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Young, Black, and In Business KidBizCON 2026 Highlights Future of Entrepreneurship––and it Looks Youth-Led

4 As the school year kicks off, changes to federal student loans through the One Big Beautiful Act are now affecting college students, worried about funding and next steps. (WI File Photo/Roy Lewis)

By Jada Ingleton WI Content Editor

Students and Universities Start Year in the Shadow of Trump’s ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’

By Sam Plo Kwia Collins, Jr. and Tatiana Allen WI Senior Staff Writer and WI Intern

As had been the case throughout her entire college career, Shelby Brown relied heavily on the Parent PLUS Loan to cover her tuition. However, the implementation of President Donald J. Trump’s so-called One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) called into question if such resources would be in jeopardy. “They sent me a notice saying that, based upon the

data provided by the national student loan data system and based on my grade level, the U.S. Department of Education determined that [I] may have received a total amount of federal student loans, graduate and/or undergraduate, that exceeds the loan limits established for this federal student loan programs,” Brown told The Informer. Brown, a fifth-year biology major at Howard University (HU), will complete her last semester this fall before

STUDENTS Page 30

Built a Vaccine Firewall. Trump’s New Order is About to Test It

With Back to School Season in Full Swing, Experts Say President’s Policy is ‘Sowing Chaos’ By Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer President Donald Trump’s attempt to remake the nation’s childhood vaccination system is barely a week old, but Washing5 The nation’s capital will serve as an early test of how far states ton, D.C., has already positioned itself to go its own way. and local governments can protect their residents from a rapidly changing federal vaccine policy. (WI File Photo/Robert R. Roberts) That could make the nation’s

capital an early test of how far states and local governments can protect their residents from a rapidly changing federal vaccine policy. Trump’s executive order calls for separating combination vaccines like the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine

VACCINE Page 15

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With National Black Business Month in full swing, all eyes are on boosting the entrepreneurial sector that holds the second-strongest link to wealth creation for African Americans. Here in the nation’s capital, advocates say the emphasis starts with an ecosystem as youth-led as it is

action-driven; at least that was the consensus among the scholars who benefited from the Youth Entrepreneur Institute (YEI)’s annual KidBizCON. “It actually just emphasizes how little kids can actually do stuff. Middle school, elementary…our program opens up that base,” said Deloris Betty, YEI alumna and

KIDBIZ Page 13

4 Journey Walker live pitches her Pink Art business model during day one of Youth Entrepreneur Institute (YEI)’s 2026 KidBizCON, where the 9-year-old took home the title as elementary-school-level runner-up. (Jada Ingleton/The Washington Informer)

Soul Searcher: The Chuck Brown Biography Years in the Making

Pan-African Music Historian Sundiata Ramin Chronicles Early Years of the ‘Godfather of Go-Go’ By Sam Plo Kwia Collins, Jr. WI Senior Staff Writer With the granite anniversary of Chuck Brown’s birth right around the corner, District residents near and far have yet another opportunity to reflect on the life of the man known worldwide as

SOUL SEARCHER Page 9

3 “Soul Searcher: Life and Legend of Chuck Brown, Godfather of Go-Go,” chronicles the life of Chuck Brown, the sociopolitical circumstances around go-go’s creation, and the music genre’s connection to Africa (Courtesy Photo)

AUGUST 20 - 26, 2026 1

We Proudly Welcome Our Summer 2026 Interns

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Thanks to your generous support, The Washington Informer is able to provide aspiring journalists with meaningful opportunities to learn, report, photograph, and tell the stories that too often go untold. As you meet this summer’s interns, know that your support is helping cultivate the next generation of journalists committed to serving our community with excellence and purpose.

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wi hot topics

STACY M. BROWN, WI SENIOR WRITER

Trump Celebrates One Black Woman’s Historic Rise While Renewing Push to Oust Another In just a few days, President Donald Trump’s administration ushered in one Black woman’s historic achievement while also trying again to remove another from her position. On Aug. 5, the Senate confirmed Dr. Erica Schwartz, Trump’s pick to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), making her the first Black woman to head the agency. Around the same time, the White House renewed its effort to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, who is the first Black woman to serve on the Fed’s Board of Governors. “Governor Lisa Cook is a highly respected economist who has dedicated her career to dismantling barriers to innovation and economic participation,” said Congressional Black Caucus Chair Rep. Yvette Clark (D-N.Y.) in a 2025 In Memoriam Dr. Calvin W. Rolark, Sr. Wilhelmina J. Rolark

THE WASHINGTON INFORMER NEWSPAPER (ISSN#0741-9414) is published weekly on each Thursday. Periodicals postage paid at Washington, D.C. and additional mailing offices. News and advertising deadline is Monday prior to publication. Announcements must be received two weeks prior to event. Copyright 2016 by The Washington Informer. All rights reserved. POSTMASTER: Send change of addresses to The Washington Informer, 3117 Martin Luther King, Jr. Ave., S.E. Washington, D.C. 20032. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher. The Informer Newspaper cannot guarantee the return of photographs. Subscription rates are $96 per year, two years $168. Papers will be received not more than a week after publication. Make checks payable to:

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REPORTERS Stacy Brown, National Reporter Sam Plo Kwia Collins, Jr., Political/Education Reporter Brenda Siler, Lifestyle Reporter Ed Hill, Sports Reporter Richard Elliott, Reporter Skylar Nelson, Sports Reporter Mya Trujillo, Multimedia Reporter PHOTOGRAPHERS Shevry Lassiter, Photo Editor Ja Mon Jackson, Asst. Photo Editor Roy Lewis, Jr. Robert R. Roberts Anthony Tilghman Abdullah Konte Cleveland Nelson INTERNS Evan Aldridge, Summer Intern Tatiana Allen, Summer Intern Jordan Armstead, Summer Intern Will Deffaa, Summer Intern Razak Diallo, Summer Intern

BLACK WOMEN Page 14

For Years, Keffe D Talked About Tupac’s Murder. Now a Jury is Listening

PUBLISHER Denise Rolark Barnes STAFF Micha Green, Managing Editor Ron Burke, Advertising/Marketing Director Shevry Lassiter, WIN-TV Producer Ra-Jah Kelly, Digital Asset Manager Lafayette Barnes, IV, Editor, WI Bridge DC Desmond Barnes, WIN Daily Editor Anthony Tilghman, Social Media Strategist ZebraDesigns.net, Graphic Design Mable Neville, Bookkeeper Angie Johnson, Office/Circulation Manager Jada Ingleton, Content Editor

statement. “Since joining the Federal Reserve Board, Dr. Cook has brought invaluable expertise and maintained an independent, principled judgment.” The moves put two trailblazing Black women in very different positions. Schwartz is moving into a top public health role with Trump’s support, while Cook is fighting to keep her important economic post despite opposition from the administration. Last week, the White House told Cook it was thinking about removing her and gave her 21 days to answer questions about mortgages on several properties. Cook has not been charged with a crime or found guilty of any wrongdoing, even though these claims first came up a year ago.

5 While Duane “Keffe D” Davis is charged in Clark County, Nevada, with one count of murder with use of a deadly weapon in relation to the death of Tupac Shakur, RJ Bond, a longtime researcher of the rapper and actor, says prosecutors lack physical evidence in this trial. (Courtesy Photo)

Duane “Keffe D” Davis spent years talking about the night Tupac Shakur was killed. Now, nearly three decades after bullets tore into the car carrying the rapper on a Las Vegas street, a jury will decide if Davis talked himself into prison for life. Jury selection started this week for Davis’ long-awaited murder trial. The 63-year-old former gang leader is accused of helping plan the September 1996 drive-by shooting that killed one of hip-hop’s most influential artists. Prosecutors have something rare for a murder case this old: years of statements from the defendant placing himself at the center of the story. What they do not have, according to filmmaker and longtime Shakur case researcher RJ Bond, is the murder weapon, the getaway car, or the three other men authorities say were inside it. “I think actually the biggest misconception that people have in the case is that there’s actually any evidence,” Bond told The Informer. “There’s no gun, there’s no car, there’s no witnesses.” Davis is charged in Clark County, Nevada, with one count of murder with use of a deadly weapon. He has pleaded not guilty and faces life in prison without parole if convicted. About 75 prospective jurors were summoned Monday as attorneys questioned whether they could fairly and impartially decide one of the most famous cold cases in American popular culture. WI Read more on washingtoninformer.com.

NABJ Called Out Stephen A. Smith. He Went to Fox News Stephen A. Smith has spent decades building his career on the art of debate. When given a microphone, an opponent, and a reason to argue, few on American television seem more at ease than he is. But when the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) publicly criticized Smith for what it called a pattern of negative comments about Black women, the place where he chose to respond became nearly as controversial as the award. Smith took his case to Fox News. On the show, sitting across from conservative host Sean Hannity, the ESPN star strongly rejected NABJ’s decision to give him its “Thumbs Down Award.” He called the accusation “a flat-out lie” and defended his treatment of Black women by mentioning the Black women in his own life. “I was raised by five Black women,” Smith said. “My mother, God rest her soul, and my four older sisters. Have two

daughters. I have 10 nieces. I don’t know what the hell they’re talking about.” Smith’s appearance Monday night on “Hannity” was another step in a tense public dispute between one of America’s most well-known Black media figures and the country’s largest group of Black journalists. Fox News confirmed Smith went on the show to respond to NABJ’s award, and Smith has called the organization’s action a “hit job.” However, Smith’s decision to make his case on Hannity’s show led to more criticism. Some argued that choosing this platform only supported the concerns NABJ had raised. “So, he gets called out by the NABJ, and the first place he goes is Fox News, Lord have mercy,” one X user

SMITH Page 27

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D.C. Faces Questions Over Whether Opioid Settlement Money is Expanding Treatment or Paying Existing Bills By Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer The District is set to receive more than $100 million from companies accused of contributing to the opioid epidemic. This money is meant to help address the damage caused by a crisis that has taken thousands of lives locally, but now advocates wonder where and how the funds are being spent. The settlements resulted from litigation against manufacturers, distributors and other companies accused of contributing to widespread opioid addiction and overdose deaths. The money was intended to help governments address damage caused by the epidemic through treatment, prevention, recovery services and efforts to reduce overdose deaths. “Tragically, hundreds of D.C. residents continue to lose their lives every year to opioid overdoses, and far too many members of our community struggle with opioid addiction,” said D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb in a July 2025 statement. However, as D.C. prepares its fiscal 2027 spending plan, a dispute has emerged over whether millions of those settlement dollars will fund new and expanded responses to the opioid crisis or cover services previously financed by the city’s general budget. The National Academy for State Health Policy’s opioid settlement tracker shows how D.C. is spending money on treatment, prevention, harm reduction, and other opioid-related services. So far, D.C. has approved at least $18 million in government subsidies and grants. At issue is roughly $2.3 million in opioid settlement money designated to help pay the District’s Medicaid contribution and at least $5.5 million to support addiction treatment centers previously funded through the general budget, according to documents obtained by KFF Health. Critics say replacing

existing city funding with settlement money violates District law requiring that the funds “supplement, and not supplant,” other spending. “If the opioid settlement funds were not there, I feel pretty confident that these things would have been funded, because they have to be funded,” Chad Jackson, chair of the District’s Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission, told KFF Health.

Questions About Spending

While D.C. continues to receive money from settlements, state and local governments nationwide are expected to receive more than $50 billion over nearly two decades. The District created an Opioid Abatement Fund and an advisory commission to help guide the use of its share. The Department of Behavioral Health’s (DBH) Office of Opioid Abatement administers settlement-funded initiatives and grants addressing opioid use disorder, overdose prevention, treatment and recovery. But advocates are questioning whether settlement dollars are expanding the city’s response or replacing money D.C. would have been spent anyway. District law says money from the opioid abatement fund “shall supplement, and not supplant” other funding. “It’s a pretty tightly written law where the intent is very clear: Do not supplant,” said Shelly Weizman, associate director of the Center on Addiction and Public Policy at Georgetown Law’s O’Neill Institute. If settlement dollars replace general-fund money previously used to support treatment, the overall amount spent on those services may remain unchanged. KFF found that substituting settlement dollars for existing general funding would keep overall treatment

3 As D.C. prepares its fiscal 2027 spending plan, a dispute is emerging over whether millions of settlement dollars will fund new and expanded responses to the opioid crisis or cover services previously financed by the city’s general budget. (WI File Photo/Ja’Mon Jackson)

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1942 – Soul music legend Isaac Hayes, best known for his Oscar-winning "Theme from Shaft," is born in Memphis, Tennessee.

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1831 – Nat Turner leads a rebellion of slaves and free Blacks in Southampton County, Virginia, that resulted in the deaths more than 50 white people. 1904 – Count Basie, famed jazz pianist and bandleader, is born in Red Bank, New Jersey. 1932 – Melvin Van Peebles, actor, director and composer, is born in Chicago. 1936 – Basketball great Wilt Chamberlain, the only player in NBA history to score 100 points in a single game, is born in Philadelphia.

Aug. 22

1917 – Famed blues singer and guitarist John Lee Hooker, known as the "King of the Boogie," is born in Mississippi. 1950 – Althea Gibson becomes the first African American on the U.S. tennis tour. 1978 – Jomo Kenyatta, Kenya's first prime minister, dies at 86. 1989 – Huey P. Newton, co-founder of the Black Panther Party, is shot and killed by a reputed drug dealer in Oakland, California.

Aug. 23

1900 – The National Negro Business League, which was founded by Booker T. Washington,

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holds its first meeting in Boston. 1978 – Five-time NBA champion Kobe Bryant is born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Aug. 24

1950 – Edith Sampson, a lawyer and judge, becomes the first Black U.S. delegate appointed to the United Nations. 1987 – Civil rights leader Bayard Rustin, chief organizer of the 1963 March on Washington, dies in Manhattan.

Aug. 25

1925 – A. Philip Randolph becomes head of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters and Maids, the first predominantly African American labor union. 1927 – Althea Gibson, the first African American on the U.S. tennis tour and first to win a Grand Slam title, is born in Silver, South Carolina. 2001 – Music star and actress Aaliyah and eight others are killed in a plane crash in the Bahamas after filming a music video. She was 22.

Aug. 26

1946 – Singer/songwriter Valerie Simpson, half of legendary husband-wife duo Ashford & Simpson, is born in the Bronx, New York. 1947 – Brooklyn Dodgers' Dan Bankhead becomes the first Black pitcher in Major League Baseball history in a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, also hitting a home run in his first at-bat. 1960 – Grammy-winning jazz saxophonist Branford Marsalis is born in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana. WI

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spending flat rather than increase it. More than 80 people and 30 District organizations signed a letter objecting to the proposed use of the money. The letter, sent to DBH Director Barbara Bazron, D.C. Councilmember Christina Henderson (I-At-Large), chair of the Council’s Committee on Health, and Schwalb, accused DBH of planning to use opioid settlement funds to “pay off its own debts.” The dispute subsequently drew questions from Henderson and Schwalb. “We are also concerned that DBH may be using the settlement monies for other unauthorized purposes,” Henderson and Schwalb wrote in a July 17 letter to the department. They specifically questioned the $2.3 million designated for the District’s Medicaid contribution and asked DBH to explain, by July 31, how it determined that using settlement funds was legal. It was unclear whether DBH met that deadline. Additionally, D.C. has announced grants and programs financed with settlement proceeds, including expanded youth treatment services, overdose response, peer recovery programs and community-based opioid prevention and treatment efforts. Jackson, who is himself in recovery, has argued that the fiscal 2027 proposal crosses the line established by District law.

5 D.C. Councilmember Christina Henderson, pictured at the inaugural Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission Meeting in October 2023, is one of the leaders concerned about how funds meant to address the opioid epidemic are being spent. (WI File Photo/Robert R. Roberts)

Queen Adesuyi, a D.C.-based harm reduction advocate and partner at Reframe Health and Justice, has also challenged the proposed spending. “These funds were awarded to D.C. for very specific reasons and with a specific mandate, which are to remediate issues related to the opioid crisis in new and innovative ways,” Adesuyi told KFF.

