council could have taken in light of the fact that 44 states also have refused the Commission’s demands. With little to no evidence of voter fraud found in the last general election, coupled with the breadth of information bordering on an abuse of privacy the Commission is demanding, it is unquestionable that this is nothing more than a fishing expedition in hopes of proving something that does not exist. The courts have stepped in now to address a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) charging the Commission with violation of the Federal Advisory Committee Act and alleging that the Commission lacks transparency. The ACLU further claims that commission’s work is really meant to distract from the fact that Trump did not win the electoral vote. As a result, the Trump administration is telling states to hold off on turning over its requests for voters’ personal information including name, address, last four digits of social security numbers, date of birth and party affiliation, and voting history back to 2006. Councilmember Charles Allen (D-Ward 6), Chair of the ComWWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

TO THE EDITOR Stop Talking, Texting in the Tub I have been telling my children to stop using their phones in the bathroom for some time. But like teenagers often do, they try to act as if they’ve forgotten what I’ve said. But now, with the tragic death of a Texas teen, 14-year-old Madison Coe, who was electrocuted over the weekend after her cellphone fell into the tub at her father’s New Mexico home, I am putting an end to all phones in the bathroom. It’s unclear whether Madison was plugging in her phone or grabbing it when it fell into the tub. Either way, this is one of those accidents and deaths that should never have occurred. By the way, I have also eliminated radios and other such items from our bathrooms. Linda B. Jones Washington, D.C.

Not Even Trump Should be Allowed to Tamper with Our Democracy As members of the PICO National Network (an organization of U.S. faith advocates, mittee on the Judiciary and Public Safety, who introduced legislation protecting D.C. voters’ information said, “The District of Columbia will not be party to this blatant effort to intimidate voters.” Allen went on to say, “The myth of voter fraud is a distraction at

partners and leaders), we recently held a press conference to sound the alarm about an intrusive request from President Donald Trump and his dubiously-titled Voter Fraud Commission. The actions of this administration continue to grow erratic and immoral, and many of us in the faith community believe democracy is at risk. The right to vote, secured decades ago with the blood of Black folks and people of color, is being threatened by the Trump administration. In the Christian faith tradition, the prophet Isaiah warned us, saying ‘Woe to those who make unjust laws, to those who issue oppressive decrees, to deprive the poor of their rights and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people. What will you do on the day of reckoning?’ This latest stunt (attempting to bully, silence and coerce state governments into turning over voter data) is reminiscent of Julius Caesar’s empire. This sort of meddling in state affairs serves no legitimate interest. We urge all people of faith and lovers of justice to reject this strategy of voter suppression and stand on the right side of history.” PICO Nation Network (Bishop Dwayne Royster, the Rev. Michael McBride) Washington, D.C.

best and at worst an intentional effort to justify laws to suppress votes – especially those of minority and elderly voters.” We commend Councilmember Allen and the Council for asserting its authority on behalf of District voters. If anything, more efforts should be

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made to increase efforts that protect the rights of citizens to vote and not on ways that will further intimidate voters and cause them to stay away from the polls. That’s what we saw in 2016 and the outcome speaks for itself. WI

JULY 13 - 19, 2017 29

OPINIONS/EDITORIALS Guest Columnists

By Julianne Malveaux

Are You Better Off in a 45 Presidency? The man who currently occupies the Oval Office (I call him 45, but y'all know his name, and we don't call it because we do not believe in feeding bloated egos), promised to "Make America Great Again." He said that he would create jobs, generate economic growth, and create a new and better health care environment than the one we got from the Affordable Care Act. Instead, he has found himself stuck in the

muddy quicksand of wanting to repeal, but not replace, the legislation that provided health insurance for more than 20 million people. When he was a candidate, 45 claimed that unemployment data was false and manipulated. As president, he has touted the unemployment rate improvement as evidence that he is doing a good job. But the most recent report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics suggests that the employment situation is steady, but not especially good. While the unemployment rate is lower, by

Guest Columnist

0.4 percent, than it was when 45 took office, little else has changed. The black unemployment rate, at 7.1 percent, is, as always, nearly double the white rate (3.8 percent), and the number of people who have been unemployed for more than half a year has not changed much. The labor force participation rate (the people who are working or looking for work) is just below 63 percent, as it has been most of the year. The employment-population ratio, or the percentage of people holding jobs, is also steady, at 60.1 percent. The Bureau of labor Sta-

tistics report (https://www.bls. gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf ) repetitively describes indicators as "changed little," which means that few are better off than they were when 45 took office. The low unemployment rate is deceptive. In a vibrant economy, more people would be entering the labor force, with the understanding that if hard times are over, good jobs are now available. Although some new college graduates have entered a vibrant market with high demand for their services, many others have not seen their prospects improve. In-

deed, African-American college graduates face unemployment rates that are far higher than their white counterparts. According to the Economic Policy Institute (in full disclosure, I am a member of that board), young black college graduates have an unemployment rate of 8.0 percent. College graduates remain worse off than their counterparts who graduated in 2000 and 2007, the year before the Great Recession (http://www. epi.org/publication/the-class-

MALVEAUX Page 53

By Raynard Jackson

It's Up to Us to 'Make America Great Again'

With the celebration of Independence Day and President Trump's international trip to the G-20 Summit, I couldn't help but reflect upon a recent conversation I had with one of my "Hollywood" friends. This friend is a self-proclaimed liberal and sees absolutely no value in anything Republican. I remember having many conversations with him during last year's presidential campaign and talking to him about Trump's

tagline, "Make America Great Again." Even though I'd heard his retort before from liberals, both black and white, I was still shocked when he asked, "When was America ever great?" When I've heard this response from liberals in the past, it's usually followed with ad hominem attacks on America, beginning with slavery, then Jim Crow, segregation, police killings of unarmed blacks, etc. These assertions are undeniably factual, but to end there is like reading the first chapter of a book that opens with a murder

Guest Columnist

and concluding that the whole book is about that one event. Slavery and racism are still the biggest blemishes on America's history, but because we are Americans and showed resolve, we also have one helluva redemption story to tell. We have come a long way from the days of slavery and Jim Crow. Here are a few questions for my liberal friends. If America is so racist, how did we elect a black man as president? If America is so racist, how did we have two consecutive black secretaries of state (Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice)? If America is so racist, how

did we have two consecutive attorneys general (Eric Holder and Loretta Lynch)? If America is so racist, how are African-Americans making millions of dollars in sports, music, business and technology? Name me one other major power that can make the claim that black people have these opportunities in their country. Germany can't. Britain can't. China can't. Australia can't. France can't. I think you get my point. During a time when all Americans should be celebrating the progress we've made as a nation on our journey towards redemp-

tion, liberals seem to want to focus on our past. So, to answer my Hollywood friend's original question, my response is very simple. America was great when former President Lincoln freed the slaves. America was great when Congress passed the Civil and Voting Rights Acts in the '60s. America was great when they elected the first black president in 2008. America was great when we witnessed, yet again, the peaceful transfer of power to Donald Trump from Barack

JACKSON Page 53

By Rep. Robin Kelly

Throw the Doors of Opportunity Wide Open for Our Youth These are dark times in Washington. It's no secret that President Trump and his team are working overtime to turn back the clock on our rights and divest from our communities. If you want to know where the president stands on the welfare of the African-American community, look no further than his immoral budget. It eliminates programs that feed hungry kids, support veterans and help families buy their own home.

30 JULY 13 - 19, 2017

Republicans are slamming the doors of opportunity for our youth. For people of color, those doors appear to be barricaded, chained and padlocked. We must resist. We must reverse their damage and prevent them from doing it again. Let's push forward and throw wide the doors of opportunity for all. President Barack Obama led our recovery from the worst economic recession since the Great Depression. Together, we saved our economy and created more than 14 million jobs, more than 10 times the number created

under the previous president, George W. Bush. But today, we are seeing that jobs are being lost; wages aren't keeping up and bills are piling up. Tragically, my Republican colleagues' solution is more tax credits for the super-rich. My solution is different. It's called the "Today's American Dream Act" and will empower families with the security of a good job, a good education, home ownership and access to health care. I introduced this comprehensive, 25-section bill so our young

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people can live the American dream by training them for good jobs, creating more good jobs and innovating the future. Business leaders, especially in the technology and advanced manufacturing sectors, regularly tell me that they have thousands of open jobs, but don't have the qualified candidates. For example, Manufacturing Renaissance Chicago reports that there are 15,000 unfilled advanced manufacturing jobs in Chicagoland; these jobs pay an average annual salary of $70,000.

My bill would help people get the training they need for good-paying jobs by investing in apprenticeships, training and re-training programs and expanded student aid for career and technical education. Additionally, my "Community College to Career Fund Act" would partner businesses with our remarkable community colleges to develop curriculums that turn students into career-ready graduates. If we used these programs to

KELLY Page 53

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OPINIONS/EDITORIALS Guest Columnist

By Charlene Crowell

Trump's Proposed Budget Cuts Threaten Civil Rights Decades of vigilant struggles and sacrifices, civil rights legislation enacted in the 1960s won federal promises to ensure that discrimination is illegal and would not be tolerated. Unfettered access to housing, voting rights, fair credit, public accommodations and more was marked and celebrated as hard-fought victories for black Americans and other people of color. In later years, additional protections were added as amendments to safeguard the rights of the elderly, disabled, and the

LGBT community. Now in 2017, a growing number of interests are openly questioning whether the Trump administration intends to uphold these laws. More specifically, a series of federal agencies with offices dedicated to civil rights are at risk. Through budget cuts and staff reductions, these agencies will either outright deny or severely limit the ability to challenge discrimination that continues today. Case in point: the Department of Education's scaling back of civil rights enforcement. Proposed Trump administration departmental budget cuts will result in the loss of the equivalent of 46, full-

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time positions. For remaining staff, caseload levels will rise. Laura Dunn, executive director of SurvJustice, a D.C.-based nonprofit that supports legal justice, recently told Inside Higher Ed of the severity of cuts, "They know that they can't complete these investigations with such a lean budget and inadequate staffing." On June 8, Candice Jackson, the acting assistant secretary for the Office of Civil Rights (OCR), issued an internal Education Department memo directing all 12 regional OCR staff to immediately begin new practices. Per Jackson, the department goal is to swiftly address compliance issues, reach reasonable

resolution agreements and encourage voluntary settlements wherever possible. Investigation staff were advised to clear case backlogs and resolve complaints in a "reasonable time frame." Education's OCR is charged with preventing, identifying, ending and remedying discrimination against students. OCR investigates education complaints involving admissions, recruitment, financial aid, academic programs, student treatment and services, vocational education, housing, employment and more. Complaints may be filed by an affected consumer or on behalf of another person or group.

Under the Obama administration, additional OCR staffing in the Education Department was added to better meet the goal of closing cases within 180 days. In some instances, clearing case backlogs took years, instead of days, to thoroughly investigate and resolve complaints. On June 16, the nonpartisan U.S. Commission on Civil Rights weighed in on proposed cuts. In a lengthy statement detailing a new two-year, comprehensive assessment of federal civil rights enforcement, the commission said its review "will examine the degree to

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By Rev. Jesse L. Jackson Sr.

Time for Citizens' Commission Defending Our Right to Vote Donald Trump's commission on "election integrity" is meeting sensible resistance. The commission issued letters calling on states to provide it with extensive personal information on all voters, including names, addresses, birthdates, party affiliation, the last four digits

Social Security numbers, military status and criminal records. This data collection would be targeted by every cyber thief in the world. At least 20 states have already indicated that they would not comply completely, including California, New York, Texas and more. Mississippi Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann, a Republican, said his reply would be:

Askia-At-Large

"They can go jump in the Gulf of Mexico, and Mississippi is a great state to launch from." Hosemann said, "Mississippi residents should celebrate Independence Day and our state's right to protect the privacy of our citizens by conducting our own electoral processes." The president's commission is founded on a lie and perpetuates a fraud. The lie was Trump's

whopper that he would have won the popular vote if 3million to 5 million voters hadn't voted fraudulently. There is no, literally no, evidence that anyone of any political stripe can find to back up that lie. In fact, fraudulent voting in the United States is rare, isolated and insignificant. The commission is perpetuating a fraud because it wants to use fears about voter fraud to

suppress voting — to make it harder to register and vote, particularly for working and poor people. The commission is run by its vice-chair, Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach. He is notorious for his crusade to push voter suppression laws, as well as to feed fears about illegal immigration.

