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Maxine Waters and the Call for Trump's Impeachment By Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer
NNPA, Chevrolet Announce Selection of Fellows for New Program
momentum, taking on economic injustice and institutional racism. And while many of its active leaders are lesbians and feminists, it has not developed into a movement that addresses issues more relevant for the LGBGTQ community. Instead, its leaders have used social media to their advantage, organizing local chapters across the U.S. while sharing a broad political agenda. More to their credit, the movement has served as an inclusive forum that welcomes a wide spectrum of the Black community. Consider the words of Frederick
Rep. Maxine Waters spoke passionately to a group of mostly young people at Busboy and Poets about her contempt for President Donald Trump. The veteran California Democrat has walked back her comments on her call to impeach the 45th president. However, she offered a pointed rebuke of Trump. "We've got to stop his [behind]," Waters, 78, said last week at the restaurant in Northwest. Waters, 78, said. "We have to do it, everyone has a part to play. We have the power. You can do it." Later, Waters told MSNBC that allegations of collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian government need to be investigated. Newsmax noted that when asked if there should be a wait to call for impeachment until there are answers, Waters insisted: "I have not called for impeachment." "Here's what I've said," Waters said. "I've said that we need the information, we need to connect the dots, we need the facts in order to do the impeachment. And, I'm going to work every day to try and help get those facts and to reveal them … to our public until, of course, impeachment has taken place." Still Waters' outspokenness has made her a viral sensation as she continues her public undressing of the president and, as noted by The Huffington Post, she even
BLM Page 16
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By Freddie Allen NNPA National News Editor
DISCOVER Page 11
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EARTH DAY NETWORK
Eight Student Journalists Poised to ‘Discover the Unexpected’
Sidnee King, a 20 year-old broadcast journalism student at Howard University, admitted that she was nervous about her summer plans the day before the 2016 “Discover the Unexpected” (DTU) journalism fellows were announced. King said that she missed the DTU program launch on March 23, when officials from the Na-
SUPPLEMENT / APRIL 2017
5 The Washington Nationals honor the winners of the Washington Informer Spelling Bees during a pre-game
ceremony. Pictured (from left) are Dr Elizabeth Primas, spelling bee judge; Jude Martin, 2nd place winner in DC; Robert Foster, 3rd place winner in DC; Margaret Isacson, winner of the DC Bee; and Kelly Han, winner of the Prince George’s County Bee; and Ron Burke, Washington Informer director of advertising. /Photo by John DeFreitas
Black Lives Matter: Three Years on America's Scene By D. Kevin McNeir WI Editor and Sarafina Wright WI Staff Writer
5Howard University sophomores Alexa Imani Spencer (2nd from left) and Noni Marshall (2nd from right) were selected for the 2017 NNPA Discover The Unexpected Journalism Fellowship program. Gracie Lawson-Borders, the dean of the School of Communications at Howard University (left) and Tatyana Hopkins, a staff writer for The Washington Informer and former DTU Fellow (right) joined them in the photo. (Freddie Allen/AMG/NNPA)
It’s been just over three years since Opal Tometi, Patrice Cullors and Alecia Garza, three same-gender-loving activists angered at the acquittal of George Zimmerman, the “neighborhood watch” volunteer who shot and killed Trayvon Martin, 17, created the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter. Since then, in a society punctuated by police violence and firmly established racism, the Black Lives Matter [BLM] movement gained
Celebrating 52 Years of Service / Serving More Than 50,000 African American Readers Throughout The Metropolitan Area
Now Published by Dr. Charles Vincent
Her Legacy Continues.
In memory of Mickey Thompson Vincent, Founder and Publisher.
Dr. Charles & “Mickey” Vincent
NATIONAL BAR ASSOCIATION
Mid -Year Conference and Gertrude E. Rush Award Dinner and Reception
Professor John C. Brittain, David A. Clarke School of Law, UDC with Atty. Kevin D. Judd (Pres. NBA 2016-2017)
Kevin Judd (Pres. NBA) with Vice Admiral James W. Crawford III (43rd Judge Advocate of the Navy)
Kevin D. Judd (Pres. NBA) with Atty. Kim Keenan, President and CEO of Multicultural Media and Telecom Council
Kevin D. Judd (Pres. NBA) and Atty. Joyce Anne Hanks Moorehead, President of Moorehead Properties
RECIPIENTS OF THE GERTRUDE E. RUSH AWARD
Kevin D. Judd (Pres. NBA) with Judge William H. “Billy” Murphy, Jr., Murphy, Falcon & Murphy of Baltimore, Md.
Gertrude Rush Awardees: Judge Emmet G. Sullivan, Atty. Grace Speights, and Atty. William C. E. Robinson.
Atty Donald Thigpen, (Past Pres. Washington Bar Assoc)
Thomas Moorehead and Meta Williams (MetaworksDC) Natalia Moroz (Deputy Director, Russian Cultural Centre)
2 APRIL 20 - 27, 2017
Atty. William C. E. Robinson, Corporate Secretary for GEICO Corporation.
Kevin D. Judd (Pres. NBA) with Judge Emmet G. Sullivan, United States District Judge for the District of Columbia.
L-R: John Harneshfeger (Murphy, Falcon & Murphy), Judge “Billy” Murphy (Awardee), Robyne Szokoly (Murphy, Falcon & Murphy) and Nick Szokoly (Murphy, Falcon & Murphy)
(Left-right) Past-President Pamela J. Meanes, Past-President Benjamin Crump, President Kevin Judd, President-Elect Juan Thomas, and The Honorable Arnette R. Hubbard.
Kevin D. Judd (Pres. NBA) with Atty. Grace Speights, Morgan Lewis Labor & Employment Practice Group.
(Left-right) Judge Emmet G. Sullivan, Grace Speights, President Kevin Judd, Kim Keenan, William C. E. Robinson, William H. “Billy” Murphy, Jr. and his guest.
The National Bar Association awarded its Gertrude E. Rush award for outstanding achievement to: WILLIAM C. E. Robinson, WILLIAM H. Murphy, Jr., Judge EMMET Sullivan, GRACE Speights, JOHN C. Brittain, JOYCE Anne Hanks Moorehead, KIM Keenan, and Vice Admiral JAMES W. Crawford, III. National Atty. Felicia Chambers (Past Pres. President Kevin D. Judd presented the awards. Ayanna Gregory Washington Bar Assoc) and Atty. C. Hope Brown, NBA Rush Awards (daughter of Dick Gregory) provided the music and inspiration. Dinner Co-Chairs. The National Bar Association was founded in 1925 and is the nation’s largest legal association of African-Americans. It is a network of over 60,000 attorneys, judges, legal educators, and law students. For further information: www.nationalbar.org Dean Alfreda Robinson (GW Law School and NBA Mid Year Conf. Co-Chair) and Rush Awardee Grace Speights.
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W I HBreak O T the T OCycle P I C of S Women Domestic Violence
SOMETHING NEW EVERYDAY
COMPILED BY D. KEVIN MCNEIR / WI EDITOR AND WILLIAM J. FORD / WI STAFF WRITER
law enforcement. She said they threat,” she said. Metro’s SafeTrack Project Hits Northern George’s Funds had come together to bring Prince a Among the programs Marlow
By Tia Carol Jones
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WI Staff Writer
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sense of uniformity in the way wants to see implemented are Metro’s 14th SafeTrack maintenance project began Saturday, When L.Y. Marlow's 23-yeardomestic violence victims and stricter restraining order policies, old daughter told her father and April 14 between thethe Greenbelt Prince are George’s survivors treated.Plaza stamore rights for victim's families oftions. her Greenbelt daughter threatened herPark stations “She's using herclosed own personal to intervene on behalf of a vicand College will be unlife, and the life of child, her owncommuters personal pain til April 29 with freetheir shuttle busesstory, transporting to to tim, a domestic violence assessshe knew something had to beLinepush Davis-Nickens ment unit coupled with further Prince George’s Plaza. Green trainsforward,” will operate between done. Out of her frustration said aboutAMarlow. training for law enforcement the plaza to Branch Avenue in Suitland. second phase of with law enforcement's handling Davis-Nickens said anyone agencies, a Child's Life Protecwork will start April 30 until May 14 between the Greenbelt of the situation, she decided to who reads Marlow's book will tion Act and mandatory counseland College ParkPromise stations camwith Green Line trains running evstart the Saving “get it.” She said she “puts the ing for batterers. ery six to eight minutes. During both phases, no Yellow Line paign. case in such a way, the average “If we are ever going to eraditrains will run during rushcycle hour. Blue Line trains coming from “It seems to be a vicious person can get it.” She said at the cate domestic violence, we must the Van Franconia-Springfield that won'tDorn turnStreet my and family end of the day, stations the bookinwill look at both sides of the coin. Northern Virginia will Marlow run every 12 minutes. Commuters who loose,” Marlow said. help people begin to have a dia- We need to address both the vicleave from thosewith stations to ride the domestic Yellow Line can shared her story the and audi-needlogue about violence. tim and the batterer,” Marlow ence at to theKing District transfer St-OldHeights Town in Alexandria, Virginia. Forevent morewas said. Also present at the Domestic Violence information, go to Symposium https://www.wmata.com/service/status/deMildred Muhammad, the exMarlow would also like to see on May 7 at the District Heights wife of John Allen Muhammad, programs designed to raise tails/Surge-14.cfm Municipal Center. The sympo- who was sentenced to six consec- awareness among children in sium was sponsored by the utive life terms without parole public and private schools. She Family and Youth Services by a Maryland jury for his role in feels children need to be educatCenter of the city of District the Beltway Sniper attacks in ed about domestic violence. Heights and the National Hook- 2002. Mildred Muhammad is “We have Society to stop will being pasThe Anacostia Watershed host its anUp of Black Women. the founder of After nual the Trauma, with Saturday, poor chil-April Earth Daysive-aggressive Cleanup activities Marlow has written a book, an organization that22.helps the2,000 drenvolunteers about domestic violence,” About are expected to pick “Color Me Butterfly,” which is a survivors of domestic violence Marlow said. up trash and other debris at 31 sites along the Anastory about four generations of and their children. Marlow has to breaksuch costia River. Registration at worked some locations domestic violence. The book is “I lived in fear for six years. Six the cycle of abuse in her family, Anacostia Park in Southeast and Cool Spring inspired by her own experiences, years in fear is a longas time. It is and is confident the policies she Elementary in but residents and those of her grandmother, not an easy thing to come out isAdelphi pushingareforclosed, will start that and even high process. school students who seek credits or her mother and her daughter. of,” she said. service learning hours toward cantosignShe said every time she reads Mildred Muhammad said “I plan to takegraduation, these policies participate. Clean-up start atthem 9 a.m. excerpts from her book, she still people who want up to tohelp a Congress andwill implore to and can not believe the words came domestic violence victim continues noon. our An laws,” Earth Marlow Day celebration mustuntilchange said. from her. “Color Me Butterfly” be careful of how they into ending thengobegins, 2 stop p.m. until at thethese Bladensburg “I willatnot poliwon the 2007 National “Best the victim's life, andWaterfront understand Park. ciesTo are sign-up passed.” and see the various Books” Award. that she may be in “survival TiagoCarol Jones can be reached clean-up locations, to http://www.anacostiaws. “I was just 16-years-old when mode”. at tiacaroljones@sbcglobal.net org/earthday2017/. my eye first blackened and my “Before you get to 'I'm going lips bled,” Marlow said. to kill you,' it started as a verbal WI Elaine Davis-Nickens, president of the National Hook-Up of Black Women, said there is no The FarinSoutheast Family Strengthening Collaboconsistency the way domestic rative, issues the largest non-profit violence are dealt with by East of the River, will present a day of celebration focusing on the Ward 8 community and child abuse prevention month on Saturday, April 22. Informative workshops, live entertainment from local artists, youth activities and free lunch and childcare will be provided. The Collaborative, which serves 5,000 families, has been a mainstay in Southeast for 17 years and will also hold workshops on how to recognize and prevent human trafficking. Activities run from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 2700 MLK Avenue SE. For more information call 202-491-0845.