Calls for ‘Interventions That Are More Courageous

Department of Behavioral Health spokesperson Denise Reed said the council approved a legally certified budget that uses local resources, including the opioid settlement fund, to provide grants to 17 community-based organizations. Those providers served nearly 9,800 residents last year, including about 3,500 people receiving medication-assisted treatment for opioid addiction, according to DBH. Reed emphasized DBH is “committed to compliance with all statutory requirements governing opioid settlement funds.” A spokesperson for Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) didn’t immediately respond to The Informer’s request for comment. Meanwhile, the District continues to struggle with an unpredictable illicit drug supply and overdose deaths even as settlement

5 Chad Jackson argues that the fiscal 2027proposal for how to spend settlement funds to address the opioid crisis crosses the line established by District law. (WI File Photo/Robert R. Roberts

money becomes available, which Adesuyi says makes decisions about how funds are spent particularly consequential. “The drug supply is getting a lot more unpredictable, which calls for some nimbleness, and it calls for interventions that are more courageous,” Adesuyi remarked. “Unfortunately, DBH is not meeting the mark when it comes to that.” As questions about funding and resources continue, the harm reduction advocate emphasized the challenges facing D.C. residents in the meantime. “It’s frustrating, it’s disappointing, and it’s enraging,” she said, “because people are dying unnecessarily in the District to overdose.” WI

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SOUL SEARCHER from Page 1 The Godfather of Go-Go. Such an opportunity has come in the form of “Soul Searcher: Life and Legend of Chuck Brown, Godfather of Go-Go” a newly released book by go-go historian Sundiata Ramin. As author of the first Brown biography, Ramin said he’s set out to document a global pioneer’s story. “It’s the first book ever to talk about his life in a sense of where the rhythm came from,” Ramin told The Informer. “Chuck gives the attributes to his mother, saying she recognized that he can play on rocks with sticks, and say ‘That boy's got my rhythm.’ And then his maturation from Richmond, Virginia to Washington, D.C., where he's on U Street shining shoes. He’s seen Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Cab Calloway, and even Hank Williams.” When he died in 2012, Brown received a hero’s tribute at what was then the newly reopened Howard Theatre in Northwest. By the age of 75, he accumulated more than half a century of experience as a musician and world-class performer who influenced the likes of Trouble Funk, Experience Unlimited, Rare Essence, and Junk Yard Band. Ramin’s biography, not endorsed or approved by Brown’s family, represents his independent research about Brown’s upbringing and career, and go-go’s Diasporic African roots. Brown’s family, in an email, said they read an advanced copy of “Soul Searcher” after learning about Ramin’s endeavor and reaching out to him. As the family continues to work on a film project about Brown’s life, they are not designating Ramin’s book a

biography, rather a collection of publicly available information. Even so, Ramin, who unsuccessfully attempted to secure a foreword from Brown’s oldest son Nekos Brown, posits “Soul Searcher” as a necessity for go-go fans and students of Africa. “This book is 40 years of preparation because it comes [from] understanding..the African origin of poly rhythms, call and response, and syncopated beats,” said Ramin, a student of Dr. Yosef Ben-Jochannan and Dr. John Henrik Clark, among others. “I was taught to look at the world in perspective from the eyes of Africa. Then I looked at Brazil, I looked at Cuba, I looked at Puerto Rico and I saw the same thing. I saw African people going there and bringing each rhythm.” Since the June 1 release of “Soul Searcher,” Ramin has spoken before audiences at the Go-Go Museum and Cafe in Southeast, where he currently serves as a museum curator and director of tours. He also presented his book at Sankofa Video Books & Cafe on Georgia Avenue NW. On Aug. 1, Ramin will appear at “Black Books Matter 2026” at MahoganyBooks in National Harbor, Maryland. His goal, he told The Informer, lies in fostering an appreciation for go-go and its development throughout the decades. The book release comes amid his and Go-Go Museum & Cafe co-founder Ron Moten’s assistance in launching Next Generation Crank, a Gen-Z go-go band with students primarily from Stuart-Hobson Middle School in Northeast. “There haven’t really been any major documentaries done in the last

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5 Musician-organizer-curator Jamal Gray interviews Sundiata Gray during a book release event at Sankofa Video Books & Cafe on July 16. (Photo Courtesy of Sundiata Ramin)

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After 10 weeks, countless hours, and more than two dozen bylines, The Washington Informer (WI)’s summer editorial interns conclude a successful season of delivering critical news with a celebratory lunch at the National Press Club in Northwest. Hosted by WI Publisher Denise Rolark Barnes (center), interns Jordan Armstead, Razak Diallo, Evan Aldridge, and Tatiana Allen shared their future plans and pivotal headlines from the summer, including coverage in business, education, sports, among others, across D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. Not pictured: William Deffaa. (Ja’Mon Jackson/The Washington Informer)

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SOUL SEARCHER from Page 9 10 years on go-go,” Ramin told The Informer. “Not connecting with [the] bounce [beat], grown and sexy [go-go subgenres], the way this museum is trying to do it. We're literally teaching you the differences between the two from the family tree.”

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Brown, it was by Trouble Funk in 1981. So people have to understand the live sound is what we were pushing for, and the record companies were saying, ‘No, we don't need that,’ because they don't want to pay the money for the audience to be there.” Other parts of Ramin’s book touch on more of the controversial aspects of Brown’s career, like a hiatus between 1979 and 1984 that opened the door for Trouble Funk, Rare Essence and EU. Later on, readers learn about Brown’s reemergence during the 1980s and well into the turn of the century with the help of manager Tom Goldfogle and late record producer Chucky Thompson, the latter of whom he released “We’re About the Business” with in 2007. Toward the end of the book, Ramin chronicles Brown’s gigs abroad. He also delves further into go-go’s return to Africa, primarily by highlighting his educational work alongside R&B/ Soul artist Michelle Blackwell in Ghana and performances by Team Familiar, Black Alley, and Backyard in the Motherland. In focusing on the continuity of Africa in go-go, Ramin pays homage to the late Mamadi Nyasuma, founder of the 2000 BLACK – The World Percussion Ensemble, as well as the late Baba Melvin Deal, founder of the African Heritage Dancers and Drummers. WI Read more on washingtoninformer.com.

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5 Sundiata Ramin, museum curator and director of tours at the Go-Go Museum & Cafe in Southeast, released “Soul Searcher: Life and Legend of Chuck Brown, Godfather of Go-Go” on June 1 as a means of documenting the life of Chuck Brown. (Photo Courtesy of Sundiata Ramin)

us from moving forward,” Stephenson said. “What was interesting about Sundiata was that he knew that, and he said ‘I’m just gonna move forward.’ And with that, he got my blessings.” In Stephenson’s eyes, Ramin rose to the occasion. “This is thorough,” Stephenson told The Informer about “Soul Searcher.” “To have a book dedicated to Chuck, his upbringing from where he was born to where he died. And then, obviously, incorporating the influences. There's no other book I think that could compete with that.” For nearly 200 pages, readers of “Soul Searcher” learn about Brown’s early life, starting in his birthplace of Gaston, North Carolina, and later when he and his mother moved to Richmond, Virginia and finally, the nation’s capital. That’s where, according to the book, Brown shined shoes for jazz stars, developed an interest in boxing, and fell for the allure of the streets. Subsequent chapters delve into Brown’s adolescent struggles and eventual incarceration at Lorton Reformatory, where he learned to tailor and play guitar. Readers also gain insight into Brown’s “backyard barbeque gigs,” his formation of Los Latinos, and ultimately The Soul Searchers, through which he created the sound known to many as go-go. With each turn of the page comes mention of the various musical genres that go-go encompassed, as well as the events that influenced critical elements of the culture, including the pocket groove and call-and- response. “Record companies did not know how to structure go-go, because they wanted to put them in the studio and take them away from the call and response for a live album,” Ramin said. “The first live album wasn't by Chuck

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To write “Soul Searcher,” Ramin watched a series of Chuck Brown interviews, including one the late music legend did with the National Visionary Leadership Project in 2007. Ramin also interviewed Soul Searchers drummer Kenneth Scoggins, Benjamin Walker of Los Latinos, and GoGo Live promoter and Brown’s stage manager Darryll Brooks, among several others. Another resource Ramin tapped into was Charles C. Stephenson, Jr., the go-go scholar and activist who cowrote “The Beat: Go-Go’s Fusion of Funk and Hip-Hop.” “He was the first person I consulted, and he approved,” Ramin told The Informer. “He said, ‘Chuck would be proud of what you’ve done.’” Stephenson, a cultural and political activist who moved to D.C. from Mount Vernon, New York during the Black Power Era, met Brown during the 1970s while serving as manager of Experience Unlimited, also known as EU. The men maintained a strong relationship for the rest of Brown’s life, the better part of which Stephenson hosted annual Malcolm X Day functions. As Stephenson recounted, he had Brown’s blessing in uniting go-go bands around activism and spreading uplifting messages. “The fact that he understood the struggles of brothers and sisters in the streets,” Stephenson said, “and he was going to be their uncle and their father to get them to rise above their current situations. He did that with his music. He did that with his presence.” This fall, Stephenson, Alona Wartofsky, and Kato Hammond will release “Crankin!: Power and Resilience in Washington DC's Go-Go Culture.” The book, which details go-go’s 50-year history, initially started as an endeavor to chronicle Brown’s life. As Stephenson recounted, those plans fell to the wayside when Brown’s family didn’t greenlight the project. “The fact that we didn't have the blessings of the family kind of deterred

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PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY Maryland Legislators Approve Redistricting Ballot Measure By Richard Elliott WI Contributing Reporter Maryland legislators approved a ballot measure to allow for new legal language regarding congressional maps during the early August special session. The measure, which legislators voted for on Aug. 6, follow a flurry of mid-decade redistricting efforts in primarily Southern states to protect the slim Republican majorities in Congress.

“Some states are considering redrawing their maps before the next census. Maryland passed House Bill 2100 to clarify the rules if our state ever considers doing the same,” Del. Denise Roberts (D-District 25) said in an online video statement. “We did not draw a new map, no district lines moved, and nobody woke up in a different congressional district.” Maryland voters will have the opportunity to vote on this ballot measure during the general elec-

3 U Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (center) poses with legislative leaders and visitors as House Bill 2100 is enacted into law. (Courtesy Photo/ Office of Speaker Joseline Peña-Melnyk)

tion, similar to Virginia’s referendum on redistricting earlier this year. While Senate President Bill Ferguson IV (D-District 46) supported the ballot measure during the special session, a redistricting bill that passed the House of Delegates last session did not get a hearing in the State Senate. “I think the fundamental earthquake, the legal earthquake, was the United States Supreme Court's decision in Calais that eviscerated the Voting Rights Act,” Ferguson said in an Aug. 6 interview with FOX45. “This is giving Marylanders a voice in what is an incredibly

The Owner's Lens The State of Business: Growth Without Certainty When I talk with business owners, I hear two stories at the same time. The economic indicators tell us that business activity continues. But owners are navigating rising costs, workforce challenges, access to capital, changing technology, and uncertainty about what comes next. That disconnect matters. I believe this is a moment when owners have to look beyond revenue. Growth alone does not necessarily mean a business is getting stronger. The better questions are: Are your margins improving? Is your cash flow healthy? Can the business operate without depending entirely on you? Are you investing in technology and people? And most importantly, are you building something of lasting value? Economic cycles will change. Interest rates will change. Technology will change. Strong businesses prepare for those changes before they arrive. From the owner's lens, the state of business isn't simply about today's economy. It's about whether we are building companies capable of succeeding in tomorrow's. Visit https://pgcoc.org/ for more information Sincerely, Alexander K. Austin President & CEO, Prince George's Chamber of Commerce

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important conversation about the future of democracy.” Republican legislators stood united in opposition of the redistricting ballot question and a lawsuit was filed by the Maryland Freedom Caucus, an unofficial legislative caucus composed of seven conservative legislators, in Anne Arundel Circuit Court to stop the ballot measure. Del. Kathy Szeliga (R-District 7), a founder of the Freedom Caucus, has previously sued over legislative actions. “Four years ago, I was the lead plaintiff when Judge Lynne Battaglia struck down the Democrats' extreme partisan gerrymander,” Szeliga said. “Today, the Maryland Freedom Caucus is once again leading the fight to stop them from changing the rules midstream. The process matters.” Jason Rodriguez, who contributes to a talk radio station in Baltimore, was also opposed to the special session. “What people don’t realize is they are poking a sleeping bear. Conservative voters in the outlying areas had a sleepy election, and now they’ll have reason to turn

out,” Rodriguez said in a phone interview. “Where is this concern for cost of living and energy issues?” Despite opposition, Del. N. Scott Phillips (D-District 10), the chair of the Legislative Black Caucus, proudly voted to place the redistricting measure on the ballot. “This amendment does not redraw congressional districts,” he said. “It does not conflict with the United States Constitution, the Voting Rights Act, or any federal protections that govern redistricting. Those safeguards remain fully in place. What this amendment does is clarify what the Maryland Constitution does and does not say.” Del. Adrian Boafo (D), who came in first during the June primary to replace his mentor and longtime Rep. Steny Hoyer, said the redistricting effort “is long overdue.” “President Trump has worked tirelessly to gut the protections that generations of Americans have fought and died for,” Boafo continued, “and it is up to us to emphatically say that we will not stand for it.” WI

5 Speaker Joseline Peña-Melnyk signs House Bill 2100 into law. (Courtesy Photo/ Office of Speaker Joseline Peña-Melnyk)

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BUSINESS KIDBIZ from Page 1 founder of Chill N Thrill. “It's open to help [kids pursue] a creative mind, creative space, to even want to build a business. I feel like it's a very good start, influencing other people how I was influenced to build [my own].” According to Betty, that spirit shone across the products that scoured Bard High School Early College DC for KidBizCON 2026–– the very institution that birthed her own trek to innovation as a freshman at the Southeast school in 2021. Hosted Aug. 3-4, the momentous affair convened more than 200 participants, plus 30+ youthowned businesses, entrepreneurs, community and industry leaders in a celebration highlighting the

importance of investing in young minds. “At YEI, we believe entrepreneurship doesn't just create businesses—it creates futures,” said Tacharna Crump, founder and executive director of Youth Entrepreneur Institute. “KidBizCON isn't just about teaching entrepreneurship— it's about creating an ecosystem where young people can build businesses, connect with mentors, and discover what's possible when their ideas are supported.” Day one kicked off with dozens of enterprises— from novel attractions to returning vendors— lining the Southeast, D.C. gymnasium in a triple-feature Youth Business Pitch Competition, marketplace, and VIP Preview. Students as young as 9-year-old Journey Walker donned pride and

creativity in a vast array of businesses that many developed through the YEI program. Plus, the added incentive of $1,500 in total cash prizes offered a gateway to scaling the visions proudly showcased on Aug. 3. “To have something that you know that you built, you own it… and it can't be taken from you… it teaches something that is not taught in schools: understanding [how to go] into business for yourself,” YEI lead cosmetic instructor, who goes by Mark Untitled Love, told The Informer, “not just product selling, but how to sell yourself as a person.” More than that, YEI advocates note the value of teaching youth to thrive in environments where high stakes meet high rewards, and in many cases, the outcome is a better society overall. “These things that the world doesn't tell you that [youth] are, and [the negatives] that they might start to believe...I think this [does] a really good job at encapsulating a safe and welcoming space,” said the lead cosmetic instructor, “so they come back to their roots and get re-energized to go back out longer.”

5 Alexia Hyman, Layla Gray, and Hannah Thomas (far right) showcase Hannah’s self-made Magic Slime business on Aug. 3 at Bard High School Early College DC in Southeast. (Jada Ingleton/The Washington Informer)

Fantasies Turned Financial Gains: YEI Invests in Scholars, Communities

From self-defense tools to skin care and method art jewelry, the future of entrepreneurship is as purposeful as the scholars using their

products to expand resources in Washington, D.C. Take Elijah Robinson, an 18-year-old Southeast native who turned lemons into lemonade — or more specifically, an idea into a soluble fragrance — with the launch of his cologne-bomb company,

KIDBIZ Page 20

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This is the second time the administration has tried to remove Cook. President Trump purported to fire me ‘for cause’ when no cause exists under the law, and he has no authority to do so. I will not resign. I will continue to carry out my duties to help the American economy as I have been doing since 2022.” Trump tried to fire her last August, which led to a legal battle that went all the way to the Supreme Court. In June, the court ruled 5-4 that Cook should have had a formal opportunity to defend herself and that she should be allowed to stay on the board, where her term lasts until 2038. Cook’s lawyers, Abbe Lowell and Norm Eisen, said this renewed effort is another example of Trump trying to interfere with the Federal Reserve’s independence. “These allegations are as baseless now as they were a year ago when President Trump tried to remove Governor Cook and interfere with the independence of the Federal Reserve,” they said. They said there is still “no valid cause for removing Governor Cook” and promised to fight the administration’s actions again.

The Trump Administration vs. Cook

Federal Reserve governors help de-

cide interest rates and other policies that affect mortgages, credit cards, car loans, jobs, and borrowing costs across the economy. Federal law also makes it hard for a president to remove a sitting Fed governor. The Federal Reserve Act says governors can be removed only “for cause,” which is meant to keep monetary policy independent of the president. When the Supreme Court looked at Cook’s case, it did not clearly define what counts as “cause.” The White House claims the mortgage allegations might meet that standard. In a recent letter, Deputy White House Chief of Staff Dan Scavino wrote that Cook’s actions “may be sufficient to demonstrate that you committed a crime.” He also claimed that obtaining mortgages on properties listed as primary residences may have enabled her to secure better loan terms. Cook has said before that the differences were just clerical mistakes. On Monday, White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett took a more cautious approach, saying he hoped Cook was right about her innocence. He called the issue “a law enforcement matter” and would not discuss the details. He also said he would not take Cook’s job if she were removed. WI Read more on washingtoninformer.com.

