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Vol. 64 No. 27 | Thursday, July 4, 2024
www.sdvoice.info
Serving San Diego County’s African & African American Communities 64 Years
Happy Independence Day! NOTE TO THE PUBLIC: Golden Eagle Management has requested removal of the Voice & Viewpoint newsstand from their location at 7393 Jackson Dr. on the corner of Jackson Dr. & Navajo Rd., in front of CVS.
THE MEANING OF JULY FOURTH FOR THE NEGRO
INSIDE THIS WEEK'S ISSUE:
WORLD REFUGEE DAY SEE PAGE 12
32nd ANNUAL KUUMBA FEST!
BLACK MUSIC FESTIVAL
SEE PAGES 10-11
SEE PAGES 10-11
Well before President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, and well before June 19, 1865, when news of freedom finally reached over 250,000 Galveston, Texas slaves, Frederick Douglass reflected on the paradoxical nature of the nation’s Fourth of July Independence Day celebrations in his July 5, 1852 speech “What, to the Slave, is the Fourth of July?” While change has come, there are still battles to be won for equal rights, equal access, and equal protections under the law. For Black people, the words of Frederick Douglass still resonate today. For some, the July Fourth holiday is cause for anticipatory celebration, others choose not to celebrate it all, while others celebrate the day with some reticence. — Dr. John E. Warren, Publisher
THE WORDS OF FREDERICK DOUGLASS, JULY 5, 1852
What to Know about the
Supreme Court Immunity Ruling
PHOTO: Associated Press
By Alanna Durkin Richer, Eric Tucker, and Michael Kunzelman ASSOCIATED PRESS
The Supreme Court’s ruling Monday, July 1st, in former President Donald Trump’s 2020 election interference case makes it all but certain that the Republican will not face trial in Washington ahead of the November election. See IMMUNITY page 2
SDBCC Celebrates Black Excellence & Milestones VOICE & VIEWPOINT STAFF Black Excellence was the theme of the reception at the University Club last week sponsored by the San Diego County Black Chamber of Commerce. The event was to recognize and honor several outstanding African Americans who recently hit new milestones in their careers. At the top of the list was Mrs. Ebony Shelton, appointed as the Chief Administrative Officer for the County of San Diego. San Diego County is the 8th largest county in the nation, spanning over 4200 square miles with 20,000 employees and an 8 billion dollar a year budget. She is the first African American woman and the second African American to hold that position.
Excerpt from “What, to the Slave, is the Fourth of July”
Fellow Citizens, I am not wanting in respect for the fathers of this republic. The signers of the Declaration of Independence were brave men. They were great men, too. Great enough to give frame to a great age. It does not often happen to a nation to raise, at one time, such a number of truly great men. The point from which I am compelled to view them is not, certainly, the most favorable; and yet I cannot contemplate their great deeds with less than admiration. They were statesmen, patriots and heroes, and for the good they did, and the principles they contended for, I will unite with you to honor their memory…
IMAGE: Dale Stephanos
ciples of political freedom and of natural justice, embodied in that Declaration of Independence, extended to us?
…Fellow-citizens, pardon me, allow me to ask, why am I called upon to speak here to-day? What have I, or those I represent, to do with your national independence? Are the great prin-
See FOURTH page 9
Californians Will Vote on
“End Slavery in California Act” on November Ballot By Bo Tefu CALIFORNIA BLACK MEDIA
PHOTO: Brandon S. Johnson
See MILESTONES page 2
The California Senate voted 33-3 to approve Assembly Constitutional Amendment 8 (ACA 8), a proposition that would end involuntary servitude in state prisons. Asm. Lori Wilson (D-Suisun City) finally saw her bill ACA 8 pass out the Senate with a 33-3 vote on June 27. PHOTO: Antonio Ray Harvey/CBM
See BALLOT page 2
United Women of East Africa put African Culture at the Center of Brain Health By Emily Kim Jenkins CONTRIBUTING WRITER
United Women of East Africa was founded in 2008 and has a health-focused mission to help East African women and children get medical support without barriers. PHOTO: Courtesy of United Women of East Africa
Sometime around 2009, shortly after it was founded, Faiza Warsame started visiting the United Women of East Africa in San Diego. She was a young girl looking for community, who then became a teenage girl looking for an internship. Now, she works as the Community Engagement Specialist for the United
Women of East Africa Support Team (UWEAST, pronounced you-weest), approaching her tenth year on the team. “It feels like home,” Warsame said of UWEAST. “It’s a place for families, or for you to be a part of a family.” See HEALTH page 2
All of the Black people suddenly t Wha if... disappeared for the day? All Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre July 7 July 6 Julyof 5 the Black 1363 Old Globe Way, San Diego, CA 92101 people suddenly disappeared for Tickets: $35 general admission, $25 seniors & students COMMONGROUNDTHEATRE.COM the day? 7:30 pm
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