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By Askia Muhammad

Trump's 'Good' Week in Europe President Donald J. Trump had an excellent week as captain of the USS Ship of State, at the G-20 Summit, just concluded of the world's largest economies in Hamburg, Germany. Well, he really didn't have such a great showing — he was shunned, isolated, and marginalized — but anytime, any place where The Donald does not utterly humiliate himself and the United States counts as a "good" week for him. Never mind that more than 100,000 protesters flooded the streets of Hamburg, many, specifically targeting Trump.

Marchers carried banners reading, "Welcome to Hell" and "The World is Not for Sale." Heavily armed riot police, who used water cannons, tear gas and stun grenades to disperse the protests, met them. For those hoping that another monumental unforced error might bring the government to the tipping point where the presidency literally undoes itself, I'm sorry to be the one to tell you this, but "45" has learned enough and mastered his "inside Washington game" to the point where he'll probably manage to last four years in office and likely win re-election in 2020.

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Even the stigma of not having a customary luxury hotel for his headquarters because the U.S. waited too late to confirm Trump's attendance, and reports that first lady Melania Trump was delayed once in traffic, did not tarnish the "Trump Brand." His punching bag for all the problems this country is facing, is to accelerate the "bully-colonizer-ugly-American" stereotype and to encourage white, xenophobic, tribal behavior, such as he received from rightwing nationalists, bused in by the government to cheer his doomsday-clash-of-civilizations scenario. In other words: "Blame

Obama." The grass-roots response? A rise in open Ku Klux Klan members around this country, and right-wing white nationalistic groupings in Europe. "So if the United States shows some signs of deviation from what we've been talking about before [regarding diversity and political correctness], we have people ready to say, 'Yes. Yes. Let's get 'em,'" Edward Peck, former U.S. ambassador to Iraq, told me in an interview. "But we have been stoking the fire with things that our leaders have said and things that they have implied, and things that they have

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threatened to change." The Trump message "is more of a downbeat, than an upbeat stance that he has taken," he said. "A lot of people recognize the problems to which he is referring," Peck said. "They do not necessarily consider them to be an 'end of the world'-type thing. But there are deep and growing concerns about all of the strange, unusual, and unexpected and undesirable things that have happened, and there are people ready to blame it on us." Well?

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LIFESTYLE Students' Talents Abound in Play, 'Harriet and the Underground' By Eve M. Ferguson WI Contributing Writer Making high school students enthusiastic about history lessons is a tall task, but it's precisely what Bishop McNamara High School's Sankofa program has accomplished, via its production of "Harriet and the Underground," the story of American legend Harriet Tubman. The one-night-only production at the Warner Theater was a professional, educational and entertaining dance theater adaptation of the life and times of the Mary-

land-born Tubman, famed liberator of slaves on the Underground Railroad. The Sankofa program at the Forestville school, once an after-school group with eight students, has now blossomed to include 140 high schoolers who engage in traditional African dance, drumming and theater under the direction of Victor Bah, who wrote and directed "Harriet and the Underground." The original theatrical extravaganza was performed at the school in the spring. But Bah had loftier ideas. The powerhouse production certainly wasn't Bah's first with Sanko-

fa, which adeptly utilizes the energy, creativity and intelligence of the student body. "The process to create today's production started many months ago," Bah said. "I have taken some artistic liberties in how to tell this story. Most importantly, you will see Harriet's personality traits of Faithfulness, Strength, Persistence, her sense of Justice and Selflessness all performed as dance characters called the Will of Steel. These dancers join Harriet on stage when the need to summon her inner strengths arises." Other innovative methods of telling the story of the women who was called the "Moses of her people" were employed in this engaging event. Jasmine Wilson, Taylor Marshall and Jordyn Young served as the narrators who told Harriet Tubman's story through her own words and historical recitations. Tubman's character was performed by Nia Hayes, who aptly danced and acted the pivotal moment in her life. The ability of the cast of stu dent performers to convey — with sparse dialogue — intense scenes such as the capture of slaves from the African coast, the misery of the Middle Passage and the inhumane and sinister conditions of slavery in America was powerful and clear. But the energy and expressiveness of the dances truly relayed the emo-

5 The cast of "Harriet and the Underground." /Photo courtesy Bishop McNamara High School Sankofa/ program tional weight of Tubman's struggle performed by the students, served for abolition. to further underscore what was deThe production was enhanced scribed as "soul-stirring theater" by by the sophisticated technology one audience member. of the scenery, which included What truly made "Harriet and 3-D animation, historical photos the Underground" a phenomenal of slaves, documents and decrees, evening of creativity, entertainment making this history lesson one and innovation was the realization that taught on a myriad of levels. that almost all aspects of the proThe music, which ranged from re- duction, from costume design and corded pieces by artists as diverse as choreography, to the live traditionBobby McFerrin and Hans Zim- al drum orchestra and set design, mer, interspersed with live music were chiefly done by the students with the support of their teachers.

'Tierras' Exhibit Shows Versatility of Clay By Eve M. Ferguson WI Contributing Writer

5 Chamán, 2008 (Shaman) – Artist Sául Kaminer

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When Paloma Torres decided to curate an exhibition featuring fellow Mexican artists, she considered the importance of the medium: clay. Since pre-Columbian times, clay has always played a vital role in the life of indigenous Mexican people. "Clay has been in the history of man, and in the history of art," Torres said. "But also in the prehistory, clay was important. In this contemporary moment, clay is a borderline. It can used to make art, it is just a material, but one that has a very important role in the development of mankind. Man starts using clay not only to represent his spiritual concerns, but also used clay to contain food and water — the things they used to eat with, but also to construct their houses. "Artists want to work in clay at some moment in their life," she

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said. "We look back at the Maya, who had colors that we can't even have in our palettes anymore, like Maya blue. But we also look back at the Spanish who brought new techniques. We usually used raw clay at low fires. But the Spanish brought techniques they learned from the Arabs." "Tierras Ambulantes," which translates to "Clay in Transit," examines the importance of the medium to the seven internationally renowned Mexican artists included in this group show, currently on view at the Mexican Cultural Institute in Northwest. Through the use of this ancient material, the artists demonstrate how bridges are built between the past and the present. In an introductory lecture on the exhibit, Torres explained how the Maya blue pigment, and the blue-and-white ceramic tiles brought by the Spanish, define Mexican culture.

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Students also sold programs, T-shirts and DVDs to help fund the extravaganza. Rousing approval of the audience made up largely of parents, grandparents and school alumni, demonstrated how encouragement and guidance produces excellence. Assistant director Christy N. Bartholomew, who did everything from "manning the headset" to dancing as a member of the field slave cast, hopes that "Harriet and the Underground" can have a life beyond the weekend performance. "I'm so proud of these young people," she said after months of grueling 10-hour rehearsals, directing, dancing and pinch-hitting publicity requests. "Yes, indeed I am." Bah, a native of Ghana, began dancing and acting at an early age and traveled extensively with Ghana's national dance company, Abbigromma. "Significant research went into this production and I've strived for great historical accuracy," Bah said. "Using dance, drumming and Harriet's own words as well as Civil War documentary films and literature from that era we strive to bring to life the story of the great Harriet Tubman." WI

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LIFESTYLE TIERRAS from Page 32 "When the Spanish arrived in Mexico as conquerors, they brought new techniques like the Talavera," she said. "This came from 800 years of Arab occupation in Spain, but now this technique has become very Mexican." Ana Goméz' work "Sweet Home" (2013) demonstrates how ceramics fit into home life, using an assortment of household dishes and accessories to illustrate how clay makes a home, but the installation also creates a commentary about women in the domicile. A black silhouette of a woman carrying a tray leads into a room of dishes, teapots and other clay accoutrements mounted on the wall. Conversely, artist Saul Kaminer, a Jewish artist whose family immigrated to Mexico, uses clay to create abstractions that may not relate an affinity to ancient Mexican art in form, but make the connection through their titles. His 2008 piece "Cháman (Shaman)" makes reference to indigenous healers in Mexican

society, but the forms of his sculpture utilize negative spaces and spare lines, an almost-magical feat to undertake using fragile clay. Artist Gustavo Pérez, a revered ceramicist in his native land, uses more traditional forms for his work, recreating the shapes and forms of pre-Columbian utilitarian pieces with the addition of etchings, textures and lines that add an abstract element to the ancient technique of low-fired pots. "The black pottery of Oaxaca is very well known all over the world," Torres said. "Another artist, Perla Krauze, uses this same clay from the region to create her work." Torres' pieces are also low-fired clay, but they take on architectural elements, often appearing as spinal cords or supports for buildings like columns. "When you mix with another culture that is when beautiful things appear," Torres said. "Mankind has been migrant all the time moving from one place to another, but that is when major developments have happened.

5 Sweet Home, 2013 – Artist Ana Gómez

"When I was planning the exhibition with the seven artists, I was thinking it should be seven different views working in the same material. Earth is the thread that put us together," she said. "That is why 'Clay in Transit' had to be seven sculptors who have explored working in differT:9.5” ent materials, but bring their inS:9.25”

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tention to stop time and return to primeval clay. That's very important. "We have forgotten from where we come," Torres said. "But right now is the moment to stop and to look at seven artists and the ways of transforming clay embracing contemporary issues through their work."

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Our DTU Fellows are busy connecting and collecting amazing stories from the African American community! This year, Discover the Unexpected , presented by the all-new 2018 Chevrolet Equinox in partnership with the National Newspaper Publishers Association, includes students from Howard University, Spelman College, Morehouse College and Clark Atlanta University. Right now, our 8 DTU Fellows are hard at work at the Washington informer in Washington D.C., The Atlanta Voice in Atlanta, The Carolinian in Raleigh and the Louisiana Weekly in New Orleans. These young journalists will explore these rich strongholds of African American history and culture, and share unexpected stories from our community. Our DTU Fellows are navigating their assigned cities in the all-new 2018 Chevrolet Equinox. This crossover offers available features like built-in 4G LTE Wi-Fi, Apple CarPlay compatibility, 10 available advanced safety features and SUV functionality. Theyâ€™ll discover that the all-new Equinox is everything you need, to do everything you want. Show your HBCU support! Check out their inspirational stories and watch their exciting videos. Follow their journey and Discover the Unexpected. Discover more of their story at www.nnpa.org/dtu.

2017 DTU Fellows: Noni Marshall (Howard University), Alexa Spencer (Howard University), Darrell Williams (Morehouse College), Tiana Hunt (Clark Atlanta University), Ayron Lewallen (Morehouse College), Taylor Burris (Spelman College), Jordan Fisher (Clark Atlanta University), Kelsey Jones (Spelman College)

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New Poet Laureate Challenges Humanity to Empathize By Alexa Imani Spencer and Noni Marshall WI Interns For some poets, the medium is more than just an art form — it's an expressive, engaging tool that can be used to change the world. Tracy K. Smith is one of those poets. She believes in the power of poetry, and as the newly appointed Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry by the United States Library of Congress, she hopes to change the world one stanza at a time. "When someone reads a book or sits down and reads a poem, they're so open to this foreign perspective," she said. "They're so willing to be taught by this other voice, so willing to accept this other life as valid and compelling. … I have this idea that even just having the conversation about literature with people from different walks of life is also doing that kind of work. It's a way of saying 'our lives mean something to one another,'" From her home in New Jersey, Smith, 45, has began to draft plans for her term as the 22nd poet laureate. The position's official duties are kept to a minimum, allowing the poet to design their own literary-focused agenda. While consultants in the past have organized festivals and conferences, Smith intends to bring her own spin by promoting poetry on a tour of small towns and colleges. "I'm eager to bring the conversation that poems invite to places where it doesn't always happen," Smith said. Her hopes for the tour are high. She imagines that by traveling to cities that are often overlooked, there is a chance to stimulate a special kind of poetry movement in that space. Raised in the small town of Fairfield, California, she empathizes with residents that receive little attention from writers. The youngest of five siblings, Smith spent much of her childhood reading in solitude. From there, she gained a deep fascination for storytelling that would eventually grow into a love for poetry. "I just found that I had a lot of time to think and sit down with books and discovered that that was such an exciting way of losing myself," she said. "Of feeling as though I could travel to other places and experience other people's stories, even if they were just fiction." While much of her inspiration came from the fiction world, she was also heavily influenced by her par-

ents. Her upbringing, she explained, was a mix of spirituality, science, and the unknown, due to beliefs of her mother and father. "My mother was really committed to the sense of faith, and God, and the mystery that surrounds that realm," Smith said. "That's something that was really real in her life. My father had the belief, but he was also really interested in order and logic and was fascinated by how things work and how things grew. And so that dual perspective is something that I feel really at home with and I think that comes out a lot in my poetry now." As she has evolved as a woman and as a writer, Smith has found herself using poetry as a discovery tool to help her navigate life. She said that she uses poetry as a medium to work through many of the questions she stumbles across daily. "My poems, some of the aesthetic choices I've made have changed as my own personal questions or obsessions have changed," she said. "For me, the poems are really a vehicle for exploring the questions that I live with as a person and trying to get some traction in them." When Smith works through the answers to her questions, she often discovers connections between her own curiosity and the wonderings of others around her. While working on her latest project, "Wade in the Water: Poems," Smith said she is tackling issues of the heart by exploring the impact that emotions have on the ways the world operates. "I think my new poems are still thinking in that direction — poems that are thinking about how beautiful we would be if we could be compassionate toward each other," she said. "If love could be a part of our vocabulary, not in terms of romantic love, but in terms of citizenship, or in terms of thinking about the planet. It's also thinking actively about history, particularly history of slavery in this country and the way that that has shaped our view of each other over the last 150 years." Ultimately Smith seeks to offer her poetry as a home for understanding big ideas and concepts that are often full of complexity. She aims to show people a different way of thinking in the face of confusion with the hope of bringing some clarity along the way. "I feel like it's a good time in America to begin thinking about that kind of empathy and curiosity about other people's ways of seeing the world," she said. WI