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5 The White House is renewing its efforts to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, who is the first Black woman to serve on the Fed’s Board of Governors. (WI File Photo)

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HEALTH VACCINE from Page 1 into individual injections and spacing vaccinations farther apart when possible. These changes could dramatically increase the number of shots and doctor visits children need. Dr. James Campbell, interim head of pediatric infectious disease at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, said there is no medical justification for portraying the MMR vaccine as dangerous. “It’s absolutely false,” Campbell told NPR when asked about Trump’s suggestion that the vaccine could be lethal. “There’s no evidence of lethality from the MMR vaccine. But of course, all of those diseases that it protects against can be lethal.” Campbell said the president’s proposal faces a more basic obstacle. The separate vaccines Trump calls for do not exist in the United States. “There are no, what we call, monovalent or individual vaccines for measles, mumps and rubella, so it would be impossible to follow the order,” Campbell said. He added that the three vaccines have been administered together in the United States since 1971, with no difference in safety or effectiveness from administering them separately. But months before Trump issued the order, D.C. quietly put a legal escape hatch into place. The Community Health Amendment Act of 2026, which became law this spring, ended the District’s exclusive dependence on federal vaccine recommendations. Instead, D.C. health care providers may order and administer vaccines based on recommendations from the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices or another competent medical or public health organization designated by the director of the D.C. Department of Health through public notice. The change also applies to the District law governing vaccination of minors, explicitly permitting vaccines recommended according to either ACIP guidance or recommendations from a medical or public health organization selected by the D.C. health director. In practical terms, D.C. has created an alternative route. If legislators change

the federal vaccine rulebook, the District does not have to follow. The law passed the D.C. Council overwhelmingly. The final vote on Jan. 6 was 11-0, with one member not voting. Mayor Muriel Bowser signed the legislation Jan. 27; it cleared congressional review and became effective March 24 as D.C. Law 26-105. What once seemed an obscure change in the District’s health code now looks much more consequential. “The attacks on DC Home Rule are very real and they persist,” D.C. Councilmember Christina Henderon, chair of the legislative body’s health committee, wrote in a newsletter, after the first iteration of the bill passed in late 2025. “I have to admit the state of American politics right now is very depressing. It’s transactional; deliberations are not ‘Is this good policy?’ but rather ‘Can this be used against me in an ad?’ This imposition of policy without the participation of those being governed should be an affront to anyone who believes in democracy.

‘Fearmongering About Vaccines’

Trump’s order has thrown one of the most established rituals of American childhood medicine into uncertainty. For generations, parents have taken babies and young children to pediatric offices, rolled up tiny sleeves, and relied on a vaccine schedule designed to prevent several diseases safely and efficiently, with fewer needles whenever possible. The president wants to change that. The MMR vaccine is currently given in two combined doses. Separating measles, mumps, and rubella into individual vaccines would turn those two injections into six. White House spokesman Kush Desai said separating and changing the timing of MMR vaccination would give families “more options on timing and frequency” and ultimately increase vaccination against all three diseases. Another problem cannot be solved by rewriting a federal recommendation: individual measles, mumps, and rubella vaccines are not available in the

United States. FDA-approved vaccines against the three diseases are combination vaccines, an approach used here since the 1970s. Drugmakers might have to resurrect products abandoned decades ago, conduct new studies, and build or modify manufacturing facilities. Industry experts cited by the Associated Press said designing, building, and obtaining federal approval for a new vaccine plant typically takes about five years. Each separate vaccine could also require individual FDA review and licensing. For families, the consequences could be far more immediate. Instead of two MMR injections, children could need six. Spacing other vaccinations could mean more trips to pediatricians, more time away from work for parents, additional insurance costs, and more chances for children to miss doses altogether. WI Read more on washingtoninformer.com.

5 A June report from the International Vaccine Access Center at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found that D.C.’s MMR vaccination coverage is roughly comparable with the national rate and that its non-medical exemption rate among kindergartners is below the U.S. median. (WI File Photo/Robert R. Roberts)

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The Annual Tomato Party at Common Good City Farm: A Celebration of the Summer Harvest

On a warm August evening, the normally quiet rows of Common Good City Farm, located in LeDroit Park, became the setting for a colorful celebration of one of summer’s most familiar and versatile foods—the tomato. The Tomato Party, on Aug. 13, brought Washingtonians together for an evening devoted to fresh produce, food, gardening, community and furthering Common Good’s mission of teaching people about sustainable agriculture while advocating for food justice. An annual tradition, the party celebrates the abundance of the summer garden while reminding District residents that agriculture can exist—and thrive—in the middle of a major city. (Robert R. Roberts/The Washington Informer)

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D.C. Youth Journey from D.C. to Reclaim Maroon Histories

Ward 6, 7, and 8 Girls Claim Their Place in the African Diaspora By Nkozia Knight Guest Contributor The United Association of Muurs and Sadiki Educational Safari Inc. have quietly made history with a community-led initiative that helped Washington, D.C. youth secure five-year passports and travel from Ward 8 to Colombia for an immersive, Afro-diasporic learning journey. Centered on Black self-determination, maroon histories, and cross-border sisterhood, the program demonstrates what becomes possible when grassroots fundraising, cultural vision, and intergenerational mentoring work together. Through coordinated fundraising and deep neighborhood engagement, the united association of muurs and Sadiki Educational Safari Inc. raised the resources needed not only to purchase plane tickets but also to cover the cost of five-year passports for youth who had never before left the United States. For many of the girls, this was their first time traveling without family, navigating airports, embassies, and international borders under the care of community mentors and program leaders. The process itself became a rite of passage. Youth traveled to the Colombian Embassy in Washington, D.C., learning how international travel works, what documentation is required, and why passports are powerful tools of mobility and access. In a political moment where travel is often restricted or economically inaccessible, this initiative turned passport acquisition into a communal act of love, investment, and affirmation.

Centering Afro-Maroonage and the Palenque Legacy

A core focus of the journey was Afro-marronage, which were the histories of African-descended people who escaped enslavement and formed autonomous communities across the Americas. In Colombia, that history lives powerfully in San Basilio de Palenque, widely recognized as one of the first free Black towns in the Americas and a living site of resistance, survival, and cultural continuity. Afro-Colombian political consciousness is part of a strong culture of resistance waged by people of African heritage in the face of colonial oppression and ethnic discrimination. An example of this culture of political resistance in Colombia traces its roots back to the experience of the palenqueros, or the establishment of colonies of free Africans during slavery. The group’s visit to the Palenque community in the Cartagena region allowed the youth to encounter this history as a living, breathing reality. They shared traditional food prepared by local Afro-Colombian families, listened to stories of maroon struggle and resilience, and learned about the Palenquero language, a linguistic testament to the creativity and defiance of people who refused to

5 Palenque Town in front of the Benkos Biohó statue (Courtesy Photo)

be erased. ‘Palenquero,’ which is spoken by the communities of San Basilio de Palenque, has been recognized since 1603 as being the first free settlement of the Americas. According to DANE (2005), this first free settlement has also been declared by UNESCO as being an international cultural heritage site. The young visitors witnessed how music, foodways, spiritual practices, and language serve as archives of resistance, carrying forward memories of African homelands and maroon ingenuity. In Palenque, the youth also observed differences in resources between rural Afro-descendant communities and more urbanized spaces like Medellín. This contrast deepened their understanding of how race, geography, and economic inequality intersect and how maroon communities continue to navigate structural marginalization while preserving their heritage. From the beginning of the 19th century the Colombian government actively pursued a policy of ‘blanqueamiento,’ or ‘whitening,’ of society. This was based both on a white supremacist ideology, which believed that to whiten the race was to improve the race, and on a xenophobic policy, which feared the eventual political empowerment and influence of Black and indigenous peoples if their numbers were allowed to increase. The history of Benkos Biohó, often celebrated as the founder of San Basilio de Palenque, became a powerful anchor for the youth’s learning. Biohó, an African man who organized escapes from slavery and led a maroon community in colonial Colombia, was described by one participant as taking risks like “MLK,” connecting his fight for freedom to more familiar narratives of U.S. civil rights leadership. WI Read more on washingtoninformer.com.

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EDUCATION KIDBIZ from Page 13 2Fresh. “I really like fragrance, and like a lot of people, I have sensitive skin. Or [people] want something that lasts way longer compared to spray colognes,” said Robinson about his business muse during the Youth Marketplace on Aug. 3. “I started with all-natural products, and I wanted to know what type of base would last long. Plus, certain textures, like roll-on oils, smell good, but they also have a greasy feeling, and I didn't want that.” After competing in KidBizCON 2025, Robinson said his 10th-place ranking was nothing short of a blimp on the radar of what would soon come for 2Fresh. Since then, the self-starter has expanded his

business’s product offerings and become a regular vendor with YEI at Eastern Market in Southeast D.C., even advancing to one of the top sellers, he adds. Additionally, returning on Aug. 3 was a testament to what’s possible through YEI, he told The Informer, alongside a moment to uplift the next class looking to monetize ideation. “They should get creative, honestly. Do something that I'm doing, or do something nobody ever heard of,” Robinson continued. “Being under pressure, a lot of people might not think that their product's good enough, but I can tell [them] the product's good enough. You just gotta realize that.” During the live pitch competition, Judges Kristen Barney, Kevin

3 Elijah Robinson, founder of 2Fresh cologne company, returns to KidBizCON 2026 with scented fragrances, expansion plans, and a top-seller slot at Eastern Market, where he now regularly vends with the Youth Entrepreneur Institute. (Jada Ingleton/The Washington Informer)

Hinton, Nicole McQueen, Samuel Moore and Nana Malaya offered each contestant feedback on their business pitch, emphasizing the power of self-assertion, eye contact, and knowledgeable entrepreneurs who can vouch for their products and their intended purpose. Touting high spirits and what she calls a “passion for fashion,” 9-yearold Journey said her goal for Pink

Art, the pinkalicious T-shirt business she presented presented Aug. 3, is simple: own one of the biggest companies in the world and be the nation's youngest successful business owner. Until then, she told The Informer, “I [hope it makes people] feel much prettier.” “When I thought about [what it means to be an] entrepreneur, I was thinking of creative stuff, and then I started creating,” Journey said, also crediting a library teacher who would often give her art supplies. “I want to be an entrepreneur because…you create your own business, your own name, your own designs. Sometimes you don't know what's inside you that could come out.”

Where Hustle Meets Heart

According to Mark Untitled Love, what he’d like to see more of in youth-centered work is a critical component in all aspects of life–– and evidently, it stands in his name. “Just love. Love what you're doing, love getting up,” he told The Informer. “You shouldn't wake up ready to go to bed every single day; there should be a purpose, there should be a reason… a 1% of why you're doing something…and even if that's brightening up a kid and giving them just one more day of motivation, that's at the heart of it.” Some of the other entrepreneurs present for the Youth Marketplace said they see self-starting as a way to create wealth and ownership in their lives. Businesses like Naomi Evans’ CuteBunnyKandi, the fourth-place

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“You shouldn't wake up ready to go to bed every single day; there should be a purpose, there should be a reason… a 1% of why you're doing something…and even if that's brightening up a kid and giving them just one more day of motivation, that's at the heart of it.” Mark Untitled Love runner-up in the high school division, turned passionate daily hobbies into full enterprises, or as she told The Informer, “full-time jobs” designing special handmade crafts to help kids feel seen. KidBizCON 2026 winners Laila Perry, of Beads and Tumblers by Laila (elementary/middle school category), and Black Beauty Bakes and Bracelets founder Laila Basir (high school category) elevated the value of freedom of expression through personalized products celebrating identity and common interests. Meanwhile, local pride shone through customized T-shirts designed for D.C. natives, as well as gear hinting at mental and communal resilience with sayings such as “Choose Life” and “More than a Block.” “Knowledge, especially with young Black Americans, can not [only] carry you farther in life, [but] it's understanding how to build that knowledge properly, how to feel self-assertive in this world,” he told The Informer, “to feel you’re belonging, and just to help [others overall].” WI

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EDITORIAL

A President Who Leaves Others Behind

Trump’s Secret Flight Exposes More Than a Security Threat. It Exposes a Troubling Lack of Empathy. There is something deeply revealing about President Donald J. Trump’s decision to secretly abandon the plane carrying members of his own staff, senior Cabinet officials, and White House reporters, while he slipped away to safety on another aircraft. The security threat was reportedly serious. Intelligence indicated a possible Iranian missile or assassination threat as Trump prepared to depart Ankara, Turkey, following last month’s NATO summit. The Secret Service and military officials secretly moved Trump to a smaller C-32A aircraft. Trump was transferred via a catering truck while the plane he had publicly boarded—carrying senior officials, aides and journalists—continued to serve as a decoy. Protecting the president is unquestionably the Secret Service’s job. But the question this episode raises is not whether Trump should have been protected. Of course he should have been. The question is: What about the others? Trump himself acknowledged that the plane carrying the others was potentially at risk. In fact, he said the aircraft he ultimately took

may have been at even greater risk. That is the disturbing part. More than 100 people reportedly remained aboard the decoy aircraft, many apparently unaware that their plane was being used to mask the president’s whereabouts. They were not merely passengers. They were Americans serving their government—and journalists doing their jobs. The episode is especially jarring when viewed alongside the administration’s handling of the newer Boeing 747 acquired from Qatar. The aircraft had undergone modifications, yet questions remained about its readiness and security capabilities. Trump had flown on that aircraft to Turkey, only to abandon it when a security threat emerged. And then there is Karoline Leavitt, the young White House press secretary and mother of two, who recently announced she will leave her post at the end of August to spend more time with her family. Trump announced her departure rather than a traditional White House announcement, and it came less than a month after she returned from maternity leave. There is no evidence that

Leavitt’s resignation was caused by the plane incident—and it would be irresponsible to suggest otherwise. Yet the broader irony is hard to ignore: an administration that preaches loyalty and toughness apparently has no problem keeping its own people in the dark when their safety is at stake. Presidents deserve protection. So do those who serve them. Leadership is not simply about saving yourself. It is about recognizing the value of everyone who depends on you. That is what empathy looks like. Once again, Trump has shown remarkably little of it. WI

There is something deeply revealing about President Donald J. Trump’s decision to secretly abandon the plane carrying members of his own staff, senior Cabinet officials, and White House reporters, while he slipped away to safety on another aircraft.

Metrobus Drivers’ Demands for Better Safety Should Not be Ignored – For Their Sakes and For Ours

Bus operators for Metro— led by leaders from their union, ATU Local 689— recently received a safety alert addressed to drivers. The alert’s message read: “For your own safety, do not quote

Black youth in D.C. say they’re frustrated, fed up, and furious because of being routinely targeted, mistreated, and oppressed by federal and local law enforcement.

the fare,” offering guidance stands in opposition to a new policy invoked on May 12 by Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) General Manager and CEO Randy Clarke, To provide an explanation for this alert and the ATU Local 689’s stance, union representatives, along with several bus operators, held a press conference on Aug. 12, at the Silver Spring Metro Station. The underlying issue with is an escalation of safety conflicts between bus riders and drivers after operators state the new required greeting: “Hello, the fare is $2.25.” The union, which strongly opposes the rule, argues that it escalates tensions, increases driver assaults, and in some cases, even

puts riders in harm’s way. Sometimes it begins with an exchange of choice words, including several expletives, from a passenger who either can’t or won’t pay the fare. But there are cases in which drivers have been spit on, doused with liquids, and even physically attacked. These kinds of responses we cannot condone, nor should anyone else. On Aug. 1, a bus operator who stated the fare policy and mentioned that carrying open alcohol was against regulations was punched repeatedly by a masked passenger while still operating the bus. One can only imagine what could have occurred. WMATA officials say they plan to upgrade buses and install fully enclosed driver shields across

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TO THE EDITOR “Her continuous struggle to achieve success paid off. So happy you continued pursuing your dream and did not listen to [the] instructor who picked up a piece of your work and said ‘I don’t like this’ in front of a classroom of students. Kudos to you that you created your path.” -Juanita Newell (In reference to the article: “Nekisha Durrett: The Artist, D.C. Native Behind the ‘Hem of Heaven’.”

