This Week's Edition : 4-23-26 by The Washington Informer

The

A Youth Curfew Discussion That’s Not Yet Finished

Local Lawmakers Once Again Delays Emergency Vote, While Ward 6 Council Candidate Criticizes Councilmember Allen

By Sam Plo Kwia Collins, Jr. WI Senior Writer

During its April 21 additional legislative meeting, the D.C. Council inched closer to making permanent the mayor’s emergency curfew declaration powers, as well as the Metropolitan Police Department's (MPD) ability to designate curfew zones.

The council, however, postponed its vote on an emergency curfew bill for the second time, in part due

Ozone Strikes Again: D.C. Receives ‘F’ in 2026 State of the Air

Burdened by Ozone

Pollution, City Works to

Clean Air and Protect

Residents

By Mya Trujillo WI Contributing Writer

While the nation’s capital is making strides toward reducing air pollution in the region and mitigating its effects, ozone pollution still stands between Washington and its clean air goals, with D.C. receiving yet another failing grade in this category in the American Lung Association’s (ALA) 2026 State of the Air (SOTA) report.

“The report, from our perspective, is an opportunity to take a pause and have peo ple… think about the air they breathe,” Aleks Casper, ALA’s director of advocacy, told The Informer.

Young Man Found Hanging from Tree in Northwest, MPD Issues Public

Statement Days Later

By Sam Plo Kwia Collins, Jr. WI Senior Writer

NOTE: This article was updated to include commentary from MPD about its public release of information.

For three days, the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) didn’t issue a public statement about a young man’s body found hanging from a tree near its Fourth District Headquarters. District residents instead relied on footage that Eyone Williams gathered and posted online.

On the afternoon of April 13, shortly after a relative called him, Williams drove to Quackenbos Street NW, between Ninth Street and Georgia Avenue. As he recounted, that’s where he saw MPD officers setting up a perimeter, cutting the young man’s body from a tree, and discouraging onlookers from recording video and taking

This comprehensive assessment evaluates

5 Simone Price serves as the director of organizing at the Center for Employment Opportunities. During April’s Second Chance Month, the New York-based organization is boosting awareness on the economic disparities that hinder returning citizens from long-term success. (Courtesy Photo)

By Jada Ingleton WI Content Editor

With the mark of April’s Second Chance Month comes a call to fine-tune successful reentry for one of the nation’s most vulnerable populations.

Amid heightened national awareness for barriers faced by returning citizens, justice warriors in D.C. and beyond are championing an inclusive future starting from the ground up –– be it challenging low wages and benefits, or working to obstruct the systems recycling inequity. As for Simone Price, director of organizing at the Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO), the path forward means shaping an infrastructure with tools to rebuild a life, coupled with a desire to branch that promise nationwide.

5 During spring break, a group of young people joined Gloria Ann Nauden and Lauren Harris at Politics & Prose at the Wharf during Spring Break Community Service Week. (Courtesy Photo/Ramone Evans)

YOUNG MAN Page 36

5 The nation’s capital is still working to meet its clean air goals, after the District received an ‘F’ for ozone pollution and ‘D’ for short-term particle pollution in the American Lung Association’s 2026 State of the Air report. (WI File Photo/Robert R. Roberts)

Collins D.C. Council Report:

wi hot topics

STACY M. BROWN, WI

BY BRENDA C. SILER, WI CONTRIBUTING WRITER

D.C. Wins $9.9 Million From Live Nation as Ticketing Giant Hit With Monopoly Verdict

Live Nation will pay $9.9 million to the District of Columbia after an investigation found the company misled customers with hidden fees and deceptive ticket pricing practices, D.C. Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb announced on April 20.

The agreement requires Live Nation, which owns Ticketmaster, to return up to $8.9 million to customers and continue changes that now require full ticket prices to be shown at the start of the buying process. Officials said the case focused on how fans were charged for tickets over the past decade, including the use of hidden fees and misleading sales tactics.

“For at least a decade, Live Nation and Ticketmaster boosted profits by charging predatory, hidden fees — taking advantage of D.C. residents buying tickets for their favorite artist or team and pricing others out entirely,” Schwalb said. “With this settlement, we’re putting millions of dollars back into the pockets of D.C. fans and ensuring

that the price fans see when they first start shopping for tickets is the price they actually pay.”

Investigators found that from 2015 through May 2025, the company advertised ticket prices that did not include mandatory fees, revealing the full cost only at checkout after consumers had already selected seats. Officials said that practice limited consumers’ ability to compare prices and make informed decisions.

“Live Nation has raked in billions in profits from an illegal monopoly that coerces venues, restricts artists, and exploits fans,” Schwalb said following the verdict last week. “The District’s live entertainment industry is critical to our local economy and culture, and this is a significant win in the fight for fairness for local venues, artists, and fans.”

The nation’s capital played a central role in the case. Washington is home to more than 20 music venues,

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STAFF

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REPORTERS

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EXCLUSIVE: Prince’s Final Days: Revolution Bassist Says Icon Showed Signs of Memory Loss Before Tragic Death

Ten years after the death of Prince, a jaw-dropping account from inside his inner circle is pulling back the curtain on what may have been happening in his final year, and it is as unsettling as anything tied to the music icon’s shocking death.

Before the world knew about fentanyl, before investigators laid out the timeline, there were moments, according to those closest to him, that did not add up.

Moments of confusion. Forgotten conversations. Plans were made and then erased.

“I knew something was wrong,” BrownMark, the

In a celebration of talent, innovation and the value of the arts in the nation’s capital, Shakespeare Theatre Company (STC), during its annual gala on April 13, honored actor Wendell Pierce for his storied career that has not only entertained audiences around the world, but contributed to the DMV area’s artistic landscape.

“It is a profound honor to receive the William Shakespeare Award for Classical Theatre during Shakespeare Theatre Company’s landmark 40th Anniversary 25/26 Season,” said Pierce, known for shows such as HBO’s “The Wire” (2002-2008) filmed in Baltimore, and “Treme”

bassist for Prince’s groundbreaking band, Prince & The Revolution, said in an exclusive interview with the digital show “Let it Be Known.” “Something was not right with his memory and his behavior.”

According to medical experts, early signs tied to dementia and Alzheimer’s can include forgetting recently learned information, repeating conversations, confusion about people and places, and an inability to follow through on plans. BrownMark said he witnessed behavior that tracked with those warning signs, and it started with what should have been a

(2010-2013).

The honor, affectionately called the “Will Award,” was presented by his high school friend and fellow New Orleans native, legendary jazz musician Wynton Marsalis, and offered inspiration to the actor, ahead of his next project: STC’s “Othello,” running May 19 to June 28.

“As I prepare to assume the role of Othello with STC this spring,” Pierce said, “this moment carries even deeper resonance.”

The upcoming production of “Othello” furthers STC’s reputation for taking daring approaches to Shakespeare’s plays to allow his work to be more accessible to a range of audiences.

“As we celebrate 40 years of presenting audacious productions that redefine the idea of classical theatre, it seems fitting to honor such an exceptional and accomplished classical actor as Wendell," said STC Artistic Director Simon Godwin, who will direct Pierce in the upcoming production. “I’m thrilled that we are presenting the ‘Will Award’ to Wendell.” WI

Read more on washingtoninformer.com.

Shakespeare Theatre Company Honors Actor Wendell Pierce with Will Award

Memoriam Dr. Calvin W. Rolark, Sr. Wilhelmina J. Rolark

SENIOR WRITER;

LIVE NATION Page 5

PRINCE Page 18

5 Legendary jazz musician Wynton Marsalis and actor Wendell Pierce, who was honored with Shakespeare Theatre Company’s “Will Award.” The two artists and native New Orleanians have been friends since high school. (Courtesy Photo/Tony Hill)

ranging from small clubs to major arenas, including Capital One Arena. According to evidence presented during the trial, the city records some of the highest per-capita Ticketmaster ticket sales in the country. Officials argued that Live Nation’s control over both artists and ticketing meant that many venues in the region had few viable alternatives, driving up costs for consumers.

The District also determined that Live Nation failed to clearly explain the purpose of its fees or how those charges were distributed. In addition, the company used pressure tactics, including countdown timers and pop-up messages warning that tickets were selling fast regardless of actual demand. Users who paused during checkout were urged to act quickly, creating a false sense of urgency.

During the trial, attorneys for the states argued that Live Nation used its dominance in concert promotion to pressure venues into using Ticketmaster, warning that failure to comply

SECOND CHANCE

from Page 1

“Starting from the moment of release, there has to be comprehensive support. People are leaving prison with no ID, no money, and no way to rebuild,” Price told The Informer. “An equitable economy means a level playing field. We can achieve this, but it will require that we remove the structural barriers that keep qualified workers excluded from full participation.”

While challenges range from programming to policy to the functionality of institutions themselves, Price emphasized glaring trends that tend to thrive in the spaces holding the highest rates of incarceration.

Hailing from the New York-based CEO, she pointed to a state that spends more than $3 billion annually on incarceration, despite committing less than 5% to the general budget for reentry.

“Too many people are leaving incarceration without any kind of meaningful support. Then, they’re caught in the cycle…as harmful to the individual as it is to communities at large,” said the director. “The biggest gap isn't just a lack of evidence-based programming, it's a massive systemic imbalance in investment.”

Here in the nation’s capital, holding one of the highest incarceration rates nationwide, Rylinda Rhodes admits

could jeopardize access to major tours. They also argued that artists were effectively blocked from performing at key amphitheaters unless they agreed to work with Live Nation as a promoter.

Live Nation denied those claims, maintaining that it operates in a competitive marketplace and wins business based on performance rather than coercion.

“We are fierce competitors,” company attorney David R. Marriott told jurors in closing arguments. “We are trying to win the business.”

Under the agreement, Live Nation must continue showing the full price of tickets, including mandatory fees, throughout the purchasing process. The company has also agreed to provide clearer information about fees and explain how ticket hold timers work when customers are completing purchases. A claims process for refunds will be announced in the coming months.

The settlement follows a federal jury verdict in New York that found Live Nation violated antitrust laws by oper-

the realities are no different.

The founder of Mane Rhodes Soap and Wellness sparked an entrepreneurial vision not long after she was released on parole in 1999, later turning a homemade eczema treatment into a push for trauma-informed care in the city that raised her.

But before colorful soaps and creative marketing, the self-starter recalls re-entering a society equipped with “the emperor in the new dress mentality,” built on a notion of empty fixes that only contribute to cycles of inequity in “broken” communities.

“We do have community-based organizations and District government resources; we have to find a way to actually connect [them] with the community in a way that they understand,” Rhodes, 55, told The Informer.

“We need to continue building community engagement, we need people to show up…who really care about what it is we're asking for and what we need. That will create real change for returning citizens in our community –– that’ll build real wealth for us.”

D.C. Self-Starters Build the Future of Wealth

From Within

At the top of the list for local entreSECOND CHANCE Page 11

AROUND THE REGION

ating as an illegal monopoly in the live entertainment and ticketing industry. Jurors concluded that the company overcharged consumers and used its position to dominate key parts of the market.

The jury determined that Ticketmaster added an average of $1.72 in excess fees per ticket. Judge Arun Subramanian will decide financial penalties and possible remedies in a separate proceeding, which could include structural changes to the company’s business.

“Live Nation has raked in billions in profits from an illegal monopoly that coerces venues, restricts artists, and exploits fans,” Schwalb said after the verdict. “The District’s live entertainment industry is critical to our local economy and culture, and this is a significant win in the fight for fairness for local venues, artists, and fans.” WI

If you think you have been a target of fraud, report it to the DC Senior Medicare Patrol at smpresource.org/reportfraud or call:

aarp.org/LCE @LCEinDC @LCEinDC

5 Childish Gambino performs at Capital One Arena in August 2024. Live Nation, which owns Ticketmaster, will pay $9.9 million to the District after an investigation found the company misled customers with hidden fees and deceptive ticket pricing practices. With more than 20 music venues, including Capital One Arena, D.C. records some of the highest per-capita Ticketmaster ticket sales in the country. (WI File Photo/Abdullah Konte)

AROUND THE REGION

April 23

1856 – Inventor Granville T. Woods, the first American of African ancestry to be a mechanical and electrical engineer after the Civil War and holder of more than 50 patents, is born in Columbus, Ohio.

1872 – Lawyer Charlotte Ray is admitted to practice in the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia, becoming the first Black woman admitted to practice before the District Supreme Court.

2007 – Barbara Hillary becomes the first African American female to reach the North Pole.

April 24

1884 – The Medico-Chirurgical Society of Washington D.C., the first African American medical society, is founded.

April 25

1917 – Iconic jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald is born in Newport News, Virginia.

1944 – The United Negro College Fund is founded.

1950 – Chuck Cooper is selected by the Boston Celtics in the second round of the NBA draft, becoming the first African American drafted by an NBA team.

April 26

1892 – Inventor Sarah Boone patents an improved version of the ironing board.

1984 – Renowned jazz bandleader and pianist Count Basie dies of pancreatic cancer at 79 in Hollywood, Florida.

April 27

1903 – Maggie L. Walker is named president of Richmond's St. Luke Bank and Trust Company,

becoming the first Black woman to head a bank. 1927 – Coretta Scott King, civil rights leader and wife of Martin Luther King Jr., is born in Heiberger, Alabama.

1945 – Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright August Wilson is born in Pittsburgh.

1971 – Samuel Lee Gravely Jr. becomes the first Black American to be selected as an admiral in the U.S. Navy.

April 28

1967 – Boxing champion Muhammad Ali refuses to be inducted into the U.S. Army and is immediately stripped of his heavyweight title. Ali, a Muslim, cited religious reasons for his decision.

April 29

1899 – Famed jazz pianist and composer Duke Ellington is born in Washington, D.C.

1983 – Harold Washington is sworn in as the first Black mayor of Chicago.

1992 – Four white Los Angeles Police Department officers are acquitted of excessive force in the videotaped beating of Black motorist Rodney King, touching off six days of violent rioting throughout South Central Los Angeles that caused more than $1 billion in damages.

Rodney King

August Wilson (left) Coretta Scott King (center) Ella Fitzgerald (right)

AROUND THE REGION view P INT

BY KEITH GOLDEN JR.

What is some good news you’d like to share?

NAFI / NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK

“D.C. has been good to me. I was fortunate enough to get my plumbing license and become a master plumber. Opportunities are here, so you have to seek them out and take advantage.”

VALORIE RIED / SOUTHEAST, D.C.

KEITH BROWN / SOUTHEAST, D.C.

“Some good news I’d like to share would be that we’ll [Moebachi DC] be opening [another store location] very soon.”

“There’s no good news in Washington D.C., it’s always a lot of crimes. News is like no news at all – sad news.”