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5 Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Tracy K. Smith was appointed as the 22nd Poet Laureate on June 14. /Courtesy of Poetry Foundation

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LIFESTYLE 3 Angela Rye of "On 1 with A. Rye," a podcast presented by the Loud Speakers Network /Courtesy photo

Angela Rye Debuts New Podcast Nationally-Known Strategist Talks Politics, Pop Culture By Sarafina Wright WI Staff Writer Political strategist and CNN crowd favorite Angela Rye launched a podcast this week with her first guest, Rep. Maxine Waters of California. "On 1 with A. Rye," debuted on Wednesday, July 12, on the Loud Speakers Network, a podcast production company that boast successful shows such as

the Combat Jack Show, the Brilliant Idiots and The Read. The weekly podcast focuses on politics and current events through the lens of pop culture. "I heard a lot of feedback from viewers and followers asking for a platform where they could keep the conversation going beyond a commercial break or 140 characters," Rye said. "'On 1' will give me the opportunity to engage with people from ev-

ery corner of the country, and allow us to honestly address the pressing political, racial, and pop culture questions of the day together." Known for her frank analysis of the legislative landscape and political climate, Rye shot to national prominence during the 2016 presidential election. Often the sole woman of color on panels for CNN and NPR, she gained a following with a younger demographic through her commentary on CNN and NPR. Named one of Fortune's 40 Under 40 Women to Watch, Rye works as an attorney, CNN political contributor and the

CEO of IMPACT Strategies, a political advocacy firm in Washington. Rye, a graduate of the University of Washington and Seattle University School of Law, served as executive director and general counsel to the Congressional Black Caucus from 2010 to 2012. In her role as executive director, she developed legislative and political strategy for the Caucus. Prior to working for the CBC, the Seattle native served as senior advisor and counsel to the U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security under the leadership of Rep. Bennie G. Thompson. The "On 1 with A. Rye" podcast can be downloaded on iTunes, TIDAL, SoundCloud and Spotify. WI

"I heard a lot of feedback from viewers and followers asking for a platform where they could keep the conversation going beyond a commercial break or 140 characters." ANGELA RYE /

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The Pulse of Entertainment: Jagged Edge Premiers on ‘Unsung’ By Eunice Moseley WI Contributing Writer Four guys from Atlanta had a dream. Twin brothers Brian and Brandon Casey, Kyle Norman and Richard Wingo formed the R&B/Hip-Hop act Jagged Edge. They sneaked in places where entertainment industry notables were to get a chance to sing for them. Now, their odyssey to worldwide fame has been featured on a new season of TV One’s “Unsung.” “The first time we were introduced to Jermaine Dupri was at Jack the Rapper’s.” said Brian about their “discovery” moment. “We sneaked in,” Wingo added laughing. “We introduced ourselves. He said meet him at the bathroom,” Brian continued. “We waited 30 minutes, an hour, two hours. JD never showed up. We said we gonna show him. The second time was through Kandi (Xscape) who knows Wingo, they went to school together. We did a demo and he took it by to her.” As it goes, Kandi knew Jermaine Dupri because her group Xscape was signed to his label So So Def Group mate Tiny also spoke up for them to JD so he could listen to the group’s demo. “To all our surprise,” the group said. “She fell in love with it. Sometimes we leave Tiny out of the story but she was part of making the relationship with Jermaine Dupri.” Jermaine hit the scene with in the early 1990s releasing projects from Kris Kross, DaBrat and Xscape. It was his collaboration with Mariah Carey on “Always Be My Baby” that gave JD his first #1 song. Through So So Def/Columbia Records Jagged Edge garnered three hit songs that still have them riding the success-wave today - “I Gotta Be,” “Let’s Get Married” and “Promise.” On the TV One “Unsung” episode highlighting their career and journey to success the network interviewed Tiny and Kandi of Xscape; LaTavia Roberson, formerly of the group Destiny’s Child, who the guys toured with; Q Parker of the group 112 who they also toured with; songwriter/producer Bryan Michael Cox; radio personality The Poetess; JD’s father Michael Mauldin who was president of

“The first time we were introduced to Jermaine Dupri was at Jack the Rapper’s. We introduced ourselves. He said meet him at the bathroom. We waited 30 minutes, an hour, two hours. JD never showed up." BRIAN CASEY / Jagged Edge

5 Jagged Edge was recently spotlighted on TV One's "Unsung." /Courtesy photo

Columbia Records’ Urban Division, and the man himself Jermaine Dupri. “Diffidently we are working,” said the group. “Every weekend…We have multiple tours offered. We pick what we want…when you don’t see us we still on the road.” Jagged Edge also admitted that they own their name. An important thing to note in an industry full of people looking to not only take your name for profit but your image and public performance choices. “For us we never wanted to be put in that position (to get ripped off). We made sure we got a lawyer…we still got jerked but we are still maintaining. We are…self contained. Black owned, no A&R, no big label… it’s all us, our style. Some artists don’t own their names, we own Jagged Edge,” said the group concluding on a serious note. The twins Brian and Brandon are also songwriters who have written for Usher and Toni Braxton. Jagged Edge is currently promoting their 9th project titled “The Lay-Over.” Their TV One “Unsung” episode airs Sunday, July 9th at 10 p.m. ET. Find out more on TV One’s “Unsung” episodes for this new season by logging onto www. TVOne.tv and for information on “The Lay-Over” or Jagged Edge upcoming performances log onto www.JEHeartBreak. com. WI

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LIFESTYLE HOME RULE from Page 1 interest groups trying to bully the District, we are now confronted by companies wielding their economic power and campaign contributions to try to get [Congress] members to do their bidding. "The District is not unique among cities and states in considering wipes labeling legislation, but it is unique in being subject to undemocratic abuse by Congress," she said. "If members think local and state wipes labeling laws are bad policy, they should have the courage of their convictions to pursue national labeling legislation in

the light of day, instead of trying to abuse Congress' authority over the District through a hidden appropriations rider." The D.C. Council unanimously passed the law, the Nonwoven Disposable Products Act of 2016, and the mayor signed it, after the Council held a hearing with witnesses representing industry and wastewater utilities. In letters to Norton, the National Association of Clean Water Agencies, which represents water utilities across the country, and DC Water expressed their strong support for D.C.'s law, indicating that wet wipes cause serious problems and create

significant costs for ratepayers, the federal government, sewer systems, workers, waterways, homeowners and businesses. In another move to defend home rule, Norton filed an amendment to the fiscal year 2018 National Defense Authorization Act — H.R. 2810 — to give D.C. home-rule authority over the D.C. National Guard. Norton's amendment is the same text as her bill, the District of Columbia National Guard Home Rule Act, which would give the D.C. mayor the authority that the chief executive of states and territories have over their Guards, according to a statement. The mayor would be able to deploy the D.C. National Guard during local emergencies, including natural disasters and civil disturbances unrelated to national or homeland security, after consultation with the Commanding General of the D.C. National Guard. The president of the United States would retain final authority over federal matters. Currently, the president controls the D.C. National Guard for both national and local purposes. Norton earlier succeeded in getting authority for the Commanding General of the D.C. National Guard, rather than only the president, to deploy the Guard in order to avoid the federal bureaucracy necessary to call up the D.C. National Guard. "D.C.'s mayor has the nec-

essary expertise and knowledge of our city to make the best decision on when and how to deploy our National Guard for local matters, such as natural disasters," Norton said. "My bill would make the D.C. National Guard a more localized force that is able to react quickly to local emergencies, while still keeping the Commanding General in the decision-making process, and preserving the president as the final authority over federal matters. "All we are asking for is the same authority for the D.C.'s mayor that chief executives of states and U.S. territories have over their Guards," she said. The congresswoman has been advocating for years for statehood and has been at the forefront of the push for D.C.'s

independence. Last month, Norton expressed disappointment that a bill contained anti-home rule riders to prohibit the District from spending its local funds on abortion services for low-income women and marijuana commercialization, as well as repealed D.C.'s budget autonomy referendum. "While no anti-home rule riders are acceptable, the absence of several threatened riders, including on medical aid-in-dying and wet wipes, in the base bill is helpful as we prepare for markup," Norton said. "Members who want to try to block additional local D.C. laws will now have to do so in the light of day and sign their name to the amendment." WI

"While we have previously faced conservative interest groups trying to bully the District, we are now confronted by companies wielding their economic power and campaign contributions to try to get [Congress] members to do their bidding." ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON

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5 D.C. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton /WI File photo

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LIFESTYLE

wi book reviewA

Horoscopes

JULY 13 - 19, 2017

ARIES Get ahead with DIY projects and get things shipshape in general. And with

last week’s difficulties out of the way, you might be ready to tackle any chores that are overdue. In addition, Mercury in your leisure sector makes a lovey tie to Jupiter, which might encourage you to take time out to relax and invite friends or loved ones along for the ride. Lucky Numbers: 5, 13, 33

"Surpassing Certainty"

TAURUS Making new connections can be very beneficial and even help you get further ahead with a project or receive some useful advice. This trend will last until July 20, and it could see you making new friends online and off. Meanwhile, you might be eager to get organized at home. Finding a good deal or a gadget that makes life easier could also prove very satisfying. Lucky Numbers: 19, 24, 38

by Janet Mock c.2017, Atria $24.99 ($33.99 Canada) 228 pages

GEMINI Taking stock of financial matters could help you feel more optimistic and secure. But the presence of Mars here could see you adopting a can-do approach to earning extra money and perhaps starting a small business that helps take care of everyday expenses and gives you funds for vacations and other treats. An upbeat aspect later in the week could coincide with a delightful invitation, too. Lucky Numbers: 2, 10, 17 CANCER Vitality is strong. You may feel more inclined to stand up for what you

believe in. Reach out and connect with old and new friends. Time to do some organizing and getting up to speed with bills and other money matters. But if you spot a bargain for the home, you might not be able to resist it. Lucky Numbers: 10, 40, 52

Surpassing Certainty

LEO You may have felt like taking a back seat lately but you may still feel very compassionate toward others and willing to lend your support. You would probably feel put out if they didn’t ask. Issues between you and another shouldn't be taken personally. This person may have their own problems to contend with. Lucky Numbers: 17, 18, 19