“This was all by design to cripple African Americans economically, as more families able to own property and send their children to college is exactly what those racists a**holes hate!” - Natalene Smith (In reference to the article: “D.C. Has Nation’s Highest Unemployment Rate. For Black Workers, It Tops 10%.” their entire fleet. To that we say, like Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams sang in their 1978 song, “Too Much, Too Little, Too Late.” Bus operators and Metro passengers simply want to see the region’s public transportation system work safely and efficiently. Clarke and his colleagues should take a closer look at their contentious fare quoting policy and consider the potential dangers it poses. Further, they’d be wise to review the testimonies of bus operators and the statistics of driver assaults from 10 years ago when the policy

of fare quoting was eliminated. One assault on a bus operator is one too many. But with 152 assaults involving bus operators reported by Metro in FY 2026, fare evasion should be the least of their concerns. WMATA should dig into its pockets now, not later, and place transit police officers along bus routes that have a history of attacks. If safety is their primary concern, don’t talk about it – be about it. WI

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OPINIONS/EDITORIALS Guest Columnist

Emil Guillermo

The Philippines Isn't Foreign When Your Family Still Lives There

Americans complain about inflation. Filipinos complain about surviving. That's not a knock on America. It's a reminder that for millions of Filipino Americans, the Philippines isn't some faraway place we visit on vacation. It's where our parents were born. Where our

cousins still live. Where grandparents are buried. Where every phone call home can begin with, "We're OK," or, just as easily, "We need help." The Bay Area is home to one of the nation's largest Filipino communities. California alone has nearly two million Filipinos— roughly half of all Filipino Americans in the United States. Every year, Filipino Americans send an estimated $17 billion from the United States to the Philippines. Those remittances account

Guest Columnist

There's a Storm Coming

I grew up in Plaquemine, Louisiana, where the older folks could tell you it was going to rain before there was a cloud in the sky. As a little boy, I would hear one of them say, "A storm is coming." I would run outside, look up at a bright blue sky, and come back convinced they were wrong. "There's not a cloud out there," I would say. They would smile and answer,

"Baby, you haven't lived long enough yet." Before the day was over, the wind would shift. The air would get heavy. Dark clouds would gather, and the rain would come pouring down. Back then, I thought they had some kind of magic. Now I understand. They had experience. They had survived enough storms to recognize the signs before anyone else could. Well, I am one of the older people now, and I feel a storm coming. It is gathering around something called election integrity.

Guest Columnist

for roughly a tenth of the Philippine economy. One wire transfer may keep children in school, put food on the table, pay hospital bills, or help elderly parents make it another month. That's why Filipino Americans were paying attention to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s State of the Nation Address last month. They were listening for justice. They were listening for Lyle Prijoles. Prijoles, a 40-year-old Filipino American from Hayward, was

killed on April 19 during a Philippine military operation in Negros Occidental. Also killed was Kai Sorem, a 26-year-old activist from Seattle. The Armed Forces of the Philippines say those killed were connected to the Communist Party's New People's Army. Their families say otherwise. Human-rights advocates describe Prijoles and Sorem as labor organizers and peaceful activists working alongside sugar workers struggling under crushing poverty.

Prijoles had traveled repeatedly to the Philippines since 2006, documenting conditions in Negros and advocating for farm workers whose lives rarely improve no matter who occupies the presidential palace in Manila. Those conflicting stories are exactly why members of Congress, led by Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), have called for an independent investigation. After all, two American citizens

That is why we must pay attention not only to what is being said, but to what is being done. President Donald Trump says he wants stronger election security. But at the same time, his administration has taken actions that critics say weaken independent election oversight, reduce confidence in federal election institutions and place greater pressure on the systems that help protect fair elections. That contradiction should trouble us. You cannot claim to strengthen the roof while removing the beams

that hold it up. The bipartisan U.S. Election Assistance Commission was created after the disputed 2000 presidential election to help states improve election administration, certify voting systems and assist local officials. When the leadership of such an agency is weakened, every citizen should ask whether public confidence is being protected or endangered. Black Americans, especially, cannot afford to be casual about that ques-

GUILLERMO Page 41

Rev. Peter Johnson

Let me be clear. I believe elections should be secure. Every lawful vote should be protected, every voting system should be trustworthy, and every American should have confidence in the process. But Black folks have heard the language of "election integrity" before. We have heard words like "order," "protection," and "security" used to justify poll taxes, literacy tests, intimidation, and exclusion. We know that sometimes the words sound reasonable while the results fall hardest on our communities.

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Evan Milligan

In the Fight for Voting Rights, Winning Is Not the Same as Victory

Since 2021, a case bearing my family name has been winding through our federal court system. Allen v. Milligan asked whether Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act could still be used to challenge racial bias in how voting districts get drawn. I joined this lawsuit expecting to lose. Yet, my co-plaintiffs and I are undefeated. Five times the courts have re-

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viewed our case — a federal panel and the U.S. Supreme Court — and five times we have won. Earlier this year, the Supreme Court ruled in Louisiana v. Callais. Just a few summer months before our country's 250th birthday, the Voting Rights Act lost, badly. Justice Kagan, in dissent, wrote that the ruling renders Section 2 "all but a dead letter." The 1965 Voting Rights Act was already a shadow of the bill President Johnson signed into law. In 2013, the Supreme Court dismantled preclearance, the VRA's most

powerful tool for preventing racial discrimination before it happened. What was left was Section 2 — a way for ordinary Americans like us to challenge discriminatory voting systems after the fact. Callais has all but closed that window too. What remains is a path the size of a needle's eye. And then there is our peculiar case. Each Milligan plaintiff took a different path into the litigation. Mine was grief and the appeal of storytelling on a grander stage. So many close loved ones and local leaders had died during the pandemic that litigation

felt like a way to keep their stories in the historical record. A likely doomed attempt felt cathartic. In February 2022, three federal judges — two appointed by President Trump, one by President Reagan — unanimously held that Alabama had violated federal law, ordering the state to redraw our congressional map to include two majority-African-American voting districts or something close to it. The state refused to comply. It spent millions in tax dollars appealing all the way to the Supreme Court.

In June 2023, the Supreme Court agreed with us too. The state still refused to comply. That summer, during a special session, the Alabama legislature passed a map that diluted Black voting strength even more than the one we'd originally challenged. The governor signed it. The state kept paying private attorneys to defend its right to ignore a direct order from the Supreme Court of the United States. The hardest moment to describe

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OPINIONS/EDITORIALS Guest Columnist

Eric Morrissette

What Isn't Measured Can Be Denied: A Call to Defend the EEO-1 Before Aug. 24

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), an agency formed in direct response to the Civil Rights Act, has today become a tool for dismantling an anchored economic civil rights tenet: data that would prove civil rights violations occurred in big businesses. This is happening amid a systematic effort to disappear, challenge, and end the data collection that would

prove institutional discrimination at the exact moment federal courts are demanding that very data before they'll grant a claim consideration. The coordinated effort of confirming jurists who require a high evidentiary bar, while simultaneously removing the proof needed to meet it, is a frightening scene for anyone who knows the exhaustion of working twice as hard to get half as far. The numbers still make the case plainly. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics data for the second quarter of 2026, women earn 82 cents for every

Guest Columnist

dollar earned by men among full-time workers; Black workers earn 81 cents and Hispanic workers roughly 78 cents for every dollar earned by their white counterparts. Not to mention being a woman of color who is seeking a fair economic shot. I think about Lilly Ledbetter often when I think about employment rights and workplace discrimination. But for this particular piece of EEOC action, the truer forerunner is Coretta Scott King. It was Mrs. King, and the broader generation of civil rights leaders she

stood alongside, who understood that economic subjugation could not be dismantled unless it could first be measured. The EEO-1 form became the federal mechanism built, in part, to answer that call: force corporate America to prove it was distributing income, promotions, and hiring opportunities fairly to Black and female workers. That imperative traces to Executive Order 10925, signed by President John F. Kennedy in March 1961, which established the President's Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity and is widely regarded as the forerunner of

the EEOC itself. That history, a tool built specifically to measure systemic discrimination, is precisely why it's under attack now. It is being dismantled because it is capable of doing exactly what civil rights leaders of that era sought, and what courts today still demand: proof of disparate impact. Disparate impact is the legal doctrine, established under Title VII, holding that an employment practice can be unlawful if it disproportionately harms a protected group — even

would try to get to her. The man who owned Richard was not speculating. He put money behind it. He had seen enough men run toward a wife or a child to know where to send the search party. He expected his readers to know it too. Historians have been collecting those advertisements for years. The Freedom on the Move project indexes close to 90,000. They name wives. They name children. They name the road the man was likely taking to reach them. Capture meant brutal punishment.

Escape itself could be deadly. They ran anyway. They did not wait for the war to end, either. On Dec. 27, 1862, Henry Christian placed a notice in a Philadelphia newspaper. He was searching for Richard, Rebecca and Rachel Christian. His children. Last known to be traveling out of Winchester, Va. Historians at Villanova University have recovered nearly 5,000 notices like it. Freed people paying for news-

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Ben Jealous

What Two Fathers Talk About at Lunch

Last week I had lunch with an old friend. He is a Black Republican and a popular commentator, which means we have spent 20 years disagreeing in public and liking each other in private. He would be welcome in any barbershop in America. He keeps it real in the way men in any true community require of one another.

We talked about our kids. That was most of the lunch. Nothing about that would surprise any Black man reading this. Nothing about it would surprise most Black people. But every Black father carries something else around with him. We know the stereotypes: that we do not stay, that we do not provide, that we are not there. Those stories are as old as the country itself. So is the proof against them. And the proof was written down by the

Guest Columnist

men who owned us. In November 1836, a man named Richard escaped near Morganton, N.C. He got away while the brother of the man who claimed him was hauling him to Alabama. The enslaver bought newspaper space to get him back. His advertisement did not guess where Richard was headed. It told readers exactly where to look. Richard had a wife, a free woman of color named Jane Tucker. She was arranging to return to Raleigh. The ad said there was no doubt her husband

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Stephen Oduntan

From Selma to South Los Angeles — An Unsung Voting Rights Foot Soldier Says the Fight Isn't Over

More than six decades after risking her life in the fight for voting rights, 81-year-old Leatha Davis still remembers the sound of billy clubs striking peaceful demonstrators, the screams of marchers under attack, and the sacrifices that defined the Civil Rights Movement. Today, as recent Supreme Court decisions have narrowed key protec-

tions under the Voting Rights Act and battles over congressional redistricting continue, Davis believes the struggle she joined as a teenager is far from over. But she worries the greatest threat is not only the legal battles over voting rights — it is also the growing number of people who choose not to exercise them. "It makes me really angry when I think about we did all of that and people stay at home and don't try to vote," Davis said. "Every vote counts." For Davis, those debates are deeply personal.

She joined the movement in the days surrounding Bloody Sunday, when Alabama state troopers brutally attacked peaceful demonstrators attempting to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma with billy clubs, tear gas, cattle prods and attack dogs. "We thought John Lewis was dead," Davis recalled. "They beat him to the ground. And if you ran to help him, they cracked you upside the head too. It was horrific." Days later, Davis marched carrying a sign reading "One Man, One Vote." During the demonstrations,

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she said she was struck with a cattle prod. She later testified under her maiden name, Leatha Mae Stover, in the landmark federal case Williams v. Wallace, describing before U.S. District Judge Frank M. Johnson Jr. the violence peaceful demonstrators had endured. Johnson's ruling allowed the Selma-to-Montgomery march to proceed. The trauma of those days has never left her. Davis said she still has nightmares about Bloody Sunday and hopes to walk across the Edmund Pettus Bridge one more time before she

dies. "I'm going to walk across that bridge one day before I die," she said. "We were the foot soldiers," Davis said. "And we've been forgotten." Born into a sharecropping family in rural Alabama, Davis said she was picking cotton from sunrise to sunset by the age of 5. After months of labor, her father would haul the family's harvest to the white landowner. "He'd tell my father he only broke even," Davis recalled. "For all the work we did, he only gave my father

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LIFESTYLE Washington Informer Weekend Checklist WASHINGTON INFORMER'S

Things To Do, DMV! By Jada Ingleton WI Content Editor While back to school season is in full effect, summer’s still in the air, and so is the sound of the DMV brewing with life and activity for people of all ages. From outdoor concerts and film screenings to multi-day events centering on education and empowerment, check out a handful of the can’t-miss outings taking over the region this weekend. And remember: to keep up with all the fun, visit the Washington Informer Calendar.

Thursday, Aug. 20

Dynamic Aspects of Growing Older as a Person of Color 10 a.m. - Noon | $10.00+ Howard University, 2400 6th Street NW, Washington, D.C., 20059

The Howard University School of Social Work welcomes audiences to explore aging, ageism, and the health and mental health needs of diverse older adults in a seminar on Aug. 20. Using evidence-based social work practice, case studies, and critical-thinking exercises, the event aims to deepen participants’ knowledge and practice with older adults, examine and address ageist attitudes and values, and dispel common myths and stereotypes–– with particular attention to the dynamic and lived experiences of African Americans. Topics will also include: cognitive changes associated with aging; dementia and the biology of aging; psychosocial concerns; death and dying; and selected policy and economic issues, including Medicare benefits and the Social Security Act. Additional discussions will dive into the impact of racism,

5 Howard University School of Social Work will explore aging, ageism, and the health and mental health needs of diverse older adults with the Aug. 20 seminar: “Dynamic Aspects of Growing Older as a Person of Color.” (WI File Photo)

ageism, and sexism and emphasize developments and changes that have emerged over the past decade. Summer in the Parks: Prelude to DC Jazz Fest 6 p.m. | $16.54 Carter Barron Amphitheater, 4850 Colorado Avenue NW, Washington, D.C., 20011 Rock Creek Conservancy's Summer in the Parks welcomes the JazzDC All-Stars to the Carter Barron Amphitheater for a showcase of the region's top jazz talent. Directed by acclaimed saxophonist and educator Paul Carr, the JazzDC All-Stars promise an electrifying performance that celebrates the rich legacy and dynamic future of jazz in the nation’s capital, featuring both classic and contemporary jazz. The evening will double as a prelude event to DC JazzFest, coming up Labor Day Weekend.

Friday, Aug. 21

Back-to-School Weekend at National Children's Museum 10 a.m. | Selections vary National Children's Museum, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, D.C., 20004 5 In its 12th year, the Ubiquitous Women's Expo returns to the DMV Aug. 21-23 at Live! Casino & Hotel Maryland. (WI File Photo/Demarco Rush)

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Back-to-school season is here, and the National Children's Museum is celebrating with a week-

end of pop-up play. From Aug. 21-23, young learners can stretch their skills through hands-on activities that explore science, geometry, reading, and mindfulness. Additional activities include building pinwheels and practicing deep breathing; combining shapes to explore geometry; observing everyday objects under microscopes; enjoying a back-to-school storytime; and developing time management and preparation skills. All back-to-school pop-up activities are included with general museum admission. Visit the museum website for the full schedule and to plan a visit. Ubiquitous Women's Expo 11 a.m. | $22.53 Live! Casino & Hotel Maryland, 7002 Arundel Mills Cir #7777, Hanover, MD 21076 Now in its 12th year, the Ubiquitous Women's Expo unites dynamic women from across the DMV for an unforgettable experience of inspiration, empowerment, and indulgence. Featuring nationally recognized speakers, media personalities, entrepreneurs, wellness experts, and cultural influencers, this powerhouse weekend (Aug. 21-23) delivers the tools, resources, and experiences women need to thrive in every area of life.

Proudly supported by CANTU, ONE Voyage, Dollar General, Capital Region Minority Supplier Development Council, American Cancer Society, among several others, thousands of women will gather to discover new opportunities, gain valuable insights, support innovative brands, and experience the power of a community united by purpose.

Saturday, Aug. 22

CAN I KICK IT? Outdoor Movie Series: New Jack City 7 - 10 p.m.| Free Washington Monument, Independence Avenue SW & 15th Street SW, Washington, D.C., 20004 Presented by Shaolin Jazz, the “CAN I KICK IT? Outdoor Movie Series” is back for another summer of unforgettable, action-packed films scored live by DJ 2-Tone Jones –– and it’s coming to the National Mall for the first time. Saturday, Aug. 22 brings a screening of the R-rated cult classic “New Jack City” (1991), which follows drug tycoon Nino Brown (Wesley Snipes) and his crew –– known collectively as the Cash Money Brothers –– amid a rapid rise to the top of the New York City narcotics trade.

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Scotty (Ice-T) and Nick (Judd Nelson), two police officers who know their way around the streets of Harlem, aim to bring Nino and his cohorts down. However, they'll have to play by Nino's rules and go undercover. The event at the Washington Monument will begin with a guest DJ set at 7 p.m., followed by the film at 8:15 p.m. It is strongly encouraged to bring lawn chairs or blankets.