T. JACKSON / SOUTHEAST, D.C.

“What’s good news? News is a 5-year-old drowned yesterday at Anacostia Park, the two teens that got killed over on Kellingworth, then you got the former lieutenant governor killing his wife. Ain't nothing good, the only thing good is praising the man above.”

Our staff is made up of writers, just like you. We are dedicated to making publishing dreams come true. Trusted by authors for nearly 100 years, Dorrance has made countless authors’ dreams come true.

AROUND THE REGION

Future-Ready: How the D.C. Workforce is Being Reshaped

Charting the Path Forward for Industry Leadership

By Kree Anderson WI Intern

When Kenya Nicholas, a financial planner and children’s author, participated in the Future-Ready Forum: Talent, Technology and Opportunity, hosted by the DC Chamber of Commerce, she was hoping to not only vend during the April 9 event, but also learn along the way.

“I was very interested in the AI industry and just trying to [keep] abreast of the most recent updates, and I enjoyed hearing anything about the future of AI,” Nicholas said as she was vending during the Thursday event, held at Gallup’s headquarters. “I wanted to hear and just stay informed and be engaged and network with like minded professionals.”

From 8 a.m. - 1 p.m., the forum featured programming about AI-workforce compatibility, properly training the next generation of industry personnel and the District’s workforce’s evolution.

As the use of artificial intelligence (AI) increases in the workplace— raising questions about the future of the job market and national security— local business leaders and employees are working to chart a powerful path forward for the District’s evolving economic landscape.

Gathering work professionals and entrepreneurs with a focus on the economic landscape in the District, the

event featured speakers such as Councilmember At Large Anita Bonds (D) and CEO of Gallup, Jon Clifton, along with four panel discussions highlighting the power of incorporating AI in the workforce. Each participant emphasized the importance of artificial intelligence education and collaborating across the D.C. area to strengthen the future of business in the District and nationwide.

“We’re able to convene, this regional partnership, this consortium of individuals, to really have the conversations around: ‘What is the employer looking for? What is the training provider providing? And then how can the local government fund initiatives that will actually push people to have more [necessary] skills and have a pipeline to those jobs?” said William Lopez, president of Build Within, who participated on one of the panels.

Incorporating AI In the Workforce

Throughout the Thursday programming, many of the panels featured in-depth conversations about how employees are using artificial intelligence.

In the first panel, “AI at Work: Turn-

ing Disruption into Opportunity,” panel participants Joe Paul, founder and CEO of OptimaNova AI, Elicia Belle, founder of Echo AI, Steven Gelfound, vice president of technology for Goodwill of Greater Washington and moderator Paul Kihn, D.C. Deputy Mayor of Education, detailed how the technology is reshaping the landscape of the workforce industry in the nation’s capital and how best to integrate it into operations.

While highlighting AI as a helpful tool, Paul emphasized the necessity of a "people-first" methodology when using it, outlining a multi-step integration plan: discovery, employee autonomy and reverse engineering.

“Our approach is human-centered,” Paul explained. “It should be human in the beginning, human in the middle, and human at the end… If you have a tool that can get you from point A to point B faster, now you just have to understand what point A and point B looks like.”

In the second panel, “Bridging the Talent Gap: Building Stronger Pathways to District Careers,” speakers, including: Lopez, Drew Hubbard, exec-

5 Panelists unpack strategies for integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into the District’s workforce while maintaining a human-centered approach during the “AI At Work: Turning Disruption Into Opportunity,” moderated by Paul Kihn and featuring Joe Paul, Elicia Belle and Steven Gelfound. (Kree Anderson/The Washington Informer)

AROUND THE REGION

Justin Fairfax’s Death Opens Discussions about African American Mental Health, Protecting Black Women

Tragedy Leaves Questions After Years of Disputed Allegations and Public Fallout

By Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer

The death of former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax and his wife Cerina Wanzer Fairfax has brought a sudden and tragic end to a political career that once stood on the brink of history before being derailed by allegations, while opening dialogue about Black male mental health and protecting women.

Fairfax, 47, and Wanzer Fairfax, were found dead inside their Annandale, Virginia home shortly after midnight, according to Fairfax County police.

Authorities said the case is being investigated as a murder-suicide, with Police Chief Kevin Davis stating that Fairfax shot his wife before turning the gun on himself. Their teenage son and daughter were inside the home at the time of the shooting and were not physically harmed, though officials described the incident as deeply traumatic.

“I want to express my heartfelt condolences to those impacted by the tragic event that took place this morning involving former Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax and his wife, Cerina,” said Jeffrey McKay, chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.

Investigators said the couple had been involved in an ongoing domestic dispute tied to what police described as a complicated divorce, adding another layer to the circumstances surrounding the deaths.

For many, the tragic death of Wanzer Fairfax at the hands of her husband before taking his own life has brought up conversations about prioritizing African American mental health, particularly among men, and protecting Black women.

“Justin Fairfax murdered his wife Cerina in their home, then killed himself and left their kids to pick up the pieces. As Black men, we need to be clear in moments like this: nothing is worth killing a Black woman. Nothing,” social activist, thought-leader, entrepreneur Gary Chambers Jr., wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Pain is real. Di-

vorce is real. Depression is real. Rage is real. But none of it justifies violence against a woman. Too many Black women carry the weight of loving men who haven’t healed. Too many children are left to pick up trauma they didn’t create.”

Fairfax’s Political Career and Challenges

The development closed a chapter that began in 2019 when Fairfax, then lieutenant governor, was poised to become the first Black governor in the United States as then-Gov. Ralph Northam faced mounting pressure to resign after a racist yearbook image surfaced. Instead, Fairfax’s ascent halted when two women accused him of sexual assault, allegations he denied while completing his term and later running unsuccessfully for governor.

For years, Fairfax maintained that he had been targeted and that the claims were never subjected to the kind of scrutiny required in serious criminal matters. In a 2022 interview, he said his accusers avoided investigations while he and his family endured the consequences of the allegations.

“There are some real truth-tellers who cut through the political sensationalism and what is the truth,” Fairfax said. “I would be the only African-American governor in the United States today had it not been

for what now appears to be false allegations.”

Fairfax’s supporters, including Black Virginia News publisher and NNPA journalist Lauren Victoria Burke, remained vocal over the years, arguing that the speed of modern media and political pressure replaced careful reporting and due process.

Burke, who worked on Fairfax’s campaigns and later examined the case on Black Press USA’s “Let It Be Known,” repeatedly pointed to how quickly the allegations spread and how rapidly calls for his resignation followed.

“The initial story on the allegations, from Twitter (now X) to publication to widespread resignation demands in minutes,” Burke wrote, describing a media environment where speed overtook verification.

She also pointed to Fairfax’s actions during the controversy as unusual for someone facing such claims.

“One of the things liars tend to do is change or modify their stories and Justin never changed,” Burke said. “The other thing you don’t see is someone in trouble asking for police involvement. That never happens.” WI

Read more on washingtoninformer.com.

5 The tragic deaths of former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax and his wife Cerina Wanzer Fairfax, from apparent murder-suicide, is opening dialogue about African American male mental health and protecting Black women. (Courtesy Photo/Facebook, Justin Fairfax for Governor of Virginia)

AROUND THE REGION

CAPTURE THE MOMENt

The Congressional Black Caucus Foundation (CBCF) recognized The Washington Informer (WI) with the Cultural Leadership in Arts & Media Award as part of the organization’s 50th anniversary gala. Muriel Cooper, CBCF’s senior manager for relationship, development, and stakeholder engagement, presented WI Publisher Denise Rolark Barnes with the award, which honored the publication for producing work that informs, empowers, and inspires. (Jacques Benovil/The Washington Informer)

Who’s Reading the Informer

Paul Carr, founder and director of the Jazz Academy of Music in Montgomery County reading The Washington Informer. (Brenda C. Siler/ The Washington Informer)

"For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”

SECOND CHANCE from Page 5

preneurs is reimagining the impact of trauma and violence on African Americans –– who make up 37% of the nation’s incarcerated individuals, despite accounting for only 13% of the U.S. population.

Data from Opportunity Insights (OI), a Harvard University-based data hub, shows white low-income households can gross up to $22k higher within the same city as their Black counterparts, who also hold a noticeably higher percentage rate of incarceration.

Meanwhile, in Southwest, D.C., the predominantly Black quadrant Rhodes calls home, a 0.8% gap in incarceration can translate into as much as $11,000 more in household income for white residents.

“The main problem I see…we live in a patriarchal America where everything is a structure of top down–– it's always the nonprofit providers or government telling the people directly impacted what they need…and nobody is asking them,” said Robert Barton, founder of the D.C.-based More Than Our Crimes nonprofit. “On top of that, [with] reentry services: job training, resume writing, they even connect you with the jobs, but it's usually shuffling this demographic or this population into [work] with no economic mobility. Now you've got a class that stays at the bottom.”

As a beneficiary and advocate of second-chance amendments, Barton emphasized how long-term seeds of opportunity are planted within these institutions, and even long before that.

The 46-year-old’s own bout in the justice system began with a life sentence at the age of 16, ushering him into the juvenile block of an adult prison that lacked the educational and rehabilitation programming it claims to serve from day one.

Matched with statewide relocations, as a result of D.C. not having its own prison, punitiveness trumping progression was the norm, he adds, which heralded a deeper look at what it takes to propel returning citizens to success.

“If a person doesn't have the intrinsic tools to rehabilitate themselves, it doesn't happen, and that's thirtyfold for a juvenile, because they're not even thinking in those ways yet,” he said. “In actuality, most people who go to prison, regardless of what their sentences are, come home. What type of people do you want to be your neighbors?”

A beneficiary of the Incarceration Reduction Amendment Act (IRAA), Barton launched More than Our Crimes in 2020 to model a justice system where civic engagement and social integration begin within the walls of the institutions themselves.

Since his release in February 2025, the local organizer has been an active voice championing the education and resources he says could have redefined his own path. His public advocacy includes protecting bills like IRAA and the Youth Rehabilitation Amendment Act (YRA), as well as pushing for onsite programming for mental wellness and youth development, among others.

“No kid is born evil, no kid is born a criminal. I understand that there has to be some type of accountability, but it shouldn't be their whole life,” Barton said. “I needed to be held accountable, but I also needed to be understood, and…in a setting where I had the time to mature. I didn't need 30 years to do that.”

As for Rhodes, she offered her own take on breaking cycles of generational trauma.

“It's such a big picture that you have to simultaneously work on some of the pieces. We got to tackle the hurt, the pain and the disparity,” she said. “Of course, there's things that need to be done outside of the community, but things that we can do ourselves: we can heal, we can stop being enemies of one another, we can manage our mental health, we can talk. And then we can advocate for ourselves better.” WI

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REPORT from Page 1

to an inability to rally nine votes.

D.C. Councilmember Brooke Pinto (D-Ward 2) said such an outcome calls into question whether some of her fellow council members really value a balanced approach.

“When I hear my colleagues talk about the additional supports we need to provide for our kids, I say, I absolutely agree, but let's move forward with those bills,” said Pinto, who has introduced bills aimed at youth enrichment. “Those bills are sitting in their committees [because of] the same members voting ‘no’ on the emergency bill today. So, I worry about the rhetoric around needing to do more, but then the

inaction of actually doing more.”

Over the next two weeks, as the Trump administration keeps a close eye on local affairs, Pinto will work to garner the support needed for passage of the emergency curfew legislation. While she’s invited opposing council members to collaborate around a solution, Pinto acknowledges what she described as mounting public pressure to not approve the emergency bill.

“They, like me, hear from young people who say there are other needs that we have,” Pinto told The Informer. “There's clearly a big gap right now with the services that a lot of our young people are receiving, whether that's in mental health care, whether that's access to transportation, to after-school time programming.”

Even so, Pinto remains firm that the onus is, partially, on community-based organizations to take advantage of grant dollars made available through the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement and the Family Destination Fund.

“We need to do more to make sure that teachers and our school professionals have the supports they need to invest in our young people and make sure that they have the supports they need,” she said. “But it also requires coming to the table and proposing some new ideas or partnerships as well.”

As Youth Curfew Discussion Continues, A Ward 6 D.C.

Council Challenger Facilitates Programming

Last week, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser reinstated a 15-day youth curfew, just days after the expiration of twice-approved emergency curfew legislation, and a daytime shooting in Kenilworth that claimed the lives of 14-year-old Mhilo Young and 12-yearold Tyale Coates.

In an April 20 letter to the council, Bowser denounced “the baseless claim” about the lack of youth activities, all before identifying the curfew law as a tool in curbing gun violence and armed robberies.

“Although the Metropolitan Police Department has used various methods to address this conduct, including enhanced enforcement of disturbance of peace offenses, the tools available are limited,” Bowser said in her letter. “The District needs flexibility in its juvenile curfew to allow the chief of police to protect the safety of juveniles and the public so we can more nimbly address significant safety concerns.”

Well before the council’s first reading approval of what’s known as the Juvenile Curfew Amendment Act, Gloria Ann Nauden, a creative executive and community economic development specialist who’s challenging D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen (D-Ward 6) in the June 16 primary, called for equitable, data-driven implementation of the youth curfew.

“We need to make sure that it's clearly enforced across all neighborhoods,” Nauden said. “If it's citywide, and it's timed, I think that's a good idea. Then, of course, requiring…that we have this regular reporting [of if] incidents [are] actually going down.”

Between April 11 and April 18, while District students were out of school, Nauden hosted Spring Break Community Service Week in collaboration with Lauren Harris, a teacher at Richard Wright Public Charter School.

During that week, the duo connected young people with community members and local businesses while providing community service opportunities and teaching them about civic engagement. By next year, when the winner of Ward 6 D.C. Council Democratic primary takes their oath of office, this program will gear up for another spring break iteration, by then which Nauden said she will be able to fight for its public funding and expansion, if elected.

“The model already exists inside of the youth employment program for

5 Gloria Ann Nauden, a creative executive and community economic development specialist who’s challenging D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen (D-Ward 6) in the June 16 primary, is calling for equitable, data-driven implementation of the youth curfew. (Courtesy Photo)

the summer,” Nauden told The Informer. “It can…get clunky for the private sector, so how can we streamline it so that it makes it easier for the private sector who said…they would do more [programs] like this?”

Last fall, Nauden launched her candidacy for the Ward 6 seat after a mass gathering of teens on Halloween night garnered national media attention. She lamented what she called Allen’s lack of engagement with Ward 6 organizers and program coordinators working beyond the confines of Capitol Hill.

She said such inaction translates into lack of legislative action.

“I don't mean to oversimplify it, but it is really that simple,” she told The Informer. “And these are the kinds of things kids expect [for] legislation to have an impact on them.”