By Terri Schlichenmeyer WI Contributing Writer When you were 20, you wanted only to impress. If people looked at you, wasn't that good? You wanted to be seen, watched, adored by those you saw as desirable. But what, exactly, did you want people to notice? Was it your hair, your body or, as in "Surpassing Certainty" by Janet Mock, was the whole you on display? At age 19, Janet Mock should never have been where she was, three nights a week. Her Thursday-Saturday schedule was meant for women over 21; that was the legal age for dancing as a stripper in a Waikiki clubs, but the proprietress of the club jokingly offered to "give" Mock two of her own birthdays, and that was that: Mock was a dancer, albeit a self-conscious one. She was afraid that someone could spot her secret from the bar rail. At a very young age, Mock knew she was a girl in a boy's body. Her mother looked the other way while Mock wore feminine clothing and grew out her hair, and she ignored when Mock started taking female hormones as an adolescent. After saving every penny, Mock flew to Bangkok to finalize her transition at 18; months later, she realized that nobody saw her as anything but a pretty black woman. But the club, well, money was good there and she settled in. She sometimes made a cool grand a week, and she didn't have to sleep with customers; the club's owner, in fact, urged her girls not to do so. "Love can wait," she'd said, but when Mock met the man she'd ultimately marry, there was no reason not to take the plunge. He was a Navy man who took Mock's truth in stride, but the two grew apart: Mock quit dancing before she quit the marriage to move to New York City to attend college, where she felt empowered as a woman in control of her life. She made friends, decided what she wanted to do with her life, landed the job of her dreams: "I was home." Filled with florid prose and swoony drama, "Surpassing Certainty" is one of those memoirs that feels like a long conversation. That can be a good thing, and it can be bad. In speaking directly to readers, author Janet Mock offers an aura of girlfriendship. We're privy to many details — maybe even too many — and the information is meted out as if we're all "Sex in the City" in a bistro somewhere on a Sunday afternoon. And yet, this conversation doesn't seem to have a point. Mock writes at great length about stripping. She tells about her many loves, fusses too much about her appearance, and shares thoughts about men that reflect her youth at the time. Except for a juicy admission of omission in her last book, this seemed like a lot of navel-gazing. Heavy sigh. If you read Mock's first memoir and are eager for more, by all means, find this one because you'll love it. For most readers, though, "Surpassing Certainty" may not completely impress. WI WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

VIRGO You may have a long to-do list, but if it involves fulfilling other people’s needs and neglecting your own, then something needs to change. While the ongoing focus in your social zone could incline you to help, the cosmos is also encouraging you to forge ahead and do what you have to do. You can’t please everyone. An intuitive nudge could give you insight into how to make headway on a key goal. Lucky Numbers: 17, 21, 43 LIBRA The time may be ripe for moving in new circles and exploring activities you’ve never tried before. While you may sometimes find yourself at odds with other people’s ideas, this can be a positive learning curve that encourages you to reconsider your plans and perhaps take on even bigger challenges. A focus on goals and ambitions can boost your resolve to do the best you can. Lucky Numbers: 29, 30, 32 SCORPIO Any new information you’ve uncovered can give you inspiration for the future and could see you envisioning all sorts of possibilities. This might be an excellent time to expand your horizons. Your instincts can also play a part in any key decisions and shouldn’t be ignored, especially as a positive tie between Mercury and Jupiter hints at a golden opportunity if you remain alert and ready. Lucky Numbers: 25, 39, 58 SAGITTARIUS You might want to try on a new experience for size, especially if you

can involve your friends, too. However, another influence suggests that if you think about this issue too much, you may end up in a state of analysis paralysis and get nowhere. Asking a friend for advice or researching the pros and cons might help you decide more easily. When it comes down to it, what have you got to lose? Lucky Numbers: 12, 44, 51

CAPRICORN The Sun and Mars are lighting up your relationship zone and enticing you to explore the potential in a new friendship or romance. What interests you about another might be a story they tell or an experience they’ve had that captures your imagination. But business affairs also look lively, as another positive connection encourages a meeting that could lead to a new project or contract. Lucky Numbers: 13, 20, 37 AQUARIUS To overcome any reservations concerning a bold idea, you may benefit from chatting with someone who has been through a similar situation. The influence of Venus in your creative zone might help you see things from a more positive perspective. Later in the week, a tie to Jupiter can bring on a mood of optimism that entices you to go ahead anyway, even if the outcome is uncertain. Lucky Numbers: 3, 4, 20 PISCES You may be eager to make changes to your lifestyle. You might want to reorganize certain aspects of your day so you can accomplish your health goals and be more productive, too. From July 20, you may find it a lot easier to stay true to your new regimen. Be patient with yourself until then. Lucky Numbers: 12, 16, 33

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JULY 13 - 19, 2017 41

SPORTS Woodson, Friendship Agree to Annual 'Clash of the Titans' By Tatyana Hopkins WI Staff Writer For the past decade, H.D. Woodson Senior High School and Friendship Collegiate Academy have set a high standard for high school football in the city, but the two Ward 7 neighborhood schools rarely play one another. That's about to change. Ward 7 Council member Vincent Gray on Friday, July 7 held a celebratory event at a Northeast restaurant, where Woodson and

Friendship officials and graduating seniors from both schools participated in a Memorandum of Understanding signing to ensure that the football teams' "Ward 7 Clash of the Titans" becomes an annual event. "I am proud to honor the achievements of the scholars of both [Woodson] and [Friendship] and advance this competition between outstanding athletes," Gray said. "It's going to be a great game. I wouldn't be surprised if we aren't looking for a larger venue after last year."

5 A Woodson High football player is joined by Ward 7 Councilmember Vincent Gray. /Photo courtesy Mark Mahoney

The signing established a collaborative agreement between the two schools for the football competition and to ensure an annual implementation of the game. Gray said the game will foster healthy competition between the two teams, draw a large crowd and create future opportunities for the players, as organizers expect the game to be attended by numerous

college scouts and media outlets. "[The game is] an opportunity that showcases the best talent in football in D.C.," said Friendship Principal Curtis Lawrence. "It's not only a great opportunity to have a great game … but also a great opportunity to get young men of color into colleges of their choice." This year's Clash of the Titans is set for Sept. 15 at Woodson.

D.C. Welcomes New Inductees into Sports Hall of Fame WI Staff Report

The nine newest members of the Washington DC Sports Hall of Fame were honored during a pregame ceremony on Sunday, July 9 at Nationals Park, before the Washington Nationals took on the Atlanta Braves. The following inductees were honored: • Juan Dixon - member of the University of Maryland men's basketball team; • Brenda Frese - head coach of the University of Maryland women's basketball team; The Washington DC Sports Hall of Fame's 2017 class is honored prior to the Washington Nationals-Atlanta Braves • Glenn Harris - longtime game at Nationals Park in Southeast on Sunday, July 9. /Photo by John E. De Freitas host of NewsChannel 8's "SportsTalk"; team and Washington lected based on their accomplishThe D.C. Sports Hall of Fame • Tony Kornheiser Bullets; ments in the world of sports, join began in 1980 when Robert Sig Washington Post • Mike Nelms - kick returner a select group of distinguished ath- holtz created the Hall of Stars at sportswriter, radio host, for the Washington letes, coaches, owners, executives, RFK stadium to honor D.C.'s top ESPN's "Pardon the Redskins; media members, contributors and athletes and sports personalities. Interruption" co-host; • Paul Tagliabue - NFL sports personalities in the Hall of Since then, the Hall of Stars has • Katie Ledecky - two-time commissioner from 1989 Fame, which was founded in 1980. honored over 100 figures ranging Olympian and five-time 2006; and Each honoree received a plaque from players to coaches to execu Olympic gold medalist in • Ron Weber - radio commemorating their induction, tives to journalists. swimming; broadcaster for the and their names will be added to Each year, the selection commit• Tom McMillen - member Washington Capitals. the Hall of Fame display at Nation- tee picks new figures based on their of the University of als Park, overlooking the left field accomplishments and contribu Maryland men's basketball The inductees, who were se- concourse. tions to the D.C. sports scene. WI

42 JULY 13 - 19, 2017

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"It's bigger than just a football game — it's a rally," said Woodson coach Greg Fuller. "We're not concerned about winning, we're concerned about developing young men." As mayor in 2012, Gray established the D.C. State Athletic Association to create formal opportunities for sports teams from the city's public, private, parochial, independent and charter schools to compete against each other in the first-ever opportunity for sports state championship competitions. Nevertheless, Woodson, the traditional public school and Friendship, a public charter school met infrequently in regular season games. Between 2009 and 2015, the Woodson Warriors and Friendship Knights played each other only four times, splitting the contests. In 2013, they competed against one another for the state championship, but would not face off again until 2016 in a regular season game before competing for the state championship that same year. Though the September 2016 game was on the regular schedule, Gray saw the rare face-off as an opportunity to create an exciting football game in what is now known as Ward 7 Clash of the Titans. Woodson was the designated home team in that game, and Friendship is set to be home team for this year's contest. The home-team designation will ultimately alternate between the two schools. But until Friendship has a field, the game will be played at Woodson or another mutually agreed-upon site in Ward 7. Each year, the winning team will get a trophy that they will retain for a year. WI

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SPORTS Nats Double Up Braves 4 Atlanta second baseman Johan Camargo throws to first base during the Nats 10-5 win at Nationals Park in Southeast on Sunday, July 9. /Photo by John E. De Freitas

5 Washington Nationals shortstop Wilmer Difo attempts to complete a double play as Atlanta Braves infielder Johan Camargo slides into second base during the Nationals' 10-5 win at Nationals Park in Southeast on Sunday, July 9. /Photo by John E. De Freitas

5 Washington Nationals second baseman Daniel Murphy slides home safely in the fifth inning of the Nationals' 10-5 win over the Atlanta Braves at Nationals Park in Southeast on Sunday, July 9. /Photo by John E. De Freitas WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

5 Washington Nationals center fielder Brian Goodwin slides home safely for the first run during the Nationals'

10-5 win over the Atlanta Braves at Nationals Park in Southeast on Sunday, July 9. /Photo by John E. De Freitas

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JULY 13 - 19, 2017 43

CAPTURE THE MOMENT Staff members, family and friends attended the Washington Informer's night at the Universoul Circus on Sunday, July 9. The evening featured Publisher Denise Rolark Barnes who assisted the Ring Master in judging the winner of the Soul Train line. WI friends and family rode an elephant during photo-opps and everyone at the circus participated in the balloon ball toss. /Photos by Shevry Lassiter

44 JULY 13 - 19, 2017

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DCPS BRIEFS from Page 16 plications from parents, community leaders, and education stakeholders across the District,” said Phelan. “We are thrilled that this task force represents DC’s students, with over 50 percent of selected members residing or working in Wards 7 and 8.” The task force members include: Celine Fejeran, Ward 5; Cara Fuller,Ward 8; Carol Randolph, Ward 4; Cathy Reilly, Ward 4; Cosby Hunt, Ward 5; David Tansey, Ward 5; Dwan Jordon, Ward 4; Jahari Shelton, Ward 7; Jimell Sanders, Ward 7; Julie Camerata, Ward 1; Karla Reid-Witt, Ward 7; Kimberly Martin,Ward 3; Larry Greenhill Sr., Ward 8; Latisha Chisholm, Ward 8; Sandra Jowers-Barber, Ward 4; Sanjay Mitchell; Ward 7; Senovia Hurtado, Ward 5; Shenita Ray, Ward 5; Tom Brown, Ward 7; Erin Bibo, DCPS; Jane Spence, DCPS; Justin Tooley, Office of the State Superintendent of Education;Naomi DeVeaux, Public Charter School Board; and a SBOE student representative, to be announced.

CHARTER SCHOOL HONOREE

Jayden Mercedes lists among students honored in a campaign by the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools for sharing their stories about the importance of their public charter school education. “Being a young, Black girl with dyslexia is no easy thing. Just writing this is difficult because some of the letters don’t

appear to be what they seem. Imagine having this problem throughout your life. It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever had to deal with,” said Jayden. “I passed from year to year, but one year my mom kept me back anyway. At first, it felt like a curse, but then I realized it was a blessing. I had an extra year to get on grade level academically,” she continued. “I worked harder, smarter, and more focused than my peers. So much so, I am now ranked seventh in my entire graduating 8th grade class... Howard University Middle School (in Northwest) has helped me a lot...This [public] charter school really has made a difference in my life.”