Sunday, Aug. 23

The Roost South African Wine Fest Noon | $52.86 The Roost, 1401 Pennsylvania Ave. SE, Washington, D.C., 20003 Join The Roost for a walkaround tasting and bottle sale featuring 30 house-favorite wines made in historically innovative wine regions of South Africa. The event will feature some of the top District wine distributors,

SMITH from Page 4 wrote. Another was considerably more profane: “So, @stephenasmith you ran your b***ch–a** to the white power hour TV show to complain just like we thought you would.” Similar criticism appeared online on Tuesday. Some people wondered why Smith, who already has large platforms, chose Hannity’s show to address a dispute with Black journalists. The controversy started in Atlanta, when NABJ gave out its annual Thumbs Down Awards at its convention. Smith received the award along with FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, CBS News, The Washington Post, and Circle City Broadcasting President and CEO DuJuan McCoy. NABJ’s criticism of Smith was especially direct. “Smith has established a recurring public pattern of disparaging commentary directed at prominent Black women across politics, sports, and media,” the organization said in its citation. NABJ said such commentary “reinforces harmful narratives” and undermines fair representation of Black women, putting Smith’s conduct at

sharing backgrounds and guiding participants through a tasting of sparkling, white, rosé, and red wines. Attendees will be rewarded with not only a beautiful afternoon of delectable wines, but will also gain access to The Roost’s bottle sale. Come on down and get to tasting! Wonder Woman 2 p.m. | $8.00 Miracle Theatre, 535 8th St SE, Washington, D.C., 20003 Before she was Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), she was Diana, princess of the Amazons, trained to be an unconquerable warrior. Raised on a sheltered island paradise, Diana meets an American pilot (Chris Pine) who tells her about the massive conflict that's raging in the outside world. Convinced that she can stop the threat, Diana leaves her home for the first time. Fighting alongside men in a war to end all wars, she finally discovers her full powers and true destiny. WI odds with the organization’s commitment to responsible portrayals of Black communities. The organization was referring to a series of increasingly heated public disagreements. Smith has criticized U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Texas (D), including questioning her political rhetoric and use of “street verbiage.” He publicly sparred with former MSNBC host Joy-Ann Reid. He objected to Michelle Obama’s argument during the 2024 campaign about the consequences for women of returning Donald Trump to the White House. He has also repeatedly criticized former Vice President Kamala Harris, including after her unsuccessful presidential campaign. Smith says these examples are disagreements, not insults. “Whether it was Jasmine Crockett, whether it was Kamala Harris, whether it was Michelle Obama, I pointed to something that they said that I may have disagreed with,” Smith told Hannity. “That is all.” He asked NABJ to explain how criticizing what someone says is the same as insulting the person. WI Read more on washingtoninformer.com.

2026

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LIFESTYLE

SEPT 2–6, 2026 | LABOR DAY WEEKEND | WASHINGTON, DC

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wi book review "Mahalia Jackson, Moving On Up a Little Higher: The Story of An American Civil Rights Pioneer" By Timothy B. Tyson and Mary D. Williams c.2026, Liveright $28.99 / 256 pages Terri Schlichenmeyer WI Contributing Writer Your actual job is one thing. It's what you do with a third of your weekday, what pays the bills and puts food on the table. You might really love the job and consider it a calling but like most folks, you need more Yes, you work, you have a job — but as in the new biography, "Mahalia Jackson, Moving On Up a Little Higher" by Timothy B. Tyson and Mary D. Williams, you also have a passion. Though she was born in New Orleans in late October 1911, Mahalia Jackson always kept one foot in a place called Gum Stump, which had once been a labor camp for the enslaved. That was where much of her family lived then, and it's where her mother was buried when Jackson was a very small girl. Her father gone, Jackson was raised by her aunts in poverty and abuse, but she persevered and flourished despite racism and other roadblocks. New Orleans' Black communities steeped her in faith, and Jackson embraced a love of church and gospel music; as her singing talents grew, she began infusing her songs with a bit of her hometown's jazz, swing, and honkytonk — much to the consternation of pastors and some elder churchgoers. When Jackson was 20 years old, her Aunt Hannah took her to Chicago, where her life expanded, as did her career and a whole new interest. After moving to the Windy City, Jackson became aware of politics but the effort to get settled meant that she was unable to get involved then. Once she found a church and a community, she and a small group of other of gospel singers began to draw crowds and then, as Jackson's personal star rose, she threw her new fame behind forward-thinking and civil-rights-supporting candidates through her performances. By 1961, the little girl once from New Orleans was scheduled to sing at the inauguration of a president … You know how it is: sometimes, seeing something that's never been hidden, something that's always been right out in the open, seems like a revelation. That's the feeling you'll get when you read "Mahalia Jackson, Moving On Up a Little Higher." Though the information here is sometimes recycled throughout chapters, authors Timothy B. Tyson and Mary D. Williams tell a wide story that sets a civil rights influencer in the forefront, where she belongs. They show how, despite racism that deeply affected her personal life plus a few scary health issues, Jackson managed to plant her feet firmly in often-forbidden white circles including TV and a popular daily radio show, knowing electronic media would be a great leveler. That, the quiet-out-loud way she left a mark on the Civil Rights Movement, and the fact that her legacy is, until now, little-discussed, is stunning and even a little bit thrilling. "Mahalia Jackson, Moving on Up a Little Higher" is a book that belongs alongside every other story of the movement because it can be read by anyone of any age. Try it; it's one thing you'll enjoy. WI

horoscopes

AUG. 20 - 26, 2026

ARIES Money comes in from a direction you didn't expect this week, so resist spending it before Wednesday. You'll finally ask the question you've been avoiding, and the answer turns out simpler than you feared. Thursday tests your patience with something slow-moving, but it pays off by the weekend. A song stuck in your head all week turns out to be trying to tell you something, and by Sunday you'll finally place it. Lucky Numbers: 4, 22, 51 TAURUS Someone asks for your honest opinion this week, and giving it costs you far less than you think it will. A meal you almost skipped becomes the unexpected highlight of your week. Your read on a coworker's mood proves more accurate than anything they actually say out loud, so trust it. Saturday brings an unplanned errand that turns into something worth doing after all, even if it doesn't feel that way at first. Lucky Numbers: 12, 27, 46 GEMINI A conversation you've been dreading turns out shorter and far easier than expected. You'll rediscover an old interest through a completely unrelated conversation, one you never saw coming. Someone remembers something you said months ago, and it quietly changes how you see them. Thursday's plans shift twice before landing on something better than the original idea, and by Friday you'll be glad they did. Lucky Numbers: 9, 33, 58 CANCER A family recipe or tradition gets reinvented slightly this week, and the new version genuinely works better. An old photo or keepsake resurfaces at exactly the right moment, right when you need it most. Your gut feeling about checking on a friend matters more than you realize at the time. Sunday feels slower than the rest of the week, in the best possible way. Lucky Numbers: 7, 30, 55 LEO Praise from someone unexpected lands harder this week than praise from someone close ever could. A moment you worried would go badly turns into one of your better stretches at work in a while. Your patience wears thin Monday but recovers well before midweek without much effort on your part. A stranger's small kindness stays with you longer than you'd expect it to. Lucky Numbers: 3, 25, 49 VIRGO Your planning quietly saves someone else's week before it saves your own, and nobody really notices the effort behind it. You'll lose something small, blame yourself for a minute, then find it exactly where you left it. A compliment about something personal catches you more off guard than one about your work would. Lucky Numbers: 17, 40, 62 LIBRA A decision nobody else wants to make lands squarely in your lap, and you end up handling it better than you expected to. Dinner out costs more than planned this week but feels worth every bit of it. A friend's tone on the phone tells you more than their actual words do. Your closet, garage, or desk needs a real clearing out this week, not another rearrange. Lucky Numbers: 6, 21, 47 SCORPIO A minor technical headache steals more of your week than it honestly deserves to. You'll turn down a request without much explanation this time, and it feels surprisingly good to do. A backhanded compliment comes your way midweek; let it pass without giving it a reaction. Lucky Numbers: 15, 36, 68 SAGITTARIUS A wrong turn, literal or otherwise, leads you somewhere better than your original plan ever could have. You'll spend more time outdoors than usual this week without really meaning to. Your Saturday has one commitment too many on it; cancel one now before it quietly cancels your whole week instead. A random memory from childhood resurfaces out of nowhere and colors your entire afternoon. Lucky Numbers: 2, 19, 61 CAPRICORN A deadline shifts earlier without warning this week, and you turn out to be far more prepared than you expected. You'll repair something yourself instead of paying someone else to do it, and it actually holds up. A compliment from someone above you means more than you'll ever fully admit out loud. Sunday's errands finish faster than planned, leaving you unexpected room for something better. Lucky Numbers: 11, 32, 59 AQUARIUS A new habit, tool, or shortcut someone shows you sticks around far longer than you expect it to. You'll be invited somewhere you weren't expecting this week and should say yes without overthinking it. What looks like a disagreement about facts turns out to actually be about something else entirely. Lucky Numbers: 5, 24, 66 PISCES Background music shifts your whole mood more than once this week, and you'll notice it happening in real time. You'll tidy one small, overlooked space and feel disproportionately better about everything else around it. An old message resurfaces midweek and reads completely differently now than it did back then. Someone's small, unplanned kindness stays with you far longer than the moment itself ever did. Lucky Numbers: 8, 29, 53

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AUGUST 20 - 26, 2026 29

STUDENTS from Page 1 even considering whether, under OBBBA, a public health masters and medical degree are possible. Standing in Brown’s way is a remaining balance of $20,000 that she’s attempting to get covered by the Parent PLUS loan, Pell Grants and other need-based aid. For more than a month, she’s waited for HU’s financial aid office to process and verify the FAFSA application she submitted in early June. The university has since allowed her to move on campus while she awaits word on whether she qualifies for the full amount awarded under the Parent PLUS Loan. “I was told that [the bill] would mostly impact graduate loans, so my parents and I weren't as worried,” Brown said. “I learned that we might fall into [the] limited exception, but until we're able to get in touch with Howard and have them process my FAFSA, I will not know if I fall into that.” Changes to federal student loans that took place on July 1, as a result of OBBBA included: the permanent elimination of GRAD Plus loans for new borrowers; limits on graduate-level unsubsidized loans at $20,500 per year for standard programs and $50,000 for qualifying professional degree programs; a lifetime federal borrowing cap of $257,500 across all undergraduate, graduate, and professional degree loan programs except Parent PLUS. For Brown and other Parent PLUS loan borrowers, annual loans are capped at $20,000 and the lifetime limit stands at $65,000. Brown, a first-generation college student, said such circumstances put her in a situation similar to that which prevented her older brother from finishing his undergraduate studies last year. “Stress is an understatement,” said Brown, whose parents don’t meet the eligibility requirements for private loans or a payment plan. “It's always kind of been hard for us… every single year with the rising cost of tuition and funding. I have four other siblings who are older than me, but everyone still lives in the same house. They [my parents] provide for everyone.”

A Word With the Subject-Matter Experts

Last fall, American University’s Postsecondary Education & Economics Research Center (PEER) released a report showing that 26% of graduate borrowers take out amounts

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5 Skania Florestal, founder of HBCUMADE, calls on alumni of historically Black colleges and universities to contribute funding that will make it easier for students at their alma maters to pursue their studies. (Courtesy Photo/LinkedIn)

surpassing the new annual limit for standard programs and professional studies. Nearly half of parents making more than $130,000 annually take out more than $20,000 while only 16% of low-income earning families, those making less than $30,000 annually, borrow the same amount. “Among parent borrowers, we see a slightly higher level of impact at private colleges, slightly lower level at public colleges and disproportionately more of [those] borrowing above the new limits is by higher income parent borrowers who are likely to be able to repay those loans.” said Clare McCann, PEER’s managing director of policy and operations. Other findings from PEER’s report, titled “How Will Graduate Student and Parent Borrowing Be Affected by New Federal Loan Limits?” show that 29% of parent borrowers, particularly those in families that don’t qualify for Pell Grants, will feel the worst effects of OBBBA. The report also warns that historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), and other minority-serving institutions whose enrollees often borrow above OBBA limits, will experience a domino effect. “We do anticipate [that] because HBCUs are often more reliant on parent loans than some other institutions, it may be a harder hit to HBCUs than to other types of institutions,” McCann told The Informer. As Brown and other HBCU students contemplate postgraduate options, McCann made note of the tough road ahead. “We have found a handful of HBCUs that will be especially affected,” she said. “Often the ones that have medical schools, law schools, like

some of these higher cost programs. It will just be harder for students to experience more of a financing gap.” As the Chronicle of Higher Education reported during the earlier part of August, borrowing caps on Parent PLUS loans and a shortage of research grants compelled administrators at HU to offer voluntary separation packages to 600 eligible faculty members. This development follows the unenrollment of 500 students in July, most of whom were depending on federal student loans to meet tuition payment deadlines. Amid HU’s efforts to re-enroll some of those 500 students, people took to social media in criticism of HBCUs. One HBCU alumna, however, says there’s more to the story when it comes to institutions that have, on average, $150,000 less per student in endowment funds than predominately white colleges and universities (PWIs). “The thought is that the institutions have to carry the bill [because] they're no longer getting this government funding and government assistance,” Skania Florestal, an alumna of Virginia State University (VSU), told The Informer. “You're going to see classroom sizes being smaller. They can't enroll as many students. They don't have as much resources to get the latest computers and books and all of those things.” For years, Florestal has used her venture HBCUMADE— an alumni social and professional networking app— as a tool to encourage HBCU alumni’s financial support of their alma maters. In 2021, she launched the beta version. Another version that came out two years ago focuses on peer-to-peer networking, authentication, and campus profile creation.

Florestal said her goal ultimately centers on alumni’s emulation of communities that finance students’ college matriculation in advance, and without the help of the federal government. “A lot of alumni feel like, ‘Oh, I just paid $20,000, $50,000 to go to school, I just graduated, why am I paying more?’” Florestal told The Informer. “It’s not about paying more. It’s about letting the ladder down so the next generation of students can come up. The same way you tithe to your church…it's on us being stewards of these institutions to…be able to support that.” While she expressed empathy with the students and families affected by the HU disenrollment snafu, Florestal said that the deadlines imposed by OBBBA gave students a bit more advanced warning about outstanding financial obligations. Much more than she had as a student at VSU in the 2000s. “I remember us going down to orientation together…and then we all moved in at the same time and by Labor Day, some of them were gone, because their financial aid didn't come through, or their scholarship fell through,” Florestal said. “So I respected the fact that an institution [was] being efficient, doing this before the school year. I know people are upset about it, but I think

about those students who waste all that money traveling, preparing for school.” Decades later, as another homecoming season fast approaches, Florestal emphasized the need for HBCUs to better engage their alumni as a source of support. “If each institution has under five people in their alumni offices, whereas these PWIs have over 50 to 70 people…of course we're always gonna fall short when it comes to alumni giving,” said Florestal, a former board member of VUU’s alumni association. “It’s supposed to be relationship building. It’s simple to create an automation [after] someone buys tickets to your event [that] says ‘Hey, we appreciate you for coming to our event, let's stay in touch.’” More importantly, Florestal, in the spirit of promoting HBCUMADE, said she wants to keep encouraging Black people to keep intimate discussion, like that involving historically Black institutions, completely in-house. “This is a regular occurrence, in terms of students getting disenrolled because of funding gaps,” Florestal said. “It’s not an HBCU problem. As Black people, we continue to voice our injustices when it's us, rather than when it's at a PWI.” WI Read more on washingtoninformer.com.