Allen, in his third term as Ward 6 D.C. council member, rebuffed notions that he doesn’t provide equal attention to his constituents.

“It's the type of work that we do in all four quadrants,” Allen told The Informer. “ It's every day. It's everywhere. I do that whether it's the ANC meetings I was in last night down in Southwest, whether it's the office hours that you hold, whether it's the farmer's markets, whether it's the youth groups. It's an engagement every day of the week, frankly, in all parts of the ward.”

Read more on washingtoninformer.com.

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY

University System of Maryland Community Members Confront Board of Regents About Complicity in Genocide

People's Tribunal Deems Board of Regents

‘Guilty’ for Investments in Weapons Manufacturers, Repression of Students

By Sumaya Abdel WI Intern

Chants of “guilty!” echoed across the Nyumburu Amphitheater at University of Maryland (UMD) College Park as approximately 100 community members across the University System (USM) gathered to protest the USM’s investments in weapons manufacturers on Friday, April 17.

The University System of Maryland Divestment Coalition for Palestine held a “People’s Tribunal” aimed at holding Maryland’s public university system’s Board of Regents accountable for their actions, which

students claim are directly and indirectly complicit in war crimes in Gaza and across the globe.

Student activists accused the Board of Regents— a 21-member board appointed by Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D), in charge of overseeing university policies and operations across the state— of being financially and academically complicit in the genocide in Gaza, for institutionalizing Zionism and repressing community members who speak out.

“The University System of Maryland Board of Regents, an unelected body of 21 members has knowingly maintained financial and institutional ties that directly enable and sup-

5 Community members listen to Jake Romm, a human rights lawyer, speak about the ongoing demolition of Gaza and the role that institutions play at the USM Divestment Coalition for Palestine

Abdel-Motagaly/The Washington Informer)

port the ongoing genocide of the Palestinian people,” said Mohammed Abukhdeir, a UMD student and a member of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP). “The board has time and time again chosen to be complicit. We the people, students, staff, faculty, community members, therefore assert that the USM board of butchers constitutes an illegitimate body operating against the interest of the people it's supposed to serve.”

Prior to the tribunal, students testified at the USM Board of Regents scheduled public meeting at The Hotel at UMD in College Park.

Khadeeja Abdallah, a member of the divestment coalition, said she had previously been to six meetings and had never seen the level of security displayed at the convening on the morning of April 17. University of Maryland Police (UMPD) were stationed all throughout the hotel; attendees were not allowed to enter until the meeting's scheduled time of 8:30 a.m.; and a sign was displayed outside of the meeting hall listing out rules attendees must follow, which Abdallah said was unusual.

“The use of the velvet rope preventing us from entering was never used before,” Abdallah said. “The rule that standing members had to leave was never previously enforced. Security has happened before but the searching through every pocket of every bag was not.”

USM community members held up signs with painted red hands, symbolizing blood, at the meeting.

After sharing their testimonies, they disrupted the meeting, chanting "disclose, divest, we will not stop, we will not rest,” and walked out with UMPD officers following them.

“We, the students, staff, faculty, alumni and community members of the USM declare you all guilty,” said Abdallah in her testimony at the meeting. “We will continue to mobilize until victory, until divestment until the dissolution of the board and the liberation of Palestine from the river to the sea.”

‘We are All in a Collective Struggle’

For students and staff alike, the tribunal served as a moment to share grievances, work to hold leaders accountable, and offer a call to action for attendees and the USM Board of Regents.

Human rights activists and USM faculty talked about the role institutions play in the ongoing genocide of Gaza, as students across Maryland universities revealed their experiences of repression about protesting for Palestine on campus.

Due to UMD’s time, place and manner restrictions, speakers at the event were prevented from using any devices that amplified sound, which students say is only one out of many examples of institutional repression to prevent students from speaking out.

“I have to shout with my voice now because of some weird poli-

cy that says we can’t use amplified speech,” Zyad Khan, a UMD student and member of SJP, said to attendees.

In 2024, UMD’s SJP filed a lawsuit against the university, which attempted to ban the student group from hosting an interfaith vigil on Oct. 7 to commemorate the loss of life in Gaza. Students won the case and received a $100,000 settlement from the university.

“The reasoning behind [these policies] is to prevent us from organizing,” said Khan.

After speeches and student testimonies, Saad Ijaz, a UMD student and SJP member served as the judge for the tribunal and issued his judgment. Attendees shouted “guilty!” as he read the charges.

“The tribunal finds that despite years of organized demands from students, from faculty, from staff and from community members,” Ijaz said, addressing the crowd, “defendants have willfully refused to engage in meaningful dialogue or action.”

Petros Bein, the co-coordinator for Black Alliance for Peace, spoke about how the struggle for the liberation of Palestine is connected to many other struggles, specifically noting how the Baltimore City Police trains with Israeli military and police.

He said that the tribunal went beyond just symbolism, that it was a call for action.

“This isn’t just a spectacle or a show,” Bein told The Informer. “We are all in a collective.” WI

5 Students hold up signs against the University System of Maryland’s (USM) Board of Regents Meeting at the University Maryland Hotel, just before disrupting the meeting with chants of "disclose, divest, we will not stop, we will not rest.” Students walked out and were followed by police. (Sumaya Abdel-Motagaly/The Washington Informer)

People’s Tribunal at the University of Maryland on April 17. (Sumaya

FUTURE-READY from Page 8

utive director of Workforce Investment Council, Elisa Ortiz, executive director of Council for Court Excellence, Anthony Featherstone, president and CEO of WorkSource Montgomery, Jay Grauberger, executive vice President of Clark Construction, and Craig Barnard-El, director of corporate engagement at Year Up United, stressed that AI is a tool to be managed, not a replacement for human judgment.

“Our technology helps [match] the skills that people have [and] the experiences to jobs, resources [and] events across the region [and] across the country,” said Lopez, reflecting on his BuildWithin platform that heavily utilizes AI for the purposes of candidate screening, career coaching, skill-based job matching and application assistance.

The fourth panel, “From Research to Reality: DC’s Workforce Evolution” — featuring Emily Bouck West, senior vice president policy and initiatives of Greater Washington Partnership, Yesim Sayin, executive director of DC Policy Center, and Douglas Freuhling, editor-in-chief of the Washington Business Journal— centered around the Greater Washington region’s labor force development, including: its history, causes of current conditions, and what career pipelines can be improved.

“Time hasn't grown here over the past decade, and now we've started to see some shifts because of impacts of AI, kind of trickle-down impacts for contractors and how they service our

government partners,” West explained. “As we continue to see those shifts, we know that this workforce development strategy must be about anticipating the needs of the future, and our public and private sector leaders coming together to come up with strategies that protect our region and our people that live here so that they do continue to have those opportunities.”

Learning AI

As vice president of technology at Goodwill, Gelfound knows that AI is not one size fits all.

“It’s important to understand what people do and how they do it and understand that— [it’s the Wild West and AI,” Gelfound said. “There is not one tool that’s going to work for everyone, we really need to understand how they function.”

Many of the experts, such as Paul, said one way to get people familiar with using AI is learning how to prepare the groundwork for artificial intelligence to be a compatible partner with workplace duties, particularly to avoid inaccuracies.

“You need to know how to ask the right questions,” the OptimaNova AI CEO said. “And when you’re prompting and communicating with AI, it’s important that you’re very, very clear, and also don’t trust everything that it gives you, no matter what it is.”

Read more on washingtoninformer.com.

5 Speakers address the need for modernized educational pipelines that transition students from graduation into high-growth local industries, during the “Degrees of Impact: Universities Shaping D.C.’s Talent Pipeline,” moderated by Dr. Selvon Waldron and featuring Anthony Wilbon, Maurice D. Edington and Dr. K.L. Allen. (Kree Anderson/The Washington Informer)

NATIONAL

Joint Center Warns White House AI Plan Leaves Black Entrepreneurs at Risk

By Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer

A new federal blueprint for artificial intelligence (AI) has drawn criticism from the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, which says the White House proposal fails to confront how AI could deepen economic disparities for Black Americans.

“The AI Action Plan and related executive orders either minimize or exclude explicit protections against discrimination and bias from the national AI policymaking agenda and risk embedding historic and current inequities into the very foundations of this new technology,” the Joint Center wrote in its policy brief.

The White House blueprint, outlined in the March 2026 “National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence,” prioritizes U.S. competitiveness, expanded access to federal datasets, workforce training, and a lighter regulatory approach designed to accelerate industry growth, including regulatory sandboxes and federal preemption of certain state AI laws.

“The federal government is uniquely positioned to set a consistent national policy that enables us to win the AI race and deliver its benefits to the American people, while effectively addressing the policy challenges that accompany this transformative technology,” according to a White House press release. “The administration looks forward to working with Congress in the coming months to turn this framework into legislation that the president can sign.”

The Joint Center’s analysis points to a disconnect between the framework’s workforce development goals and the structural realities facing Black Americans. While the federal plan promotes reskilling and education, it does not address how AI-driven job displace-

ment could affect Black workers or how those who transition into ownership opportunities in the emerging AI economy, leaving open the question of who will ultimately benefit from the technology’s rapid expansion.

The concern extends to entrepreneurship. Black-owned businesses are growing but remain underrepresented among employer firms and face persistent barriers to capital, infrastructure, and market access. More than three million Black-owned businesses operate without employees, limiting their ability to scale in an economy increasingly shaped by advanced technology, while venture funding for Black founders has sharply declined, restricting access to the resources needed to compete in AI-driven markets.

Joint Center officials said Blackowned businesses remain an essential and growing part of the American economy. In 2022, about 194,585 majority-Black or African American-owned employer firms generated approximately $211.8 billion in annual receipts, had payrolls of about $61.2 billion, and employed roughly 1.6 million people. Researchers said these firms are growing faster than any other group of employer businesses, posting a 30% increase in revenue and 7% growth in employees in 2021 alone.

Further, employer firms represent only a small share of Black business overall. The vast majority of Black owned businesses operate as non-employer firms — businesses with no paid employees other than the owner.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau data, there are more than three million Black-owned non-employer businesses, accounting for well over 95% of all Blackowned firms. Researchers said these businesses are typically sole proprietorships operating in sectors such as personal services, transportation,

retail, and professional services.

While they generate smaller revenues individually, collectively they represent a significant source of economic activity, income generation, and community stability. Yet, Black-owned firms with employees still comprise only 3.3% of all employer firms, even though Black Americans represent 14.4% of the U.S. population.

In its framework, the White House outlines safeguards in areas such as child protection, intellectual property rights, fraud prevention, and national security, along with calls to expand AI infrastructure and federal technical capacity. Still, the Joint Center notes that the plan does not directly address disparities in broadband access, computing power, or technical training that continue to shape participation in the AI economy.

“Recent federal policy proposals do not consider equity, climate, and racial bias in the federal AI policy agenda,” wrote researchers for the Joint Center.

A Roadmap to Work Around Gaps

The Joint Center’s report offers a roadmap to work around gaps in the administration’s framework, including leveraging state and local policymaking, philanthropic investments, private-sector innovation, and community-led strategies to build an inclusive AI economy in the absence of federal mandates.

The report identifies four key barriers that will determine who benefits from AI: gaps in knowledge and training, uneven digital infrastructure,

limited capital, and a lack of representation in policymaking.

“Without intervention, those barriers could concentrate opportunity among already dominant firms while leaving smaller, community-based businesses behind,” the Joint Center noted.

The framework’s push to preempt certain state AI laws has also drawn scrutiny. While designed to create a national standard, the approach could limit efforts by states and local governments to address inequities or build inclusive pathways into the AI economy.

The Joint Center points to alternatives led by states, local governments, and private partners, including expanded applied AI training for small

businesses, investment in community-based infrastructure, reforms to capital pipelines, and stronger representation for Black entrepreneurs in shaping policy and standards.

“The evidence presented in this brief is clear. AI has the capacity to act as a force multiplier for small, resource-constrained enterprises and these benefits will not be distributed evenly unless deliberate measures are taken to close structural inequality,” Joint Center experts determined. “If current inequities are left unaddressed, the rise of AI will deepen the very disparities it could help solve. Economic modeling suggests that without deliberate intervention, the racial wealth divide could widen by as much as $43 billion each year by 2045.” WI

3 The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies says the White House proposal for artificial intelligence fails to confront how AI could deepen economic disparities for Black Americans. (Courtesy Photo)

INTERNATIONAL

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Rwanda Genocide at 32: World Remembers Over 1 Million Killed in 100 Days

By Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer

Thirty-two years after one of the most horrific episodes in modern history, the world marked the International Day of Reflection on the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, honoring the more than one million lives taken in roughly 100 days and confronting the global failure to stop it.

“We gather today to remember and to reaffirm a shared responsibility,” a message from United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres stated this month during the 2026 commemoration. “Thirty-two years ago, Rwanda endured one of the darkest chapters in human history. In just 100 days, more than one million people were murdered – primarily Tutsi, but also Hutu and others who opposed the genocide.”

The annual observance marks the start of the killings that began on April 7, 1994, following the assassination of President Juvénal Habyarimana. Within hours, extremist leaders launched a coordinated campaign that spread across the country with extraordinary speed.

5 United Nations Office of Nairobi (UNOB) Director-General Zainab Hawa Bangura (second from left) and Rwanda High Commissioner to Kenya H.E. Ernest Rwamucyo (fourth from left) lead other UN agencies and Kenya government representatives to light candles during the 32nd anniversary of the 1994 Rwandan genocide at the UNOB. (Courtesy Photo/UNIS Nairobi, Tirus Wainana)

Serge Gassore, who was a child during the genocide, described how quickly life changed.

“Our neighbors, people we had lived with and trusted, turned against us. Houses were burning on the hill above our village. The sky was filled with smoke,” he said. “The screams of those being killed echoed through the hills.”’

Estimates place the death toll between 800,000 and more than one million people. One survivor leader told the United Nations that 1,074,017 Tutsis were killed as families were hunted and entire communities destroyed.

The scale of the violence reshaped the country overnight. More than one million children were left orphaned. Hundreds of thousands of women and girls were subjected to sexual violence. Entire villages were emptied, and countless bodies were left in streets, churches, and fields as the killings unfolded.

Survivors continue to recount what they saw and endured. One survivor, testifying before the United Nations, described fleeing with family members before encountering militia forces.

“On the way they ran into a roadblock of militia and soldiers, and they told them they are going to be killed,” the survivor said. “They shot; they used machetes to kill everyone.”

The survivor later hid alone for months, surviving on “powdered milk and sugar dissolved in rainwater.”