ADULT EDUCATION GRADUATE

Carlos Lorenzo, a recent graduate of Academy of Hope Adult Public Charter School in Southeast, reflects on his academic experience: “I loved everything about Academy of Hope. I felt so welcomed and encouraged since the first day I came to classes,” said Lorenzo. “The staff is amazing and the teachers are incredible. I remember when I started school, I felt like I didn't have the platform which is English. I didn't think it was possible to catch up, but then I said, 'this is going to be difficult not impossible'. I used obstacles to challenge myself to get my GED, [and] all I can say [is] that it was worth it.” WI

JEALOUS from Page 1 500. Jealous, 44, will face at least four challengers in the Democratic primary on June 26, 2018, including Prince George's County Executive Rushern L. Baker III, and several others are mulling a bid. Nevertheless, Jealous is enthusiastic about his chances and the state's prospects. During an interview Saturday, July 8 in Silver Spring, Jealous discussed a myriad of topics such as health care, education and mass incarceration. Here are some of his thoughts, in his own words:

HEALTH CARE

Our campaign is based on the fundamental principle that every Marylander's life has equal worth. The reality with health care is you either have it, or you don't. Those of us that to have it often fail to understand the true price you pay for those who don't. It's also the leading cause of bankruptcy in our state. No matter what happens in Washington in our federal government, with every branch controlled by right-wing extremists, when I'm governor we will ensure that we move Maryland forward … with the issue of health care moving to single-payer. It's necessary. It's doable. What we've learn from other states that health care doesn't cost much more than the current system. In California, it would cost 10 percent more than the current system. Removing profit from our basic health care services is a core part of this. When you put everybody in the health care system, not only do you get better bargaining power with pharmaceutical [companies] and lower overhead costs, but it also gets a younger population in there and makes the whole system more efficient. The cost of health care in the country is insane. How would you career have been different, or different in the future if your health care wasn't tied to your job? A lot of folks stay in dead-end jobs [and] don't take risks in their career because they're afraid of [losing] their health insurance. How do you build a more prosperous, robust future for our children? Part of that is ensuring that every Marylander can be productive as possible. In America, productivity is disproportionately driving by our entrepreneurs. We will unleash more entrepreneurial power in Maryland if we treat health care as a human right and not an employment benefit.

EDUCATION

5 Jayden Mercedes lists among students being honored in a campaign by the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools./ Photo courtesy Howard University Middle School

5 Carlos Lorenzo, a recent graduate of Academy of Hope Adult Public Charter School. /Photo courtesy Academy of Hope PCS

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As governor, it would be my responsibility to make sure that every school in Maryland is a good school and every teacher in every classroom is a highly qualified teacher … and our teachers are compen-

"Jealous, 44, will face at least four challengers in the Democratic primary on June 26, 2018, including Prince George's County Executive Rushern L. Baker III, and several others are mulling a bid.

sated competitively so we retain the best ones in our state. Around D.C., you have a of teachers [who live] in Prince George's County who go teach in D.C. because they can make more money. It hurts our kids. It doesn't help our community. When a teacher teaches in the community where they live, it's better for everybody. I want to make sure everybody is clear that we're preparing our children for the future. Therefore, we will fund and run our education system from pre-K all the way through public universities. Ultimately that means there will be a series of important and tough decisions. The [statewide] casino money should be used in the way voters were promised it would be used. As a parent with two children in the public schools, I'm offended. The casino money was not intended to replace historic funding for education. It was meant to enhance it. I will make sure the $1 billion in casino tax revenue enhances our historical levels of education funding. That allows us to have universal pre-K, to allow use to recruit and retain the best teachers and to ensure that every child starting at age 6 learns how to code. It will be important to them as reading, writ-

ing and arithmetic. Digital technology is being infused in every machine. We need to teach our kids coding because we have already established as of two generations ago that it's one of the best ways to move families of color into the middle class and the upper middle class.

MASS INCARCERATION

The activity reminds me there is great bipartisan consensus amongst Democratic and Republican activists and independents to move from failed, tough on crime policies to proving, smart on crime strategies. We are going to reserve prison for the most dangerous people in our society and we're going to make sure that addicts have access to rehab on demand. A mother who becomes addicted goes to rehabilitation and stays with her family, rather than go to prison which would send her children into foster care. The combination of effective use of criminal justice resources on the one hand, mental health resources and rehabilitation on the other allows you to lower your overall public safety spent and shift resources back to other priorities like public and higher education. Our community needs strong, effective relationships with law enforcement to keep us safe. Quite frankly, we pay a steep price when law enforcement is ineffective, or absent. Ironically and tragically, we also pay a steep price too many times when we call police to help us. We find ourselves in this bind where we fear both the robbers and the cops. We have to increase trust in our communities and that means police officers need to get out of their cars one day a week and pull out their business cards and give local residents their cell phone numbers. We need to go further by using personality tests more effectively in recruiting so that we weed out officers whose personality types suggest their much more likely to use violence unnecessarily. We need to train our officers every six months in both use of force and de-escalation. Finally, we need to eliminate distractions like the failed approach known as Broken Windows policing and other failed war on drug strategies. WI

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RELIGION Samuel H. Jordan Dies at 84 Samuel H. Jordan, the former director of the D.C. Office of Emergency Preparedness and the logistics “czar” for five mayors and seven U.S. Presidents, died on June 29 at the Fairland Nursing Home in Silver Spring. He was 84. Services were held on Monday, July 10 at Union Temple Baptist Church in Southeast with the pews filled with political icons, appointees from past federal and local governments and religious leaders who sang, laughed and cried over the cigar-wielding, fur coat wearing public safety official who at times seemed to have as much power as the police chief.

“Those of us in public service, if we wanted to survive, we needed to know Sam,” said former D.C. Mayor Sharon Pratt Kelly, who sparked laughter as she shared memories of their friendship. Jordan was a native of Petersburgh, VA, who moved to the District in 1956, landing his first job with the Department of Recreation. He would go on to work in other D.C. agencies and was soon appointed to be the District’s liaison to the Federal Inauguration Committee. In 1992, Jordan was appointed Director of the DC Department of Emergency Preparedness and two of his trademarks were a blue jack-

5 District leaders share words about Samuel H. Jordan. /Courtesy photo

46 JULY 13 - 19, 2017

et from President Ronald Reagan’s inauguration and a big cigar. Be it Democrat or Republican Jordan was all in on celebrations and he knew how to pull things together. “When Marion [Barry] had surgery at Johns Hopkins you would think that Baltimore was in another country,” said former D.C. First Lady Cora Masters Barry. “Sam stood in the gap for Marion. Sam stood in the gap for this city.” When it came to special events, like the National Council of Negro Women’s annual Black Family Reunion, the Promise Keepers “Stand in Gap Rally,” or even a Ku Klux Klan march down Pennsylvania Avenue, Jordan and a dedicated team of officials worked overtime. But their work also extended to offering food and shelter to the poor during hot and cold periods. Mark Thompson, a former student leader at the University of the District of Columbia, recalled how Jordan prevented things from getting ugly after he and other students shut down UDC for 11 days in protest of the school’s administrators and policies. Ayo Bryant, Linda Boyd, Minister Abdul Khadir Muhammad, and former D.C Councilmember Harry Thomas, Jr. reminisced about Jordan’s role as a mentor to hundreds of youth. During the service an ensemble sang, “I Call You Faithful,” and the Rev. Willie Wilson said Jordan was a servant who was a “doer of the word.” Former D.C. Delegate to Congress Walter Fauntroy, along with his wife, were two of the last people to leave Union Temple. Fauntroy said Jordan played a critical role in many of the District’s events, describing his efforts as “divinely inspired.” Jordan is survived by his wife, two sons, two daughters and a host of other relatives and friends. WI

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‘True Blood’ Star Dies at 39 WI Staff Report Nelsan Ellis, best known for playing Lafayette Reynolds on HBO’s True Blood died Sunday, July 8 in Los Angeles. He was 39. His family released a statement say that in the days before his death, Ellis had been trying to quit drinking alcohol, and alcohol withdrawal syndrome led to heart failure. According to his family, Ellis spent most of his adult life in and out of rehab, but he had never been able to make it stick. Finally, the ac- 5 Nelsan Ellis /Courtesy photo tor decided to try and go cold turkey and the results proved deadly. “We were extremely saddened to hear of the passing of Nelsan Ellis. Nelsan was a long-time member of the HBO family whose groundbreaking portrayal of Lafayette will be remembered fondly within the overall legacy of True Blood,” said HBO in a statement. “Nelsan will be dearly missed by his fans and all of us at HBO.” His film credits also included playing Martin Luther King, Jr. in Lee Daniels’ The Butler, playing Bobby Byrd in the James Brown biopic Get On Up and in the 2015 Sundance pic The Stanford Prison Experiment. Most recently, he starred in the indie Little Boxes and the upcoming True to The Game. He was also in the Oscar Best Picture nominee The Help alongside Octavia Spencer, Viola Davis and Emma Stone. His TV credits include the Fox series The Inside which ran for seven episodes in 2005. He then landed the role in True Blood in 2007, where he starred opposite Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer, a Southern gothic vampire series that ran from 2008-2014. Ellis also joined the cast of CBS’ Elementary this past season as a series regular before his character Shinwell was murdered. WI

Ward 8 ANC Commissioner and Consumer Advocate Dies WI Staff Report Theresa Howe Jones, 83, ANC 8D commissioner, died Monday, July 10. Born in 1933 and raised in the District, Jones served as the immediate past chair of the ANC 8D, a mother of seven and a fighting voice for her community. Jones worked with the Southeast Neighborhood House, Chase, Inc. as an executive director and the United Planning Organization as a liaison. But even after her 2014 retirement, she remained active in the community. “[Jones] retired years ago. However, you would never know. She probably worked harder and longer hours during retirement than working a full time paid job,” said a long-time friend and mentee to Jones, Wanda Lockridge in a Facebook post. “[Jones] was the “go to person” who had a wealth of knowledge and resources at her finger tip. She was a tireless advocate for the less fortunate. Never will there be another [Jones].” In addition to her work with the ANC, she also served on the Anacostia Economic Board, supported the United Black Fund and served as chairperson of the founding board of the Anacostia Community Museum. Jones has been recognized in her community as a committed community leader. Jones helped troubleshoot overdue bills and resolved tenant issues and other problems. In 2013, Jones received the Anacostia Community Museum Community Service Award and in 2016 she received the D.C. Office of the People’s Counsel Consumer Advocate Award of the Year. WI WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

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Dousing the Flames of the Diabetes Epidemic, Pt. 4 Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own. — 1 Corinthians 6:19 NIV In the third installment of my "Dousing the Flames of the Diabetes Epidemic" series, I wrote of my mother, who only lived 12 years after being diagnosed with the disease. Here is the continuation of her story. Each week, I've shared how mother lost both of her legs, had to have kidney dialysis for the last few years of her life and she suffered least seven strokes in 12 years. She was my age, only 61 when she had her first major stroke, which resulted in paralysis. Mother ended up in Howard University Hospital, and it was during that particular hospital stay that her diabetes was discovered. According to NIH, heart disease is the leading cause of death in people with diabetes. It's simple to get to the root of the problem: old-fashioned soul food diets, too much junk food from fast food restaurants, and a lack of strenuous exercise. We are not treating our bodies like the temple that it is! How many times have you pigged out after a hard day's work, then fell asleep? For us adults, that won't work — that type of behavior is only for growing babies and children. We've finished growing. We get bigger with each bad meal, we end up buying larger sizes, we don't look or feel good. How many wardrobe sizes do we have? We buy more and more fat clothes. And worst of all, our blood sugar

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gets out of control, our hearts can't stand this, and neither can the rest of our organs. There are a few exceptions to this rule. Some of you have contracted diabetes and you're not overweight, but it's genetic and lack of exercise is still problematic. Look at the stats provided by the National Institute of Health. Today, diabetes mellitus is one of the most serious health challenges facing the United States. The following statistics illustrate the magnitude of this disease among African-Americans: NIH sites hundreds billions of dollars are spent on diabetes care, and 4.9 million African-Americans have diabetes; on average, we are twice as likely to have diabetes as white Americans of similar age; approximately 13 percent of all African-Americans have diabetes; African-Americans with diabetes are more likely to develop diabetes complications and experience greater disability from the complications than white Americans with diabetes; death rates for people with diabetes are 27 percent higher for African-Americans compared with whites; national health surveys during the past 35 years show that the percentage of the African-American population diagnosed with diabetes is increasing dramatically. The surveys show prevalence of undiagnosed diabetes as well as previously diagnosed diabetes. From 1976-80, total diabetes prevalence in African-Americans ages 40 to 74 years was only 8.9 percent; from 1988-94, total prevalence had increased to 18.2 percent — a dou-

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with Lyndia Grant bling of the rate in just 12 years. Regular physical activity is a protective factor against Type 2 diabetes and, conversely, lack of physical activity is a risk factor for developing diabetes. Researchers suspect that a lack of exercise is one factor contributing to the high rates of diabetes in African-Americans. In the NHANES III survey, 50 percent of African-American men and 67 percent of African-American women reported they participated in little or no leisure time physical activity. We can change this trend with, one, new and improved diets and, two, exercise! (Check in next week for the series' conclusion.) WI

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(301) 864-6070

jmccollum@jmlaw.net

Historic St. Mary’s Episcopal Church The Rev. E. Bernard Anderson Priest Foggy Bottom - Founded in 1867 728 23rd Street, NW - Washington, DC 20037 Church office: 202-333-3985 - Fax : 202-338-4958 Service and Times Sundays: 10 a.m. Holy Eucharist with Music and Hymns Wednesdays: 12:10 p.m. - Holy Eucharist www.stmarysfoggybottom.org Email: stmarysoffice@stmarysfoggybottom.org All are welcome to St. Mary’s to Learn, Worship, and Grow.