Volunteers Ready to Clean Up Anacostia River
Wilhelmina J. Rolark In Memoriam Dr. Calvin W. Rolark, Sr. Wilhelmina J. Rolark THE WASHINGTON INFORMER PUBLISHER NEWSPAPER (ISSN#0741-9414) is NEWSPAPER (ISSN#0741-9414) is published THE WASHINGTON INFORMER Denise Rolark Barnes published on each Thursday.postage weeklyweekly on Thursday. Periodicals paid at Washington, D.C. and additional Periodicals Washingmailing postage offices. paid Newsat and advertising deadline is Monday prior to publication. ton,Announcements D.C. and additional mailing of- twoSTAFF must be received weeks prior to event. Copyright 2000 by The fices.Washington News andInformer. advertising All deadline rights reserved. POST McNeir, MASTER:Editor Send change of addressD. Kevin is Monday to publication. Anes to Theprior Washington Informer, 3117 Martin Luther King, Jr. Ave., S.E. Washington, Ron Burke, Advertising/ Marketing D.C. 20032. Nobe partreceived of this publication may be reproduced without writtenDirector permisnouncements must two Shevry Lassiter, Photo Editor the return of sionprior fromto the publisher. The2016 Informer Newspaper cannot guarantee weeks event. Copyright Subscription rates All are $30Lafayette per year, two years $45. willPhoto be received by photographs. The Washington Informer. Barnes, IV, Papers Assistant Editor notreserved. more than a week after publication. Make checks payable to: rights POSTMASTER: Send John E. De Freitas, Sports Photo Editor change of addresses to The WashDorothyINFORMER Rowley, Online Editor THE WASHINGTON ington Informer, 3117 Martin Luther 3117 Luther King, Ave., S.E. • Washington, D.C.&20032 King, Jr. Ave., S.E.Martin Washington, D.C. Jr. ZebraDesigns.net, Design Layout Phone: 202 • Fax: 202 574-3785 20032. No part of this publication may561-4100 Mable Neville, Bookkeeper E-mail: news@washingtoninformer.com be reproduced without written permisDr. Charles Vincent, Social Sightings columnist www.washingtoninformer.com sion from the publisher. The Informer Tatiana Moten, Social Media Specialist Newspaper cannot guarantee the return of photographs. Subscription rates are Angie PUBLISHERJohnson, Circulation $45 per year, two years $60. Papers will Denise Rolark Barnes be received not more than a week after REPORTERS STAFF REPORTERS publication. Make checks payable to: Brooke N. Garner Managing Editor Tia C. Jones, Ed Laiscell,Will Ford Stacy Brown (Senior Writer), Carla Peay Assistant Managing Editor Odell B. Ruffin, Larry Saxton, THE WASHINGTON INFORMER (Prince George’s County Ron Burke Advertising and Marketing Mary Wells, JosephWriter), Young 3117Mable Martin Luther King, Jr. Ave., S.E Bookkeeper Whittaker Hamil Harris, Tatyana Hopkins, Jade JamesWashington, D.C. 20032 LaNita Wrenn Administration PHOTOGRAPHERS Gist, D. Kevin McNeir, Lauren Poteat, Phone: 202De561-4100 John E. Freitas Sports Editor Lafayette Barnes, IV, Dorothy Rowley, Sarafina Wright Fitzgerald, (General Fax:Victor 202 Holt 574-3785 Photo Editor John E. De Freitas, Maurice news@washingtoninformer.com Zebra Designs, Inc. Layout & Graphic Design Joanne Jackson, Roy Lewis, Robert Assignment Writer) Ken Harris /www.scsworks.com Webmaster www.washingtoninformer.com Ridley, Victor Holt
“
Ward 8 Conference to Focus on Child Abuse and Prevention
We have to stop being passive-aggressive with poor children about domestic violence. I plan to take these policies to Congress and implore them to change our Metro’s Red Line Riders Should Be Ionwill Guard laws. not stop until Several Black youth recently robbed and beat a man on a Redpolicies Line train, demanding phone. The inthese are his passed.
“
In Memoriam The Washington Informer Dr. CalvinNewspaper W. Rolark, Sr.
cident occurred on Sunday around 5:40 p.m. as the L.Y. Marlow train approached the Wheaton station. The victim was PHOTOGRAPHERS CIRCULATION Paul Trantham taken to the hospital and is expected to recover from John E. DeFreitas, Shevry Lassiter, his injuries. The robbers punched him in his head and Roy Lewis, Demetrious McKinney, Mark face and were able to get away with his credit and debMahonny, Lateef Mangum, Travis Riddick it cards but not the phone. Authorities continue to search for the assailants whose images were captured 4 / May 15 - 21, 2008 The Washington Informer / www.washingtoninformer.com on surveillance video. Riders should be aware of those around them. It also seems that while there were several passengers on the train, they did nothing to assist the man.
4 APRIL 20 - 27, 2017
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AROUND THE REGION
Pepco Offering Trees for District Residents Beautification Project Also Aims to Lower Bills By Sarafina Wright WI Staff Writer Power giant Pepco will donate and plant 250 trees for D.C. residents starting this spring. Partnering with D.C.-based nonprofit Casey Trees, Pepco will offer 250 trees on a first-come, first-served basis to city homeowners through their "Right Tree, Right Place" tree-planting program.
"We are enthusiastic about the Right Tree, Right Place program which helps to beautify our communities and enhance the environment," said Donna Cooper, Pepco region president. D.C. residents can request up to two trees through an online form and schedule a consultation visit with Casey Trees to ensure that optimal trees and planting sites are chosen.
Casey Trees will then plant residents' selected trees during the spring or fall planting seasons. There is a subsidized cost of $50 per tree payable to Casey Trees, tree consultation and planting valued at $250, which is required prior to planting. Pepco said that trees can reduce residential cooling costs by as much as 20 percent, while in the winter months trees reduce wind speeds and infiltration of cold air into homes, thereby reducing heating costs. "By planting the right tree in the right place, homeowners can help promote safety and service reliability, while enjoying the aesthetic and environmental benefits that trees provide," Cooper said. For more information, go to www.pepco.com. WI
Masjid Muhammad: The Nation’s Mosque
Masjid Muhammad: The Nation’s Mosque
80th Anniversary Black Tie Gala.
80th Anniversary Black Tie Gala.
KAYA SURVIVED! She was born 4 months early and spent more than 5 months in the hospital.
Join Us! Saturday, 22 April 2017 @ 7:00 p.m. Hilton Crystal City, Va.
Saturday, 22 April 2017 @ 7:00 p.m.
Call 202-483-8832
80th Anniversary Black Tie Gala.
visit www.thenationsmosque.org
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Masjid Muhammad: The Nation’s Mosque
80th Anniversary Black Tie Gala. Join Us!
© 2016 March of Dimes Foundation
Call 202-483-8832
visit www.thenationsmosque.org
Washington, DC March for Babies Prince George’s March for Babies Saturday, May 6, 2017 Saturday, April 29, 2017 Nationals Stadium, Watkins Regional Park, Washington, DC Upper Marlboro, MD The Nation’s Mosque Masjid Muhammad: 8:00 a.m. Registration; 8:00 a.m. Registration; 9:00 a.m. Walk Starts 9:00 a.m. Walk Starts marchforbabies.org/event/dc marchforbabies.org/event/princegeorges
Masjid Muhammad: The Nation’s Mosque
Saturday, 22 April 2017 @ 7:00 p.m. Hilton Crystal City, Va.
Join Us!
Sign up atHiltonmarchforbabies.org Crystal City, Va.
5Call Tree planter in action. /Photo courtesy of Pepco 202-483-8832 visit www.thenationsmosque.org
Join Us!
5 A sign marks a gift of a new tree. /Photo courtesy of Pepco
Saturday, 22 April 2017 @ 7:00 p.m. For more information, call (571)257-2305. Hilton Crystal City, Va. Call 202-483-8832
visit www.thenationsmosque.org
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APRIL 20 - 27, 2017 5
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WEEK OF APRIL 20 - 27, 2017 APRIL 24
APRIL 20
1853 – Harriet Tubman begins her work with the Underground Railroad, a network of antislavery activists who helped slaves escape from the South. 1971 – The Supreme Court rules that busing can be used to integrate schools. 1984 – Influential cabaret singer Mabel Mercer dies in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, at 84. 1986 – Michael Jordan sets the single-game playoff scoring record with 63 points in a double-overtime loss to the Boston Celtics.
1884 – The Medico-Chirurgical Society of Washington D.C., the first African-American medical society, is founded.
APRIL 25
1917 – Iconic jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald is born in Newport News, Virginia. 1944 – The United Negro College Fund is founded. 1950 – Chuck Cooper is selected by the Boston Celtics in the second round of the NBA draft, becoming the first African-American drafted by an NBA team.
APRIL 26
1892 – Inventor Sarah Boone patents an improved version of the ironing board. 1984 – Renowned jazz bandleader and pianist Count Basie dies of pancreatic cancer at 79 in Hollywood, Florida. WI Michael Jordan
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Does your child have a learning or other disability? Is your child failing in school, especially in reading? Has the school repeatedly suspended or sent your child home early? Does it feel like your child’s IEP is not working?
Is your child’s school ignoring your questions or concerns? Contact The Law Office of Nigel M. Atwell for a free consultation. We serve children in traditional public schools and public charter schools. We specialize in serving low and moderate income families.
Call us at 202.627.6926 Email us at nigel@lawofficeofnigelmatwell.com See us at www.lawofficeofnigelmatwell.com
6 APRIL 20 - 27, 2017
1966 – Milton Lee Olive III, a U.S. Army soldier who sacrificed himself to save others by smothering a live grenade, posthumously becomes the first African-American Medal of Honor recipient of the Vietnam War. 1974 – Lee Elder becomes the first African-American professional golfer to qualify for the Masters tournament. 2003 – Singer/songwriter and civil rights activist Nina Simone dies of breast cancer at her home in the south of France at 70.
APRIL 22
1922 – Famed jazz bassist Charles Mingus is born in Nogales, Arizona.
APRIL 23
1856 – Inventor Granville T. Woods, the first AmerLaw ancestry Office of Nigel M. Atwell ican The of African to be a mechanical and elecSpecial Education Lawyer trical engineer after the Civil War and holder of more than •50 patents, is born inaColumbus, Does your child have learning orOhio. other disability? 1872 – Lawyer Charlotte Ray is admitted to practice •Is your child failing in school, especially in reading? in the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia, •Has the school repeatedly suspended or sent your child home early? becoming the first black woman admitted to practice •Does it feel like your child’s IEP is not working? before the District Supreme Court. 2007 – Barbara Hillary becomes the first African-American female to reach the North Pole. Is your child’s school ignoring your questions or concerns? Contact The Law Office of Nigel M. Atwell for a free consultation. We serve FITZGERALD children in traditional public schools and public charter schools. WeELLA specialize in serving low and moderate income families. Call us at 202.627.6926. See us at www.lawofficeofnigelmatwell.com.
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VIEW P INT By Sarafina Wright
Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball 70 years ago. Why is it important to keep his legacy alive today?
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3 simple words... changed my life forever. NATALIE WILLIAMS - Breast Cancer Survivor
MICHAEL WHITE, /
COLLEGE PARK, MARYLAND
Jackie Robinson has been an inspiration to all of us here in the Jackie Robinson Foundation. Without him there would be many things that we wouldn't have been able to do. It's especially important to me as a MLB scholar through the Washington Nationals. It's imperative that we celebrate him and everything he has done.
JOIN THE MOVEMENT... Our
campaign goal is to screen over 1,000 women of color for breast cancer through October 2017. With your commitment we can help our sisters to survive and thrive.
2017
Call 202.688.0101 to find out more information.
The Natalie Williams Breast Care Foundation (NWBCF), founded in January 2013, is the leading voice in the promotion of breast care awareness among women of color. We focus specifically on the breast cancer disease and early detection, and the overall
PATRICK MOORE /
promotion of healthy breast care. Our efforts are targeted in the African American,
WASHINGTON, D.C.
When I was 11 years old, I watched Jackie Robinson's funeral. Many people were crying and loved him. He was good guy and a great baseball player for many years. He had much patience and never quit the game he loved. He smiled and never got upset.
JAMAR JONES /
WASHINGTON, D.C.
Thank you, Jackie Robinson, for not allowing people's ugly beliefs to stop you from participating in the game. I am glad he made it alive without permanent physical harm. Imagine the countless talents that were suppressed during those days. We should take advantage of the sacrifices made by those like [No.] 42.
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Jackie Robinson was a man for all seasons — may he always rest in peace!