‘This was Not a Failure of Knowing, It Was a Failure of Acting’

United Nations officials have made clear that the killings followed years of planning and incitement. Propaganda and political messaging targeted Tutsi communities long before April 1994, setting the stage for what became one of the fastest mass killings ever recorded.

The genocide ended in July 1994 when the Rwanda Patriotic Front took control of the country. In the years that followed, Rwanda faced the challenge of holding perpetrators accountable while rebuilding a society where victims and those responsible would continue to live side by side.

The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda indicted 93 individuals and convicted 62, while Rwanda’s Gacaca courts handled nearly two million cases in communities across the country.

That process continues decades later. Thousands of those convicted have

completed their sentences, though about 16,000 people remain in prison. Each year, roughly 2,000 former prisoners return to their communities. In one account reported by France 24, a woman released after serving 30 years said, “During my time in prison, I repented… I asked for forgiveness from the family of the victim… and they forgave me in writing. My heart has found peace.”

Her return places survivors and those responsible for the violence in the same neighborhoods, often living only a few steps apart.

The long-term effects remain visible. Survivor testimony presented at the United Nations indicates that more than half of survivors live with trauma, while over a third face severe psychological distress. That pain has extended to children and grandchildren, shaping lives long after the killings ended.

In the Washington region, the anniversary is observed within a large African immigrant population. The D.C. metropolitan area remains one of the leading destinations for African immigrants in the United States, including communities from East Africa. While the number of Rwandans in the District itself is smaller, the national total is estimated at about 7,000 Rwandan-born residents, with a wider diaspora of more than 11,000.

Read more on washingtoninformer.com.

HEALTH

from Page 4

routine call.

It came out of nowhere.

After years of what he described as a brotherhood that could turn volatile, Prince had been talking about him again. A mutual connection, Paisley Park janitor Jim Lundstrom, called BrownMark with a message.

“He says, ‘Mark, I have a feeling that he’s going to get in touch with you because he won’t stop talking about you,’” BrownMark recalled.

Prince, he said, felt bad. Regretful. Ready to make things right.

Not long after, the phone rang.

“He says, ‘I want you to fly to Minneapolis. Putting some things together. I want to see if you want to be involved,’” BrownMark recalled.

For the bassist, that was all it took. Their relationship had always been complicated, brother to brother, but rooted in something real.

“We were both alphas,” he said.

“We were always like that.”

He dropped everything in California and went.

And then, things took a turn he never expected.

“He forgot that he brought me there.”

BrownMark said he sat in a hotel for weeks. No calls from Prince, no direction, no explanation. Just silence.

“I don’t have a bat number. I don’t know how to get a hold of you. I’ve been sitting here. I don’t know what’s going on,” he recalled saying after running into drummer John Blackwell Jr. in the lobby.

Blackwell made the call.

“Hey, you know, BrownMark’s sitting here in the lobby.”

Prince’s response stunned him.

“‘What? What’s he doing there? Oh, you brought him here?’ And he goes, ‘Oh, I forgot.’”

At that moment, BrownMark said, it told him everything he needed to know.

When he finally got to Paisley Park, he said the signs were impos-

sible to ignore.

“That’s when I knew something was wrong,” he hedged. “Something was not right with his memory and his behavior.”

The two talked. Reminisced.

Prince told him, “This is your place too… you helped me build this,” BrownMark recalled.

He spoke about forming a new group, chasing that Revolution sound again, that “bottom end” that would rumble like it used to.

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BrownMark was in. “I said, okay, I’m down.” Then he went home.

And waited.

“I was like, is this dude gonna call? He probably forgot that we had the conversation.”

Months passed. Another call came. BrownMark packed up, moved to Minneapolis again. And again, nothing.

No rehearsals. No sessions. No follow-through. Then came the moment that sealed it. BrownMark walked into Paisley Park one day and saw Prince filming. The beloved artist saw him and froze.

“You could see the panic in his face because you can see he just remembered what he had done,” BrownMark recalled. “You could see him saying, ‘Oh man, wait a minute. I moved him here.’”

For BrownMark, the pattern was now clear.

“His memory was like really, really shot at that point,” the bassist observed.

Memory and Medication?

The bassist does not claim Prince had dementia or Alzheimer’s, only pointing to what the medical examiner said that played a major role, the medication.

BrownMark nearly died in 2022 and now lives on medication that he says has affected his own memory.

“My memory is shot… if I don’t write stuff down or set an alarm,

it’s gone,” he said, adding that his own experience changed how he views what he saw.

“Man, it just clouds your memory,” BrownMark said of certain medications. “And I think that’s what was happening with him because he was heavily relying upon opioids for his pain, for his hip.” Prince, he said, would never have admitted it.

“He ain’t gonna let nobody see him sweat,” BrownMark stated convincingly. “He’s not going to tell anybody.”

That silence may have hidden more than anyone realized.

In April 2016, Prince was found unresponsive inside an elevator at Paisley Park. He was 57. Investigators later determined he died from an accidental overdose of fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid.

For BrownMark, the pieces now connect in a way they didn’t then.

“Fentanyl. There you go,” he said.

The music remains. The legend remains.

But 10 years later, the picture coming into focus from those who were there is no longer just about genius.

It is about what may have been slipping away in plain sight.

“I’m a very observant person,” BrownMark said. “I saw it immediately. I said, ‘Yeah, something’s not right there.’”

3Ten years after the death of Prince, an account from BrownMark, a bassist for Prince & The Revolution, is revealing the artist suffered from memory loss in his final year. (Courtesy Photo/ BrownMark, Instagram)

PRINCE

EARTH OUR

regions’ air quality based on their scores in three categories: ozone, short-term particle pollution and year-round particle pollution. Per the 2026 report, which analyzes air quality between 2022 and 2024, 44% of Americans are living in areas with failing scores for ozone and particle pollution.

Washington received an “F” grade for ozone and a “D” for short-term particle pollution, but achieved a passing grade in year-round particle pollution and saw improvement in the category across each monitored area.

“We’re showing improvement… as a whole [metropolitan] area, but we still have that failing grade in ozone, so I think that’s really important for people to be aware of,” Casper continued. “That progress is fragile and we need to continue to take those steps to protect [it], not only locally in the District, but at the federal level too.”

Although the ALA’s report provides Americans with an extensive examination of the air quality in their areas, it is not the only resource used to determine where a city or region needs improvement.

Under the Clean Air Act, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is required to establish the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for six “criteria pollutants” that endanger public and environmental health: carbon monoxide, lead, particulate matter, ozone, nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide.

The air quality design values set by the EPA show air quality not impacted by exceptional events— polluting instances that are unpredictable or uncontrollable. Through this style of evaluation, a region could still be regarded in attainment of air quality standards while residents are still exposed to unhealthy levels of ozone and particulate matter.

Per the EPA’s Green Book, Washington is currently considered in attainment for all categories except ozone.

Joseph Jakuta, director of air quality at the Department of Energy and Environment (DOEE), told The Informer that the city has clean data on ozone but still needs to submit a maintenance plan to the EPA on how this progress will be sustained.

“For the first time ever, we’ve now been compliant with all the federal air quality standards,” Jakuta said. “In the big picture, we’ve made a lot of progress, and I’m really excited about that... [but] there are also some areas where we still need to see improvement.”

The Future is Electric

Ground-level ozone is formed when a reaction between nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds occurs in sunlight or extreme heat. According to the ALA, ozone levels worsened in 2023 due to extreme heat, and particle pollution increased due to the blanket of smoke brought forth by the Canadian wildfires that year.

Between 2022 and 2024, 219 counties in 36 states and the District received a failing grade for ozone levels– the highest number since the 2016 SOTA.

“It’s very hard to stop all exposure to unhealthy air, but if we’re able to at least put up some guardrails to make things as healthy as possible, that’s what we at the [ALA] are really looking for,” Dr. Bobby Mahajan, national spokesperson for the ALA and chief of interventional pulmonology for the Inova Health system, told The Informer.

Emissions from mobile sources and transported pollution from upwind states are the primary causes of ozone in Washington. According to the DC Department of Energy, 90% of the city’s pollution comes from outside its boundaries.

Jakuta told The Informer that the city was set to move forward with implementing California’s Clean Cars for All program, which allows for lower-income residents to trade in their old vehicle for a clean air vehicle, but the process has been stalled.

Regardless, the District is still putting great effort into investing in vehicle electrification.

Aside from working toward electrifying the city’s bus system, the Department of Public Works (DPW) has transitioned approximately 10% of its municipal vehicles to electric or plug-in hybrids. Prioritizing such initiatives has allowed the District to rank second in the nation for electric vehicle registration, per the Alliance for Automotive Innovation’s Get Connected Electric Vehicle Quarterly Report.

“We’re impacted by Maryland and Virginia and all the vehicle traffic there,” Jakuta said. “We’re doing what we can, but… it’s really tough to completely solve the problem if our upwind neighbors aren’t doing their part.”

Communities of Color Continue Bearing the Brunt

With poor air quality comes extra risk for respiratory illness, lung cancer, exacerbated allergies and other health issues, especially in communities of color. While people of color make up 42.1% of the U.S. population, they constitute 54.2% of people living in counties with at least one failing grade in the SOTA, and are 2.4 times as likely as a white person to live in a community with a failing grade in all three evaluated categories.

In the District, approximately 9.6% of children and 11.4% of adults are diagnosed with asthma, per figures from the ALA’s report. Predominantly Black communities in the city are disproportionately affected by asthma, as, according to the

health, especially as it pertains to the environment. She urges people to pay attention to the intersection between race, health and climate change, as it affects their daily lives.

Wards 5, 7 and 8 experience heavy traffic due to proximity to busy roadways and contain bus depots and industrial spaces, all of which contribute to poor air quality.

“That's where these challenges are located, that's where these additional burdens are located, in communities where Black and brown and under-resourced folks are living,” Cooper, who serves as national manager for health justice with Moms Clean Air Force, continued.

Children’s National Hospital, children in Wards 7 and 8 are 20 times more likely to visit the emergency room due to the chronic lung disease than children in Ward 3.

“Climate is the most existential threat to health in the world,” Almeta Cooper, of the Moms Clean Air Force, told The Informer. “For me, it’s very personal [because] this is affecting me, my friends, my family and my very adorable seven-monthold grandson.”

Cooper was raised with a strong sense of community and has always had a deep love for children, so she constantly champions children’s

To develop a plan of action in mitigating pollution and its effects on residents, the DOEE has installed PurpleAir and Clarity Node sensors around the city, especially in these wards, to further their data collection. A federal air quality monitor and four park bench monitors have been installed in Ward 8, as the region previously didn’t have regulatory surveillance of its air pollution.

The DOEE has a project coming into fruition, which consists of replacing two of the switcher trains in Ivy City’s railyard, as they heavily pollute the District. Now, according to Jakuta, those two trains are running on some of the cleanest diesel engines.

Read more on washingtoninformer.com.

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5 Smoke drifting into the D.C. area from the Canadian wildfires in 2023. (WI File Photo/Kayla Benjamin)

OZONE from Page 1

Design Cuisine

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Clyde's Restaurant Group

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ARTECHOUSE

Black Wives Matter

As Husbands Murder the Women They Claim to Love, We Must Confront This Crisis for What it is: Femicide

The killings of Cerlina Wanzer Fairfax in Virginia and Nancy Metayer Bowen in Florida are not isolated tragedies. They are part of a disturbing and deadly pattern: The murder of Black women by men who vowed to love and protect them.

Dr. Fairfax, a dentist and mother of two, was shot and killed in a murder-suicide by her husband, former Virginia Lt. Governor Justin Fairfax, a man entrusted with public leadership. Coral Springs Vice Mayor Bowen, a rising political figure and mother, was allegedly shot multiple times in her home by her husband, who later claimed he “couldn’t take it anymore.”

Let’s be clear: that is neither an explanation nor a justification. It is a confession.

Bowen’s killing is under investigation as domestic violence, with police alleging premeditated murder after she was found dead in her home. These are not crimes of passion. They are acts of control, violence, and finality.

Among those left behind in the Fairfax murder-suicide are two

teenagers who discovered their deceased parents. Families shattered. Communities traumatized. Both women leave behind grieving loved ones, including two now forced to carry unimaginable loss into adulthood, thanks to their father, who killed their mother.

We are witnessing a pattern that many now call femicide: the targeted killing of women because they are women. In too many cases, the perpetrators are husbands, ex-husbands, boyfriends, or for-

Bowen’s killing is under investigation as domestic violence, with police alleging premeditated murder after she was found dead in her home.

mer partners.

There must be no more excuses. Depression is real. Stress is real. But neither pulls a trigger, loads a weapon, nor wraps a body in garbage bags to conceal the crime. These are choices—deliberate, irreversible, and criminal.

Black men must confront this crisis head-on. Silence is complicity. Deflection is denial. Minimizing these acts only ensures they persist.

All people, and particularly Black men, must challenge and check one another. Intervene before anger turns lethal. Support mental health— but never allow it to be weaponized as a shield for murder.

At the end of the day, this is not complicated.

This is not a misunderstanding. Nor is it a loss of control.

Rather, it is deliberate and deeply troubling acts of violence.

Black women deserve to live. And Black men must do more to honor, defend, and protect our Black women.

D.C.Emancipation Day Celebrates Abolition of Slavery in the District, But We Aren’t Free to Govern Ourselves

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser recently pulled out all the stops for a festive weekend of activities commemorating the 164th anniversary President Abraham Lincoln signed the District of Columbia Compensated Emancipation Act on April 16, 1862. Celebrations included the DC250 Full Democracy Luncheon on Friday, April 17, and the 21st annual D.C. Emancipation Day on April 19, featuring a parade, festival, and concert.

Despite forecasted cooler temperatures and intermittent showers during the Sunday celebration– free and open to the public— interest among residents was so great that planners had to change the venue from Franklin Park to the corner of 13th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW.

Still, one must wonder, did people show up to honor the more than 3,100 enslaved persons then living in the District who were freed in

Washingtonians don’t want anything more than what citizens in other U.S. cities are guaranteed: the ability to serve in the military, pay federal taxes, and follow federal laws while being afforded voting representation in the House and Senate.

April 1862, and who showed up by the thousands on April 19, 1866, to commemorate their freedom? Or were they anxious to get their groove on with entertainers that included T.I., Mýa, the Backyard Band featuring Sugar Bear, and Tye Tribbett?

Thinking optimistically, Washingtonians likely showed up in force to both honor ancestors from the past and to celebrate the present with some of America’s top artists.

According to District officials, D.C. Emancipation Day— proclaimed as a holiday by the late Mayor Marion Barry Jr., and confirmed as a public holiday in 2005 by then Mayor Anthony Williams— has several goals that include celebrating progress in advancing racial equality and civil rights. And yes, progress has been made on these collective fronts.