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JULY 13 - 19, 2017 47

RELIGION The Miracle Center of Faith Missionary Baptist Church Bishop Michael C. Turner, Sr. Senior Pastor 9161 Hampton Overlook Capitol Heights, MD 20743 Phone: 301-350-2200 Fax: 301-499-8724

Service and Times Sunday Worship Times : 7:30 a.m. 7 10:00 a.m. Communion: 1st Sunday Sunday School: 9:00 a.m. Bible Study: Wednesday, 12 Noon Bible Study in homes: Tuesday 7:00 p.m. Website: www.themiraclecenterFMBC.com Email: Miraclecenterfmbs@gmail.com Motto: “We Walk by Faith, Not by Sight”

Pilgrim Baptist Church Rev. Louis B. Jones II Pastor 700 I Street, N.E. Washington, D.C. 20002 (202) 547-8849 Service and Times Worship Sundays: 7:30 & 11:00am 5th Sundays: 9:30am 3rd Sundays: Baptism & Holy Communion Prayer & Praise: Wednesdays @ Noon & 6:30pm www.pilgrimbaptistdc.org

Church of Living Waters

Allen Chapel A.M.E. Church

Crusader Baptist Church

Rev. Paul Carrette Senior Pastor

Rev. Dr. Michael E. Bell, Sr., Pastor

Rev. Dr. Alton W. Jordan Pastor

Reverend Dr. Calvin L. Matthews Senior Pastor

Harold Andrew Assistant Pastor

2498 Alabama Ave., SE - Washington D.C. 20020 Office: (202) 889-7296 Fax: (202) 889-2198 - www.acamec.org

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

4915 Wheeler Road Oxon Hill, MD 20745 301-894-6464

Service and Times Sunday Worship Services: 8:00am and 11:00am Sunday Church School - 9:15am & Sunday Adult Forum Bible Study - 10:30am 2nd & 4th Monday Women’s Bible Study: 6:30pm Tuesday Jr./Sr. Bible Study: 10:00am Tuesday Topical Bible Study: 6:30pm Tuesday New Beginnings Bible Study: 6:30pm Wednesday Pastoral Bible Study: 6:30pm Wednesday Children’s Bible Study: 6:30pm Thursday Men’s Bible Study: 6:30pm Friday before 1st Sunday Praise & Worship Service: 6:30pm Saturday Adult Bible Study: 10:00am “The Amazing, Awesome, Audacious Allen Chapel A.M.E. Church”

Service and Times Sunday Morning Worship: 11:00am Holy Communion: 1st Sunday Sunday School: 9:45am Men’s Monday Bible Study: 7:00pm Wednesday Night Bible Study: 7:00pm Women’s Ministry Bible Study: 3rd Friday -7:00pm Computer Classes: Announced Family and Marital Counseling by appointment

1200 Isle of Patmos Plaza, Northeast Washington, DC 20018 Office: (202) 529-6767 - Fax: (202) 526-1661

Service and Times Sunday Service: 8:30am& 11:00am Bible Study: Wednesday 7:30pm Communion Service: First Sunday www.livingwatersmd.org

E-mail: Crusadersbaptistchurch@verizon.net www.CrusadersBaptistChurch.org “God is Love”

Covenant Baptist United Church of Christ

St. Stephen Baptist Church

Third Street Church of God

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

Drs. Dennis W. & Christine Y. Wiley Pastors

Bishop Lanier C. Twyman, Sr. Senior Pastor

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

Bishop Alfred A. Owens, Jr.; Senior Bishop & Evangelist Susie C. Owens – Co-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

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

610 Rhode Island Avenue, NE Washington, DC 20002 (202) 529-4547 office • (202) 529-4495 fax

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

Services and Times Sundays: 10:00am Worship Services Bible Study: Wonderful Wednesdays in Worship and the Word Bible Study Wednesdays 12:00 Noon; 6:30pm (dinner @ 5:30pm) Sunday School: 9:00am – Hour of Power

Blessed Word of Life Church

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

Campbell AME Church Rev. Dr. Henry Y. White 2562 MLK Jr. Ave., SE - Washington, DC 20020 Adm. Office 202-678-2263 Email: Campbell@mycame.org 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: pm “Reaching Up To Reach Out” Mailing Address Campbell AME Church 2502 Stanton Road SE - Washington, DC 20020

Turning Hearts Church Virgil K. Thomas, Sr. Senior Pastor/ Teacher 4275 4th Street, S.E. Washington, DC 20034 Phone: 202-746-0113 Fax: 301-843-2445 Service and Times Sunday School 8 – 9 AM Worship Service 9 – 11 AM Tuesday Night Bible Study 6:30 – 8:00 PM Wednesday Daytime Bible Study 11 AM – 12:30 PM Motto : “A Great Commitment to the Great Commandment” Website: www.turningheartschurchdc.org Email: faithdefender@verizon.net

48 JULY 13 - 19, 2017

“An inclusive ministry where all are welcomed and affirmed.” www.covenantbaptistdc.org

Isle of Patmos Baptist Church

Services and Times Sunday Early Morning Worship: 7:45am Church School: 9:30am Sunday Morning Worship: 10:45am Tuesday: 7:00pm/Kingdom Building Bible Institute Wednesday: Prayer/Praise/Bible Study-7:30 pm Baptism & Communion Service: 4th Sunday – 10:30am “We are one in the Spirit” www.ssbc5757.org E-mail: ssbc5757@verizon.net

Services and Times Sunday School: 9:30am Sunday Worship: 11:00am Sunday Community Worship Service: 8:30 am “Ambassadors for Christ to the Nation’s Capital” www.thirdstreet.org Live Stream Sunday Worship Service begins @ 12:00 noon www.thirdstreet.org

Greater Mt. Calvary Holy Church

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

Service and Times Sunday Worship Services: 7:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Holy Communion: 2nd Sunday at 7:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Sunday Church School: 9:20 a.m. Seniors Bible Study: Tuesdays at 10:30 a.m. Noon Day Prayer Service: Tuesdays at Noon Bible Study: Tuesdays at 7 p.m. Motto: “A Ministry of Reconciliation Where Everybody is Somebody!” Website: http://isleofpatmosbc.org Church Email: ipbcsecretary@verizon.net

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: 9:00am Worship Service: 10:00am Wed. Noon Day prayer service Thur. Prayer service: 6:45pm Thur. Bible Study: 7:15pm

Twelfth Street Christian Church Reverend Dr. Paul H. Saddler Senior Pastor (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 Joseph N. Evans, Ph.D Senior Pastor 901 Third Street N.W. Washington, DC. 20001 Phone (202) 842-3411 Fax (202) 682-9423 Service and Times Sunday Church School : 9:00am Sunday Morning Worship: 10:10am Bible Study Tuesday: 6: 00pm Prayer Service Tuesday: 7:00pm Holy Communion: 3rd Sunday 10:10am themcbc.org

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RELIGION Shabbath Commandment Church

All Nations Baptist Church

King Emmanuel Baptist Church

Bishop Adrian A. Taylor, Sr. Pastor

Rev. Dr. James Coleman Pastor

Rev. Daryl F. Bell Pastor

7801 Livingston Road Oxon Hill, MD 20745 301-534-5471

2001 North Capitol St, N.E. - Washington, DC 20002 Phone (202) 832-9591

2324 Ontario Road, NW Washington, DC 20009 (202) 232-1730

Service and Times Sabbath School 9:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. Service 11:00 a.m. Praise & Worship Preaching 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. Motto: “A Church Keeping It Real for Real.” Website: Shabbathcommandmentchruch.org Email: Praisebetoyhwh@gmail.com

Zion Baptist Church

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

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

Emmanuel Baptist Church Rev. Dr. Clinton W. Austin Pastor

Dr. Earl D. Trent Senior Pastor

Rev. Dr. George C. Gilbert Senior Pastor

2409 Ainger Pl.,SE – WDC 20020 (202) 678-0884 – Office - (202) 678-0885 – Fax “Come Grow With Us and Establish a Blessed Family”

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

4504 Gault Place, N.E. Washington, D.C 20019 202-397-7775 – 7184

Service and Times Sunday Worship: 7:30am & 10:45am Baptism/Holy Communion: 3rd Sunday Family Bible Study Tuesdays – 6:30pm Prayer Service: Tuesdays – 8:00pm

Service and Times Sunday Worship Services: 10:00 a.m. Sunday Church School: 8:45 – 9:45 a.m. Holy Communion: Every First Sunday Intercessory Prayer: Monday – 7:00-8:00 p.m. Pastor’s Bible Study: Wednesday –7:45 p.m. Midweek Prayer: Wednesday – 7:00 p.m. Noonday Prayer Every Thursday

www.emmanuelbaptistchurchdc.org

“Where Jesus is the King”

Lincoln Park United Methodist Church

Sermon On The Mount Temple Of " Joy Apostolic Faith

Matthews Memorial Baptist Church Matthews

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 Sunday Worship Service: 10:15AM Sunday School: 9:00am Monday: Noon Bible School Wednesday: Noon & 7PM: Pastor’s Bible Study Ordinance of Baptism 2nd Holy Communion 4th Sunday Mission Zion Baptist Church Shall; Enlist Sinners, Educate Students, Empower the Suffering, Encourage the Saints, and Exalt Our Savior. (Acts 2:41-47) www.zionbaptistchurchdc.org

Rev. Dr. Morris L Shearin, Sr. Pastor

Rev. Dr. Diane Dixon Proctor 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 - lpumconthegrow@gmail.com www.lpumcdc.org

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

Service and Times Sunday Worship Service: 10:00 A.M. Sunday School: 8:30 A.M. Holy Communion1st Sunday: 10:00 A.M. Prayer Service: Wednesday at 6:30 P.M. Bible Study: Wednesday at 7:00 P.M.

Service and Times Sunday Worship: 10: am Holy Communion: First Sunday 10: am Sunday School: 9: am Bible Study: Wednesday @ 12 noon and 6:30pm Motto: “A CHURCH ON THE GROW”.

Holy Trinity United Baptist Church

Florida Avenue Baptist Church

MemorialRev. Joan E. Buchanan

Executive Pastor

Baptist Church

2616 MLK Ave., SE - Washington, DC 20020 Office 202-889-3709 - Fax 202-678-3304

Rev. Joan E. Buchanan Service and Times Executive Early PastorWorship Service:

7:30am Worship Service: 11:00am New Member’s Class: 9:45am 1st Sunday, 11:00am ServiceHoly andCommunion: Times Church School: 9:45am Early Worship Service: 7:30am Wednesday 12:00pm Bible Study Prayer,11:00am Praise and Bible Study: 7:00pm Worship Service: Saturday Bible Study: 11:00am Apostolic in Doctrine, Pentecostal in Experience, New Member’s Class: 9:45am Baptism 4th Sunday: 11:00am Holiness in Living, Uncompromised and Unchanged. st 1 Sunday, 11:00am The Apostolic Faith is still alive –Acts 2:42Holy Communion: “Empowered to love and Challenged to Lead a Service and Times Sunday Apostolic Worship Services 11:00 A.M and 5:00 P.M Communion and Feet Wash 4th Sunday at 5:00 P.M Prayer/Seeking: Wednesday at 8:00 P.M.