If Your Ad Were Here Someone Would Be Reading It! Contact me, Ron Burke, at 202-561-4100 or rburke@washingtoninformer.com
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AROUND THE REGION National Math Festival Coming to D.C
5 Talitha Washington, mathematician and professor at Howard University, will lecture on "Hidden Figures" inspiration Katherine Johnson at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Northwest on April 22. / Courtesy photo By Sarafina Wright WI Staff Writer The Mathematical Sciences Research Institute (MSRI) will once again bring the excitement of the National Math Festival back to the District. The festival will take place Saturday, April 22 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Northwest. From 10 a.m. - 7 p.m., visitors can experience more than 80 interactive exhibits, performances, films, athletic games and lectures by some of the most world-renowned mathematicians. "The National Math Festival truly offers something for everyone — from the math behind eyesight, jazz, drag racing, or black holes to stand-up math comedy, a children's musical, and the math behind Google's PageRank algorithm," said MSRI Director David Eisenbud. "Visitors will
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be given unique opportunities to experience math in new, exciting and unexpected ways." During this year's National Math Festival attendees will be able to compete in the Young People's Project Flagway Game; navigate giant mazes, design a roller coaster, slice shapes with lasers, and more at the National Museum of Mathematics (MoMath) carnival; and navigate the mathematics Katherine Johnson used to send John Glenn into orbit with Talitha Washington, a professor and mathematician at Howard University. "The Math Festival is where math is shown in a fun light for the whole family to engage in," Washington said. "Some of the parents are more excited than their kids. It's a way to celebrate math, pull apart a lot of different facets of math and see how we use it in our everyday life." Washington said her presenta-
tion on Johnson, whose story is the basis of the hit movie "Hidden Figures," brings her full circle in her career as a black woman in math. "I, myself as a mathematician of color and a woman can relate to Ms. Johnson in so many ways," Washington said. "When I saw 'Hidden Figures' for the first time I cried all the way through it because of what I went through, being a black female and not being able to join clubs or being looked over for opportunities." In her presentation, Washington will explore the math Johnson used to contribute to the success of NASA. "It's important that children see what mathematicians look like," she said. "I don't walk around with a white coat or a pocket projector. I want to break down the stereotypes of who mathematicians are." WI
The Washington Convention and Sports Authority (t/a Events DC) Bid Opp0rtunity
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By D. Kevin McNeir / WI Editor @dkevinmcneir
The World According to Dominic “Murderer’s Facebook Post Reveals America’s Darker Side” The unexplainable random shooting of a Cleveland senior citizen by a deranged city resident which he then posted on Facebook has been at the forefront of the news and social media since the murder took place on Easter Sunday. And while the public can now rest after the murderer, Steve Stephens, took his own life after being cornered by police, there are still many things that must be sorted out. Of course, the pain that the family of Robert Godwin, the 74-yearold patriarch who was killed without any reason or provocation, will remain for a very long time. A father of 10 going about his daily activities lost his life senselessly. I cannot imagine how they feel – or how they will pick up the pieces. Meanwhile, many have pointed the finger at Facebook for allowing such a heinous video to be posted and then to remain for viewers to examine and share for more than two hours before finally being taken down by Facebook staff. Perhaps it would be wise for Facebook and others who allow live streaming to consider including a time delay before videos can be viewed. That would allow for a computer program to be employed
that could scan for certain kinds of videos and disallow their being posted. That could be one solution. Still, I’m more troubled by the fact that so many people not only viewed the video, but shared it with others. Have we become a society that “enjoys” seeing the pain of others? Do we like viewing death? Do we celebrate experiencing the darker side of life – albeit through vicarious means? I have to admit that I’m not a real social media fan to begin with and don’t even make videos, much less post them for viewing. But I realize that they can be enjoyable – like watching the scenes of my grandson smiling, singing and being a happy three-year-old boy. That’s why I like having videos streamed online. But even those could be reviewed before being posted. Maybe I’m rambling a bit here but I hope you get the point. We often want others to police our actions. We want Facebook and the like to do the right thing while we do just the opposite. Social media has many benefits when used properly. But in this case, those who viewed and shared should consider the role they played in this tragedy. WI
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5 The senior class at National Collegiate Preparatory High School in Ward 8 has all been accepted into college. /Photo by Freddie Allen/NNPA
DISCOVER from Page 1 tional Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), Chevrolet and the School of Communications at Howard University revealed that eight student journalists would be selected to produce content for four NNPA member publications. King’s mother reassured her that things would work out, and when they did, King couldn’t wait to share the great news. “So I just called her and told her that I figured out what I’m doing this summer and it includes an internship and a scholarship and all this good stuff, so she was really excited for me,” said King, a native of Bloomfield Hills, Mich. Gracie Lawson-Borders, the dean of the School of Communications at Howard University, said that she hoped that people see the young journalists as the future storytellers of the Black community. The dean said that the NNPA, Howard University and Chevrolet were confident that they got the best students for the program. The 2016 “Discover the Unexpected” journalism fellows are: Brandi Montgomery, Brelaun Douglas, Briahnna Brown, McKenzie Marshall, Tatyana Hopkins, Sidnee King, Victoria Jones and Rushawn Walters. The students come from the Media Journalism and Film department at the School of Communications with concentrations in print, online and broadcast journalism. The Michigan Chronicle in
Detroit, The Chicago Defender, The Atlanta Voice and The Washington Informer in Washington, D.C., are the first group of publishers to participate in the program. The students’ stories and video packages will run in Black newspapers and on news websites across the country. Lawson-Borders surprised the student fellows last Friday with a special guest appearance by hiphop pioneer MC Lyte, who also serves as the national spokesperson for the DTU program. MC Lyte revealed that the fellows will have access to a 2016 Chevrolet Malibu to use as a pool car during their internships. “Just to see the fellows getting inside the [Malibu] and shooting video and snapping photographs and talking…it was all truly amazing,” said Michelle Matthews-Alexander, Chevrolet's Diversity Marketing Manager. “We’re thrilled and we can’t wait to see the content that the students will create.” Benjamin Chavis, the president and CEO of the NNPA, said that not only will the journalism fellows get a good learning experience, but the NNPA publishers will also gain from the perspective that the millennials will bring to their newsrooms, “so, this is going to be a mutually beneficial program this summer.” Victoria Jones said that having access to the Chevrolet Malibu to use as a pool car adds a level of professionalism to the whole experience. Jones worked for the AFRO in Baltimore, Md., and Washington, D.C. from 2014-2015.
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“When I found out that there was another opportunity to work with the Black Press, I was really excited about it,” Jones said. Jones said that unlike the content that she created at the AFRO, when she interned at mainstream media outlets the stories were often tailored for a general audience. “I missed that aspect of reporting on things that I’m personally interested in and that people I talk to are personally interested in,” Jones said. “I missed that connection and targeting issues that affect the [Black community].” While Jones said that she’s looking forward to reporting about the D.C. statehood issue and voting rights at The Washington Informer, King said that she wants to write about education reform in Detroit and the Flint water crisis. Matthews-Alexander said that she enjoyed having face time with the journalism fellows and the opportunity for Chevrolet to showcase its commitment to the program. “What’s most exciting about this phase of the program, from a Chevrolet perspective, is that [students] are going to go out and really uncover these unexpected stories and find those men and women in these communities that are doing amazing things that we might not hear about,” said Matthews-Alexander. “So for [Chevrolet], a brand that is focused on the positive and being optimistic and ingenious, at the end of the day, we feel like this is perfect.” WI
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PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY District Heights Officials Host Forum on Missing Children By William J. Ford WI Staff Writer @jabariwill Approximately 775 cases of missing children have been reported in Prince George's County in the past decade, but 23 still haven't been found, according an official from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The center's website displays 28 headshots of children who disappeared this year, including Kimberly Martinez Garcia, 14, of District Heights, who was last seen Feb. 1. "Law enforcement is good at finding these kids — the key is keeping them around," said Robert Lowery, vice president of the center's Missing Children Division and former police officer from the St. Louis area, who joined law enforcement, District Heights and school officials and advocates Thursday, April 13 for a forum
5 District Heights Police Chief Elliott Gibson Sr. talks about how parents can prevent their child from becoming missing during a town hall April 13 at the cirty's municipal building. /Photo by Travis Riddick
on missing children at the city's Municipal Center. The topic drew nationwide attention last month after rumors spread on social media that 14 girls went missing in one day in D.C. Though the Metropolitan Police Department released figures to show juvenile cases actually decreased by nearly 200 between 2015 and 2016, Mayor Muriel Bowser nevertheless announced recently a new initiative to find the city's missing youth that includes an increase of police officers designated to the Children and Family Services Division. In District Heights, city police Chief Elliott Gibson Sr. led the discussion on a tragedy he said has been around for at least 30 years. Gibson conducted a PowerPoint presentation before roughly three dozen people to explain an average of 13,500 children are reported as missing annually in Maryland, with nearly
12,000 of them eventually located. He said some misconceptions are that most missing children are runaways and not abducted by strangers and that the situations are resolved quickly. He also offered suggestions on how to protect a child: • Keep children out of adult conversations and situations; • Allow children to express their feelings; and • Know your child's friends, teachers and habits. Gibson even recommended parents and guardians purchase a GPS tracking watch for their children. "A parent is always supposed to be in their child's personal and public business," he said. "For example, a child is supposed to get out [of] school at 3 o'clock and supposed to be home at 3:30. If you have this GPS tracker watch, a parent would know
when a child is at home. [Parents] should know what their children are doing 24 hours, seven days a week." Clifford Thomas of Suitland said parents should teach their children how to be safe. "A 5-year-old girl ran to me and gave a me hug. No child should hug someone" they don't know, he said. "Parents need to teach children to know what’s right from wrong." A group with Kelektiv Films showed a clip of an upcoming movie about a teenage girl who used social media to meet with a guy. As she walked on a street in broad daylight, she got grabbed by a man who wore all black, pushed inside a van and taken to an unknown location. The film showed her and another girl tied up with tape over their mouths. The film will be shown Saturday, April 22 during a community day
event at Oakcrest Community Center in Capitol Heights. Nicole Brice, a Waldorf resident who recently joined the Kelektiv as an associate producer, had her two children ages 13 and 9 attend the forum. She explained how she recently allowed them to go to a park near her house by themselves for the first time. "I allowed my children to go the park and I told them to come home from the park at 4:30. They didn’t return until 5:15 and my mommy had a little panic attack," Brice said. "So, when they pointed [a scene in the film] out and I gave them the look, they got it. They understood why I said anything could have happened to them and why I said come back home at a certain time." For information on safety prevention, go to http://www.missingkids. com/Safety. If a child disappears, call 911 or 1-800-THE-LOST. WI
Prince George's Council Member: More Needed in Budget for District 2 By William J. Ford WI Staff Writer @jabariwill
5Prince George's County Council
member Deni Taveras answers a question about trash collection during an April 15 discussion at the Langley Park Community Center on the effect of the county's proposed budget on her district. /Photo by William J. Ford
12 APRIL 20 - 27, 2017
The Hyattsville Library, the oldest branch in the Prince George's County library system, plans to receive a nearly $35 million facelift starting this year. Almost $15 million in renovations to the Hyattsville Fire/EMS station are also on the county's docket. These and other projects are proposed in the county's $3.5 billion fiscal year 2018 budget in parts of the northern area of Prince George's County, specifically District 2. The area not only includes Hyattsville, but also Chillum, Mount Rainer and North Brentwood. County Councilwoman Deni Taveras of Adelphi said that's not enough. "I feel that we have been short-
changed," she said Saturday, April 15 after a discussion with several residents at the Langley Park Community Center. "When we are investing our dollars into large projects throughout the county, why can't we invest in our established communities? It's a little concerning." For instance, she said road improvements such as Dayton Road, a residential street with four intersections that runs between Chillum Manor and Riggs roads in Hyattsville. She also mentioned upgrades are needed at North Brentwood and Rollingcrest/Chillum community centers. However, the budget outlines projects in Taveras' district that include the design for a $22 million, 40,000-square-foot library in Langley Park. Countywide projects are listed for landscape enhancements along various streets such as Ager Road in Chillum.
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The residents in attendance brought up other budgetary concerns Daisy Curtis of Chillum want to see an increased police presence. Innocent Chukuru of Langley Park brought up a lingering sore spot some residents: the reduction of trash and recyclables collection. The twice-a-week pickups were scaled back to once a week in May to save the county about $6 million annually. "This is a question of health," Chukuru said. "People pay their taxes to keep their communities safe and I don't see the county doing enough to remove litter." County Councilman Mel Franklin (D-District 9) of Upper Marlboro began an online survey last week to analyze whether people want the previous trash collection schedule to return. Residents have until May 28 to respond to
the survey at www.tinyurl.com/onceaweektrash. "I am a firm believer in evaluating and re-evaluating policy changes to determine whether we have made the right decision.," he said in a statement. "The once-a-week trash feedback survey is designed to gauge whether our residents approve of the change, which should help guide our future policy decisions." Taveras said the money has allowed the county to hire more code officers to identity and report on places where trash haulers haven't done an effective job collecting trash and recyclables. In the meantime, she will to continue pushing county officials on getting money to her municipalities. "Those communities deserve something," she said. "I'm going to keep advocating that these and other projects get done here in this part of the Prince George's County." WI
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PGCPS BRIEFS
Compiled by Dorothy Rowley WI Staff Writer
NASA PROVIDES HANDS-ON EXPERIENCE
Charis Houston, a College Park Academy sophomore Charis Houston is among 64 high school students selected for participation in the in 2017 Advances Space Academy. The space academy, which enrolls students ages 15-18, explores college and career preparation through an immersive experience in science, technology, engineering and math. Trainees undergo a variety of astronaut training exercises, engineering challenges and team-building activities, all culminating in an extended-duration simulated space mission. Charis will have the opportunity to experience two days of hands-on field research with NASA scientists.
TEACHER RECRUITMENT FAIR
PGCPS will host a recruitment fair next month to hire educators from across the nation.
PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY Officials are looking for talented educators who are committed, focused on making a difference, and hold (or are eligible) for a teacher certificate issued by the Maryland State Department of Education. Candidates interested in attending the May 20 recruitment fair must create a profile and apply through iRecruitment by May 12 to participate. Applicants should upload the following documents with their applications: • Resume • Current professional letters of recommendation (2) • Unofficial transcript(s) • Teaching certificate (if applicable) • Praxis or state specific test reports (if applicable)
STUDENT TRANSFER REQUESTS
Parents and guardians who'd like to transfer their child from their neighborhood school to another PGCPS school may submit a transfer request during Student Transfer Season, which closes on May 5. Transfer requests may be submitted outside of the transfer season only for the following reasons: • Families who move into Prince George's County after the transfer season ended • The student has a health issue or other documented, compelling reason for changing schools must be verified by PGCPS, attending physician or health professional • The family is moving to a new neighborhood and the stu-
dent wants to remain in their current school until the program or school year ends. Transfer requests must be submitted through the SchoolMax Family Portal. However, transfer requests to schools with enrollment that exceeds state-rated capacity will not be considered.
'CLASSICS THROUGH THE AGES'
Through a signature program of the Prince George's County Links, more than 20 students took a bow earlier this month after being featured alongside classically trained professional artists. "Classics Through the Ages: Mentoring Through the Arts" provides an introduction to opera, ballet and other classical art forms under the guidance of artists who serve as program mentors. The "master class" showcased student dance, choral and instrumental performances featuring Lloyd Mallory Jr., associate professor and director of choral activities at Delaware State University, violinist Chelsey Green and The Green Project, the AFROMODA Dance Theatre, Takoma Academy music director Lulu Mupfumbu and saxophonist Charles Murrell III.
IMMIGRANT, MUSLIM, TRANSGENDER RESOLUTIONS
The Prince George's County Board of Education recently approved resolutions in support of immigrant, Muslim and
transgender youth in the county schools system. The resolutions express commitment to protecting students' rights and providing a "safe and welcoming learning environment for all students." "As a person who shares a deep commitment to equity and social justice, I enthusiastically support these resolutions and the message they send to our community," said board Chair Segun Eubanks. "Regardless of race,
ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation or country of origin, Prince George's County Public Schools will provide a worldclass education for you and protect you." PGCPS, school board policies and administrative procedures comply with federal, state and local civil rights laws and prohibit discrimination regarding sexual orientation, transgender identity or religion. WI
In Annapolis, the 2017 Legislative Session In Annapolis, this Legislative Session offered a few challenges. From your Chamber, our attention was paid to the Paid Sick Leave Bill. As of this writing, Paid Leave has not been passed or signed by the Governor; but it is very likely to be passed out of both the House and Senate. As presently constructed, businesses with 15 or more employees will be required to provide 1 hour of leave per 30 hours of work. Those businesses with fewer than 15 will be required, under certain circumstances, to grant unpaid leave. The bill also, contains some exemptions for seasonal and adjunct personnel. Your Chamber worked diligently with House and Senate leadership to include these exemptions. Of note, other bills that your Chamber will be watching: “Fight for Fifteen” raise the minimum wage to $15 per hour; increase in LLC filing fees; and on a different note, business tax credits for innovation and investment. In 2016, Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller and House Speaker Michael Busch jointly convened the Maryland Economic Development and Business Climate Commission, also known as the Augustine Commission. The Commission was tasked to provide recommendations on strategies that would improve Maryland’s business climate. It cites: “Maryland has been the beneficiary of the federal government creating numerous jobs in the State; thus, to a considerable degree, the State’s economy has become dependent upon these generally high-quality positions. However, given the budgetary limitations now confronted by the federal government, this no longer appears to be a sustainable model for growth.” In Maryland, as well as Prince George’s County, building a strong vibrant commercial base is essential for providing strong jobs and wealth. Your chamber is resolved to educate and advocate legislators on policy that will advance a robust business climate. By now, you’ve received information on the Chamber’s Legislative Wrap Up event. Slated to speak are Senate President Miller, Senate Delegation Head-Senator Jim Rosapepe, Senate Majority Leader Douglas J.J. Peters, and House Delegation Chair Jay Walker. This event will provide substance on this Session’s outcomes and what’s in store for next Session. These leaders need to hear from you! The Legislative Wrap Up Breakfast will convene on April 26th at the Metro Points Hotel. Not a member? Please visit our website, www.pgcoc.org or drop by for a visit to get started! Membership is good for a full calendar year, so it’s always a good time to join!
5More than 20 students participated in the Links-sponsored "Classics Through the Ages: Mentoring Through the
David C. Harrington President & CEO Prince George’s Chamber of Commerce www.pgcoc.org
Arts" program. /Courtesy of PGCPS via Facebook
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APRIL 20 - 27, 2017 13
BUSINESS Plans for Census Funding Trouble Latinos, Blacks By Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer Advertisers who decide to cut back on placing ads in newspapers continue to miss opportunities that have proven effective and that reaches certain underserved populations. Despite a recent study by the research firm Benchmarking for Newsworks that revealed the importance of advertising in local newspapers — particularly community-oriented dailies and weeklies that cater to Latinos, African-Americans and other minorities — advertisers, most notably the U.S. Census Bureau, are not heeding the message. According to a report from NBC News, Latino, African-American and other minority populations could be disproportionately undercounted for the 2020 census because of insufficient funding requested by President Donald Trump. The report noted that, despite pop-
ulation growth, the bureau has already been hindered by a congressional mandate to spend no more than the $13 billion spent on the 2010 census. Trump's 2018 budget proposal for the U.S. Census Bureau comes in lower than President Barack Obama's 2017 request. Because of existing budget concerns, 2017 field tests in areas of Puerto Rico and the mainland U.S. have been called off, too. Because of this, newspapers that serve Latino and African-American communities are certain to feel the fallout. "It has taken our communities several decades to trust a new government and system," said Martha Montoya, chair of the National Association of Hispanic Publications, a trade advocacy organization representing the leading Spanish language publications serving 41 markets in 39
5 A Census 2020 form. /Courtesy photo
states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, with a combined circulation of more than 23 million. "Reduction of a crucial budget during this turbulent and confusing time of information is not acceptable to ensure and keep the trust of this system," Montoya said. "It's counterproductive to this country embracing our Hispanic community." Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association, a trade organization that represents the 211 African-American-owned newspapers across the country with more than 22 million readers, said any cuts to the census budget would be counterproductive to its stated mission. Despite slowing growth rates, Latinos still accounted for more than half (54 percent) of total U.S. population growth from 2000 to 2014, according to Pew Research. Hispanics drove at least half of overall population growth in 524
counties that had at least 1,000 Latinos in 2014. In these counties, Hispanic population growth accounted for 54 percent or more of total growth. The South accounted for 46 percent of these counties, compared to 24 percent in the West, 18 percent in the Midwest and 12 percent in the Northeast. Additionally, individuals of color are set to become a majority of the American working class by 2032, according to projections from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The Census Bureau projects that America's population will be comprised of a majority of individuals of color by 2043. The transition means that, although the non-Hispanic white population will remain the largest single group in America, the combined populations of all nonwhite racial and ethnic groups will make up more than half of the U.S. population. Trump's proposed budget calls for $1.5 billion for the U.S. Census Bureau, but an overall 16 percent
cut to the Commerce Department, which the Census Bureau falls under. But, as noted in Science Magazine, advocates for the government's largest statistical agency said Trump's request jeopardizes the upcoming decennial census and other important surveys. "It's troubling and irresponsible," said Terri Ann Lowenthal, a former congressional staffer and veteran census watcher. "If the president's $1.5 billion proposed budget for the Census Bureau were to stand, not only would the success of the 2020 census be threatened, but other irreplaceable surveys likely would be on the chopping block." Further, as a past census partner and conveners of Latino organizations to support the census outreach efforts, the Minnesota Council on Latino Affairs (MCLA) expressed concerned over the reduction of
CENSUS Page 28
Business Exchange Trump Administration Appoints White Woman to Head Civil Rights
by William Reed 14 APRIL 20 - 27, 2017
Attorney Candice E. Jackson of Vancouver, Washington, has been appointed by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos as acting head of the department's Office for Civil Rights. The position is one of hundreds of sub-Cabinet-level positions the Trump administration has slowly staffed. Trump should pay attention toward staffing of high-level federal government positions. His actions here can help, or decimate, civil rights in these areas. Who Trump appoints to positions in his government can
set the mold to push the frontiers of civil rights laws and is important to black Americans. Previously Republican administrations used high-government positions to influence and affect federal policy on civil rights, and past political appointees show the impact such positions can have. Jackson, a 39-year-old white woman, will act as assistant secretary in charge of an office that has responsibility for protecting students from racial, gender, disability and age discrimination. Jackson will not require Senate confirmation in her current role.
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Under the Obama administration, the office emphasized to colleges that they could give preferences to minorities and women and achieve diversity. Some of the guidance from the office has provoked controversy among Republicans that have called for the office to be scaled back. Some civil rights activists and legal scholars say the Trump administration has a adversarial relationship with modern concepts of universal equality and inclusion and a lukewarm commitment to assertively protect civil rights of marginalized groups. What
happens with civil rights under the Trump administration depends on Trump. In reality, Trump must seek to appoint and grow blacks in positions such as the assistant secretary for civil rights. The appointee oversees 600 staff in 12 regional offices investigating allegations of discrimination based on sex, race, and other characteristics protected by law. The office adjudicated over 17,000 complaints to the end of 2016. Jackson's inexperience, along with speculation that DeVos will roll back civil rights en-
REED Page 15
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BUSINESS
REED from Page 14 forcement, causes some to wonder whether Jackson, like other "color blind" Trump administration appointees, lacks sympathy for the traditional mission of the office. The Office for Civil Rights, one of the largest federal agencies with a staff of 650 attorneys, investigators and staff, is headquartered in D.C. and has twelve regional offices. Over its period of existence the office has represented a solid steppingstone for blacks. The assistant secretary's mission has been, and should continue to be, to ensure equal access to education and promote educational excellence through vigorous enforcement of civil rights. The GOP has a storied history in building the concept and impact of civil rights. Since its creation in 1980, presidents have appointed lawyers with long experience in civil rights litigation or enforcement. Republican presidents have nominated lawyers such as former Assistant Secretaries Clarence Thomas, (1981–1982), Harry M. Singleton (1982–1985) and LeGree S. Daniels (1987–1989). As of mid-March, the Trump administration has not moved to nominate many blacks to fill key positions, and the appointment of Jackson shows this administration's lack of concern for blacks' culture and uplift. Jackson's writings suggest she'll likely steer the Education Department in a different direction than her black Republican predecessors. Due to Trump's lack of government experience and fluid political positions, much interest should continue over his Cabinet and sub-Cabinet nominations. Trump should make political appointments based on race, culture and diversity needs. Blacks should not just let Trump's administration abandon civil rights, the culture or concept, under the guise of "color-blindness." WI
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NATIONAL Anxiousness Pervades as Justice Gorsuch Takes Spot By Rushawn Walters Howard University News Service African Americans, Hispanics, Muslims, the LGBT community and women are watching anxiously as the Supreme Court considers important cases with the addition of new, conservative Justice Neil Gorsuch. Many are worried his judicial ideology closely aligns with the arch-conservative judge he replaced, Antonin Scalia, will erode existing civil rights protections for people of color, women and the LGBT community and will thwart efforts to expand those rights. Scalia, who died last year, presented legal opinions and judgements which harmed communities of color in regards to civil rights. Gorsuch will be pivotal on several cases expected to come before the court, including a Texas challenge to
BLM from Page 1 Douglass who said the following in 1857. “Find out just what any people will quietly submit to and you have found the exact measure of injustice and wrong which will be imposed upon them, and these will continue till they are resisted with either words or blows, or with both. The limits of tyrants are prescribed by the endurance of those whom they oppress.” Now that Black Lives Matter has become a recognized and in many cases, effective protest voice in America, how will their actions effect public policy, policing strategies and other challenges that continue to disproportionately felt by the Black community? Erika Totten, the founder of the BLM in the DMV shared her views on how she got involved and what she hopes to see in the future.
16 APRIL 20 - 27, 2017
an Obama immigration policy and another on the ability of unions to collect fees. Experts say other upcoming cases in which the new justice could tip the scales deal with employment and immigration, religion and education. Currently, Gorsuch and other justices are considering whether to hear a case involving the right to carry concealed weapons publicly. Kyle Barry, policy counsel at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, said his organization and others are concerned because the effect of Gorsuch's ruling and presence on the court will last for years. "This is for the next generation," Barry said. "We're talking about a life-tenured position for a relatively young nominee who may serve for decades while in the Supreme Court." The NAACP LDF reviewed Gorsuch's judicial record, with a focus on the civil rights and constitutional
issues that are of greatest relevance to the clients LDF represents, Barry said. Its legal analysts examined all of his written opinions and dissents on issues of employment and housing discrimination, criminal justice, voting rights and access to the courts — as well as his votes in relevant cases in which other judges authored the decision. "Based on a review of his record, we've found he has applied civil rights very narrowly, including discrimination in the workplace and
even whether or not civil rights cases can have their date in court in the first place," Barry said. The LDF's report also said Gorsuch holds views on government regulation that could undermine civil rights enforcement and deepen racial inequality. His views regarding the important work of federal agencies could lead to fewer and weaker protections for workers, the environment, consumers, and public health — resulting in harms that would disproportionately affect African-Americans and other people
of color. Barry, Democratic senators and other opponents site the 2009 case of Alphonse Maddin as an example of Gorsuch's affinity for siding with business rather than workers in his rulings. Maddin was a trucker who got stuck on the road in sub-zero temperatures. To survive, Maddin abandoned his cargo to seek help. His employer fired him because he left his truck unattended.