However, one goal, perhaps the most important of all, remains little

TO THE EDITOR

“This doesn't surprise me and there will be more race related incidents that will occur under the current Trump admin administration.”

- Mackenzie: (In reference to the article: “Young Man Found Hanging From Tree in Northwest, MPD Issues Public Statement Days Later.”)

“I also grew up in the area, worked at the 4th District and have never seen anything like this.”

- Kimberly Wilson-Lynch (In reference to the article: “Young Man Found Hanging From Tree in Northwest, MPD Issues Public Statement Days Later.”)

more than a pipe dream: winning the battle for and the right to D.C. statehood.

For far too long, Washington, D.C. has served as the playground for Congress and the president. And in many instances, the scales of justice have not tilted in our favor.

Further, it remains unjust that Congress continues to have the authority to overturn local D.C. legislation whenever it is deemed necessary. We are not children, and our city should not be viewed as a testing ground on which federal officials are allowed to try out new ideas and policies on the backs of Washingtonians. Our population, now estimated at more than 700,000 residents, closely matches cities like Nashville, Oklahoma City, Denver, Seattle, and Baltimore. So, what’s the problem? Aren’t we Americans, too? WI

OPINIONS/EDITORIALS

Guest Columnist

Charlene Crowell

Trump Budget Leaves Working Families Behind

tor of the Office of Management and Budget, in his comments to Congress.

At a time when American families across the country are struggling to cope with rising costs of living, the White House's fiscal year 2027 budget proposal makes clear that federal help for working people is not in the cards.

"A historic paradigm shift in the budget process is occurring and is producing real results for the American public," stated Russell Vought, direc-

If approved by Congress, this new "paradigm" will increase defense spending by $1.5 trillion — a 44% increase — while slashing $73 billion from domestic programs that many people have come to rely upon, like rental assistance, career training and the Low-Income Energy Assistance Program.

In reaction, a chorus of concerned opposition has emerged, demanding that Congress account for how taxpayer dollars will be spent.

Guest Columnist

For example, the Center on Budget & Policy Priorities summarized its concerns with an April 3 statement:

"The public is clear that it is deeply concerned about affordability. Yet the budget either proposes nothing to address core affordability issues or makes them worse … It makes cuts in a range of areas that matter to families, including education; healthy fruits and vegetables for low-income pregnant and postpartum parents, toddlers, and preschoolers; food assistance for low-income seniors; and utility assistance. It also cuts the number of households

who get help paying the rent."

Other advocates addressed specific concerns on the future of education, housing and consumer protections.

In response to the proposed $3.2 billion cut to the Department of Education, National Education Association President Becky Pringle said, "This administration is sending an unmistakable message: students, educators, and working families do not matter. It turns its back on students with disabilities, students from low-income families, students who live in rural areas — students that need more

The Postal Service Should Be Funded Rain, Snow, Sleet or Stalemate

There is an institution older than the United States itself that is now fighting for its survival, and too many people in power are watching it happen without lifting a finger.

The United States Postal Service was founded in 1775, a year before the Declaration of Independence. Benjamin Franklin was the

first postmaster general. It has survived wars, depressions, technological upheavals and the death of the handwritten letter. It has never missed a day of service. Today, it is being quietly bled out, and the silence from Congress is its own kind of crisis.

The postmaster general has warned lawmakers that the agency is at a "critical juncture" and will run out of cash in less than a year unless Congress allows it to borrow more money. "At our current rate, we'll be out of cash in less than 12

The Future of Work

The future of work is no longer a distant idea — it's here. Automation, artificial intelligence, remote work and the green economy are redefining the workforce, and at breakneck speed. For the communities we serve and partner with, this moment presents both a challenge and a huge opportunity. The question is: Will we be passengers or drivers of this transformation?

At OIC of America, we're preparing people to lead in this new world of work and not get left behind. That means teaching digital and AI skills, expanding access to technology, and making sure every learner has the tools to succeed in a tech-enabled economy. But it also means investing in emotional intelligence, critical thinking and adaptability — skills that are just as important in a fast-changing and increasingly competitive world.

The World Economic Forum predicts that by 2030, up to 85 million jobs may be displaced by automa-

months. So in about a year from now, the Postal Service would be unable to deliver the mail," Postmaster General David Steiner said before a House subcommittee. This is not a hypothetical. USPS suspended employer pension contributions in April 2026, pausing roughly $200 million every two weeks to free $2.5 billion in cash just to keep the lights on.

This is the slow unraveling of an institution that helped build the American middle class.

The Postal Service was never

just a place to buy stamps. It was infrastructure. It was connectivity before broadband. It was the original equalizer, guaranteeing that a family in rural Mississippi and a family in Manhattan received the same service at the same price. It built a path into the middle class for generations of Black Americans who could not access employment in the private sector. Postal work was union work, stable work, dignified work — one of the first federal employers to hire Black men and women at a meaningful scale.

tion — but 97 million new roles will emerge. These new jobs will require new skill sets. The future will reward lifelong learners — those who are willing to train, pivot and grow. And for the skilled trades where we focus on preparing people for the workforce, the possibilities to chart new paths are endless. In Pennsylvania, our Delaware Valley Alliance (DVA) serves as the blueprint for this evolution. The DVA is an essential component of the infrastructure needed to ensure communities secure the necessary resources to thrive longterm.

By integrating housing, public safety, career training, health and more into a cohesive advocacy framework, we aren't just filling jobs; we are securing economic independence for Pennsylvania's talented, yet untapped — and overlooked — workers. This coordinated effort is structured so that the commonwealth's booming industry surges in life sciences, data centers and advanced manufacturing also benefit its citizens more equitably. These wins reflect a statewide victory for its citizens; as the "future of work" arrives, no community is left on the sidelines of progress. We

Among the Education Department's post-secondary programs slated for elimination in fiscal year 2027 are: Student Support Services, Federal Family Education Loans, Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants, Upward Bound, and Career, Technical, and Adult Education.

Proposed cuts to housing programs are even more severe: $10.7 billion. An analysis by the Bipartisan Policy Center showed that HUD programs affected

Page 37 support, not less."

In city after city, the post office was not just a government building; it was a community anchor.

USPS continues to operate its universal delivery network, visiting 168 million addresses six days a week. It remains the largest mail service in the world, delivering nearly 40% of mail sent globally. And it does all of this while operating under congressional mandates that private competitors never face, including the requirement to

look forward to scaling this approach in other communities where we serve.

For communities that have historically been left out of opportunity and forgotten, the future of work must include justice, not just jobs. That means policy change, corporate investment and community-based solutions that put people at the center.

This is a defining moment. Let's make sure our people are prepared to not just survive — but lead.

For more information, visit oicofamerica.org.

Marc H. Morial

CROWELL

Louis J. King II

Guest Columnist

Guest Columnist

Regime Change and the Roots of U.S. Hostility With Iran

by the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR/Russia).

In 1953, the United States and other Western forces collaborated to overthrow the democratically elected president of Iran, Mohammad Mosaddegh.

The stated rationale for pursuing regime change was based on the Cold War logic that Mosaddegh was aligning with an evil communist sphere of influence anchored

Those who are serious in their study of history are clear that the Cold War was a propaganda campaign to position communism and socialism as a "boogeyman" in order to justify Americans' desire for geopolitical domination of the world. Additionally, Mosaddegh's policy of nationalizing the oil wealth of the country was disruptive to western oil companies that wanted unfettered access to Iran's oil reserves.

After the overthrow of Mosaddegh, the United States installed the Shah of Iran to lead the country, which was a brutal, autocratic regime that lasted for a couple of decades. The 1979 revolution in Iran that resulted in the overthrow of the Shah and the taking of American hostages is often narrated as an act of anti-American aggression instead of a response to U.S. imposition of a brutal regime on the people of Iran. In other words, the 1979 Iranian revolution and the anti-American senti-

From Reconstruction to the SAVE Act

lass later chose Feb. 14 as his birthday — an act of self-definition in a country that refused to define him as fully human.

That act matters.

Frederick Douglass did not know the day he was born.

Like many enslaved people, he was denied even the dignity of documentation. Birth dates were approximations. Family lines were severed. Identity existed in property ledgers, not in public record.

His mother, Harriet Bailey, called him her "little Valentine," and Doug-

How

Douglass understood something fundamental: Identity is not granted by paperwork. It is asserted through presence, voice and participation. He claimed authorship over his own life in a nation structured to deny it.

Today, we are debating whether documentation should determine access to democracy.

The SAVE Act would require docu-

mentary proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal elections. Passports. Birth certificates. Paper trails. Supporters frame it as administrative protection. But the history of American democracy teaches us that administrative mechanisms are rarely neutral.

Paperwork has always been political.

After Reconstruction, when Black political participation expanded, new rules narrowed the electorate. Literacy tests. Poll taxes. Grandfather clauses. Each was presented as procedural. Each functioned as a barrier.

The methods change. The objective

ments expressed over the years by Iranian leadership are a response to U.S. imperialist aggression toward the sovereignty of the Iranian people and the larger Muslim world.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio gave a speech a few weeks ago in Munich, Germany, that provides a clear underlying logic for U.S. military strikes against Iran. He said:

"For five centuries, before the end of the Second World War, the West had been expanding — its missionaries, its pilgrims, its

soldiers, its explorers pouring out from its shores to cross oceans, settle new continents, build vast empires extending out across the globe," Rubio said. "But in 1945, for the first time since the age of Columbus, it was contracting. Europe was in ruins. Half of it lived behind an Iron Curtain and the rest looked like it would soon follow. The great Western empires had entered into terminal decline, accelerated by godless communist

Page 38

Every day, millions of Americans take medications to manage chronic conditions or prevent disease. Prescription drugs are vital tools in modern medicine — but, in some circumstances, they can also lead to serious adverse drug interactions, diminished quality of life and even life-threatening complications.

— control over who counts — does not.

Documentation requirements would fall hardest on those least likely to have ready access to formal records: seniors born at home in the Jim Crow South, low-income Americans without passports, married women whose legal names no longer match their birth certificates. Even producing paperwork can become a test of belonging.

Documented cases of noncitizen voting are exceedingly rare.

The question is not fraud preven-

You Stop a Prescription Medicine Is as Important as How You Start

This is a complex issue with high stakes for patients. Older adults, in particular, are often prescribed multiple drugs by different doctors for different reasons. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that nearly 70% of adults ages 40-79 used one or more prescriptions in the past 30 days and more than 20% used five or more prescriptions.

Polypharmacy — the term for taking five or more medications — comes with risk. It dispropor-

tionately affects older adults and those with multiple conditions. For these patients, each additional pill can increase the risk of falls, cognitive decline and adverse events, contributing to tens of thousands of emergency room visits and hospitalizations each year.

That's why the American Medical Association is urging physicians and patients to embrace a concept gaining momentum in health care: deprescribing.

Deprescribing is the planned,

supervised process of reducing or stopping medications that may no longer be beneficial — or may be causing harm. There are many reasons why a medication that was once appropriate may become unnecessary or even risky. A patient's condition may have improved and the medication is no longer needed. Or newer treatments may offer better outcomes in place of current medication.

Deprescribing is not about denying care or cutting costs at the expense of patient health. It's

tion; it is access. Reconstruction was not only about emancipation. It was about participation. Black men voted. Black officials were elected. Black institutions were built. And when those gains threatened entrenched power, backlash followed.

In 1898, in Wilmington, North Carolina, a legitimately elected multiracial government was overthrown. Black political power was dismantled. The ballot was replaced by the bullet.

MALVEAUX Page 38

about ensuring that every medication prescribed is truly necessary, evidence-based and aligned with a patient's current health goals.

But here's the bigger issue: If we truly want to reverse the tide of chronic disease in America, we need to go beyond managing symptoms. We need to rethink the entire approach — including how many medications a person is on and why. Of course, many

WHYTE Page 38

Julianne Malveaux

Guest Columnist

Dayvon Love

John Whyte

Guest Columnist

EDUCATION

PGCPS Selects Clara Allsup as 2026-2027 Teacher of the Year

By Richard Elliott WI Contributing Reporter

Educators, administrators and local leaders filled the golf course ballroom at the University of Maryland College Park onApril 16, as Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) honored International High School at Langley Park (IHLP) ninth and 10th grade English teacher Clara Allsup as the 2026-2027 Teacher of the Year.

“Ms. Allsup inspires curiosity, ignites motivation, and challenges her students to reach higher every single day,” said PGCPS Interim Superintendent Dr. Shawn Joseph during the Thursday celebratory ceremony.

“Her unique background equips her exceptionally well to support international students. We are proud of her accomplishments and equally

proud to celebrate all of our finalists, who represent the very best of Prince George’s County Public Schools.”

The newly minted teacher of the year, who has worked with IHLP’s diverse student population since 2018, served as a class sponsor for several years and has led both science clubs and academic competitions at her school. She was presented a new red Honda as part of her prize haul.

“I’m deeply grateful to Billy Shulman, Dr. Eunice Humphrey, LCPC, ACS, and Lisa Sacco for being the leaders who have always supported me, giving me the space to learn and grow these past eight years,” Allsup wrote in a LinkedIn post. “I’m also thankful for my colleagues—past and present— at the International High School at Langley Park for fostering a culture of collaboration, commitment to students, and pur-

suit of excellence.”

Her students also praised her attention to their academic development. Several students cited her assistance in developing their English skills.

“She’s a wonderful teacher. She always helps us in a situation when we can’t find solutions,” said one of her students in a PGCPS video.

Allsup dedicated the recognition to her “incredible students.”

“Their curiosity, courage, and determination in the face of challenges are what inspire me to bring my best self to the classroom every day,” she wrote in the social media post.

Rebekah Benson-Flannery of College Park Academy and Dr. Julita Lizardo, English teachers and National Board Certified educators at Largo High School, were named first and second runners-up during

the competition. Both educators were awarded a free overnight stay at The Hotel at University of Maryland.

“As a former teacher of the year, I understand what it takes to represent PGCPS as the marquee educator. Dr. Lizardo is one of the finest educators I have ever met,” said Largo Principal Albert Lewis. “Regardless of role, she is someone who loves to teach. She has spent more than 30 years doing this work.

Next Steps for the Competition

As first place winner, Allsup will be representing Prince George’s during the Maryland State Department of Education’s statewide competition.

The Maryland Teacher of the Year

will be announced this fall and the winner will advance to the National Teacher of the Year competition.

IHLP Acting Principal William Shulman said the Prince George’s winner is a “quintessential educator.”

“She has a remarkable ability to meet struggling students where they are while fostering growth and confidence,” said Shulman in a press release. “A true team player and a cornerstone of Prince George’s County Public Schools, Ms. Allsup doesn’t just teach – she leads, supports, and inspires those around her.”