Service and Times 9:30AM. Sunday Church School 11:00 Am. Sunday Worship Service The Lord’s Supper 1st Sunday Wednesday 7:00pm Prayer & Praise Services 7:30pm. Bible Study Saturday before 4th Sunday Men, Women, Youth Discipleship Ministries 10:30am A Christ Centered Church htubc@comcast.net

Christ Embassy DC

Kelechi Ajieren Coordinator 6839 Eastern Avenue, R1 Takoma Park, MD 20912 (202) 556-7065 Service and Times Sunday Worship Service: 10:00 A.M. Wednesday Bible Study: 7:00 P.M. Friday Evening Service: 7:00 P.M. ; Last Friday “…Giving Your Life a Meaning” www.Christembassydc.org Christ.embassy.dc@hotmail.com

Church School: Multitude 9:45am of Souls to Christ”

Wednesday 12:00pm Bible Study

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 a.m. Sunday School: 9:15 a.m. Holy Communion: 11:00 a.m., 3rd Sun. Bible Institute: Wednesday - 1:30 pm Prayer Meeting: Wednesday - 12:00 Noon

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

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

Web: www.mountmoriahchurch.org Email: mtmoriah@mountmoriahchurch.org

St. Matthews Baptist Church

Eastern Community Baptist Church

New Commandment Baptist Church

Rehoboth Baptist Church

“Real Worship for Real People” Website: www.easterncommunity.org Email: ecc@easterncommunity.org

Salem Baptist Church

Prayer, Praise and Bible Study: 7:00pm Saturday Bible Study: 11:00am

Peace Baptist Church

Baptism 4th Sunday: 11:00am

“Empowered to Love and Challenged

Rev. Dr. Michael T. Bell

to Lead a Multitude of Souls to Christ”

“A Church Where Love Is Essential and Praise is Intentional”

712 18th Street, NE Washington, DC 20002 Phone 202-399-3450/ Fax 202-398-8836 Service and Times Sunday Morning Worship Service: 7:15 am & 10:50 am Sunday School: 9:30am Wednesday Prayer & Testimonies Service: 7:30pm Wednesday School of the Bible: 8:00pm Wednesday - Midweek Prayer Service: 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm

Pennsylvania Ave. Baptist Church 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 A.M. Sunday Worship Service: 11:00 A.M. Monday Adult Bible Study: 7:00 P.M. Wednesday Youth & Adult Activities: 6:30 P.M. Prayer Service Bible Study

“The Loving Church of the living lord “ Email Address pbcexec@verizon.net

Shiloh Baptist Church

First Rising Mt. Zion Baptist Church

Mt. Horeb Baptist Church

Rev. Dr. Maxwell M. Washington Pastor

Rev. Curtis l. Staley Pastor

Rev. Alonzo Hart Pastor

Rev. Dr. Wallace Charles Smith Pastor

Rev. Oran W. Young Pastor

Rev. Dr. H. B. Sampson, III Pastor

Worshiping Location Knights of Columbus - 1633 Tucker Road Fort Washington, MD 20744 (240) 838-7074

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

917 N St. NW - Washington, DC 20001 (202) 232-4294

9th & P Street, N.W. - W. D.C. 20001 (202) 232-4288

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

Service and Times Sunday Morning Prayer Service: 8:00 a.m. Sunday Church School: 9:15 a.m. Sunday Morning Worship: 10:40 a.m. Third Sunday Baptismal & Holy Communion:10:30 a.m. Tuesday Church At Study Prayer & Praise: 6:30 p.m.

Service and Times First Sunday Worship Service (one service): 10:00 a.m. Second, Third, Fourth, and Fifth Sunday Worship service: 7:45 a.m. and 10:55 a.m. Sunday Church School/Bible Study: 9:30 a.m. Thursday Prayer Service: 6:30 p.m.

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 a.m. Sunday School: 9:00 a.m. Worship Service: 10:30 a.m. Holy Communion: 4th Sunday 7:30 a.m. & 10:30a.m. Prayer Services:Tuesday 7:30 p.m. Wednesday 12 Noon

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

The Church Where GOD Is Working.... And We Are Working With GOD

Service and Times Sunday Worship Services: 10:00 am Sunday School: 9:00 am Holy Communion 3rd Sunday Morning Prayer / Bible Study: 6:15 pm - 7:20 pm (Tuesday) Theme: “The Kingdom Focused Church” Matthew 6:33 and Mathew 28:18-20, KJV Email: stmatthewsbaptist@msn.com Website: www.stmatthewsbaptist.org

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Email: sbc@shilohbaptist.org Website: shilohbaptist.org

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Service and Times Sunday School for All Ages: 8:00 a.m. Sunday Worship Services: 9:30 a.m. Midday Prayer & Bible Study: Wednesday 11:30 a.m. Evening Prayer & Bible Study: Wednesday 7:00 p.m. Laymen's League: Thursday 7:00 p.m. 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.

JULY 13 - 19, 2017 49

LEGAL NOTICES SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 Administration No. 2017 ADM 675 Virgil Louis Thompson Decedent

LEGAL NOTICES

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

Administration No. 2017 ADM 142

Administration No. 2017 ADM 673

Administration No. 2017 ADM 705

Christopher B. Powers aka Christopher Bruce Powers Decedent

Erma Simms aka Erma M. Simms Decedent

French R. Nickens aka French Ricardo Nickens Decedent

Peter D. Antonoplos, Esq 1725 DeSales Street NW, Suite 600 Washington, DC 20036 Attorney

Dana Darnell Forsythe, whose address is 330 Harry S. Truman Dr., Largo, MD 20774 was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Virgil Louis Thompson who died on May 3, 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., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before December 29, 2017. 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 December 29, 2017, 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

Dana Darnell Forsythe Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister Register of Wills Washington Informer

Luke B. Powers, whose address is 4500 Johnson Avenue, Western Springs, IL 60558 was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Christopher B. Powers aka Christopher Bruce Powers who died on December 28, 2016 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., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before, January 6, 2018. 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, January 6, 2018, 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: July 6, 2017 Luke B. Powers Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister Register of Wills

Administration No. 2017 ADM 707

Administration No. 2016 ADM 1477

Ivy D. Slade aka Ivy Dillard Slade Decedent

Anna Arlene Murray Decedent

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

Date of first publication: June 29, 2017

Denise McPherson, whose address is 7329 8th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20012 was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Anna Arlene Murray who died on December 4, 2016 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., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before December 29, 2017. 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 December 29, 2017, 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.

Judy Dillard Taylor Personal Representative

Date of first publication: June 29, 2017

Anne Meister Register of Wills Washington Informer

Phyllis M. Sistare and Barbara J. Herbert, whose addresses are 13910 New Acadia Ln., Upper Marlboro, MD & 710 Haack Pl., Upper Marlboro, MD 20774 were appointed Personal Representatives of the estate of Erma Simms aka Erma M. Simms who died on April 29, 2017 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., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before December 29, 2017. 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 December 29, 2017, 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: June 29, 2017 Phyllis M. Sistare Barbara J. Herbert Personal Representative

Denise McPherson Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister Register of Wills

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Glenn O. Tapscott & Ronald C. Gilmore, whose addresses are 1207 Pickering Circle, Upper Marlboro, MD 20774 & 1501 Kearny St., NE, Washington, DC 20017 were appointed Personal Representative of the estate of French R. Nickens aka French Ricardo Nickens who died on April 1, 2017 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., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before January 6, 2018. 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 January 6, 2018, 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: July 6, 2017 Glenn O. Tapscott Ronald C. Gilmore Personal Representatives

Anne Meister Register of Wills

TRUE TEST COPY

Washington Informer

Anne Meister Register of Wills

LEGAL NOTICES SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION Trust No. 2017 NRT 18 Mattie Fuller Walker aka Mattie F. Walker Name of Deceased Settlor NOTICE OF EXISTENCE OF REVOCABLE TRUST Mattie Fuller Walker aka Mattie F. Walker whose address was 3050 Military Road, NW, #612, Washington, DC 20015 created a revocable trust on February 1, 2007, which remained in existence on the date of her death on July 6, 2016, and Joy Angela Walker, whose address is 3025 Spice Bush Road, Laurel, MD 20724 is the currently acting trustee, hereinafter the Trustee. Communications to the Trust should be mailed or directed to Joy Angela Walker at 3025 Spice Bush Road, Laurel, MD 20724. The Trust is subject to claims of the deceased settlor’s creditors, costs of administration of the settlor’s estate, the expense of the deceased settlor’s funeral and disposal of remains, and statutory allowances to a surviving spouse and children to the extent the deceased settlor’s residuary probate estate is inadequate to satisfy those claims, costs, expenses, and allowances. Claims of the deceased settlor’s creditors are barred as against the Trustee and the trust property unless presented to the Trustee at the address provided herein on or before December 29, 2017 (6 month after the date of the first publication of this notice.) An action to contest the validity of this trust must be commenced by the earliest of (1), (One year from date of death of deceased settlor) (2), December 29, 2017 6 months from the date of first publication of this notice) or (3) Ninety days after the Trustee sends the person a copy of the trust instrument and a notice informing the person of the trust’s existence, of the Trustee’s name and address, and of the time allowed for commencing a proceeding. The Trustee may proceed to distribute the trust property in accordance with the terms of the trust before the expiration of the time within which an action must be commenced unless the Trustee knows of a pending judicial proceeding contesting the validity of the trust or the Trustee has received notice from a potential contestant who thereafter commences a judicial proceeding within sixty days after notification. This Notice must be mailed postmarked within 15 days of its first publication to each heir and qualified beneficiary of the trust and any other person who would be an interested person within the meaning of D.C. Code 20-101(d). Date of First Publication: Jun 29, 2017 Joy Angela Walker Signature of Trustee TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister Register of Wills

Washington Informer

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

Administration No. 2017 ADM 708

Administration No. 2017 ADM 722

Administration No. 2017 ADM 723

Anna L. Neal Decedent

Charles Reginald Stroman Decedent

Richard T. Russell Decedent

Deborah D. Boddie, Esq. 1308 Ninth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 Attorney

Attorney

Laurie Pyne O’Reilly 1050 17th Street, Suite 1100 Washington DC, 20036 Attorney

Washington Informer SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

TRUE TEST COPY

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

TRUE TEST COPY

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

Judy Dillard Taylor, whose address is 108 Tuckerman Street, NW, Washington, DC 20011 was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Ivy D. Slade aka Ivy Dillard Slade who died on January 24, 2014 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., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before December 29, 2017. 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 December 29, 2017, 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.

LEGAL NOTICES

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

Date of first publication: June 29, 2017

LEGAL NOTICES

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Haweda S. Mable, whose address is 6271 Bordeaux Circle, Sandford, FL 32771, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Anna L. Neal who died on May 19, 2016 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., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before December 29, 2017. 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 December 29, 2017, 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: June 29, 2017 Haweda S. Mable Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister Register of Wills Washington Informer

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Aaron K Stroman, whose address is, 5330 Ames St. NE, Washington, DC 20019 was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Charles Reginald Stroman who died on April 5, 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., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before January 6, 2018. 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 January 6, 2018, 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: July 6, 2017 Aaron K Stroman Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister Register of Wills Washington Informer

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Hillary Russell, whose address is, 1123 East Capital St. SE, Washington, DC 20003 was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Richard T. Russell who died on March 17, 2017 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., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before January 6, 2018. 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 January 6, 2018, 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: July 6, 2017 Hillary Russell Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister Register of Wills Washington Informer

Washington Informer

50 JULY 13 - 19, 2017

THE WASHINGTON INFORMER

WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

LEGAL NOTICES

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

Administration No. 2016 ADM 1417

Administration No. 2017 ADM 721

Administration No. 2017 ADM 740

Administration No. 2017 ADM 750

William Henry Carter IV Decedent

Ruth V. Hamm-Gadson aka Ruth Valerie HammGadson Decedent

Shebra D. Simms aka Ruth Shebra Denise Simms Decedent

Attorney

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

Francis Eugene Gadson, whose address is 5623 Eads Street, NE Washington, DC 20019 was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Ruth V. Hamm-Gadson aka Ruth Valerie HammGadson who died on May 4, 2017 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., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before January 13, 2018. 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 January 13, 2018, 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.

Inga M. Simms, whose address is 8239 Canning Terrace, Greenbelt MD 20770 was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Shebra D. Simms aka Shebra Denise Simms who died on January 24, 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., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before January 13, 2018. 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 January 13, 2018, 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.