“After the Trayvon Martin trial, I went into a deep depression. It seemed like it was back to back: Trayvon, then John Crawford, then Eric Garner. Then, when I saw what happened to Michael Brown, and then seeing the response from police of a mourning community that was grieving the loss of one of their kids, and how they were met with military force, I could not remain silent any longer,” said Totten, who added she’s been supported from the start by her husband when she decided that she needed to go to Ferguson. “One of the things that I know we're having to battle within our own movement is sexism, misogyny – men wanting to silence women's voices, sexual harassment, homophobia, transphobia – so many different things,” she said. “For actions that are actually being disruptive, and shutting things down, it’s Black women that are organizing, planning and leading these ac-
tions. Sometimes we're the better communicators. We don’t have a lot of ego that goes along with this because we can connect with our sisters in knowing that this is my sister. What happens to her, happens to me.” Aaron Goggans, a D.C.-based BLM organizer says action works better than hashtag activism. “Sometimes we focus on the flashpoint of movements, the things that are immediately exciting, but and we miss a lot of the organizing work that goes on behind the scenes,” he said. “There is a lot of work of building real connections and changing the narrative of how we even conceive of these issues and fighting for power. Good online organizing is cultural organizing.” “The way we think about it is there are two struggles: the cultural struggle and individuals who create disempowered narratives for Black folks and then there are
institutions that are informed by that culture and also reinforce and create that culture which are institutional barriers like mass incarceration. The police set up institutional barriers and what we see time and time again is that folks push against these barriers, but because the culture didn't change, the culture raises a new institution that is very similar. We had slavery and then we got Jim Crow.” So, does BLM still matter? Two Black men, from Virginia and Northeast both say yes. “Some ethnic groups, like the Jews, keep their concerns at the forefront, and they remain united –we’ve got to do the same,” said Shaun Gause, 45, an Ashburn resident, husband and father. “We cannot allow Trayvon, Michael Brown and so many other Black youth to have died in vain. We know that Blacks are often mistreated and misaligned in our
experiences with the police. And using social media has worked to our advantage because it’s no longer your word versus my word. Now everyone can see what’s going on. We may not like the truth, but it cannot continue to be ignored,” Gause added. As for James Payton, 37, he says he’d like to see BLM become more organized. “Of course, they’re still relevant. Yes, the Black Lives Matter movement is still relevant,” he said. “Until we have real justice in America for all people, they’re needed and relevant. But I’d like to see them make their goals and purpose clearer. Like everything else, there can be radicals within a movement that shout hatred or violence. That’s not what BLM is all about. But because they use social media more than anything else, older Americans don’t always know what they’re doing or why.” WI
5 Neil Gorsuch being sworn-in. /Courtey photo
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GORSUCH Page 40
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INTERNATIONAL Compiled by Lauren Poteat / WI Contributing Writer
Zimbabwe's First Lady Begins Evicting Masses From Family Homes
Despite living in a democratic country, more than 100 families in Zimbabwe are now being forcibly evicted from their home farmlands by first lady Grace Mugabe. In spite of a recent court hearing last month that ruled against the first lady's move to seize farmland for personal gain or to expand her empire in the farming area of Mazowe, many villagers who have lived in the area for over 17 years still find themselves being forcefully displaced by law officials. "It was not easy for us to hand over our petition to [the Southern African Development Community] because of the absence of Swaziland's embassy here in Zimbabwe," said a village spokesperson, newzimbabwe.com reported. "Initially, we approached the South African embassy which referred us to [the] Botswana embassy, saying Botswana was the SADC secretariat, which again referred us back to the South African embassy, saying that they were the ones representing Swaziland here in Zimbabwe. "They finally received our petition and took down our contact details before they promised to get back to us," the spokesman said.
5 Zimbabwe citizens are urging
the Southern African Development Community to intervene in government-forced evictions. /Courtesy of nehandaradio.com
Cape Town Readies For Female-Centered Business Summit In an attempt to accelerate the economic empower-
5 Cape Town is preparing for a women-centric busi-
ness summit this fall. /Courtesy of The Tony Elumelu Foundation
ment and advancement of African women and girls, Cape Town, South Africa, will host the third edition of the Africa Women Innovation & Entrepreneurship Forum (AWIEF) Conference and Exhibition. The Oct. 5-6 conference is expected to attract leading women in business, entrepreneurship, technology and government and incorporate panel discussions and workshops. The AWIEF exhibition is also expected to offer an opportunity for organizations to showcase their products, innovations, technologies and contributions to the African economy and society. Small-business owners will also have a chance to market brands and network with prominent business leaders and corporate organizations. To register for the conference, go to awieforum.org.
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Rwanda to Host Transform Africa Summit
For the third year in a row, Smart Africa, a leadership-based organization for the betterment of business-minded Africa, will host their Transform Africa Summit in the country of Rwanda next month. The summit is expected to attract more than 4,000 participants. Based on the ideology for a connected Smart Africa, the event will highlight the organization's five principles, including: putting Information Communication Technology (ICT) at the center of the national socio-economic development Agenda, improving access to ICT, improving accountability, efficiency and openness through ICT and putting the private sector first and leveraging ICT to promote sustainable development. 5The Transform Africa Summit is set to Smart Africa's mission is to transform other African coun- take place in May. /Courtesy of ktpress.rw tries into emerging economies by the year 2030.
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APRIL 20 - 27, 2017 17
HEALTH Utility Workforce Training Coming to D.C.
5 Pepco workers discuss new program with UDC. /Courtesy photo
Pepco Partners With UDC for Program By Sarafina Wright WI Staff Writer District residents will now have the opportunity to join a workforce training program that will prepare them for employment in the utilities industry. The District of Columbia Workforce Investment Council (WIC) and the Department of Employment Services (DOES) announced April 11, the launch of the DC Quick Path to Energy Program, in partnership with Pepco Holdings and the Univer-
sity of the District of Columbia Community College. In her recent State of the District Address, Mayor Muriel Bowser introduced the DC Infrastructure Academy, which aligns with her vision to create a Public Works Academy that prepares District residents for infrastructure jobs. "As mayor, I am committed to ensuring that economic prosperity reaches residents in all eight wards," Bowser said. "The creation of the District of Columbia Infrastructure Academy and today's launch of the DC
Quick Path to Energy Program are shining examples of our efforts to create inclusive prosperity across the District by training and connecting residents to jobs in growing and in-demand industries." The program, open to all District residents 21 and over, will have five cohorts of 25 participants who will complete a series of industry-focused instruction and trainings, academic and test preparation, and workforce development sessions at the university. The DC Quick Path to Energy Program will prepare 125 city residents to take the Construc-
tion and Skilled Trades (CAST) examination. At the end of the program, successful participants will have the opportunity to interview for jobs with Pepco and other utility companies. WIC, a private sector-led board responsible for advising the city government on the development, implementation and improvement of an integrated and effective workforce investment system, will lead the initiative. "This partnership exemplifies what is possible when the public workforce system responds to the specific needs of business,"
Joint Session: Marijuana Advocates to Hit the Hill By Tatyana Hopkins WI Contributing Writer Dawn Lee-Carty had to make a decision to save her then-7-year-old daughter's life- risky brain surgery or medication that would cause convulsions. She chose neither. Instead, she traveled from her native D.C. to Colorado to pick up
cannabis oil to treat her daughter Zoey's epilepsy, which could cause her to have as many as 50 seizures a day. Within days of using the cannabis oil, Zoey was different — less-violent seizures and fewer seizures overall. "I don't see seizures anymore," Carty said of her now-9-year-old daughter, who has been using a
5 Marijuana advocate and volunteer, Felicia Simpson rolls marijuana joins for the 1st Annual Congressional #JointSession in preparation for the free cannabis giveaway on Capitol Hill to bring attention to the federal law restrictions that impede on local enforcement of marijuana policies. /Photo by Mark Mahoney
18 APRIL 20 - 27, 2017
non-photoactive cannabis oil for a year now. "Families should do their research," Carty said. "The stigma [surrounding marijuana] should be broken because it gave me a better way to medicate my child." Since treating Zoey with cannabis oils, Carty said she has become an advocate and educator to other families who want to treat with cannabis products. She started her own organization, Speak Life, and said she has also joined several organizations who support its medical uses and decriminalization, including DCMJ, which will be holding several protests that involve moving the celebration of the popular marijuana holiday "420" further from its subculture roots and closer to Capitol Hill. DCMJ, the advocacy group that spearheaded the push for Initiative 71, which decriminalized marijuana in the District upon its passage, will hold several protests on Capitol Hill to continue efforts to loosen restrictions on the substance, especially federal laws that impede on local marijuana policy. Marijuana's current Schedule I
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classification marks that the Drug Enforcement Administration does not recognize any potential for accepted medical use and indicated that it has a high potential for abuse. "Americans don't want a crackdown on legal cannabis — they want Congress to end cannabis prohibition once and for all," said Adam Eidinger, co-founder of DCMJ. "It is time Congress remove cannabis from its Schedule I classification — and act." The group organized the controversial #Trump420 protest, during which they distributed thousands of free joints to legal-age persons on the streets of D.C. during President Trump's inauguration in January. On Thursday, April 20, the organization will hold its first annual Congressional #JointSession — a free cannabis giveaway — for members of Congress, Congressional staffers, credentialed journalists, support staff, interns and 21-and-older Capitol Hill workers with valid congressional identification. They will gather at First Street and Constitution Avenue, getting as close to the Capitol without being on federal land — staying within the
said WIC Director Diane Pabich. The DC Quick Path to Energy Program highlights the agency's efforts to improve service delivery and training models that put thousands of District residents on a pathway to the middle class. "DOES is excited to leverage our full array of resources to ensure the business community and employers are connected to qualified talented right here in the District," said Odie Donald II, the department's acting director. "We are thankful for Pepco's partnership in this effort and the leadership of [Pepco] President and CEO David Velazquez." WI bounds of the District's possession laws. So far, the organization has managed to drop off a printed invitation to the event at every Congressional and Committee office on Capitol Hill and has spoken with the Office of Congressional Ethics, which will consider the event "widely attended" if 25 non-congressional staffers show up, a requirement that will ensure that staffers who do attend will not be in violation of ethics rules. On Monday, April 24, the group will be holding a bolder demonstration: #Reschedule420, a smokeout on the Capitol steps though possession of marijuana is illegal on federal grounds. Carty says she will be present at both events, and on Monday will be holding a sign with photos of her daughter in the hospital before treating with cannabis oils and after the treatment, noting her decrease in hospitalization. She said legalization of marijuana will give patients and their families an alternative to pharmaceutical drugs with harsh side effects. "I'm really happy to be participating," Carty said. "The government is dragging their feet on legalization and people are suffering." WI
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HEALTH AmeriHealth Hosts Community Summit
Topics Include Housing, Violence and Improving Health Outcomes By D. Kevin McNeir WI Editor AmeriHealth Caritas District of Columbia, a member of the AmeriHealth Caritas Family of Companies, hosted a leadership summit on Feb. 23 to develop additional Medicaid managed care strategies. More than 80 participants, including community partners, local officials, and Medicaid members, as well as national experts in housing, community development, and disease and violence prevention, collaborated to develop workable solutions that address the most challenging social determinants of health. Karen Dale, AmeriHealth Caritas D.C. Market President and CEO, said that as Medicaid managed care continues to evolve, she believes it’s important to be at the forefront, “helping to shape the dialogues and creating solutions in partnership with key stakeholders.” “The evolution of managed care is about doing more to meet people where they are. Risk factors, such as homelessness and violence, undermine our efforts to promote individual wellness and cultivate stable communities,” Dale said. “The goal is to leverage our collective expertise to unlock barriers in the current system and find ways we can work to improve health outcomes – locally and nationally,” she said.