5 Patrice Lancaster, executive director of the Pursue Foundation, at the tenth annual Freshman Sendoff with Promise Parraway, a 2026 Ballou High School graduate who’s studying biochemistry at Georgia State University this fall. (Courtesy Photo)

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A DC Masterpiece of Business, Community and Washington, D.C. - Mrs. Virginia Ali Catherine W. LeBlanc Legacy Award Honoree

By DC Black MBA Legacy is often discussed as something left behind. However, some legacies are built in full view that happen day after day, year after year, through the lives touched, communities strengthened and doors opened for those who follow them. That kind of living legacy is at the heart of the Catherine W. LeBlanc Legacy Award, presented by the Washington, D.C. Chapter of the National Black MBA Association. This year, the chapter will honor Mrs. Virginia Ali, co-founder of Ben’s Chili Bowl, a woman whose nearly seven decades of entrepreneurship, service and steadfast commitment to Washington make her deserving of such an honor. “Mrs. Virginia Ali is a sterling example of someone whose lifelong activities created history every day and whose commitment to service embodies the ideals that substantiate ‘legacy’ in an abiding way,” said Catherine W. LeBlanc, the award’s namesake. Those words capture what makes Ali’s story so remarkable because she did more than simply

witness Washington history. She helped create, preserve and sustain it. For Dr. Carletta S. Hurt, president of the DC Chapter and creator of the Catherine W. LeBlanc Legacy Award, Ali rep- Virginia Ali resents precisely why the recognition was established. “When I created this award, I wanted us to be intentional about honoring women whose leadership has made a lasting difference in our community,” Hurt said. “Legacy is bigger than a title, an award or a moment of recognition. It is what continues because you were here. Mrs. Ali has built a business, but she has also helped preserve a community, created opportunities, welcomed generations of Washingto- Catherine W. LeBlanc nians and demonstrated what it means to stay committed to people and place.” Named for Catherine W. LeBlanc, a respected leader whose career and service have demonstrated a sustained commitment to community, leadership and creating opportunities for others, the award recognizes individuals whose contributions extend beyond personal achievement. It celebrates service that creates a foundation upon which others can build. “I am so grateful to the Washington DC Chapter of the National Black MBA Association and its President, Dr. Carletta Hurt, for honoring my own legacy and more importantly, providing the opportunity through this award to honor the legacy of others,” LeBlanc said. For LeBlanc, recognizing such contributions is as much about the future as it is about the past. “Acknowledging legacy is not only important as an expression of gratitude for services rendered to the persons honored, but more importantly, for showing succeeding generations of young people what is possible for them,” she said. That message has particular resonance for DC Black MBA, an organization committed to advancing Black professionals, entrepreneurs and leaders in the DMV. Ali’s story offers a powerful business lesson about entrepreneurship that can be both an economic endeavor and an act of community building. Ben’s Chili Bowl has survived segregation, civil unrest, neighborhood disinvestment, massive construction disruption and dramatic changes to the U Street corridor. Today, the business has expanded beyond its original restaurant, while the Ben’s Chili Bowl Foundation continues the family's tradition of service through youth empowerment, community partnerships and support for local organizations. “Mrs. Ali reminds us that Black business ownership is bigger than simply opening a business, it is about what we build around that business,” Hurt said. “Ben’s has created jobs, preserved culture, supported the community and given Washington a gathering place where people from every walk of life can sit together. That is the economic impact. That is the social impact. That is a legacy.” For nearly seven decades, Virginia Ali has been there serving, building, welcoming and persevering. Washington has changed around her, however, her commitment to Washington, DC and the Black community has not.

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AUGUST 20 - 26, 2026 31

SPORTS Commanders Secure 20-7 Preseason Opening Victory Over Dolphins By Skylar Nelson WI Contributing Writer The Washington Commanders launched their 2026 preseason campaign in winning fashion, defeating the Miami Dolphins 20-7 20-7 on Friday, Aug. 14 at Northwest Stadium. The victory wrapped a successful week for Washington, who also faced Miami in a joint practice on Wednesday, Aug. 12 at the BigBear. ai Performance Center. This marked the franchise’s first joint practice at the Ashburn facility. “First thing I thought was it was good to see the rookies. I really enjoy the preseason,” said Washington Commanders Head Coach Dan Quinn. “We put so much time into the development side with these guys, so when I get a chance to watch them play, man, it’s something that I love every year. They come in early, extra time, extra walkthroughs at night, just to put themselves in a position where they can compete and do their thing. And so, first action for them, it’s a big deal. It’s never lost on me; I love that.” After most of Washington’s starters participated in the joint session, Quinn decided to rest 26 players for the preseason opener. Jayden Daniels, Terry McLaurin, Stefon Diggs, Odafe Oweh, Jacory “Bill” Croskey-Merritt, Mike Sainristil, Frankie Luvu, Jeremy Reaves, and several other key players were among those on the list who did not play. Instead, under the Friday night lights, the NFL debuts of Sonny Styles, Antonio Williams, Athan Kaliakmanis, and Drew Stevens, among others, were on full display.

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“It was incredible. I wasn’t really thinking about my first completion,” said Kaliakmanis. “I was kind of in the zone, but it was just a blessing to walk out there, see all the Commanders fans, and see that field. It was like, ‘wow, this is real life. This is my life. It’s amazing. It’s beautiful.’ I love it, and I’m just appreciative [of] every one of the guys in here.” WI

Two-Time NBA Champion Quinn Cook Hosted 10th Annual Basketball Camp DMV Native Works to Foster Next Generation of Athletes

By Skylar Nelson and Jonae Guest WI Contributing Writer and WI Photographer Two-time NBA champion and DMV native Quinn Cook brought his annual youth basketball camp back home for the 10th year, giving young athletes an opportunity to learn, grow and thrive on and off the court. Led by Cook, the camp was hosted at the St. James Sports Complex in Springfield, Virginia offering a one-of-a-kind, five-day experience from Aug. 10-14 filled with elite coaching, skill development, and healthy competition. With 2026 marking the 10th anniversary of the basketball camp, for Cook, the annual experience was not only about training youth, but celebrating a decade of giving back to the community.

“What started as a way to give back has turned into something bigger than I ever imagined,” said Cook. “This camp has always been about more than basketball, it's been

about giving back to the community that raised me.” Here’s a look inside the thrilling 10th annual basketball celebration:

5Camp coaches and participants huddle before transitioning into another activity at the 10th anniversary of the annual Quinn Cook Basketball Camp, held at the St. James Sports Complex on Wednesday, Aug. 12. (Jonae Guest/The Washington Informer) 4Two-time NBA Champion Quinn Cook with a camp participant at the St. James Sports Complex on Aug. 12, marking 10 years of his annual youth basketball camp. (Jonae Guest/ The Washington Informer)

3 Wide Receiver Jaylin Lane (left) and guard Tanoa Togiai (right) celebrate running back Robert Henry Jr.’s (middle) touchdown in the Commanders' 20-7 preseason opening win against the Dolphins at Northwest Stadium on Friday, Aug. 14. (Marcus Relacion/The Washington Informer)

5 Commanders’ linebacker Kain Medrano blocks a pass in the team’s 20-7 victory over the Dolphins at Northwest Stadium on Friday, Aug. 14. (Abdullah Konte/The Washington Informer) 3 Quarterback Marcus Marriota throwing the ball in team warm-ups ahead of the Commanders’ preseason opener against the Dolphins at Northwest Stadium on Friday, Aug. 14. (Abdullah Konte/The Washington Informer)

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CAPTURE the moment

The Department of Youth and Rehabilitation Services — in partnership with the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice, Department of Human Services, and Child and Family Services Administration — held the 4th Annual Back-to-School Event at The Fields at RFK Campus in Northeast Washington on Aug.14. Featuring food, giveaways and kid-friendly activities, including running drills with the Washington Capitals (pictured), participants geared up for the school year with free backpacks and school supplies, enrollment assistance, haircuts and more. (Cleveland Nelson/The Washington Informer)

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AUGUST 20 - 26, 2026 33

RELIGION

3 Brian Camphor and OneWay members Brian Camphor, Angela Marie Jones, Fred Cleveland and Julia McMillan (on a FaceTime call after recently giving birth) celebrate winning their second Stellar Award. (Courtesy Photo/Brian Camphor and OneWay)

Stellar Awards Celebrate Gospel’s Legacy, Faith and Future in Charlotte

DMV Artists Shine During Celebration By Brigette Squire WI Contributing Writer With a regal purple-and-gold setting, gospel royalty flocked to the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina Aug. 14-15 for the 41st Annual Stellar Gospel Music Awards, an evening that celebrated artistry and emphasized the power of faith. From Kirk Franklin serving as the event host, to powerhouse performances and honoring influential artists and faith leaders such as Tasha Cobbs Leonard and Pastor Mike Jr., the awards show highlighted both

the gospel sound and the spiritual foundation of the genre: trusting in and turning to God for guidance “If you’re grieving, the posture at the feet of Jesus has taken me through the loss of a baby. It’s taken me through the loss of my father and many seasons of being brokenhearted,” said gospel icon Cobbs Leonard, a three-time GRAMMY-winner who received the Aretha Franklin Icon Award. “I could not have made it without that posture.” Michael DeWayne McClure Jr., best known as Pastor Mike Jr., received the Thomas A. Dorsey Most Notable Achievement Award. His

acceptance moment took on the cadence of a sermon, moving beyond celebration and toward the role gospel music can play when communities are facing grief, uncertainty and division. “Whatever you go through in life, don’t allow the devil or the enemy to take your appetite for what God has for you,” he said. The celebration also reflected the genre’s range, with performances from artists including Darrel Walls, John P. Kee, Kierra Sheard-Kelly, Lisa Knowles-Smith & The Brown Singers, Marvin Sapp, PJ Morton, Tye Tribbett and Yolanda Adams. Further, artists from across the DMV area were award nominees, such as Howard University’s Gospel Choir. Some even won awards to take back home, including JustCor-

dell, who won Rap/Hip-Hop Song of the Year for his single “Movin,” and Brian Camphor & OneWay, who received their second Stellar award for Traditional/Song or Group. While the musical group’s primary goal is spreading God’s love through music, they are also bringing D.C. sounds to the masses. “One of our favorite songs that you all can listen to is called ‘Forever.’ It definitely brings our home and the rich legacy of go-go into the music. We all met during our formative years at Duke Ellington School of the Arts, where we knew of each other and developed a friendship,” said Angela Marie Jones, one of four members in Brian Camphor & OneWay. “As soon as we knew

5 Lisa Knowles-Smith of Lisa Knowles-Smith & The Brown Singers speaks during the 41st Annual Stellar Gospel Music Awards in Charlotte, North Carolina, where the group was among this year’s Stellar Award winners. (Kenneth Perry/The Washington Informer)

34 AUGUST 20 - 26, 2026

that the foundation was Christ, we began to do music. Actually, Brandon was the one who brought us together.”From traditional gospel and choir music to contemporary worship and gospel hip-hop, the Stellar Awards— which airs Aug. 29 at 8 p.m. via the Stellar Network and Aug. 30 at 8 p.m. on BET— showcased a genre that continues to evolve while remaining connected to testimony, community and the Black church tradition. “I feel like we are navigating between triumph and tragedy. One thing is for sure: you can’t sing about a God that you don’t trust and that you don’t believe in,” KnowlesSmith said. “So what we have done in this season is really put our trust in Him.” WI

5 Tasha Cobbs Leonard, styled by J. Bolin, arrives at the 41st Annual Stellar Gospel Music Awards in Charlotte, North Carolina, where she was honored with the Aretha Franklin Icon Award. (Kenneth Perry/The Washington Informer)

THE WASHINGTON INFORMER / WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

the religion corner

RELIGION

WITH LYNDIA GRANT

Back to School: Let's Help Save the Cellphone Generation

As our children put on their backpacks and walk through the schoolhouse doors for the 2026-27 academic year, we must confront a quiet crisis unfolding right in front of our eyes. Our students are walking into classrooms completely tethered to a digital lifeline. For today's youth, the smartphone is no longer just a gadget or a tool; it has become a constant companion, often closer and more influential than a best friend. The consequences of this constant connection are devastating to our classrooms, our children's academic integrity, and their moral development. Recent studies reveal that 95% of American teenagers have access to a smartphone, and nearly half admit they are online "almost constantly." This isn't just harmless entertainment. When schools successfully implement cellphone restrictions, they see a massive drop in digital distractions. Student surveys show that before these restrictions are put in place, up to 61% of students are actively using their devices in class for personal reasons rather than paying attention to the lesson. The cellphone has fundamentally rewritten how students interact, navigate their school days, and bypass the rules. Consider the everyday realities educators now face: • Automated Dishonesty: Students rely on their phones to avoid critical thinking, using artificial intelligence and chat applications to get entire essays written for them and homework answers generated instantly. • Coordinated Cutting: The classic bathroom pass has become a tool for orchestrated truancy. A student

texts a friend under the desk: "I'm going to ask for a bathroom pass, you ask for one too. Meet me at the staircase." Within minutes, the hallway becomes a social lounge rather than a path back to learning. • Moral Devaluation: The lack of oversight created by digital coordination opens the door to severe behavioral issues. According to firsthand accounts from school security personnel, unmonitored cellphone communication is directly used to coordinate illicit meetups, including students engaging in sexual activity inside the school building, hiding in stairwells, vacant locker rooms, or empty classrooms.

The False Sense of Security

Now, in an era marked by the tragic reality of school shootings, it is truly understandable why parents feel a deep, visceral anxiety and want to be able to contact their children instantly. A recent National Parents Union poll found that 78% of parents want their kids to have phones at school specifically for emergencies. But we must look at this with clear eyes and historical perspective. Before cellphones were glued to every palm, parents still managed to reach their children. If a parent needed to communicate that they were picking a child up for a doctor's appointment, or if a child wasn't feeling well, the parent simply called the main office. The school staff would immediately send a runner or page the classroom, and contact would be made. That reliable system still exists today! The main office remains fully equipped to connect parents and students for any legitimate reason. The real problem is that our society now operates in a totally dependent cellphone environment. This younger generation of parents has never experienced taking their children to school without a cellphone in their backpacks. Because of this, we have traded actual safety for a false sense of security. Security experts explicitly warn that cellphones actually jeopardize student safety during active emer-

gencies. When hundreds of students simultaneously text and post during a crisis, they overload local cell towers, blocking vital communication for first responders. Furthermore, the chime of notifications can give away a student's hiding spot, and the spread of unverified rumors online fuels mass panic and hinders police efforts.

A Spiritual and Communal Solution

The Word of God reminds us of the dangers of allowing our hearts and minds to be captive to the wrong influences. In Proverbs 4:23, we are commanded: "Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life." If our children are guarding their cellphones more than they are guarding their hearts, the output of their lives will be compromised. Furthermore, Proverbs 22:6 instructs us to "Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it." Training requires boundary lines, discipline, and presence, none of which can happen when a screen dictates a child's attention span and moral compass. How do we fix this massive problem? We must shift the culture entirely through a bold new media campaign. It is time to create a national awareness initiative called "NOT MY CHILD: Reclaiming the Cellphone Generation." This campaign must hold a mirror up to our community, using a healthy dose of public shame and accountability to shake parents, teachers, and students out of their complacency. The ads will boldly showcase the horrific statistics of digital distraction, cheating, and moral decay, challenging every adult and teenager to draw a line in the sand. The core message of the campaign will be a fierce, protective battle cry for every household: "Not my child. My child will not become part of these horrific statistics." WI Read more on washingtoninformer.com.

WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM / THE WASHINGTON INFORMER

AUGUST 20 - 26, 2026 35

RELIGION The Miracle Center of Faith Missionary Baptist Church Bishop Michael C. Turner, Sr. Senior Pastor 9161 Hampton Overlook Capitol Heights, MD 20743 Phone: 301-350-2200 / Fax: 301-499-8724 Service and Times Sunday Worship Times : 7:30 AM 7 10:00 AM Communion: 1st Sunday Sunday School: 9:00 AM Bible Study: Wednesday, 12 Noon Bible Study in homes: Tuesday 7:00 PM Website: www.themiraclecenterFMBC.com Email: Miraclecenterfmbs@gmail.com Motto: “We Walk by Faith, Not by Sight”

Blessed Word

Pilgrim Baptist Church Rev. Joel R. Limerick Pastor

Rev. Dr. Paul Carrette Senior Pastor

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

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

Service and Times In Person Worship: Sunday @ 9:30 A.M. Streaming: Sunday @ 9:30 A.M. www.pilgrimbaptistdc.org Prayer & Study: Wednesday @ 12 Noon and 7:00 P.M.

Service and Times Sunday Service: 10:00 AM Bible Study: Wednesday 7:30 PM Communion Service: First Sunday

www.pilgrimbaptistdc.org

Covenant Baptist United Church of Christ

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

Reverend William Young IV Pastor

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

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

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

Mount Carmel Baptist Church

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

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

Mount Olivet Lutheran Church

Service and Times Sunday Early Morning Worship 8:00 AM Sunday School 9:30 AM Sunday Morning Worship 11:00 AM Tuesday: 7:00 PM – Kingdom Building Bible Institute Wednesday: 12:30 PM – Mid-Day Bible Study Wednesday: 7:00 PM – Evening Bible Study Baptism - 3rd Sunday – Communion 4th Sunday Free Food Giveaway – Every Tuesday, 11:00 am – 3:00 pm “We are One in the Spirit” www.ssbcmd.org | secretary@ssbcmd.org

Campbell AME Church

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

Service and Times Divine Worship, Sunday 10:00 a.m. Communion 1st and 3rd Sunday “Friendliest Church in the City” Website: mountolivetdc.org Email: mtolivedc@gmail.com

Dr. E. Gail Anderson Holness - Senior Pastor Rev. Ali Gail Holness-Roland Assistant & Youth Pastor

36 AUGUST 20 - 26, 2026

Bishop Lanier C. Twyman, Sr. / Senior Pastor 5757 Temple Hill Road, Temple Hills, MD 20748 Office 301.899.8885 – Fax 301.899.2555

1306 Vermont Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20005

Rev. Dr. James Coleman Pastor

Website: www.allnationsbaptistchurch.com All Nations Baptist Church – A Church of Standards

St. Stephen Baptist Church

Rev. Terrance M. McKinley Senior Pastor

Adams Inspirational A.M.E. Church

Service and Times Sunday Church School – 9:30 AM Sunday Worship Service – 11:00 AM Holy Communion – 1st Sunday at 11:00 AM Prayer – Wednesdays, 6:00 PM Bible Study – Wednesdays, 7:00 PM Christian Education / School of Biblical Knowledge Saturdays, 9:30 AM – 11:00 AM, Call for Registration

www.livingwatersmd.org

John F. Johnson Reverend Dr.