The English teacher said her work is about uplifting young Prince Georgians.

“I’m honored to represent this community,” Allsup said, “and to continue working toward equity and academic excellence for all learners.” WI

5 Clara Alssup (right) is awarded a new red Honda as the Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) Teacher of the Year for the 2026-2027 school year. (Courtesy Photo/PGCPS)

Washington Informer Weekend Checklist

WASHINGTON INFORMER'S

LIFESTYLE Things To Do, DMV!

By Kree Anderson WI Intern

Whether you are looking to sharpen your skills at a workshop, find zen in a morning fitness session, or immerse yourself in the local music and art scene, the DMV has it all. Tap into this diverse lineup of events happening throughout the region this weekend.

Stay in the loop on all the action by keeping up with the Washington Informer Calendar, an ultimate guide to finding the heartbeats of the DMV and making the most of every weekend.

Thursday, April 23

A Night of Hope, For Youth Experiencing Homelessness in DC and PG County

6 p.m. - 9 p.m. | $50+

The Hamilton Live, 600 14th Street NW, Washington, D.C., 20005

Join Sasha Bruce Youthwork for A Night of Hope, honoring the courage of youth, the power of community, and the partners who make this work possible. The goal is to raise $600,000 to ensure that every young person who reaches out for help can access the housing, counseling, and essential services they deserve.

Kayaking Basics

6 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. | $43.00

Lake Accotink Park, 7500 Accotink Park Road, Springfield, VA, 22150

Learn the fundamentals of kayaking in a relaxed and comfortable setting. Discover proper strokes and paddling techniques. Understand the basics of water safety and how to plan a pleasant paddling experience.

Friday, April 24

Outdoor Family Movie Night

Participants can start their morning with movement, music, and fresh air. Join The Collection on the Tiered Plaza for a refreshing outdoor pilates experience designed to energize weekends and bring the community together.

Sunday, April 26

Black on the Block DC 1 p.m. - 7 p.m. | $21.19

Nationals Park, 1500 South Capitol Street SE, Washington, D.C., 20003

Modular Meetup

Noon - 4 p.m. | $5+

Rhizome DC - Art Learning DIY Culture, 6950 Maple Street NW, Washington, D.C., 20012

The DC Modular Society (DCMS) is a group focused on learning, teaching, and performing electronic music with modular synths. DCMS meetups are open to all with an interest in electronic music, modular and other hardware synths, and hybrid systems for creating and performing music. WI

8 p.m. - 9:45 p.m. | $12.51

Waugh Chapel Towne Centre, 1417 Street Main Chapel Way, Gambrills, MD, 21054

Join Waugh Chapel Towne Centre for a fun outdoor movie night in Gambrills. Bring lawn chairs and enjoy a family-friendly evening under the stars featuring the Lilo & Stitch (2025 film).

Fairfax Folk Festival

7 p.m. - 11 p.m. | Free Mackenzie’s Tunes and Tonics, 3950 University Drive STE 210, Fairfax, VA, 22030

The Songwriters Association of Washington (SAW), in association with Spotlight on the Arts and with grant support from the City of Fairfax Commission on the Arts, will present the first-ever Fairfax Folk Festival. This three-day event will feature more than 35 of the area’s most gifted performers and award-winning songwriters.

Saturday, April 25

Living Earth Festival: Always Becoming 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. | Free National Museum of the American Indian, 4th Street SW, Washington, D.C., 20560

Celebrate the transformational power of clay and the evolution of the museum’s iconic outdoor sculpture installation Always Becoming (2007) by Nora Naranjo Morse (Kha'p'o Owingeh [Santa Clara Pueblo]). The event will feature artist demonstrations, hands-on activities, stories and performances.

Spring Pilates Series at The Collection

10 a.m. - 11 a.m. | Free The Collection Chevy at Chase, 5471 Wisconsin Avenue, Chevy Chase, MD, 20815

Experience a vibrant showcase of 100 remarkable Black-owned businesses at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C., on Sunday, April 26. The day will be filled with food, drinks, top-tier DJs, giveaways, and appearances by special guests.

4 Black on the Block DC is a pop up festival and marketplace that celebrates Black culture, creativity and entrepreneurship. The program includes food and refreshments, performances by prominent DJs, prize giveaways and appearances by special guests. (Courtesy Photo)

timely and lacerating comedy, featuring a madcap plot and satiric targets that feel as urgent as they did when the play premiered in 1961.

JOHN SYGAR

LIZAN MITCHELL STEPHEN PATRICK MARTIN ELLIOTT BALES JACOB THOMPSON

BY OSSIE DAVIS DIRECTED

PSALMAYENE 24

Debate Day.

Saturday, May 2, 2026

Jack Morton Auditorium George Washington University

Washington, DC

1:00 PM Congressional Delegate Debate

3:30 PM Mayoral Debate

Hear directly from candidates ahead of the primary election. Livestream hosted on The Washington Informer YouTube In-person attendance is invite-only →

LIFESTYLE

review wi book

horoscopes

c.2026, Black Privilege Publishing

$30

324 pages

Terri Schlichenmeyer WI Contributing Writer

So what do you think?

No doubt, you have an opinion on the subject at hand. You have something to say, a POV, a side you'll take or a stand to make. You have thoughts, info to gather, intel to share. Talk-talk-talk, maybe it's a calling. Maybe, as in the new memoir "Arsenio" by Arsenio Hall with Alan Eisenstock, it's livin' the dream.

Back when he was small, everyone assumed that little Arsenio Hall would grow up to be a preacher like his daddy. Sunday mornings, Hall says, were spent listening to his father, learning the power of words spoken properly. Being a preacher seemed like a good calling, until Hall's parents split and his world changed.

While he was temporarily living with his grandmother, a cousin brought home a book on magic and Hall was hooked. He became obsessed, practicing easy sleight-of-hand tricks until they were second nature and sneaking out of the house to spend after-school afternoons in a magic shop. By the time he was a teenager, he was performing for spending money and had appeared on local Cleveland television.

But magic wasn't everything.

The feeling that he got when he made people laugh — the idea that he could get paid for being funny — Hall needed more of that. He started adding humor to his magic shows until he realized that being a comedian was an actual job, and magic faded into his background.

Back when he was in grade school, Hall used to sneak out of his bedroom at night to watch "The Tonight Show" with Johnny Carson. In his basement, he practiced doing interviews just like Carson. He didn't want to be like Carson, he wanted to be Carson.

And so Hall moved to Chicago and started snagging gigs at comedy shows. He met up-and-coming comics and established funnymen who gave him advice, sympathy, and contacts, which helped him move up in the system, make money, and land movie roles.

Then Paramount came calling but Hall didn't get another movie offer. He got his own talk show …

Like so many Hollywood biographies, "Arsenio" is loaded — positively loaded — with name-dropping. Normally: ugh. But the thing here is, you won't mind. Author Arsenio Hall (with Alan Eisenstock) tells this story in such an appealing, wide-eyed way that you'll be too busy enjoying to care about dropped names.

Another thing: what you saw on TV and what you see in movies are pretty much what you can expect in Hall's book. It's authentic; readers will find stories that are thorny and squirmy, but also a bit star-struck. He's not afraid to tell readers about being someone's fan. He's also willing to tell the truth about his career, his personal life, and the end of his talk show, and he plain-talks about the increasingly bad sides of the entertainment industry, so buckle up.

This is a book for Hollywood-watchers, fans of Arsenio Hall, of course, but also for anyone who loves comedy, hip-hop, or entertainment in general. Read "Arsenio." It's a book you'll tell everyone about.

APRIL

23 - 29, 2026

ARIES The anger you've been sitting with isn't protecting you — it's just taking up room. Name what's underneath it and move. A work assignment you accepted without full information is revealing its actual scope this week; recalibrate your timeline before it recalibrates itself. Someone reaches out with an apology that is three-quarters complete — decide if the rest is required or just desired. Lucky Numbers: 4, 28, 53

TAURUS The version of rest you've been telling yourself counts isn't actually rest — your mind is still running the tab. Find a true pause this week, even a short one. A financial commitment you made with optimism requires a sober second look; the numbers haven't changed but your situation has. Someone younger in your orbit is solving a problem in a way worth borrowing. Lucky Numbers: 8, 34, 60

GEMINI The charm that gets you in the room is not the same thing that keeps you there — and you know the difference. This week, go deeper than the surface read. A creative detour you dismissed last month turns out to be the main route; follow it without apology. Two competing obligations are asking for the same day; rank them honestly rather than pretending both can be first. The conversation you keep rehearsing finally has a willing audience. Lucky Numbers: 13, 40, 67

CANCER You've been anticipating a disappointment that hasn't arrived yet — stop grieving outcomes that are still in motion. A domestic tension that felt permanent is showing its first real flexibility; don't freeze when it softens. Someone who has questioned your judgment in the past is now quietly citing your reasoning as their own. Note that. Lucky Numbers: 6, 42, 70

LEO The praise you received this week is accurate, which is why it felt strange — you've been braced for the other kind. Accept it cleanly and let it recalibrate your baseline. A professional risk you've been treating as a long-term consideration has a short-term version available right now; smaller entry, same direction. Someone close needs your honesty more than your encouragement. Lucky Numbers: 17, 44, 63

VIRGO The problem you've been solving in your head for two weeks takes forty minutes on paper — sit down with it. A relationship you've maintained out of history rather than current value is asking for a definition; you already have one. Someone offers unsolicited feedback that is mostly wrong but contains one usable truth; extract it and discard the rest without ceremony. Your instinct about a new colleague is correct. Lucky Numbers: 23, 47, 72

LIBRA The compromise you agreed to last week is already showing you what it costs — factor that into the next negotiation. A project stalled at someone else's desk needs a gentle push, not a patient wait; send the follow-up without drama. Your social energy is running lower than you're showing; protect a stretch of solitude before the week ends. Lucky Numbers: 11, 38, 68

SCORPIO The version of yourself you've been presenting in one relationship is a slightly edited draft — the original is more useful. A financial instinct you keep overriding with logic turns out to have been right twice now; adjust your methodology accordingly. A challenge arrives mid-week that is less about skill than about how you handle unexpected pressure. Lucky Numbers: 2, 49, 76

SAGITTARIUS The certainty you lead with is sometimes a way of ending conversations you'd benefit from having — notice when you're doing that this week. A travel or distance situation that's been creating friction finally has a practical resolution within reach. Someone challenges an assumption you've held for years and turns out to be at least partially correct; let that revision be interesting rather than threatening. Stay open. Lucky Numbers: 20, 51, 78

CAPRICORN The pressure you apply to yourself would be considered unreasonable coming from anyone else — calibrate accordingly. A long-neglected creative or personal goal surfaces this week in a concrete form for the first time; don't file it under later. A colleague misunderstands your efficiency as coldness; one small, unhurried gesture corrects more than a longer conversation would. Lucky Numbers: 15, 45, 81

AQUARIUS The framework you built around a recurring problem is elegant but it keeps you one step removed from actually solving it — go direct this week. A collaboration offer arrives from an unexpected quarter with genuine compatibility; do not dismiss it because it complicates your current picture. Someone is giving you credit in rooms you're not in. That work is landing. Build on it without needing to witness it yourself. Lucky Numbers: 26, 53, 75

PISCES The emotional residue from a conversation two weeks ago is still affecting decisions you don't realize it's touching — trace it back. A practical skill you've been meaning to develop suddenly has a real application; the timing is not coincidental. Someone you love is saying less than they mean; the gap between their words and what they need is where your attention belongs this week. The quiet period is ending. Lucky Numbers: 9, 56, 82

"Arsenio" by Arsenio Hall with Alan Eisenstock

SPORTS

Howard Football Opens New Chapter With Spring Game Under New Head Coach, Celeb Star Power, More

By Skylar Nelson and Abdullah Konte WI Contributing Writer and WI Photographer

Howard University Football held their annual spring football game on Saturday, April 18 at Greene Stadium, a part of the Uni-

versity’s SpringFest festivities.

The sold-out game, closing the Bison’s spring practices, gave fans their first look at the 2026 football team through an interactive team scrimmage.

Former Howard standout Ted White returned to his alma mater, kicking off his service as the Bison’s new head coach ahead of the 2026-2027 season.

In addition, fans were excited to welcome D.C native and boxer Lamont Roach Jr., the honorary spring game coach.

“The experience was crazy,” said Roach. “The game is a lot faster when you're on the field and you're actually into the game play. I admire the [Howard football players] admiration and courage, they’re willing to fight. And they came out here to put on a show-

case for [the fans] to see what’s in store for the season.”

The Howard Bison now look ahead to the start of a roaring 2026 fall season, as they are set to take on Alabama A&M Aug. 29 at Center Pac Stadium in Atlanta for the Mideastern Athletic Conference (MEAC)/Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Challenge.

“We knew that the month of January, that the month of February, as well as March was going to be really extreme,” said White. “And now we have the opportunity to get through spring and now it starts a new season. It starts [with] being able to get registered in summer school. It starts [with] being able to get in preparation for the SWAC/MEAC Challenge.” WI

5 Howard University redshirt junior defensive back DJ Lawrence catches a football in the team warm-ups before their spring football game on April 18. (Abdullah Konte/The Washington Informer)

5 In a team scrimmage on April 18, redshirt senior quarterback Ja’Shawn Scroggins looks to make a pass. (Abdullah Konte/The Washington Informer)

5 Washington Commanders’ mascot Major Tuddy plays football with kids at Howard’s spring game on April 18. (Abdullah Konte/The Washington Informer)

CAPTURE the moment

Thousands of people flocked to the intersection of 13th Street NW and Pennsylvania Avenue NW on Sunday, April 19 for the 21st annual Emancipation Day celebration, featuring a parade and star-studded concert. The commemoration honored the 164th anniversary of President Abraham Lincoln signing the D.C. Compensated Emancipation Act. With rapper T.I., gospel singer Tye Tribbett and the DMV’s own Mya, Backyard Band with Sugar Bear and Black Alley taking the stage, the day recognized history and legacy while highlighting the beauty and breadth of the Black community and District culture. (Robert R. Roberts/The Washington Informer)

RELIGION

Behind the Pulpit, Black Women Battle Violence and Silence

A Pastor’s Killing Exposes a Hidden Crisis: Black Women Clergy Facing Intimate Partner Violence, Harassment, and Silence Inside the Very Institutions They Serve

By Rev. Dorothy Boulware Word in Black

This article was originally published online with Word In Black, a collaboration of the nation's leading Black news publishers (of which The Informer is a member) and slightly edited for clarity.

By most accounts, the marriage between Tammy McCollum, pastor at The Well Worship Center in Statesville, North Carolina, and Eddie McCollum appeared to be loving and stable.