Dale emphasized that with AmeriHealth Caritas serving more than 104,000 District residents, it’s vital that the company live out its mission to serve the whole person and community. “We believe we’ve started on a journey with key stakeholders and members of the community who we serve and want to co-author some meaningful and effective solutions to some of the challenges we collectively face,” she said. “At the end of the summit, we polled those in attendance for recommendations and how they believed they should be prioritized. One of the amazing things that came out of the summit was the participation by our members – having them at the table to share their lived experiences helped to enrich the dialogue immensely,” Dale said. Several strategies emerged from the session, all of which are now being pursued by AmeriHealth Caritas District of Columbia. 1)Improve the assessment and identification of social determinants of health, with special emphasis on homelessness, enabling health care providers to connect patients more quickly with appropriate housing supports and other services; 2)Increase provider and community awareness about violence prevention and treatment resources, because numerous
studies have shown that exposure to potentially traumatic events not only results in significant immediate health care costs, but also predisposes individuals to developing chronic illnesses; and 3)Leverage respite care facilities as a cost-effective way to meet the medical needs of people who are homeless by
providing acute and post-acute medical care for individuals who are too ill or frail to recover from an illness or physical injury on the streets, but are not ill enough to be in a hospital. Dale added that in the very near future, plans will be announced that address partnering efforts with local housing providers and community-based organizations who work with families impacted by cyclical violence in various forms.
In addition, those who participated in the summit will have additional opportunities to participate and share their views and concerns, as will other members of the community as AmeriHealth Caritas seeks to “broaden the conversation.” For relevant posts about the convening of the summit, results, recommendations and/or about AmeriHealthCaritas DC go to www.amerihealthcaritasdc.com. WI
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EDUCATION DCPS
BRIEFS Compiled by Dorothy Rowley WI Staff Writer
SHINING STAR GALA
More than 80 percent of students at Thurgood Marshall Academy Public Charter School in Southeast participate in at
least one of 20-plus clubs and programs at the school that include green and chess clubs, debate and dance teams and an array of athletics and emerging sports teams. Learn more about how enrichment activities prepare students to be dynamic, well-rounded leaders at this year's Shining Star Gala, which will be held Thursday, April 27 from 6:30 p.m.9:30 p.m. at Thurgood Marshall Academy.
ON 'SEGREGATION' AND 'INTEGRATION'
Bernida Thompson, founding principal of Roots Public Charter School, recently responded to a newspaper article on the issue of
5 The annual Shining Star gala highlights how enrichment activities prepare students to be dynamic, well-rounded leaders. /Courtesy of DCPCS
segregation within D.C.'s public schools, saying it's important to recognize that integration isn't the opposite of segregation. "Don't get it twisted," Thompson said. "Segregation is a forced separation for the purpose of treating people inferior. It is when the ruling class separates people from the wealth, dignity, respect,
Do you have type 2 diabetes or know someone who does? Join us for a free educational event at the National Housing Center! Join Hot 99.5’s Toby Knapp and Law & Order and Chicago Med’s S. Epatha Merkerson as they share their stories, and together, reveal common challenges people face managing type 2 diabetes. A panel of experts will then offer tips to help you tackle those challenges head on and we’ll also distribute resources to help you work with your doctor to set and reach your blood sugar goals. You also won’t want to miss Chef Leticia Moreinos Schwartz’s tips for healthy eating, and her delicious and nutritious food samples!
Tuesday, April 25th from 11:15 AM to 1:30 PM National Housing Center (Auditorium) 1201 15th Street, NW Washington, DC 20005 Lunch will be served Visit diabetes.org/washingtondc or tinyurl.com/adc425 for the required event RSVP form.
Contact Hallie Hudson with any questions at (202) 331-8303 ext. 4531 or hhudson@diabetes.org
20 APRIL 20 - 27, 2017
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and ability to achieve power over any of these three things. Integration doesn't change the philosophy of segregation — it still uses ruling class standardized tests to measure proficiency, not taking into consideration that nobody is proficient in everything and people's needs for specific proficiencies are different. "Everybody's needs, interests, proficiencies, and talents are different," Thompson said. "This is where real consideration for diversity becomes an actuality. The opposite of segregation is independence and choice. People of all races should be given the independent means to develop wealth for their communities, the choice to set up schools and other institutions for the benefit and needs of their children and community."
DCTAG HAS MONEY FOR COLLEGE
The DC Tuition Assistance Grant expands higher education choices for District residents by providing grants of up to $10,000 toward the difference between in-state and out-of-state tuition at public colleges and universities. DCTAG also provides up to $2,500 per academic year toward tuition at private colleges in the Washington, DC Metropolitan area and private historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), nationwide. As the June 30 deadline nears, residents may apply either by computer or mobile device, using the DC OneApp. From the Chancellor's Desk Beginning after this year's spring break, a new weekly email from new DCPS chief Antwan
Wilson, titled "From the Chancellor's Desk," will be circulated. The emails will serve as Wilson's opportunity to share his thoughts from week to week, surrounding various issues within the DCPS system. The issues will focus on ensuring fairness and equity in schools; how students pursue excellence through rigorous coursework and enriching experiences outside the classroom; updates on academic and social-emotional learning supports, and more.
DUAL ENROLLMENT
"It's a great way to get ahead in college," says Kai Quander, an H.D. Woodson senior who's taking a class at UDC-Community College through the DCPS Dual Enrollment Program. "You'll learn how to manage your time, and you'll meet some nice people. I've met people studying all sorts of subjects, from political science, to psychology, to French. I was nervous at first, but on [the first day], the person next to me told me to strive."
GROWING NUMBERS
For the fourth consecutive year, demand for a spot at a quality public charter school continues to grow, as evidenced by the waitlist analysis released earlier this month by the DC Public Charter School Board. Overall, there are 9,703 individual students on waitlists to attend one or more PK-12 public charter schools in the 2017-18 school year, a 12.3 percent increase over last year's 8,640 students. All told, 23,448 students are on a waitlist, up from 20,880 last year. WI
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2017 SUSTAINABILITY SUPPLEMENT IN HONOR OF EARTH DAY, APRIL 22, 2017
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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 $45 per year, two years $60. Papers will be received not more than a week after publication. Make checks payable to: THE WASHINGTON INFORMER 3117 Martin Luther King, Jr. Ave., S.E Washington, D.C. 20032 Phone: 202 561-4100 Fax: 202 574-3785 news@washingtoninformer.com www.washingtoninformer.com
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We Have Only One Planet – We Must Protect Her for Tomorrow By D. Kevin McNeir WI Editor When I was a junior high school student in the mid-70s in my hometown of Detroit, I received an assignment in which I was directed to examine pollution and its impact on the U.S. At the time, our careless and consistent mistreatment of the planet had just begun to endanger our lakes and rivers as well as our fish and wildlife. Litter and landfills were quickly becoming both eyesores and dangers to our health. Meanwhile, automobile, steel and other factories were pumping all kinds of toxic waste into the air and our waters with little regard for the harm those toxins were having on our plants, animals and the human race. But I am no longer a junior high youth. I am a father and a grandfather, concerned about the future. Actually, I am afraid – fearful about tomorrow. This supplement focuses on sustainability, illustrating the contributions of community advocates who have decided that caring for the health of our planet serves as one of the world’s most crucial tasks. The air has become poisoned impacting breathing and increasing respiratory diseases. Many waterways can no longer sustain fish or other wildlife because they’ve been destroyed by chemicals and other pollutants. New diseases have burst on the scene, becoming more prevalent and with no cures in sight. As much as we may want to turn a blind eye to these and other indisputable facts, we can ill-afford to act as if the conclusions and recommendations of the world’s leading scientists have no merit. We can’t place an order for another Earth. This is the only one we have and if you listen carefully, you’ll probably hear our planet crying out, asking us to take better care of her, pleading for us to protect her and all of her inhabitants. This land is my land, this land is your land. This land needs our help. We must step up to the plate no matter what the cost. The future of those who will carry our names and keep our memories and stories alive depends on our actions today. SS
Earth Day & Science: More than a Symbolic Relationship By Melissa E. Adams Chief Corporate Social Responsibility Officer WGL/Washington Gas On Earth Day many people will be participating in science marches, to highlight the relationship between our Earth and the sciences that help us understand the world around us (and beyond). The Earth remains the only planet, among all that we have found, that has and can sustain life. And that means, aside from its natural beauty which we all celebrate and enjoy, we must do our part, as stewards of this unique place we call home so that it can meet the needs of this generation while ensuring it can continue to meet the needs for future generations. In order to do that we more than just an appreciation, we need to seek to understand the world around us and our symbiotic relationship with the environment. That is where science comes in. The sciences help us to understand everything from how life began (biology) to how it changes (evolution) to how to best protect ourselves (medicine) and preserve it (climatology). Science helps us heat our homes, power transportation, design buildings, roads, and bridges – and also tackles some of our most urgent challenges of transportation, global warming, health, longevity and wellbeing, etc. And the need is only going to grow. The current world population of 7.3 billion is expected to reach 8.5 billion by 2030 according to the United Nations, and 9.7 billion by 2050. That’s a lot of people. And meeting their needs is going to be a challenge. And that’s why science – and all STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) careers – are some of the most in demand (and best paying) today and for the foreseeable future. The crucial role that energy plays in sustainable development was recognized by the United Nations – and that is why ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy is one of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Indeed the vital importance of energy in improving health, industrialization and combating climate change cannot be overstated. And tremendous progress has been made. But, paradoxically, the number of people around the world who rely on polluting fuels and technologies for cooking such as solid fuels and kerosene has actually increased. Experts estimate that the Earth is likewise capable of providing enough energy; through a combination of renewables like wind and solar as well as continuing use of fossil fuels including natural gas. In fact, through a combination of increasing efficiency as well as shifting some of the energy use from natural gas to those renewable electricity sources, there is abundant natural gas for decades to come. That’s great news since it remains the most efficient and least polluting energy for thermal applications like heating, cooking, laundry and hot water. We can be proud that our company is doing its part. Over the last seven years, WGL and Washington Gas have reduced the absolute emissions from our fleet and facilities by 74 percent; as well as the emissions per therm of the gas we supply by 20 percent. Those reductions are substantial and demonstrate how our company is working to address climate change. And we will continue to do so. At the same time, a major focus of our charitable giving, as a company, is in the area of education. And we’re focusing on STEM for two main reasons. First, those are growing areas for employment and opportunity offering great careers. And second, we know that as our company’s continued success depends upon educated employees well versed in science, technology, engineering and math. SS
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Three-year Campaign Highlights Importance of Climate Literacy By Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer The Earth Day Network plans to launch a global initiative on April 22 that officials say kicks off a three-year campaign for environmental and climate literacy. The campaign’s focus will be on promoting mandatory environmental and climate literacy along with civic engagement and sustainable economic development, organizers said. “We need to build a global citizenry fluent in the concepts of climate change and aware of its unprecedented threat to our planet,” Kathleen Rogers, president of Earth Day Network, said in a statement. This year, Earth Day will see teach-ins around the world and a march for science rally on the National Mall that will bring together scientists and supporters to demand that leaders recognize the scientific truths across all disciplines, including climate change and other environmental issues, Rogers said. “Environmental and climate literacy is the engine not only for creating green voters and advancing environmental and climate laws and policies
but also for accelerating green technologies and jobs,” she said. Climate science literacy counts as an understanding of society’s influence on climate and vice versa, according to officials at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. A climate-literate individual understands the essential principles of earth’s climate system; knows how to access scientifically credible information about climate; communicates about climate and climate change in a meaningful way; and has the ability to make informed and responsible decisions in regard to actions that may affect climate, NOAA officials said. Using the teach-in concept deployed at the first Earth Day in 1970, this year’s observance will build an international movement with goals that organizers say include educating citizens about the environmental and climate issues they face and creating a world that both internalizes environmental values and develops sustainable communities. “As we face the realities of climate change – unpredictable temperatures, endangered species and an increasing number of severe weather
events – ensuring that our children are prepared to become environmentally literate citizens is more essential than ever,” said Earth Day Director Dan Abrams. Further, officials noted that Earth Day Network, the largest recruiter to the environment movement which works year-round to support civic action, plans to launch a campaign for global environmental and climate literacy by Earth Day 2020. Rogers said they’re dedicated to ensuring that every student around the world graduates from high school as an environmental and climate literate citizen – ready to take action and be a voice for change. “2017 is an historic year for activists all over the world who are uniting to promote climate and environmental literacy and activism with more than 1 billion people participating each year,” she said. “This year’s D.C. rally and teach-in, along with activities across the world, will kick off a week of action throughout local communities to support science across all disciplines,” she said. To learn more about Earth Day Network and the march for science, visit www.earthday.org. SS
Singer Mary J. Blige performs on National Mall During Earth Day 2015. / Courtesy photo
Earth Day Network – Dedicated Warriors Fight
By D. Kevin McNeir WI Editor @dkevinmcneir