All Nations Baptist Church

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

Church of Living Waters

12801 Old Fort Road • Ft. Washington, MD 20744 Office (301) 292.6323 • FAX (301) 292.2164 Service and Times Sunday Worship 10:15 am Sunday Church School 11:00 am Youth Sunday every 4th Sunday Prayer Call @ Noon every Tuesday & Thursday 978.990.5166 code: 6166047# Virtual Bible Study Wednesday Facebook & Zoom 7:00 pm “A Growing Church for a Coming Christ” www.adamsinspirationalamec.org

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

Emmanuel Baptist Church Rev. Christopher L. Nichols Pastor 2409 Ainger Place SE Washington, DC 20020 / Office: (202) 678-0884 “Moving Faith Forward” 0% Perfect . . . 100% Forgiven! Service and Times Sunday: Worship Service – 9:00 AM & 11:00 AM 3rd Sunday: Unity Service – 11:00 AM (Only One Service) Sunday School: 10:00 AM Monday: Unity Bible Study – 5:00 PM Call-In Number: (646) 749-3112/ Access Code: 971155757 Tuesday: Prayer Service – 6:00 PM & Family Bible Study – 7:00 PM Call-In Number: (872) 240-3212/Access Code: 164695965 Wednesday: Noonday Worship – 12:00 PM Thursday: Adult Bible Study – 7:00 PM Call-In Number: (646) 749-3112/Access Code: 843069541 Friday: Impact Focus (Online) – 7:30 PM Saturday: Children's Church (Online) – 6:00 PM Website: www.ebcwdc.org

Third Street Church of God Rev. Cheryl J. Sanders, Th.D. Senior Pastor

Isle of Patmos Baptist Church Reverend Dr. Calvin L. Matthews Senior Pastor

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

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

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

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

“Ambassadors for Christ to the Nation’s Capital” www.thirdstreet.org Live Stream Sunday Worship Service begins @ 12:00 noon www.thirdstreet.org

Mt. Zion Baptist Church

Reverend John W. Davis Pastor 5101 14th Street, NW / Washington, DC 20011 Phone: 202-726-2220 Fax: 202-726-9089 Service and Times Sunday Worship Service - 8:00 a.m. & 11:00 a.m. Children’s Church - 11:00 a.m. (1st & 3rd Sundays) Communion - 10 a.m. 4th Sunday Sunday School - 9:15 a.m. (4th Sunday 8:15 a.m.) Prayer Meeting & Bible Study - Wednesday 7:00 p.m. “A Church with a past to remember – and a future to mold” www.mtzbcdc.org

Pennsylvania Ave. Baptist Church Rev. Dr. Kendrick E. Curry Pastor 3000 Pennsylvania Ave.. S.E Washington, DC 20020 202 581-1500 Service and Times Sunday Church School: 9:30 AM Sunday Worship Service: 11:00 AM Monday Adult Bible Study: 7:00 PM Wednesday Youth & Adult Activities: 6:30 PM Prayer Service Bible Study

Holy Trinity United Baptist Church Rev. Dr. George C. Gilbert Senior Pastor 4504 Gault Place, N.E. / Washington, D.C 20019 202-397-7775 – 7184 Service and Times Sunday Church School: 9:30 AM Sunday Worship Service : 11:00 AM The Lord’s Supper 1st Sunday Prayer & Praise Services: Wednesday 7:00 PM Bible Study: 7:30 PM Saturday before 4th Sunday Men, Women, Youth Discipleship Ministries: 10:30 AM

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

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

Shiloh Church of God 7th Day Elder Jonathan M. Carson Senior Pastor

5701 Eastern Avenue, Hyattsville, MD 20782 Phone: 301 559-5262 Service and Times Sabbath Worship @ 1:00 pm in-person/FB/Zoom Tuesday - Prayer@ 7:30 pm on Zoom Wednesday - Bible Study@ 7:30 pm on Zoom Friday - Sabbath School@ 7:30 pm on Zoom Web: shiloh7thday.org Email: shiloh7thdaycomm@gmail.com "A culturally diverse church of edification, deliverance and transformation"

Place your church ad here! Contact Ron Burke rburke@washingtoninformer.com

A Christ Centered Church htubc@comcast.net

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RELIGION Zion Baptist Church

Israel Baptist Church Rev. Lance Aubert Senior Pastor

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

St. Luke Baptist Church

1251 Saratoga Ave., NE Washington, DC 20018 (202) 269-0288 Service and Times Sunday Worship Service: 10:45 AM Sunday School: 9:15 AM Holy Communion1st Sunday: 10:45 AM Prayer Service: Wednesday at 6:30 PM Bible Study: Wednesday at 7:00 PM Bible Study: Tuesday at 10:30 AM

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

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

Rehoboth Baptist Church

1301 North Carolina Ave. N E Washington, D C 20002 202 543 1318 - lincolnpark@lpumcdc.org www.lpumcdc.org Service and Times Sunday Worship: 10:00 AM Holy Communion: First Sunday 10:00 AM Sunday School: 9:00 AM Bible Study: Wednesday @ 12 noon and 6:30 PM Motto: "Faith On The Hill"

Eastern Community Baptist Church Damion M. Briggs Pastor

Elder Herman L. Simms Pastor 5606 Marlboro Pike District Heights, MD 20747 301-735-6005

Apostolic in Doctrine, Pentecostal in Experience, Holiness in Living, Uncompromised and Unchanged. The Apostolic Faith is still alive –Acts 2:42

“Where God is Praised, Christ is Obeyed, and People are Loved”

New Commandment Baptist Church Rev. Stephen E. Tucker Senior Pastor

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

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

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

The Reverend Canon Michele Hagans Priest

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

Foggy Bottom - Founded in 1867 728 23rd Street, NW - Washington, DC 20037 Church office: 202-333-3985 - Fax : 202-338-4958 Service and Times Sundays: 10 a.m. Holy Eucharist with Music and Hymns Wednesdays: 12:10 p.m. - Holy Eucharist

www.stmarysfoggybottom.org Email: stmarysoffice@stmarysfoggybottom.org All are welcome to St. Mary’s to Learn, Worship, and Grow.

Promised Land Baptist Church

Dr. Joseph D. Turner Senior Pastor

Service and Times Sunday Apostolic Worship Services 11:00 A.M and 5:00 PM Communion and Feet Wash 4th Sunday at 5:00 PM Prayer/Seeking: Wednesday at 8:00 PM

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

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

Matthews Memorial Baptist Church

2616 MLK Ave., SE - Washington, DC 20020 Office 202-889-3709 - Fax 202-678-3304 Service and Times Sunday Worship Service: 9:30 AM Holy Communion: 1st Sunday 9:30 AM Sunday School: 8:15 AM Bible Study: Wednesdays at Noon Baptism: 4th Sunday 9:30 AM

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

Rev. Curtis l. Staley Pastor

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

Rev. Richard B. Black Interim Pastor

Sermon On The Mount Temple Of Joy Apostolic Faith

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

Historic St. Mary’s Episcopal Church

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

Lincoln Park United Methodist Church

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

First Rising Mt. Zion Baptist Church

Website address: www.mmbcdc.org

Peace Baptist Church Rev. Dr. Michael T. Bell 712 18th Street, NE Washington, DC 20002 Phone 202-399-3450/ Fax 202-398-8836 Service and Times Sunday Early Morning Prayer & Bible Study Class: 8:00 AM Sunday School: 9:00 AM Sunday Morning Worship Service: 10:00 AM Wednesday Service: 12:00 PM “The Loving Church of the living lord “ Email Address: admin@pbc712.org

Mt. Horeb Baptist Church

Rev. Oran W. Young Pastor

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

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

602 N Street NW - Washington, D.C. 20001 Office:(202) 289-4480 / Fax: (202) 289-4595

Service and Times Sunday Worship 10:30 am Zoom: zoom.us/;/2028828331 Bible Study: Wednesday 7:00pm Communion Every First Sunday

Service and Times Adult Sunday School: 8:00 AM Sunday Worship Services: 9:30 AM Youth/Young Adult Sunday School 12:00 PM Midday Prayer & Bible Study: Wednesday 11:30AM Evening Prayer & Bible Study: Wednesday 7:00 PM Laymen's League: Thursday 7:00 PM

2914 Bladensburg Road, NE Wash., DC 20018 Office: (202) 529-3180 - Fax: (202) 529-7738 Service and Times Worship Service: 7:30 AM Sunday School: 9:00 AM Worship Service: 10:30 AM Holy Communion: 4th Sunday 7:30AM & 10:30 AM Prayer Services:Tuesday 7:30 PM. Wednesday 12 Noon

Rev Kevin A. O'Bryant Pastor

"Serve, teach and Live by precept and example the saving grace of Jesus Christ." Website: Theplbc.org Email: churchclerk@theplbc.org

Email: Froffice@firstrising.org Website: www.firstrising.org “Changing Lives On Purpose “

Email:mthoreb@mthoreb.org Website:www.mthoreb.org For further information, please contact me at (202) 529-3180

Join us for our live broadcast every Friday at Noon!

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AUGUST 20 - 26, 2026 37

LEGAL NOTICES

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

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

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

2026 ADM 000749

2025 ADM 001058

2026 ADM 000755

2026 FEP 000103

2026 ADM 000805

Virgie Mae Wiley Decedent

Michael Gregory Shane Sr. Decedent

October 21, 2022 Date of Death

Gloria Moselle Lamar Sperry aka Gloria M. L. Sperry Decedent

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

Meredith Gusky 600 14th Street, NW, 5th Floor Washington, DC 20005 Attorney

Devin M. Roberson aka Anee Johnson Decedent

Harriet T. Wiley and Crystal Y. Wiley, whose addresses are 413 34th Street, NE, Washington, DC 20019 and 5009 40th Place, Apt. 404, Hyattsville, MD 20781, were appointed Personal Representatives of the estate of Virgie Mae Wiley who died on August 29, 2015 without a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 2/6/2027. 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 2/6/2027, 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: 8/6/2026 Harriet T. Wiley 413 34th St., NE, Washington, DC 20019 Crystal Y. Wiley 5009 40th Place, Apt.404 Hyattsville, MD 20781 Personal Representative

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Andrew Brian Shane, whose address is 6122 1st Place, NE, Washington, DC 20011, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Michael Gregory Shane Sr., who died on February 25, 2015 without a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (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 2/6/2027. 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 2/6/2027, 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: 8/6/2026 Andrew Brian Shane Personal Representative

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Gary Roberson & Lavonda Roberson Faulkner, whose addresses are 7023 Groveton Drive, Clinton, MD 20735 & 543 Hampton Drive, North Augusta, SC 29860, were appointed Personal Representatives of the estate of Devin M. Roberson aka Anee Johnson who died on 10/14/2023 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 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 2/6/2027. 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 2/6/2027, 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.

Robert Earl Jones Name of Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT OF FOREIGN PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE AND NOTICE TO CREDITORS Nichelle M. Jones whose address is 4260 Suitland Rd., Apt. 204, Suitland MD 20746 was appointed personal representative of the estate of Robert Earl Jones, deceased, by the Orphans Court for Prince Georges County, State of Maryland, on July 22, 2026. Service of process may be made upon Monique S. Patrick 809 20th Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002-4101 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: 239 Rock Creek Church Road, NW, Washington, DC 20011. 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: 8/6/2026

Gary Roberson Lavonda Roberson Faulkner Personal Representative

Nichelle M. Jones Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY

Washington Informer

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Deborah Ruth Kemere, whose address is 6802 40th Avenue, University Park MD 20782, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Gloria Moselle Lamar Sperry aka Gloria M. L. Sperry who died on 6/13/2026 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 2/13/2027. 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 2/13/2027, 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: 8/13/2026 Deborah Ruth Kemere Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

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 000842

2026 ADM 000711

2026 ADM 000813

2026 ADM 000740

2026 ADM 000773

Pearl E. Wood Decedent

Lottie B. Stevens aka Lottie Bryant Stevens Decedent

John A. Harris., Sr. aka John Alfred Harris Decedent

Philippe Bregeon Decedent

Erma J. Smith Decedent

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

Valerie J. Edwards 1800 M Street, NW, Suite 450N Washington, DC 20036 Attorney

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

Christina Reed, whose address is 2712 Wisconsin Ave., NW, #511, Washington, DC 20007, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Philippe Bregeon who died on 8/30/2025 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 2/13/2027. 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 2/13/2027, 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.

Vanessa D. Brown, whose address is 2977 Eutaw Forest Dr., Waldorf, MD 20603, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Erma J. Smith who died on January 11, 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 2/13/2027. 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 2/13/2027, 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.

Clarence Wood, whose address is 5615 Ashburn Terrace, Frederick, MD 21703, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Pearl E. Wood who died on 3/26/2026 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 (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 2/13/2027. 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 2/13/2027, 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: 8/13/2026 Clarence Wood Personal Representative

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Andria Lynette Barbee, whose address is 12704 Redgrave Drive, Upper Marlboro, MD 20774, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Lottie B. Stevens aka Lottie Bryant Stevens who died on 2/13/2024 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 2/13/2027. 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 2/13/2027, 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.

TRUE TEST COPY

Date of first publication: 8/13/2026

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Andria Lynette Barbee Personal Representative

Washington Informer

TRUE TEST COPY Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Washington Informer

John Alfred Harris Jr., whose address is 4723 Bromley Avenue, Suitland, MD 20746, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of John A. Harris., Sr. aka John Alfred Harris who died on March 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 2/13/2027. 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 2/13/2027, 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: 8/13/2026 John Alfred Harris Jr. Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

Date of first publication: 8/13/2026 Christina Reed Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

Date of first publication: 8/13/2026 Vanessa D. Brown Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

Washington Informer

38 AUGUST 20 - 26, 2026

THE WASHINGTON INFORMER / WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM

LEGAL NOTICES

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

2026 ADM 000783

2026 ADM 000775

2026 ADM 000712

2026 ADM 000756

2026 ADM 000604

Robert Shawn Thomas Decedent

Louise B. Hall Decedent

Adam Milczynski Kaas Decedent

Eva Essie Mae Shanks Decedent

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

Rocquelle A. Jeri, Esq. 1419 Perrell Lane, Bowie, MD 20716 Attorney

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

Jordan La’shell Thomas, whose address is 4919 A Street SE, #301, Washington, DC 20019, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Robert Shawn Thomas who died on March 10, 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 2/13/2027. 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 2/13/2027, 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.

Andrea Streat, whose address is 3466 Hearthfire Court, White Plains, MD 20695, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Louise B. Hall who died on 4/29/1997 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 2/13/2027. 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 2/13/2027, 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.

Nicolaus Milczynski Dominguez, whose address is Rio Alzania 23, 10 C, Pamplona, Country of Spain, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Adam Milczynski Kaas who died on July 2nd 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 2/13/2027. 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 2/13/2027, 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.

Samuel Shanks & Benjamin Shanks, whose addresses are 5731 Kansas Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20011 and 215 Colton St., Upper Marlboro, MD 20774, were appointed Personal Representatives of the estate of Eva Essie Mae Shanks who died on May 9, 2024 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 2/13/2027. 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 2/13/2027, 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: 8/13/2026

Jordan La’shell Thomas Personal Representative

Andrea Streat Personal Representative

Stephen Thomas Baird aka Stephen Thomas Linden Baird Decedent Bradley A. Thomas, Esq. 1629 K Street, NW, Suite 300 Washington, DC 20006 Attorney NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Aubrey Arthur Baird, whose address is 3402 39th Place, Brentwood, MD 20722, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Stephen Thomas Baird aka Stephen Thomas Linden Baird who died on March 22, 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 2/13/2027. 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 2/13/2027, 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: 8/13/2026 Aubrey Arthur Baird Personal Representative

Date of first publication: 8/13/2026 Nicolaus Milczynski Dominguez Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Samuel Shanks Benjamin Shanks 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

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

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

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

2026 FEP 000104

2026 ADM 000820

2026 ADM 000848

2026 FEP 000109

2026 ADM 000768

July 6, 2006 Date of Death

Charles E. Hailstock Decedent

Theodore Joshua Jones Decedent

December 28, 2021 Date of Death

Reginald Thornton aka Reginald D. Thornton Decedent

Bessie L. Lomax Name of Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT OF FOREIGN PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE AND NOTICE TO CREDITORS Lee Johnson whose address is 12711 Candlewood Way, Hudson, FL 34667 was appointed personal representative of the estate of Bessie L. Lomax, deceased, by the Orphans Court for Prince Georges County, State of Maryland, on 7/21/2006. Service of process may be made upon Sharon Legall, 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 the following District of Columbia real estate. 1224 5th Street, NE, Washington, DC 20002. 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: 8/13/2026 Lee Johnson Personal Representative Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

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

James D. Hailstock, whose address is 1141 S 3rd Street, Camden New Jersey 08103, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Charles E. Hailstock who died on 5/25/2026 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 decedents 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 2/20/2027. 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 2/20/2027, 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.