Their grown daughter never saw any signs of trouble between her parents, and Tammy McCollum herself exalted her husband, Eddie McCollum, on their 30th wedding anniversary a few years ago. She called him an “amazing

man of God” and gave thanks for her lifelong partner.

But as the pastor and part-time cosmetics saleswoman delivered her sermon for Resurrection Sunday, more popularly known as Easter, she couldn’t have known it would be the last sermon she would ever preach.

After she left her pulpit and went home to relax, authorities say, Tammy McCollum was shot and killed inside their home. Eddie McCollum was quickly arrested and charged with first-degree murder. He is being held in jail without bond pending trial.

Shame and Disbelief

Tammy McCollum’s murder is a shocking symptom of a much larger problem: Black women clergy and faith leaders dealing with abuse, ha-

Erica Carter In Memoriam

Erica, we miss you each day

But we know you are not far away.

Making friends in Heaven must be your role

For GOD knows you and your beautiful soul – The Family

rassment, or worse, from men in the church — and in their personal lives.

It’s difficult to isolate numbers about Black clergy women and harassment or abuse; academic studies are hard to find. Experts say that, like most women in the Black community, women of the cloth are reluctant to report it because they worry about being shamed or not being believed. There’s also the probable loss of respect from the communities they serve.

Studies find that around four in 10 Black women have experienced intimate partner physical violence, sexual violence, or stalking in their lifetimes. Compared to white women, Black women are disproportionately affected, facing higher rates of abuse and a 2.5 times higher likelihood of being murdered by a male intimate partner.

At the same time, while Black women make up between half and three-quarters of worshippers in church pews, less than 10% of clergy

or church leadership are Black women. Several studies have found that Black women ministers and leaders are often the targets of harassment, bullying, or abuse from men in the church. That can make it even harder for women clergy dealing with intimate partner violence, or IPV, to find support within their own church.

‘We are Violated’

In 2018, The Los Angeles Times reported on a convening of Black women ministers, which brought the issue into sharp relief. The women noted that Black male faith leaders “are like demigods,” making it pointless to complain to them about sexual harassment or seek help for IPV.

“We are violated before we preach, while we preach, after we preach,” the Rev. Deborah Manns is quoted as saying. “I am on fire for God. I love preaching his word, but it’s hard to preach at a church, and you go to the pastor’s office, and the first thing he asks you is ‘What color are your panties?’”

Cecily Johnson, director of strategic initiatives at the Domestic Violence Network, says the history of Black people in America plays a role in how the Black church deals with the issues of Black women faith leaders.

The root cause of sexual harassment and intimate partner conflict stem in part from “the 400-year gap and the 400 years of being left at the starting line while other groups have moved forward with ease,” Johnson says. “That’s the root cause. It’s a combination of things we’re not given.”

“We’re just not given opportunities in education that generally would be made available to other

3 Clergy are emphasizing that the shooting and killing of Pastor Tammy McCollum of The Well Worship Center in Statesville, North Carolina emphasizes a larger issue of violence against Black women in the church. (Courtesy Photo/Facebook)

populations, specifically white populations,” she says.

Barriers to Safety

Furthermore, Black women can be reluctant to turn male abusers over to the police for fear that law enforcement will mishandle or mistreat the men, or that the same congregation they serve every Sunday won’t support them.

“These systems create numerous barriers for survivors seeking safety. Law enforcement officials often arrest Black survivors, and police, jurors and judges are less likely to believe Black survivors than white survivors,” according to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. “Racist systems put Black people at greater risk of experiencing intimate partner violence,”

But the Rev. Dr. Michele Balamani Silvera, a retired counselor and pastor, says there are ways for Black women clergy to stay safe.

”First of all, normalize it because it is as prevalent among women clergy as it is among all women,” Silvera says. “We sometimes act as if the calling somehow exempts us from the violence, just because.”

“And be aware of the warning signs at the very beginning of the relationship,” she continued, “because they are always there.”

Experts say violent marriages were easier to avoid when people engaged in longer courtships before settling into marriage. But the age of technology and social media has changed much of that.

”They meet online and before you know it, they’re engaged,” Silva says. “Or even married. And the time for observation of problematic tendencies has passed, and the trouble begins.” WI Read more on waashingtoninformer.com.

And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. — John 8:43 KJV

Lately, it feels like there's a big push to "clean up" history. Between changing what's taught in schools and removing parts of museum exhibits, it seems like some folks want to hide the hard parts of our past. But as people of faith, we have a spiritual duty to find the real truth, and that truth goes much deeper than just the stories we've been told.

Last week, my 15-year-old granddaughter called her mom in tears. Her ninth-grade history assignment was actually titled "Why Whites Are Superior to Blacks." I spent over 20 years teaching in Montgomery County, and before I retired in 2026, I saw this coming. Teachers would whisper in the lounge about how they had to be careful; even if the history was right there in the textbook, they weren't allowed to teach it anymore.

I'm writing this because we need to talk about two things. First, we

WITH LYNDIA GRANT

The Truth of Our Roots the religion corner

know the history of slavery is real. But second, there is a growing movement of people discovering that Black Americans were original stewards of this land long before the slave ships even arrived.

To understand how we got here, I think back to my college days at Trinity Washington University. I had an older professor who explained that before "race" was used to divide people, Europeans were busy oppressing each other based on class and religion. In Europe, this professor noted, Slavic people were enslaved so frequently that many historians believe that's where we get the word "slave." When those lower-class groups came to America, they turned that mistreatment they had suffered into even harsher treatment against Black people, so they could feel superior themselves.

This isn't just a history lesson; it's a spiritual wake-up call. We are realizing our ancestors weren't just survivors of a journey; they were the original caretakers of this soil.

However, we are seeing a massive effort to bury these facts. Since early 2025, the Trump administration has been pushing what it calls "patriotic education." It has ordered the Smithsonian to focus only on the "brightness" of the nation, even removing over 30 artifacts from the National Museum of African American History and Culture, including items belonging to Harriet Tubman.

In our schools, the government is threatening to withhold funding if teachers discuss systemic racism or use curricula like the 1619 Project. They want "national unity," but they are achieving it by pressuring teachers into silence. Even at our national parks, there have been moves to eliminate fee-free days on Juneteenth and remove interpretive signage explaining the history of slavery at places like Independence Hall.

While some say they are "restoring sanity" to history, what they are really doing is censoring our story. But man can't hide what God has already written in our spirits.

My challenge to you: We cannot leave the truth of our heritage in the hands of others. If the schools won't teach it and the museums won't show it, then it is up to us to speak it. I am calling on every parent, grandparent and elder: Teach your children our history. Don't just talk about Black history during February. Sit them down and tell them the stories of our resilience and our roots that go deeper than any textbook. If the truth is to survive for the next generation, it is up to each of us to tell it to our children, families and communities.

I'm taking my own challenge by beginning right here in my weekly column. The Bible reminds us that the truth will make you free.

& Study: Wednesday @ 12 Noon and 7:00

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

Mount Carmel

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

Rev Kevin A. O'Bryant

401 Van Buren St., NW, Washington D.C. 20012 Office (202)-882-8331

Service and Times Sunday Worship 10:30 am Zoom: zoom.us/;/2028828331 Bible Study: Wednesday 7:00pm Communion Every First Sunday "Serve, teach and Live by precept and example the saving grace of Jesus Christ."

Email: Froffice@firstrising.org Website: www.firstrising.org “Changing Lives On Purpose “ The Rev. E. Bernard

All are welcome to St. Mary’s to Learn, Worship, and Grow.

Website: Theplbc.org Email: churchclerk@theplbc.org

Sermon On The Mount Temple Of

Mt. Horeb Baptist Church

Rehoboth Baptist Church

First Rising Mt. Zion Baptist Church

Historic St. Mary’s Episcopal Church

Promised Land Baptist Church

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

2026 ADM 000262

Annie Anderson Decedent

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

Jawanda Rowls, whose address is 5006 Vane Ct., Waldorf MD 20602, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Annie Anderson who died on 7/25/2019 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 10/9/2026. 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 10/9/2026, 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: 4/9/2026

Jawanda Rowls

Personal Representative

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

2023 ADM 001123

Estate of Beatrice Thelma Coleman

NOTICE OF STANDARD PROBATE

Notice is hereby given that a petition has been filed in this Court by Lawrence Coleman for standard probate, including the appointment of one or more personal representatives. Unless a responsive pleading in the form of a complaint or an objection in accordance with Superior Court Probate Division Rule 407 is filed in this Court within 30 days from the date of first publication of this notice, the Court may take the action hereinafter set forth.

In the absence of a will or proof satisfactory to the Court of due execution, enter an order determining that the decedent died intestate appoint an unsupervised personal representative

Date of first publication: 4/9/2026

Joan M. Wilbon 1629 K Street NW, Suite 300 Washington, DC 20006 Petitioner/Attorney:

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 2026 ADM 000307

Virginia Mack Decedent

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

Lynn McCray, whose address is 24 Bryant Street NE, Washington, DC 20002, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Virginia Mack who died on December 11, 2025 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 10/16/2026. 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 10/16/2026, 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: 4/16/2026

Lynn McCray Personal Representative

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

2026 ADM 000323

Douglas Augustus Wilson Decedent

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

Devin Alicia Wilson, whose address is 1211 7th Street NW, #303, Washington, DC 20001, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Douglas Augustus Wilson who died on 1/14/2026 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 10/16/2026. 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 10/16/2026, 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: 4/16/2026

Devin Alicia Wilson Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2025 ADM 001262

Shirley Branham Jerkins Decedent

Kevin Judd, Esq. 601 Pennsylvania Ave., NW Suite 900-South Building Washington, DC 20004

Attorney

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

Kevin Judd, Esq., whose address is 601 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Suite 900-South Building, Washington DC 20004, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Shirley Branham Jerkins who died on February 3, 2025 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 (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 10/9/2026. 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 10/9/2026, 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: 4/9/2026

Kevin Judd, Esq. Personal Representative TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

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

2026 ADM 000348

Arthur Preston Scandrett Decedent

Peggy A. Miller, Esq. 5130 7th Street, NE Washington, DC 20011 Attorney

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

Monique Scandrett, whose address is 143 Buckeye Road, Amherst, NY 14226, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Arthur Preston Scandrett who died on 1/18/2026 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 10/16/2026. 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 10/16/2026, 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: 4/16/2026

Monique Scandrett Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2026 ADM 000338

Marcus Moon Decedent

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

Barrett Moon, whose address is 15037 Cherrywood Dr. Laurel, MD 20707, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Marcus Moon who died on 2/6/2026 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 10/16/2026. 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 10/16/2026, 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: 4/16/2026

Barrett Moon

Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

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

2026 ADM 000301

Bernardo Quentin Gainey Decedent

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

Roslyn Gainey Holmes, whose address is 610 Tewkesbury Place NW, Washington, DC 20012, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Bernardo Quentin Gainey who died on October 24, 2025 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 10/16/2026. 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 10/16/2026, 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: 4/16/2026

Roslyn Gainey Holmes 610 Tewkesbury Place NW Washington, DC 20012

Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

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

2026 ADM 000305

Michael A. Thompson Decedent

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

Deborah Bethel-Patterson, whose address is 1418 Allison Street NW, Washington, DC 20011, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Michael A. Thompson who died on 10/13/2022 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 10/16/2026. 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 10/16/2026, 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: 4/16/2026

Deborah Bethel-Patterson

Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

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

2025 ADM 001303

James E. Proctor aka James Proctor Decedent

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

Lori M. Willingham, whose address is 757 Conisburgh Court, Stone Mountain, GA 30087, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of James E. Proctor aka James Proctor who died on April 20, 2022 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 10/16/2026. 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 10/16/2026, 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: 4/16/2026

Lori M. Willingham Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

Probate Division

Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2017 ADM 956

Estate of Frances Cress Welsing

NOTICE OF STANDARD PROBATE

Notice is hereby given that a petition has been filed in this Court by Jeffrey K. Gordon, Esq. for standard probate, including the appointment of one or more personal representatives. Unless a responsive pleading in the form of a complaint or an objection in accordance with Superior Court Probate Division Rule 407 is filed in this Court within 30 days from the date of first publication of this notice, the Court may take the action hereinafter set forth.

appoint an unsupervised personal representative

Date of first publication: 4/16/2026

Jeffrey K. Gordon, Esq. 5335 Wisconsin Avenue, NW, Suite 400 Washington, DC 20015

Petitioner/Attorney:

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 2026 ADM 000380

Deborah Smith Decedent

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

Angela Smith, whose address is 1200 North Capitol Street SW, Washington, DC 20002, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Deborah Smith who died on 1/4/2026 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 10/23/2026. 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 10/23/2026, 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: 4/23/2026

Angela Smith Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

PROBATE DIVISION

Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2026 FEP 000037

June 15, 2002

Date of Death

Carmen Elise Brown aka Carmen E. Brown Name of Decedent

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT OF FOREIGN PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE AND NOTICE TO CREDITORS

Connie Buelt whose address is 519 Ramona Avenue, Spring Valley, CA 91977 was appointed personal representative of the estate of Carmen Elise Brown aka Carmen E. Brown, deceased, by the Superior Court for San Diego County, State of California, on 10/14/2025.

Service of process may be made upon Aimee D. Griffin, Esq., 5335 Wisconsin Avenue, NW, Suite 440, Washington, DC 20015 whose designation as District of Columbia agent has been filed with the Register of Wills, D.C.

The decedent owned the following District of Columbia real property:

4925 Nannie Helen Burroughs Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20019. Claims against the decedent may be presented to the undersigned and filed with the Register of Wills of the District of Columbia, 515 5th Street, NW, Third Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001 within 6 months from the date of first publication of this notice.