Leaders, members and supporters of the environmental movement will gather on the National Mall on Saturday, April 22 for Earth Day 2017, joining millions around the globe in their collective efforts to promote climate literacy, mobilize a global citizenry to proclaim the truth about climate change and provide the public with the skills needed to act on behalf of the environment when they return to their own communities. Earth Day Network [EDN], the global coordinator for Earth Day, has been working with added fervor as the annual day draws near, preparing for activities that will include teach-ins and a March for Science rally that will feature some of the world’s leading scientists and environmental advocates. And given the stance that President Trump has taken, EDN President Kathleen Rogers says it’s imperative that more people become involved in the international movement who can accurately refute the Administration’s denials about climate change and foster greater
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awareness of climate change’s unprecedented threat to the planet. “We’ve already seen the warning signs from the EPA’s budget being slashed by 30 percent to the removal of climate change from government websites – it hits you on the head like a 2 x 4 – all under Trump – and for the life of me I just don’t understand,” Rogers said. “The handwriting is on the wall. Last year on Earth Day, the U.S. signed the climate [Paris] agreement but now the president has proposed a budget that undermines our credibility if we’re to meet the goals to which we agreed.” Rogers words do not exist in a vacuum as more than one billion people worldwide make up the environmental movement – a movement whose modern roots can be traced back to the first Earth Day held in 1970. She says what’s needed are “more people who care about people.” “No one wants dirty water, climate-related diseases and the host of additional environmental problems that continue to rise, but what seems to matter more in this climate of surging populism is the almighty dollar,” she said. “It’s not
about the health of the poor or children. It’s not about promoting the U.S. as a world leader. It’s about the flow of money. “ “The polls show that people want clean air and water but that doesn’t seem to matter to our country’s leaders. Even the new head of the EPA argues that climate change isn’t science based. That’s why Earth Day is so important. It’s more than just discussing the environment – it’s about changing people’s perceptions, educating people and promoting the truth with integrity,” Rogers added. Rogers says that while it may seem that the steps backward that Trump and others propose will have minimal impact that’s simply not the case. “We put massive numbers of greenhouse gases into the air – each day is not just 24 hours but more like years of damage,” she said. “The impact of a day without adequate controls is equivalent to months if not years of damage. Adding chemicals that accelerate the process and it becomes even more difficult to remove them and clean up the environment.” Rogers notes that EDN has oth-
er initiatives among its list of priorities, besides the more obvious environmental and climate literacy, including creating green voters and picking up the pace in developing green technologies and jobs. “We could be the leaders in this and treat it like we did the moon shot or computer technology,” she said. “Consider the Industrial Revolution where some countries dominated for years, including the U.S. We have the same kind of potential now but it will be countries not individuals like Carnegie, Ford or Rockefeller – one or more countries will take the lead in manufacturing a billion-dollar system that creates clean energy practically free. It’ll take a lot of time to do but it will be astounding.” “The country that gets the green tech industry will have unlimited opportunities. Four hundred million people in India don’t have any power at all. That could be accomplished either with coal or with a distributed solar industry. This fake narrative about how great fossil fuels are is old and washed up. Sure, they’ll be around for a while but then so were the horse and buggy. Going solar is a no brainer – we
should be more enlightened. Coal pollutes rivers, cuts lives short and requires us to blow up mountains.” Rogers points to the importance and need of clean water as a talking point for greater focus on environmental issues. “Concerns are mounting in California about the state’s ongoing drought crisis. We take clean water and it being easily available for granted in America but in some parts of the world, like several nations in Africa for example, people are suffering and dying. Some experts even predict that the next world war could be about water.” Rogers says that if Earth Day 2017 accomplishes nothing else, she’s hopeful that more people will realize that “Earth Day is every day.” “I wonder what will be said two generations into the future about the decisions our country made in terms of protecting the environment and the planet,” she pondered. “I hope they won’t have to say that what we did was barbaric and destructive even though we had the technology to turn the tide.” SS
2017 SUSTAINABILITY SUPPLEMENT / APRIL 2017 / www.washingtoninformer.com ®
EARTH DAY NETWORK
The national capital region is a living, breathing showcase for our country’s finest institutions and ideals. Our monuments and museums are living history. Our government buildings are where visitors can witness the world’s most celebrated democracy in action. We are home to a bevy of professional sports and world-class entertainment. And nature thrives along our rivers and
Growing with the Capital
streams, our walkways and trails – in Kenilworth Gardens, the National Zoo, the National Arboretum, and a host of other local parks and recreation areas. But this has not always been the case. Back in 1848, the year that the Washington Gas Light Company was granted its charter by the United States Congress, the capital was a far different place. It was said that, “citizens preferred to stay home at night rather than walk along the un-
lighted and unpaved streets which were obstructed with mud holes.” During the first session of the Thirtieth Congress, the Senate, House of Representatives and President James K. Polk signed the bill to pass the Washington Gas Light Company. That was just four days after the cornerstone of the Washington Monument was laid and, like that familiar symbol of Washington, D.C., we have also grown and reached impressive heights. Our company has been in business for nearly 170 years; and we have evolved through that time as our communities’ energy needs and sources have changed. WGL Energy was the first supplier in the Mid-Atlantic region to offer wind power options to our customers. In 2010, WGL Energy began offering WGES CleanSteps® carbon offsets, a first-of-its-kind initiative, to provide customers with the option of matching carbon offsets to their natural gas consumption. Today, we continue our efforts to reduce our environmental footprint and to help our customers do the same, while also saving
money. Having already reduced carbon emissions from our fleet and facilities by 74 percent since 2008, we are now setting a new, similarly aggressive target for 2025. Likewise, we continue to reduce the carbon intensity of the gas we deliver to our customers. Since 2008, we have been able to reduce carbon equivalent emissions associated with each unit of natural gas delivered to our customers by 20 percent. This was, in large part, thanks to our accelerated efforts to update our pipelines with new, modern materials that enhance the reliability of our delivery, as well as resilience in the event of bad weather, flooding or other crises. Going forward, we plan to continue these efforts. We have recently established new sustainability targets for 2025. We propose to achieve carbon neutral fleet and facilities operations; reduce fugitive emission intensity of our natural gas distribution system by 38% from our 2008 baseline; and help our customers avoid 18 million tons of GHG emissions. A visible demonstration of this
effort is our 200-plus natural gas powered vehicles deployed throughout our service area. These cars and trucks use clean burning natural gas and produce 20 to 29 percent fewer carbon equivalent greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions when compared with conventional gasoline or diesel powered vehicles. These clean burning engines virtually eliminate the emissions of particulate matter into the air, thereby reducing the air pollution and ‘ozone alert’ days that cause serious health issues, such as asthma and respiratory distress. WGL Energy empowers commercial and residential customers by offering ways to improve their energy efficiency, as well as choose clean, renewable energy such as wind and solar generated electricity, highly efficient combined heat and power installations, and carbon offsets. We Continued on Page 6
ENERGY ANSWERS TO PRESERVE THE ENVIRONMENT. WGL PROVIDES AFFORDABLE, RELIABLE, SUSTAINABLE AND MODERN ENERGY ANSWERS Our energy answers help us, and our customers to reduce our environmental footprints. Since 2008 we have reduced emissions from our fleet and facilities by 74% and reduced fugitive emission intensity by 20% - both ahead of our 2020 target. In addition, our clean, efficient energy solutions help customers reduce energy use and costs as well as their own environmental footprints. To learn more about how, visit WGL.com.
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ENERGY ANSWERS TO PLAN FOR A BETTER TOMORROW.
WGL is the preferred source for clean and efficient energy solutions across the nation. But we also know that our responsibilities do not end there. We’ve made a commitment to help enhance the quality of life throughout the entire community. That’s why we’re proud to work with local organizations that improve people’s health, promote a cleaner environment, support efforts to better educate our youth and as a result, enrich lives today and for generations to come. To learn more about how WGL is helping create a healthier, more vibrant community, visit WGL.com.
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EARTH DAY NETWORK
Building a Strong and Healthy Community
WGL and Washington Gas are connected to more than a million homes, offices, schools and other buildings in the Washington, D.C. area and surrounding states through a series of pipelines. But we are also connected to the region through our 1,500-plus employees. Our corporate philanthropy and employee volunteerism efforts align with our strategic business to support strong and healthy communities, in which WGL can continue to expand our services. We have chosen to focus our philanthropy efforts on organizations and initiatives related to three specific areas—health, education and the environment. Last year, the company contributed more than $1.2 million in donations and in-kind support, and logged more than 12,000 volunteer hours with more than 600 employees actively volunteering. Some of our programs combine all three of our focus areas, working to educate the public on ways to improve public health and the environment by reducing air pollution. For example, we work with Clean Air Partners, a public-private partnership of the Washington Metropolitan Council of Governments and the Baltimore Metropolitan Council, to provide a wide range of resources, from daily alerts forecasting air quality information to air quality curriculums for regional schools. WGL has co-sponsored two
recent Breathe Easy call-to-action concerts by Clean Air Partners, encouraging people to share their sustainability actions for clean air. Participants who submitted an idea were automatically entered into a contest to win tickets to concerts that featured Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band, and Earth, Wind & Fire and Chicago, respectively. These programs raised region-wide awareness of practices that improve air quality, through considerable local media and social media engagement. Another educational program includes our partnership with the Girl Scouts of the Nation’s Capital. Each year, we sponsor the WGL Air Quality Environmental Learning Patch Program that integrates experiential STEM lessons to teach girls in grades K-8 to use energy efficiently. Since 2007, more than 16,500 girls in the Washington, D.C., area have each spent five hours earning air quality environmental patches during summer camps. Our signature philanthropic program is the Washington Area Fuel Fund (WAFF). WAFF provides heating assistance to low-income energy consumers no matter what type of fuel they use to heat their home. Washington Gas pays WAFF’s administrative fees while The Salvation Army administers the fund, so that 100 percent of all donations go directly to families in need. WAFF was founded in 1983 and has distributed more than $25 million, helping more than 280,000 area residents. Last year, WAFF disbursed approximately $765,000, contributed by our employees and customers, which helped more than 6,100 area residents stay warm. As part of this strategic community
partnership, Washington Gas continues to develop ways to increase WAFF’s ability to help low-income customers. In addition to our fundraising and media activities, the number of employees who engage with the community through WGL’s Community Service Team is growing each year. This growth includes dozens of employees who have chosen to become program leaders, working directly with charitable organizations to coordinate and staff these events. Each year, WGL employees donate about $150,000 to support local area non-profit organizations through our annual employee giving campaign. WAFF remains the most frequently selected charity, with 131 employee donors contributing nearly $38,000 this year. One of our most popular volunteer programs is the annual Day of Weatherization, where WGL employees, friends and family members weatherize the homes of low-income and elderly residents, also providing energy efficiency tips that can increase comfort and lower heating bills. Last year, 105 homes were weatherized by more than 200 volunteers and, for the second year in a row, the program installed solar panels across the District of Columbia. In partnership with GRID Alternatives, a national non-profit, volunteers helped to install panels on one of nine buildings at the Park Chester Apartment complex, located in D.C.’s Ward 8. Energy savings from the solar installation are being used to help provide energy efficient appliances for residents living in all 94 units in
the building. Our corporate philanthropy also extends to the health sector, where WGL has recently reached a momentous milestone. WGL is the first corporate sponsor in the region to surpass $1 million in total contributions to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS). Employees, friends and families raised a record $211,000 for LLS’s Light The Night Walk campaign that supports blood cancer research and education. Our company’s total donation came from a combination of ef-
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Two WGL employees seal a drafty window as part of WGL’s annual Day of Weatherization
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EARTH DAY NETWORK
understand there are a lot of choices, so our experts work closely with large and small customers to customize energy plans that meet their objectives and needs. The crucial role that energy plays in sustainable development was recognized by the United Nations. This is why ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy is one of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG#7). Indeed, the vital importance of energy in improving health,
forts, including—a corporate golf tournament that raised $124,000; employee fundraising that garnered $72,000; and corporate funding of $15,000. Supporting our communities is at the heart of what makes WGL the company it is – it is central to what has kept us in business for almost 170 years. We are looking forward to further improving the health, education and environment of our communities and to deepening our connection to the Washington, D.C. area. SS
industrialization and combating climate change cannot be overstated. And while tremendous progress has been made, we have never rested on our laurels. Today, we are exploring new ideas, like biogas (renewable natural gas) for our fleet, as well as other fleets in the area, and expanded use of clean, distributed energy projects. We hope that our efforts to provide safe, reliable, sustainable energy will continue undiminished for another 170 years – when we will undoubtedly be serving a very different Washington, D.C. region yet again. SS
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ENERGY ANSWERS TO PRESERVE THE ENVIRONMENT.
WGL is the preferred source for clean and efficient energy solutions across the nation. But when it comes to the planet that we all call home, we also do more. By partnering with organizations that work to keep our air and water clean, we are playing a vital role in what needs to be done to keep our communities, and our planet, green. To learn more about how WGL is helping create a healthier, more vibrant community, visit WGL.com.