Carla Jones, whose address is 4071 Silver Park Terrace, Suitland MD 20746, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Theodore Joshua Jones who died on September 22, 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 2/20/2027. 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 2/20/2027, 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: 8/20/2026 James D. Hailstock Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

Date of first publication: 8/20/2026 Carla Jones Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

Washington Informer

Date of first publication: 8/13/2026

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

Edna Becton Pittmon Name of Decedent NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT OF FOREIGN PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE AND NOTICE TO CREDITORS Stanwyn Becton whose address is 1668 Grand Meadow Drive, Gambrills, MD 21054 was appointed personal representative of the estate of Edna Becton Pittmon, deceased, by the Orphans Court for Prince Georges County, State of Maryland, on December 28, 2021. Service of process may be made upon Monica Thomas Hawkins 4819 Illinois Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20011 whose designation as District of Columbia agent has been filed with the Register of Wills, D.C. The decedent owned the following District of Columbia real property: 4819 Illinois Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20011. 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.

Murray D. Scheel DC Bar Pro Bono Center 901 4th Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 Attorney NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS

Stanwyn Becton Personal Representative

Reginald Jeffries, whose address is 235 Mississippi Ave SE, Apt 101, Washington, DC 20032, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Reginald Thornton aka Reginald D. Thornton who died on April 3, 2024 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 2/20/2027. 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 2/20/2027, 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.

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

Date of first publication: 8/20/2026

Washington Informer

Reginald Jeffries Personal Representative

Date of first publication: 8/20/2026

TRUE TEST COPY Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM / THE WASHINGTON INFORMER

AUGUST 20 - 26, 2026 39

LEGAL NOTICES SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 2026 ADM 000770 Sarah Elizabeth Bethea Decedent

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Denise Ross, whose address is 113 Jefferson Road, Waldorf MD 20602, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Sarah Elizabeth Bethea who died on May 30, 2020 with a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before 2/20/2027. 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 2/20/2027, 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: 8/20/2026 Denise Ross Personal Representative

LEGAL NOTICES SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131 2025 ADM 001387 Tamar Peli Decedent Xue F. Connelly Friedman, Grimes, Meinken & Leischner 616 N. Washington St. Alexandria, VA 22314 Attorney

Ben Peli, whose address is 3004 Sayre Rd., Fairfax, VA 22031, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Tamar Peli who died on 9/22/2023 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 2/20/2027. 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 2/20/2027, 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: 8/20/2026 Ben Peli Personal Representative

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills

TRUE TEST COPY

Washington Informer

Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

2021 ADM 001618 Lloyd Scaife Decedent

NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Richard Scaife, whose address is 9206 Ivanhoe Rd., Fort Washington, MD 20744, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Lloyd Scaife who died on 04/03/2020 without a Will and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedents’ 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 2/20/2027. 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 2/20/2027, 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: 8/20/2026 Richard Scaife Personal Representative

TRUE TEST COPY Nicole Stevens Register of Wills Washington Informer

Reader Advisory: The National Trade Association we belong to has purchased the following classifieds. Determining the value of their service or product is advised by this publication. In order to avoid misunderstandings, some advertisers do not offer employment but rather supply the readers with manuals, directories and other materials designed to help their clients establish mail order selling and other businesses at home. Under NO circumstance should you send any money in advance or give the client your checking, license ID, or credit card numbers. Also beware of ads that claim to guarantee loans regardless of credit and note that if a credit repair company does business only over the phone it s illegal to request any money before delivering its service. All funds are based in US dollars. 800 numbers may or may not reach Canada. MEDIABIDS MISCELLANEOUS

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

TRUE TEST COPY

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

CL ASSIFIED

Phase 2 Declaration of Nationality Protocol In God We Trust. Declaration of Nationality. Notice of White Flag Surrender. Notice of Special Appearance : I am that I am: " Robert Anthony Garcia © ", in full life, in propria persona, sui juris, in solo proprio, Haqdar by natural issue, the beneficiary and heir of: “ ROBERT ANTHONY GARCIA ", corp.sole Dba.: " ROBERT A. GARCIA© ", , having reached the age of majority, being aboriginal to the northwestern and southwestern shores of Africa, the Atlantic Islands, the continental Americas, being duly certified, hereby affirms to declare my tribal intention to be as my pedigree subscribes, as a: Moorish American, but not a citizen of the United States. I declare permanent, and unalienable, allegiance to The Moorish Empire, Al Maghreb Al Aqsa, Estados al Marikanos, Societas Republicae Ea Al Maurikanuus Estados, The Constitution for the united States of America, Article III Section 2, The Lieber Code, Hague Conventions of 1899 & 1907, The Geneva Conventions, [ United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples ], and all natural laws governing moors, and hereby declare and proclaim my nationality in good faith as a: Moorish American. I am that I am: " Robert Anthony Garcia© ", from this day forward, in harmony with my Nationality / Status / Jurisdiction, shall be known as: " robert anthony garcia© ". Notice of White Flag Surrender: as "hors de combat", pursuant to The Geneva Conventions, Article III, as a minister of The Moorish Empire, and Internationally Protected Person. Notice of: LAWS AND CUSTOMS OF WAR ON LAND HAGUE, IV), ARTICLE: 32, 45, 46, & 47. Notice of Claim pursuant to Public Law 87-846, TITLE II, SEC. 203. Notice of Bailment Merging of Legal Title with Equitable Title : This order is to preserve legal and equitable title , and to reserve all rights, title, and interest, in the property, Re: COUNTY CLERK-RECORDER RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CALIFORNIA : STATE FILE NUMBER, :19533018858 " ROBERT ANTHONY GARCIA© ", is as a special deposit order, conveyed to " ROBERT ANTHONY GARCIA© ". All property of the same issue and amount, in like kind and specie, is to be returned fully intact, as a Special Deposit order of the Depositor / Beneficiary / Bailor / Donor / Principal / Creditor: " robert anthony garcia© ", nom deguerre: " Robert Anthony Garcia© ", as a special deposit order in lawful money. This special deposit is to be used exclusively for the benefit of : " ROBERT ANTHONY GARCIA© ", an Inter Vivos Unincorporated Divine Grantor Trust. This deposit is not to be commingled with general assets of any bank, nor depositary / trustee / agent / bailee / donee / debtor. This deposit is not limited to, but including: discharge and set off, of any and all outstanding liabilities as accord and satisfaction. Inter alia enact fuit. All Rights Reserved. Deo volente.

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GUILLERMO from Page 24 are dead. If an ally's military kills Americans under disputed circumstances, shouldn't we want to know exactly what happened? Yet the story barely made news in the United States. Perhaps because it's inconvenient. It's inconvenient for Manila — and Washington. Strategic allies aren't supposed to kill American citizens. The Philippines isn't just another country. It's family.

JOHNSON from Page 24 tion. Our people did not stumble into the voting booth. We marched there. We prayed there. We bled there. We buried people on the road there. I remember men and women standing in courthouse lines knowing they could lose their jobs, be threatened, humiliated, or turned away. Some dressed in their Sunday clothes because they believed registering to vote was sacred work. They were not only fighting for the right to cast a ballot. They were fighting for the right to trust that the ballot would count. That trust is fragile. Once people lose faith in elections, every defeat becomes fraud, every victory becomes suspicious, and every political opponent becomes an enemy. Democracy cannot survive long under those conditions. As a minister, I learned that accountability strengthens trust. Pastors should not count the offering alone. Finance committees review the books.

MILLIGAN from Page 24 came in August 2023, on the top floor of the Hugo L. Black United States Courthouse. Three federal judges asked Solicitor General Edmund LaCour to account for the state's defiance. LaCour told them his team was confident the Court would revise its reasoning if allowed to review the case again. This was a Tyler Perry Studios-level moment. The air inside the courtroom went still. The Alabama Solicitor General was telling federal judges, in open court, that his state would simply keep appealing until the Court's reasoning changed. Instead, the judges appointed a special map master who helped

President Marcos had bigger issues on his mind last month. China's growing aggression in the West Philippine Sea dominated much of the speech. Marcos rightly rejected racist insults aimed at Filipinos and insisted his country would not surrender its sovereignty. "We are not racists. We are not liars," Marcos declared. "We are respectful, and we are dignified. We are Filipinos, and we do not yield." Strong words. But patriotism isn't measured only by how forcefully a government stands up to China.

It's also measured by how a government treats its own people. The Philippines inherited many of America's democratic institutions. Even the "State of the Nation Address" echoes our "State of the Union." Congress. Elections. Constitutional government. We exported the architecture of democracy. What we couldn't export was accountability. That's why activists like Lyle Prijoles believed ordinary workers deserved better. And that's why his death matters. WI

Trustees examine expenditures. Auditors ask hard questions. That does not weaken the church. It protects the church. The same is true for elections. Independent oversight is not the enemy of election integrity. It is part of election integrity. Black voters should also be cautious when politicians raise fears about widespread voter fraud without producing evidence that matches the alarm. History tells us that imaginary threats have often been used to create very real barriers. We have seen laws presented as neutral that made it harder for elderly people, students, working families and communities of color to vote. That is why this moment requires wisdom, not panic. We should register. We should verify our registration. We should learn the laws. We should vote early when possible. We should help our elders reach the polls. We should watch local election boards, state legislatures

and federal agencies. Most of all, we should refuse to surrender our trust blindly to any politician or political party. The old folks in Plaquemine taught me to pay attention before the rain started. They noticed the wind. They felt the pressure change. They recognized what others ignored. I hope I am wrong about this storm. I pray that our elections remain free, fair and trusted. But I have lived long enough to know that rights can be weakened while people are distracted, and institutions can be damaged while leaders insist they are being protected. Black America must not be caught without an umbrella. Our ancestors paid too much for the ballot. Our children have too much at stake. This is the hour to stay awake, stay informed, stay organized and keep voting. The clouds may not be visible yet. But the wind is already changing. There's a storm coming. WI

all parties negotiate a redesign of Alabama Congressional District 2, which was ultimately won by Representative Shomari Figures. We are undefeated. We have brilliant attorneys who embody American idealism about little guys taking on would-be kings and winning. We have inspiring colleagues throughout our state and families willing to make sacrifices. We complied with every court order. Against all odds, we have prevailed. My personal savings are in the red, my dog is dead, my high school has closed, my college has closed, but my neighbors cheer me on. Our attorney general defied court orders while defending the Alabama Department of Corrections' right to kill people on death row, even when victims' families begged for mercy.

Attorney General Steve Marshall is now running for the U.S. Senate. Former Solicitor General Edmund LaCour is now a federal judge, appointed by President Trump to a lifetime position on the very Northern District of Alabama court where I watched him say that the state was above obeying. Our beloved Voting Rights Act lies in ashes. So what is our reward? Another special session. More litigation. More public money spent so that elected officials can dilute the votes of the people who pay their salaries. I am writing this while taking a break from a systems art piece that tells the story of an interstate occupation and a dragon bound under the Alabama Capitol by our 1901 constitution. WI Read more on washingtoninformer.com.

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without proof the employer intended to discriminate. That doctrine is now being unwound by design, not by accident. On April 23, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to eliminate the use of the disparate impact standard "in all contexts to the maximum degree possible," reaching across housing, lending, employment, education, and healthcare. The order behind the EEOC's move on July 21, 2026, didn't happen in isolation; it follows a continuum of actions in response to this call reest of this White House. On July 21, 2026, the EEOC voted 2-1 along party lines to advance a proposed rule rescinding the EEO-1 report and related demographic reporting requirements. The stated rationale is cost and burden reduction. But that ratio-

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paper space, year after year, hunting for family sold away. Judith Giesberg, who leads that project, estimates the success rate may have been as low as 2%. They kept paying anyway. Many of those notices were placed by men. Fathers. Husbands. Brothers. Herbert Gutman went through the records community by community. In the places he studied, most Black families had two parents in the house. In some rural areas it ran above eight in 10. Now come forward to our own time. Among fathers living with their small children, Black fathers were the most likely of the groups the study counted to bathe, dress, and change them every day. 70% did. For white

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$3 and a 1-gallon bucket of syrup." Watching her father remain trapped in poverty convinced Davis there was no future in sharecropping. But economic exploitation was only part of life under Jim Crow. Black residents were expected to lower their eyes, answer "yes sir" and "no sir," and accept humiliation as a way of life. Refusing, Davis said, could invite violence — or worse. Davis said the lessons that shaped her activism began even earlier, listening to her grandmother describe life just after slavery. "My grandmother used to say she was born the third year after slavery ended," Davis recalled. "That's how she told her age."

nale fails a basic balancing test for the businesses actually covered by the rule — larger employers, since EEO-1 filing applies to private employers with at least 100 employees, and certain federal contractors with at least 50. These firms are being asked to share data that already lives in their HR systems — data that shareholders of public companies would reasonably want disclosed, given that it speaks to whether a company is exposed to economic and legal risk. We know empirically that firms with greater workforce diversity also tend toward greater economic output. Losing this reporting won't erase that relationship; it will simply hide it from the investors, regulators, and workers who have a stake in seeing it. This is not a done deal, and there is a moment to say and do something. The EEOC's proposal was officially published in the Federal Register on July 23, 2026, opening a 30-day pub-

lic comment period that runs through Aug. 24, 2026. The commission also scheduled a public hearing for Aug. 11 at EEOC headquarters in Washington, allowing public testimony. Public comments can be filed at www.regulations.gov, and hearing requests go through the same portal. If you believe that these matters, that the civil rights forerunners sacrificed their lives for, are worth preserving for a generation yet to be born who deserves a fair chance at equal treatment under the law, this is your moment to say something. Coretta Scott King understood that what isn't measured can be denied. Sixty-five years later, the burden is on us to put our bodies where our values are. The record the EEOC builds this August will either include our voices or it won't. But I, for one, will not allow my child's protections to fade quietly in a silent room. WI

fathers, 60%. For Hispanic fathers, 45%. Among fathers of school-age children, 41% of Black fathers helped with homework or checked it daily. For white fathers, 28%. That study covered 2006 to 2010. It is still the most recent we have, because the government stopped asking. A later look at federal data, from 2017 to 2019, found the pattern holds for fathers living apart from their children. Nearly six in 10 Black fathers saw their children weekly. For white fathers, about four in 10. That survey also has the hard number, and I will not skip it. 43% of Black fathers have at least one child living somewhere else. For white fathers it is 14%. That is not a shortage of men who want to father. Black fathers who live

with their children are among the most involved in this country. The ones living apart report showing up more than anybody. Something keeps pulling them out of the house. Work left those neighborhoods. Violence rose. Prisons filled. Researchers have spent 40 years untangling how the three feed one another. None of it is new. None of it is only ours. It hit Black neighborhoods first and hardest, then kept going until it reached everybody. Next week I will show you those numbers. They belong to every man in America. My friend and I did not talk about any of this over lunch. We talked about our kids. That is what fathers do. WI

Those experiences taught her that the struggle for voting rights was never just about casting a ballot. It was about dignity. It was about freedom. "When I marched," Davis said, "I wasn't just marching so I could vote. I was marching because I wanted to be free." As the Selma-to-Montgomery march approached, Davis wanted her younger brother to march beside her and asked her father for permission. "No," he said. "One is enough." Only years later did she understand why. "That means he didn't know whether I would come back or not," she said. Today, Davis worries many younger Americans have never been taught

those stories or the sacrifices behind the right to vote. "We have lost a generation of people who don't care because they were never told," Davis said. "What they did to us was unspeakable. We lost some lives. It hurt." Voting rights advocates say Davis' concern reflects a challenge they encounter across the country. Eric Hall, co-founder of Black Lives Matter Birmingham and a voting rights organizer in Alabama, said many younger Black voters question whether voting still makes a difference. "We don't have a voter registration problem," Hall said. "We have a voter participation problem." WI Read more on washingtoninformer.com.

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