Date of first publication: 4/16/2026

Connie Buelt Personal Representative

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

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

2026 ADM 367

Annie L. Carter Decedent

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

Dorothy A. Carter, whose address is 1735 Upshur Street, NW Washington, DC 20011, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Annie L. Carter who died on May 17, 2008 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 10/23/2026. 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 10/23/2026, 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: April 23, 2026

Dorothy A. Carter Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

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

2026 ADM 000306

Brandon Lewis Decedent

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

Silva Lewis, whose address is 1116 McCollough Court, NW, Washington DC 20001, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Brandon Lewis who died on 12/1/2023 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 (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 10/16/2026. 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 10/16/2026, 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: 4/16/2026

Silva Lewis Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

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

2026 ADM 000318

Carolyn Renee McKinley Decedent

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

Funicello Haynes Owens, whose address is 3223 6th Street SE, Washington, DC 20032, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Carolyn Renee McKinley who died on 12/21/2016 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 10/23/2026. 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 10/23/2026, 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: 4/23/2026

Funicello Haynes Owens Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

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

2026 ADM 000376

Donna L. Wright-Miller Decedent

James Larry Frazier 918 Maryland Avenue NE Washington, DC 20002 Attorney

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

Sarah M. Wright, whose address is 3828 10th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20011, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Donna L. Wright-Miller who died on November 19, 2025 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 10/23/2026. 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 10/23/2026, 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: 4/23/2026

Sarah M. Wright Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

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

2026 ADM 000375

Cora Lee Rious Decedent

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

Michael L. Rious, whose address is 12101 Quick Fox Lane, Bowie, MD 20720, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Cora Lee Rious who died on 9/21/2022 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 10/23/2026. 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 10/23/2026, 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: 4/23/2026

Michael L. Rious Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

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

2026 ADM 000371

Erie Mae King Decedent

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

Yvette D. King, whose address is 16 Ridge Road, Unit G, Greenbelt, MD 20770, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Erie Mae King who died on 12/17/2025 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 10/23/2026. 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 10/23/2026, 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: April 23, 2026

Yvette D. King Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PROBATE DIVISION Washington, D.C. 20001-2131

2026 FEP 000043

July 30, 2024 Date of Death

Michael Debaugh aka Michael B. Debaugh Name of Decedent

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT OF FOREIGN PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE AND NOTICE TO CREDITORS

John K. Gardner whose address is 7310 Richie Hwy., Empire Towers, Suite 412, Glen Burnie, MD 21061 was appointed personal representative of the estate of Michael Debaugh aka Michael B. Debaugh, deceased, by the Register of Wills Court for Anne Arundel County, State of Maryland on November 5, 2025.

Service of process may be made upon Jacobie Whitley, Esq., 1455 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20004 whose designation as District of Columbia agent has been filed with the Register of Wills, D.C.

The decedent owned District of Columbia personal property. Claims against the decedent may be presented to the undersigned and filed with the Register of Wills of the District of Columbia, 515 5th Street, NW, Third Floor, Washington, D.C. 20001 within 6 months from the date of first publication of this notice.

Date of first publication: April 23, 2026

John K. Gardner Personal Representative

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

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YOUNG MAN from Page 1 photos.

“That was pretty much how I discovered what had happened,” Williams told The Informer, “When they cut the body out of the tree, I ended up seeing the body on the ground.”

The Fight to Receive Documentation and Get Answers

Per MPD’s statement, officers found the 19-year-old Latino male unconscious and not breathing while hanging from a tree limb. The adult adolescent, who hasn’t been identified, was pronounced dead on the scene after attempts by D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services to revive him.

“Currently, no foul play is suspected, and this is being investigated as a suicide,” MPD’s statement said. “The decedent’s family has been contacted by MPD, and our hearts go out to them during this difficult time.”

MPD released its April 16 statement within 20 minutes of The Informer visiting Fourth District Headquarters and calling MPD public information officer Nicole Deaner. The trek to 6001 Georgia Avenue NW came one day after an email sent to MPD went unanswered.

A police report, which The Informer received soon after the release of MPD’s statement, said at least a dozen officers arrived at the scene and recovered a white Ford E-150. Some of those officers, Williams said, went to great lengths to stop him from recording, even threatening to arrest him.

“For them just to have a body hanging and not say s*** to the community about it was crazy,” Williams told The Informer. “There were many, many people out there. Parents, grandparents, and children, and they couldn't understand what was going on.”

Days after his footage attracted nearly 9,000 views on YouTube, Williams continues to question why MPD didn’t immediately publicize the gruesome discovery.

“The only thing I did see was some little flash reports…that just said police [were] over the scene,” Williams said. “They just made no issue that there was a body hanging in broad daylight at 1:30 p.m. They tried to cover it up… and then nothing came out after that.”

An Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners Paints a Bigger Picture

For days, reports circulated on-

5 A few flowers left by passersby litter the area where a body was found hanging from a tree at 9th and Quackenbos in Northwest. (Shevry Lassiter/The Washington Informer)

line about a Black man found hanging from a tree. Upon the release of MPD’s statement, people evoked references to “strange fruit,” a 1939 Billie Holiday song that highlighted the reality of lynching.

In speaking about its communication timeline, an MPD spokesperson told The Informer that, as part of its practice, MPD didn’t immediately publish a news release about “incidents believed to be death by suicide.” The department, according to the spokesperson, instead opted to directly respond to community members’ calls and at least four media inquiries.

The recent death on Quackenbos Street NW took place six years after MPD found 50 year-old Jose Rodrigo Hernandez-Pena, under similar circumstances, on the 7200 block of Seventh Street NW. It also comes amid tensions between police and young people, the latest juncture of which culminated in D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser’s reinstatement of a limited youth curfew.

For Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Tamira Benitez, the tenuous relationship between young people and police, much like what community members said led to the 2020 police-involved murder of Karon Hylton-Brown, calls into question whether the local authorities will practice empathy in their investigation of the 19 year old’s death.

“Historically, but even more in the last couple of years, our youth have been not only policed by our local government, but also by the federal government,” said Benitez, who represents Single-Member District 4B05.

Read more on washingtoninformer.com.

CROWELL from Page 22 by the cuts include:

• $4.6 billion to eliminate Community Development Block Grants (CBDG).

• $922 million cut to homelessness assistance.

• $285M reduction in rental assistance that helps the elderly and people with disabilities.

• $206 million from family self-sufficiency and job training programs.

• $60 million to eliminate programs for fair housing investigation, enforcement and training programs.

staff, from 463 to just 75 people.

Such a severe staff cut would leave remaining employees unable to fulfill the agency's statutory duties that span investigations, supervision, enforcement and community outreach. At the same time, financial bad actors would get a green light to continue predatory lending, financial scams and junk fees — all of which siphon off hard-earned consumer dollars.

"The CFPB cannot meet its statutory obligations at these bare-bones staffing levels and the resulting lack of oversight will help bad financial services firms evade compliance with longstanding federal consumer protection laws and regulations," stated Graciela Aponte-Diaz, vice president of community engagement at the Center for Responsible Lending's Julian Bond Institute. "The CFPB already has cancelled enforcement actions that would have returned hundreds of millions of dollars to consumers."

Similar comments came from Tom

MORIAL from Page 22

serve every address in America at a uniform price, regardless of how remote or expensive that delivery is.

Feltner, associate director of consumer policy at Americans for Financial Reform.

"Rather than cutting enforcement, supervision, and outreach staff, we should be strengthening the capacity of those offices to hold financial wrongdoers accountable, prevent emerging risks like those that caused the 2008 financial crisis, and prevent the wave of scams making everyone's lives more difficult and more expensive," said Feltner.

For Black America, already financially short-changed by nagging wealth inequality, the nation's affordability crisis worsens our ongoing quest for full participation in this nation's opportunities.

Our hopes and dreams still yearn to know and enjoy America's bounty, and not just its disproportionate burdens. A fair federal budget enacted by Congress is not only appropriate but deserved.

Last year, nearly 6 million consumers — a 200% increase — filed reports with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau complaint database. Although federal court rulings denied the Trump administration's efforts to shutter the agency, the fiscal year 2027 budget now proposes an 84% cut to examination Get FAA approved maintenance training at campuses coast to coast. Job placement assistance. Financial Aid for qualifying students. Military friendly. Call Aviation Institute of Maintenance 800-481-7894

The financial crisis did not appear overnight. USPS has lost money almost every fiscal year since 2007, with net losses totaling approximately $109 billion from fiscal years 2007 through 2024. Much of that loss traces back to a 2006 law that forced the agency to pre-fund 75 years of retiree health benefits in just 10 years — a burden placed on no other federal agency or private company. Congress created the problem. Congress has been slow to solve it. And now, rather than stepping up with the legislative action that every credible financial analysis says is required, too many members are standing aside while the institution crumbles.

Privatizing USPS could mean the end of guaranteed mail service to every American address, leaving many rural customers without the deliveries they depend on. For communities of color, the elderly, people with disabilities and low-income families who depend on the Postal Service for medications, government benefits and financial correspondence, this is not an inconvenience. It is a rupture in the basic terms of citizenship. And this is where the stakes become undeniable, because we are

not having this conversation about postal funding in a vacuum. We are having it in an election year, with a Supreme Court case on the docket that could make the reliability of mail delivery a matter of life or death for American democracy.

The Supreme Court is expected to issue a ruling in Watson v. Republican National Committee months before the November midterm elections. The case centers on the Republican Party's challenge to Mississippi's law allowing mail ballots postmarked by Election Day to be counted if they arrive within five business days afterward. Twenty-nine states, plus Washington, D.C., count at least some timely cast ballots if received within a brief window after Election Day.

The National Urban League filed an amicus brief defending those grace periods. We did so because we understand what is at stake. Black, Hispanic and Native American voters encounter the greatest barriers to in-person voting due to greater polling relocation and removal. Mail voting is not a convenience for these communities. It is often their most reliable path to the ballot. Now consider what happens if the court guts those grace periods just as the Postal Service is too underfunded to guarantee timely mail delivery. Voters who rely on mail voting — such as military and overseas voters, voters

with disabilities and older voters — would face the most significant impacts if postmark deadlines are struck down.

The two crises connect. A weakened Postal Service cannot guarantee that a ballot mailed on Election Day will arrive within the shrinking window the courts may allow. The math is simple, and the intent is legible. When you hollow out the institution and restrict the deadline simultaneously, you do not need to prevent people from voting. You just make their votes disappear in the mail.

Congress must act. Not eventually. Now.

Increase USPS's borrowing authority. Stabilize its finances. Restore the workforce that has been cut. Protect the institution that has served this country since before it was a country.

The National Urban League has spent more than 115 years fighting for the full citizenship of Black America. We have fought at the ballot box, in the courts and in the halls of Congress. We know that democracy is not threatened only by dramatic, obvious assaults. Sometimes it is threatened by budget shortfalls, by inaction and by the slow erosion of the infrastructure that connects people to their government and their rights.

Either way, this November, the people will have something to say about who chose to stand by while the mail stopped running. WI

AIRLINE CAREERS

LOVE from Page 23

revolutions and by anti-colonial uprisings that would transform the world and drape the red hammer and sickle across vast swaths of the map in the years to come."

The luxuries and quality of life that western civilization enjoys are based on the colonial relationship it has with the so-called Third World, which is largely non-white and poor. People who are self-respecting will rise up to challenge the social order that is the cause of their degradation.

Additionally, in a November 1979 interview with journalist Mike Wallace, Ayatollah Khomeini, leader of Iran, committed to releasing Black and women hostages — and delivered on that commitment. His rationale for releasing Black hostages was that they are an oppressed group in America and not responsible for the aggression toward his people. This is a recognition of the global system of domination that bolsters white political and economic domination of the world.

It is also important to acknowledge the role that Israel has played in encouraging U.S. military aggression toward Iran.

MALVEAUX

from Page 23

It was not disorder; it was organized suppression.

The lesson is sobering. When participation expands, resistance emerges.

Today's debates unfold in legislative chambers rather than in armed mobs. But the question remains: Who has the authority to define citizenship?

from Page 23

conditions require lifelong treatment. But we need to talk more honestly about the role of lifestyle — nutrition, physical activity, sleep, stress and social connection — as essential components of healing and prevention.

Right now, lifestyle interventions are too often an afterthought. But no amount of medication can fully counteract the health consequences of poor diet, inactivity or chronic stress. Rebuilding our nation's health means re-centering our care around what actually restores health, not just what controls disease.

Israel considers itself a cultural descendant of western civilization. The state of Israel serves as a proxy for maintaining U.S. geopolitical domination of the Muslim world, and the Palestinian people have been casualties of U.S. maintenance and support of the settler colonial project of the state of Israel. Israel has been urging the U.S. to take a more aggressive stance toward Iran to advance its own military domination of the region.

The current administration's capitulation to Israeli political leadership's urging to enact regime change in Iran is further acknowledgment of how important Israel is as an instrument of American imperialism. The current military strikes against Iran by the Trump administration are another example of the white nationalist political agenda of the Republican Party. What must be acknowledged is that the military-industrial complex that funds both political parties must be directly confronted and ultimately dismantled. America currently invests $1 trillion a year in tax dollars to maintain its role as policeman of the world.

Democrats in the upcoming midterms need to be forced to engage in a radical change in Amer-

Douglass claimed his identity in a system that denied him documentation. He did not wait for official recognition to assert his humanity. He understood that democracy depends not on perfect records, but on inclusive participation.

When paperwork becomes a prerequisite for political voice, we should ask whether we are strengthening de-

Good medicine means knowing when to say, "Let's take another look." Care teams need to evaluate medications more holistically. And we need to encourage open conversations between doctors and patients about medication goals, side effects and quality of life.

This cannot happen in isolation. We need insurers to support time for thoughtful medication reviews. We need better coordination across specialties and care settings. We need electronic health record developers to follow government rules and allow users to reconcile a patient's active medication list, correct inaccuracies, and include non-pre-

ican foreign policy that does not legitimize military aggression toward people defending their sovereignty. Democrats need to be forced to pursue a policy that divests from the $1 trillion military budget and puts those resources in the hands of the masses of people in this society who have been victimized by the global system of white supremacy.

It is also important to acknowledge the role that Israel has played in encouraging U.S. military aggression toward Iran.

mocracy — or narrowing it.

The struggle over the ballot has never been merely procedural. It has always been about power.

Douglass defined himself when the state would not.

The question now is whether we will let the state decide who counts.

scription medicines and dietary supplements.

Deprescribing is not about withholding care — it's about delivering the right care, at the right time, for the right reasons. It's about restoring balance — recognizing when a pill is helping and when it's just adding to the burden. At its core, this is about respect: for the science, for the art of medicine and, most importantly, for the lives of patients. If we're serious about improving the health of our nation, then reassessing medications — and refocusing on the foundations of real health and collaboration with our patients — must become a routine part of how we practice medicine. WI

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This Week's Edition : 4-23-26

The

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As Youth Curfew Discussion Continues, A Ward 6 D.C.

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PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY

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‘Guilty’ for Investments in Weapons Manufacturers, Repression of Students

Learning AI

NATIONAL

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A Roadmap to Work Around Gaps

INTERNATIONAL

Rwanda Genocide at 32: World Remembers Over 1 Million Killed in 100 Days

HEALTH

EARTH OUR

The Future is Electric

Communities of Color Continue Bearing the Brunt

SPONSORS

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TO THE EDITOR

OPINIONS/EDITORIALS

Guest Columnist

Trump Budget Leaves Working Families Behind

Guest Columnist

The Postal Service Should Be Funded Rain, Snow, Sleet or Stalemate

The Future of Work

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