Richard Earl Dew Decedent James Larry Frazier, Esq. 918 Maryland Avenue, NE Washington, DC 20002 Attorney

Kisha L. Woolen, Esquire Tobin O’Connor & Ewing 5335 Wisconsin Avenue, NW #700 Washington, DC 20015 Attorney

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

William Dew, whose address is 17608 Gatsby Terrace, Olnew, MD 20832 was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Richard Earl Dew who died on November 10, 2016 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., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before January 6, 2018. 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 January 6, 2018, 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.

Jacqueline A. Carter, whose address is 1202 Monroe St. NW Washington, DC 20010, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of William Henry Carter IV who died on April 10, 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., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before January 6, 2018. 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 January 6, 2018, 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: July 6, 2017

William Dew Personal Representative

Jacqueline A. Carter Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Anne Meister Register of Wills

Date of first publication: July 13, 2017 Francis Eugene Gadson Personal Representative

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

Administration No. 2017 ADM 603

Administration No. 2017 ADM 719

Kassahune Mekonnen Decedent

Richard James Fields Decedent

Attorney

Larry C. Williams, Esquire 7600 Georgia Ave. NW, suite 405 Washington, DC 20012 Attorney

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Sindu Gima, whose address is, 6304 Kansas Ave. NE, Washington, DC 20011 was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Kassahune Mekonnen who died on April 27, 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., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before January 6, 2018. 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 January 6, 2018, 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: July 6, 2017 Sindu Gima Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister Register of Wills Washington Informer

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Nathan James Fields, whose address is, 602 46th Place, SE Apt 21 Washington, D.C. 20019 was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Richard James Fields who died on December 26, 2016 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., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before January 6, 2018. 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 January 6, 2018, 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: July 6, 2017 Nathan James Fields Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister Register of Wills

Inga M. Simms Personal Representative

Anne Meister Register of Wills Washington Informer

TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister Register of Wills Washington Informer

LEGAL

Administration No. 2017 ADM 754 Henri M. Davis Decedent Barry M. Tapp 14662 Cambridge Circle Laurel, MD 20707 Attorney

NOTICES

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

Date of first publication: July 6, 2017 Cassandra Davis Olivia Cook Personal Representatives

services here: call Ron Burke at

202-561-4100 or email

TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister Register of Wills Washington Informer

rburke@washingtoninformer.com

Washington Informer

WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

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SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

Cassandra Davis and Olivia Cook, whose addresses are, 4119 Rainier Ave., Mt. Rainier, MD 20712 and 4201 32nd St., Mt. Rainier, MD 20712 were appointed Personal Representatives of the estate of Henri M. Davis who died on February 25, 2015 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., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before January 6, 2018. 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 January 6, 2018, 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.

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TRUE TEST COPY

Washington Informer

Date of first publication: July 13, 2017

CL ASSIFIEDS

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■ Image Branding ■ On-Camera Coaching Doris McMillon President

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who took the AP computer science test were African-American or Latino. It's time to invest in STEM teachers so our young people— Black, White, Latino, Asian American or Native American—can innovate the future! The "Today's American Dream Act" would provide aid to STEM teachers who are dedicated to educating the next generation of Mark Zuckerbergs. Taken together, the "Today's American Dream Act" will train our young people for the opportunities of today and prepare them for the possibilities of tomorrow. It's time to pass the "Today's American Dream Act" and throw wide the doors of opportunity. WI

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fill just 10 percent of Chicagoland's open manufacturing jobs, we'd add $105 million in wages to our communities each and every year. Filling open jobs with properly trained workers is a strong first step. We also need to create more jobs by investing in small businesses, funding local incubators and rewarding companies for expanding into new markets. I can tell you that our young people are ready and eager to get to work. In April, I hosted my fourth annual Youth Jobs Fair. More than 300 young people came, resume in hand, looking for a job. Let's create jobs for them so

they build the American dream for themselves and their families. We also need to invest in tomorrow, by investing in the science-technology-engineering-mathematic (STEM) fields. Right now, STEM jobs are driving our economy and continue to grow. According to the Level Playing Field Institute, there will be 1.4 million new tech jobs by 2020 but 70 percent will be unfilled. Despite the massive need for qualified computer science professionals, just a quarter of all high schools offer Advanced Placement (AP) computer science classes. Many of these schools aren't in African-American communities. In fact, just 13 percent of students

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CUs). It was one of the shortest yet most powerful speeches I have ever heard. Liberals must stop obsessing about America's racial past and focus on America's promise. We must not live our lives in fear of loss; we must live our lives in hope of gain. America is not as bad as it used to be and not as good as it can be. It's like President Obama said: "We are the change that we seek." Liberals are great at complaining about problems, but rarely, if ever, provide any practical solutions to their complaints. On this day and every day, we have the freedom to be free. Respecting this freedom, for everyone, is how we all can truly "Make America Great Again." WI

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Obama, despite just witnessing one of the nastiest presidential elections in our nation's history. America will always be great as long as we accept the will of the American people when it comes to our free and fair elections. You don't have to like the choice, but you must accept the result. This is what makes America great. Has America lived up to the words in the Declaration of Independence? "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

No, we still have a long way to go, but we have made remarkable progress. Isn't it amazing that the very liberals who criticize this country never, ever seriously consider leaving the country? Despite all of our nation's faults, where else could those liberals go and still have this type of freedom and opportunity? We must get back to our founding principles; love of God, love of country; and love of our people. Academy Award-winning actor Denzel Washington made this point in a phenomenal graduation speech he gave two years ago to the students of Dillard University in New Orleans, La., one of our nation's historically black colleges and universities (HB-

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racial bias to support his efforts. Still, the new unemployment rate data tell us as much as we need to know. Workers are not better off under 45. Wages remain lower than they should be, and job expansion is somewhat tepid. Labor force participation and the employment population ratio are lower than they should be. There are too many people who are out of work, or underemployed and stuck in unsatisfactory work. 45's presidency has not only eroded our nation's standing in the world, but it has also eroded the economic wellbeing of millions in our own country, as the unemployment rate data attest. 45's buffer is the blind loyalty of those who prioritize partisan politics over national wellbeing, and racial hegemony over common decency. And maybe, just maybe if there were economic returns to this idiocy, I might understand. But there are no returns, nothing but jingoistic chaos. WI

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of-2017/). Low labor force participation rates, then, tell a story. It is challenging to look for work when you have limited resources. Some recent graduates, and others, will not fully participate in the labor market because they don't have the wherewithal. Others will work, but have no choice but to accept underemployment — i.e., the marketing major now working in retail or in a fast-food restaurant because that is the only job available. And the number of people who work "part-time for economic reasons," or "involuntarily parttime," at 5.3 million, is again, "little changed." How many young people who did the right thing, checked off all the boxes, took the STEM classes, and graduated with thousands of dollars' worth of debt because they invested in themselves, now find themselves underemployed?

So Bobby Womack had this song, "If You Think You're Lonely Now." I think about it when I recall some of my commentary on the Obama presidency, especially in my book, "Are We Better Off?: Race, Obama and Public Policy." No, the majority of black folk were not materially better off in the Obama years. But if we think we were hurting then, wait until the Trump years evolve (sing along). None of the promises that 45 offered to "help" the people have resulted in positive change. If you think Obamacare hurt, think about what Trumpcare will do! If you think the economic situation was challenging for working people under President Obama, imagine the challenges under 45 leadership. 45 has been insistent and persistent about rolling back many of the important innovations that took place under President Obama's leadership. He is rabid about rescinding the Obama legacy, and too many have allowed their own

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The commission is set up to push the new Jim Crow voting laws, which require picture ID's, curtail early voting, cut back on voting booths, permit no Sunday voting, repeal automatic or motor-voter registration and more. Its posturing about voter fraud is the fraud. The real aim is to make it harder to vote, with impediments that disproportionately impact people of color. In reality, voter suppression had a real and direct impact on the 2016 election — a far greater impact than the handful of isolated incorrect or "fraudulent" votes cast, or the hacking allegedly masterminded by Vladimir Putin. The 2016 election was the first without the full protections of the Voting Rights Act. Fourteen states — including swing states like Wisconsin, Ohio and North Carolina — had new voter restrictions in place. In Wisconsin, Trump won by

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which current budgets and staffing levels allow civil rights offices to perform their statutory and regulatory functions." "The commission has grave concerns about continuing signals from the current administration, including the president's proposed budget and statements of Cabinet and senior administration officials, that the protection and fulfillment of civil rights of all persons will not be appropriately prioritized," the statement read. "These proposed cuts are particularly troubling in light of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos' repeated refusal in Congressional testimony and other public statements to commit that the department would enforce federal civil rights laws." Other agencies that will also be reviewed by the Commission include: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Health and Human Services (HHS), Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Justice and Labor departments, and the Legal Services

"I mean, why not?" Peck said. "We've been the leader of the free world, the West, for the last several decades, and a lot of people resented that, as we behaved in what some people called an imperialistic fashion, doing whatever we wanted, wherever we wanted, because no one felt it necessary to stop us, and now that is a switch from what we're doing now, in which we're telling

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Corporation. More criticism of the Education Department under DeVos came June 27 when 34 U.S. senators representing 22 states sent their own detailed letter of concern. Two of the three current black U.S. senators — California's Kamala Harris and New Jersey's Cory Booker — were signatories. "You claim to support civil rights and oppose discrimination, but your actions belie your assurances," the senators wrote. "Closing cases quickly at the expense of the quality of the investigation is not in the long-term interests of the complainants and impedes students, teachers, and families in receiving just resolutions. Rather than abandon a systematic approach, we strongly urge you to support increased funding for OCR's budget to allow the office to hire additional personnel to swiftly resolve complaints." Research by the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) has found that students of color are often targeted by high-cost private career and training institutes

that advertise high incomes for 21st century jobs. However, the outcomes promised and the experiences of these students do not match. Only 27 percent of all for-profit students in four-year programs graduate within six years. Students who do not graduate almost always wind up with deep student debt and low-paying jobs. When their loan repayments become too costly to maintain, loan defaults result that mar their credit profiles. "If the Education Department was serious about addressing civil rights enforcement, they would be continuing the Obama administration's emphasis on adequate staffing of this complex and time-consuming function," said Robin Howarth, a CRL senior researcher. "Instead, they opt for gutting the standards of investigation in favor of quick resolution of cases." Howarth is right. Closing complaint cases quickly is not the same thing as justice. WI

27,000 votes, but an unknown and likely quite large number of eligible voters lacked the newly required forms of ID. (A federal judge ruling in a lawsuit against the state's voter ID law in 2014 put the number at 300,000.) Turnout in 2016 was the lowest in decades, particularly in Milwaukee, home of 70 percent of the state's African-Americans. In North Carolina, even after a federal court overturned the state's anti-voter measures for targeting African-Americans "with almost surgical precision," Republican officials cut back hours and closed polling places. Early black voting turnout plummeted, according to the Nation, as the 40 counties with the largest African-American populations were allocated 158 fewer polling places. Voter suppression works. And so does voter empowerment. As the Nation also reported, Oregon enacted automatic voter registration, which added 250,000 new

voters to the rolls. An impressive 79 percent of registered voters turned out in 2016. We do not need a commission to investigate Donald Trump's fantastical excuse for losing the popular vote. We need a commission to investigate the reality of voter suppression — and how to make voting easier, not harder. That agenda would include automatic voter registration, longer early voting, an election day holiday, more polling places, hand-counted ballots to avoid cyber threats and more. Both Trump and the Republican Congress are more interested in raising barriers to voting than in lowering them. Democrats would be well advised to create their own independent commission, staffed with the best experts in the nation, to lay out a serious plan to end voter suppression and empower people to vote. Voting is the essential right in a democracy. It needs to be protected, not suppressed. WI

everybody, the end is near and if you don't do this the way I say, then civilization will collapse. I think, I hope, that that is grossly overstated, overestimated, and highly unlikely." So, no matter the result, the furor, the hubbub around this, that or the other, 45's team has got this thing covered. Respect for the United States will prevent cheap theatrics like literally shoving another president aside to get to the front row, during

a G-7 European summit earlier this year. Team Trump has now been tested on the world stage: a oneon-one with former KGB colonel Vladimir Putin; the cheering throngs in Warsaw. What's not to admire? By the "Trump Standard," Donald J. Trump has now demonstrated himself to be a capable world leader. Albeit leading a committee of one, and leading from behind. WI

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