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Vol. 64 No. 13 | Thursday, March 28, 2024
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Serving San Diego County’s African & African American Communities 64 Years
10-11
Black Families Beg Cops to Take Action
When Loved Ones Go Missing By Trina Reynolds-Tyler, INVISIBLE INSTITUTE and Sarah Conway, CITY BUREAU Some say it’s simply a mother’s intuition: a lump in the throat or a throb to the heart that warns their child is in danger, even when police suggest otherwise. It guided Latonya Moore when her 26-year-old daughter Shantieya Smith still wasn’t home as night fell on May 28, 2018. It was out of character for her to not reach out, especially on a school night. Moore worried officers would be dismissive if she called in,
so her cousin suggested they head to a nearby 10th District police station. “I wanted them to see my face so that they could understand my concern was real,” remembers Moore. It guided her even as the officer at the front desk told her not to worry, she remembers. Maybe she is with a boyfriend, the officer suggested. It wasn’t uncommon for young women like Smith to run off with a man. “Give it 48 hours” before filing the report, Moore remembers the officer saying. See MISSING page 2
INSIDE THIS WEEK'S ISSUE:
Tammy Pittman holds a portrait of her daughter, Shante Bonahan. Pittman says police asked her to wait 24 hours before reporting her daughter missing in 2016, even though her daughter had called in distress. PHOTO: Natasha Moustache/Courtesy of NNPA
San Diego’s Promise Zone
Criticized As “Broken”
The promise zone program has invested millions of dollars into Southeastern San Diego, but are residents feeling the effects?
MR. LEON COLE’S APPRECIATION DAY
SEE PAGE 4
“Connecting potential with promise.” San Diego Promise zone geographic snapshot that includes neighborhoods of Encanto, Valencia Park, Southcrest, Barrio Logan, East Village, Sherman Heights, Grant Hill, Logan Heights, Mountain View, Stockton, and Lincoln Park. PHOTO: the City of San Diego
F.A.N.C.Y. TEEN AWARDS
SEE PAGE 9
By Macy Meinhardt VOICE & VIEWPOINT STAFF WRITER Since 2016, much of Southeastern San Diego has been among the twenty-two communities in the country that received a “Promise Zone” designation by the federal government. The designation helps strategically target systemic disparities in an area historically burdened by the highest concentrated poverty and unemployment rates.
In last week’s San Diego City Council meeting, members from the San Diego Promise Zone initiative presented an update on the program's success since its designation in 2016. The informational report highlighted robust funding—accumulating over $2.5 billion dollars—in the last six years in areas such as job creation. See BROKEN page 2
Hope for Refugees Found in the Alliance for African Assistance By Emily Kim Jenkins CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Walter Lam sits in a conference room in the offices of the Alliance for African Assistance. He founded the organization in 1989, three years after arriving in the United States as a Ugandan refugee. PHOTO: Emily Kim Jenkins
Walter Lam exudes an unassuming elegance. From the prolific, international impact of his work to his storied personal journey to the States, it may be fair to expect Lam to be jaded or stern. Instead, he has a warm and ready laugh, and his words are thoughtful and measured. See REFUGEES page 2
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