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EARTH DAY NETWORK
Know What’s Below – Always Call 811 Before You Dig
DCPSC Chairman Betty Ann Kane
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EARTH DAY NETWORK
This April, the Public Service Commission of the District of Columbia is celebrating the tenth anniversary of National Safe Digging Month by reminding District residents to always call 811 two working days before any digging project. Mayor Muriel Bowser has proclaimed April as Safe Digging Month in the District, and our Commission staff has produced a public service announcement encouraging everyone to dial 811 before digging. Why is it so important to spread the message of calling 811 before you dig? Every six minutes an underground utility line is damaged because someone decided to dig without first calling 811. Also, according to a recent Common
Ground Alliance survey 45 percent of people who plan to dig this year will not call 811 first, despite there being 100 billion feet of utility lines buried underground in the United States. These buried facilities, including natural gas, water, sewer, cable TV, high-speed Internet, landline telephone and electric, provide the services District residents depend on for their basic everyday needs. If you are planning a job that requires digging, even if you plan to hire a professional, a call to 811 is required before you begin working. 811 is a free, FCC-designated national one call number that connects a caller from anywhere in the country to the appropriate local one call center. The one call
center will then alert the appropriate underground facility owners so they can dispatch locators to mark the approximate location of their lines with paint or flags. Unintentionally striking a line can result in inconvenient outages for entire neighborhoods, harm to yourself or your neighbors, and repair costs. Every digging project, no matter how large or small, warrants a call to 811. Installing a mailbox, building a deck and planting a tree or garden are all examples of digging projects that should only begin a few days after making a call to 811.
HERE’S HOW IT WORKS:
1. One free, simple phone call to 811 makes it easy for your local one-call center to notify all appropriate utility companies of your intent to dig. 2. Call at least two working days prior to digging to ensure enough time for utility lines will be properly marked. 3. When you call 811, a rep-
resentative from the District One-Call Center will ask for the location and description of your digging project. 4. The District One-Call Center will notify affected utility companies, and each will send a professional locator to the proposed dig site to mark the approximate location of your lines. 5. Once lines have been properly marked, roll up those sleeves and carefully dig around the marked areas. Keep your project safe for you and your community. Call 811 Before You Dig. Watch videos and learn more about 811 at www.dcpsc.org/ Dial811. The mission of the Public Service Commission of the District of Columbia is to serve the public interest by ensuring that financially healthy electric, natural gas and telecommunications companies provide safe, reliable and quality utility services at reasonable rates for District of Columbia residential, business and government customers. SS
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By Sandra Mattavous-Frye People’s Counsel for the District of Columbia
What’s the Value of Solar for the District of Columbia?
The Office of the People’s Counsel for the District of Columbia is pleased to join the Washington Informer 2017 Sustainability Supplement in Honor of Earth Day. Highlighting Environmental and Climate Literacy is in keeping with OPC’s mandate to raise awareness about energy efficiency, the conservation of natural resources and the preservation of environmental quality for the benefit of consumers in all eight wards. In support of our mandate, and in response to a DC Council legislative directive, in 2016 the Office of the People’s Counsel commissioned two studies to determine the value to DC residents that investments in solar technology may provide. The studies are the first of their kind Value of Solar (VoS) studies produced in the District based on DC specific data. This article addresses findings contained in the VoS Study: “Distributed Solar in the District of Columbia, Policy Options, Potential Value of Solar and Cost-Shifting District of Columbia,” by Synapse Energy Economics, Inc. The second OPC Study is entitled: “Solar Generation Potential and of Distributed Energy Resources in Low-and Moderate-Income Communities in Washington,
DC,” by Jerome S. Paige & Associates, LLC. The findings from these studies are intended to assist District policymakers in their quest to deliver the benefits of solar to all DC consumers and to lay the groundwork for the District’s energy future. Solar in DC: Solar power is sunlight that is converted into usable electricity using panels or Photovoltaic (PV) cells. The District averages 4.23 hours of sunshine per day that is freely available throughout the year. Generating electricity from this sunlight could contribute to meeting up to 20 percent of the power demands of local homes and businesses, while reducing the air and water pollution impacts of other fuels such as coal, oil or nuclear energy otherwise used to generate electricity. Installation of solar panels requires major financial investment. The VoS Study indicates solar generation is the least cost option to produce local energy compared with the cost of purchasing electricity generated from other energy sources. The declining costs of installation and policies to expand solar programs bring solar within reach of many more residents. Our experts forecast that solar will grow to over 200 MW (megawatts) over the next decade, and if existing barriers are removed or reduced, the District could achieve its goal of 5 percent of all electricity coming from sites in the District so-
Solar panels on the roof of Florida Avenue Baptist Church, the first African American church to go solar in the Washington area. lar by 2032, by producing 550 MW. Barriers: Solar adoption faces both financial and nonfinancial barriers and challenges. Critical to consumers are the up-front costs of a solar system and how quickly that system will pay for itself. Since 2006, the cost of installing a typical 4-kW (kilowatt) system has dropped from about $36,000 to about $13,000. The payback period for a new residential system averages 5 years. In the past, the time required for the electric company to process and approve interconnection of solar systems created extended installation delays. Reductions in connection times have greatly improved the process. The timeline to move from application for a residential solar system, to operation of that system, is currently about 80 days. Other barriers include adequate rooftop structure, and useable space availability, permitting, and consumer education. OPC continues to seek ways to further educate consumers
Rev. Dr. Earl D. Trent Jr, Senior Pastor of Florida Avenue Baptist Church in Northwest, shows Deputy People’s Counsel Karen Sistrunk and People’s Counsel Sandra-Mattavous-Frye (center) solar panels on the church’s roof.
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and streamline the process. Potential: The VoS Study concluded the technical potential for rooftop solar is large. The Study compared solar, combined heat and power, biogas, wind turbines, biomass and municipal solid waste, and fuel cells as potential technologies to contribute to the District’s renewable energy mix. Solar PV showed the most growth, largely due to feasibility factors and local policy initiatives. Solar photovoltaic was clearly the most accessible and abundant renewable resource in the District. The analysis found approximately 85,000 suitable small residential buildings currently without existing PV systems, which represents significant unrealized potential. The Study found that the District has a maximum solar generation potential of 1700 GWh (gigawatt). Of this potential, 21percent can be generated from small residential rooftops. In contrast, 79 percent of the solar PV potential can be generated from rooftops on large multi-family-buildings, government, commercial and industrial buildings due to the larger available footage. Solar Investment Return: Under existing Renewable Procurement
Standards (RPS), the District is mandated to supply 5 percent of its electricity from solar by 2032. If current incentives remain in effect or increase, investment in all solar generation systems could be recovered within five years. Non-Solar Customers CostShifting: The Study found that non-solar consumers could potentially see costs rise by 7-cents per month should solar adoption expand rapidly. A key concern is that higher costs may be imposed on non-solar electric customers as those with solar systems gradually contribute less to the maintenance and operation of the existing distribution system. The Study suggests, however, that changes to current electricity tariff may result in non-solar consumers saving about 2-cents per month. OPC remains firmly committed to pursuing only those initiatives that will provide sustainable environmental and economic benefits to all District consumers across all wards and income levels. OPC also intends to ensure that low- and fixed- income consumers realize the substantial savings that solar can render. Copies of the studies are available at: www.opc-dc.gov. Contact OPC at: 202-727-3071. Happy Earth Day! SS
2017 SUSTAINABILITY SUPPLEMENT / APRIL 2017 / www.washingtoninformer.com ®
EARTH DAY NETWORK
Pepco’s Environmental Commitments PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT
pepco.com
n Environmental stewardship is one of Pepco’s central values and it guides our approach to business operations, regulatory compliance and resource conservation. Our environmental strategy also accounts for the risks and opportunities of climate change, and is focused on meeting the challenges of rising energy costs, concerns about environmental sustainability and government energy reduction goals.
ADDRESSING CLIMATE CHANGE
ENERGIZED TO
MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
Mentoring the next generation of energy professionals to help meet the challenges of a sustainable future is a commitment that energizes us all. We’re always working to make a difference for our communities – today and for years to come. From sponsoring District of Columbia robotics teams in national competitions to partnering with the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Washington to inspire interest in 21st century STEM technologies, the efforts we make today will have a profound effect on the future of the communities we serve. We are proud to help educate, inform and inspire the future of our industry – on Earth Day, and every day.
© Pepco, 2017
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EARTH DAY NETWORK
n We recognize the benefits of reducing global greenhouse gas emissions and are taking action to reduce our own carbon footprint through solutions that seek to protect the environment while minimizing the economic impact to families and businesses. Climate change has influenced our strategy through its potential impacts to the financial condition, operations and cash flows of each of our subsidiaries. Our repositioning as primarily a transmission and distribution company minimizes our exposure to government regulations. Climate change also has influenced us because of the potential damage to electrical infrastructure resulting from physical risks such as extreme weather. This requires us to create new strategies to help avoid these issues. An important part of our approach is partnering with state regulators to advance state energy reduction and renewable energy goals, as well as, to develop effective environmental policies.
PROTECTING NATURAL RESOURCES
n We are committed to maintaining the health of our environment by conserving, protecting and enhancing our natural resources. We fulfill this commitment by conducting our business with respect and care for the environment. We use a proactive approach both to help avoid the impacts on cultural and natural resource. We have developed a plan that balances our responsibility to provide reliable, safe electricity with natural resource
protection. Whether it’s enhancing, conserving, restoring or managing natural resources, we perform the work while keeping potential environmental impacts on our radar. Learn more in our Vegetation Management fact sheet. It is important to us to sustain the animal, bird and plant life throughout the areas we work in. We recognize the importance of trees to communities and are committed to protecting the beauty of tree canopies. Our avian protection program is designed to limit the potential for bird electrocution or collision with the company’s overhead towers, poles and wires infrastructure. Learn more in our Avian Protection fact sheet. Our environmental and engineering teams work together to design new, or redesign existing, electric facilities to protect sensitive habitats. We work with regulatory agencies and engage with landowners, public agencies, nonprofit and community organizations, and other stakeholders who share our commitment to protect and preserve the natural environment. Learn more in our Wetlands Protection fact sheet. We are also committed to remediating, restoring and renewing ecosystems and habitats through careful planning and collaboration with the community and the regulators. Our goal is to limit the impacts from our operations and transform previous industrial property into clean, productive assets. Learn more in our Wildlife Protection fact sheet.
RECYCLING ACTIVITIES
n Company Recycling Initiatives We demonstrate our strong commitment to environmental protection by employing innovative waste prevention, recycling and reuse methods. We partner with state and local governments, suppliers and waste vendors who share our strong level of commitment to pollution prevention and consistently provide us with new waste management alternatives. These partnerships have helped us to reduce the amount of waste Pepco Holdings generates and sends to landfills each year. For more information visit: http://www.pepco.com/ SS
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pepco.com
ENERGIZED TO
MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
Improving access to renewable, affordable energy is our commitment to the individuals, families and businesses we serve in the District of Columbia. Today we support thousands of our customers generating their own solar power to ensure safe and reliable interconnection of renewable energy into the electric grid. It’s all part of Green Power Connection™, our process and team of professionals that are making it easier for customers to learn about their options and get assistance every step of the way with online tools available at pepco.com/gpc. We work closely with groups like the District of Columbia Department of Energy & Environment to make renewable energy more accessible for District residents, and have established a Solar Advisory Council so that we can gather feedback from stakeholders to enhance our processes. Our merger with Exelon is also bringing the funding for the District to use for pilot projects for grid modernization, energy efficiency and energy conservation initiatives that will make a difference – on Earth Day, and every day.
© Pepco, 2017
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EARTH DAY NETWORK
Anacostia Waterfront Trust Providing Solutions Through RainPay By Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer
The Anacostia Waterfront Trust is providing sustainable solutions through its RainPay program. /Courtesy photo
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The Anacostia Waterfront Trust has partnered with the Progressive National Baptist Convention [PNBC] at its Nannie Helen Burroughs property in Northeast where a rain garden has been erected to capture water that can be used as credits and sold to developers to apply to their rain pay tax. “The significance of this partnership between the Anacostia Waterfront Trust and the Progressive National Baptist Convention to protect and improve the environment in the nation’s capital cannot be overstated,” said Doug Siglin, the executive director of the Anacostia Waterfront Trust (AWT), whose mission includes creating a vibrant and inclusive public waterfront and adjacent communities on a healthy Anacostia River for all residents. It’s believed that the partnership between PNBC and AWT counts as the first pact where a Black church organization has participated in such a venture. “The PNBC must be celebrated for its outstanding foresight and world-class leadership,” Siglin said. “The rain garden that has been installed at PNBC headquarters will not only protect and improve God’s earth consistent with the PNBC’s mission but will bring a modest but important income stream to the Convention to use in its other good works,” he said. Siglin noted that there’s a long pipeline of other churches in Wards 7 and 8, as well as affordable housing sites, waiting for similar raingardens through the Anacostia Waterfront Trust’s program. “Many of the churches are affiliated with the Progressive National Baptist Convention, but other denominations are also lining up,” he said. “For churches and other nonprofits that qualify, it’s a one-time chance to use surplus property to do good works for God’s earth and, at the same time, bring in extra income,” Siglin said. The AWT RainPay program takes advantage of D.C.’s storm water retention credit program to simultaneously provide additional income to local landowners, particularly those in Wards 7 and 8, while improving water quality and beautifying neighborhoods with green infrastructures like rain gardens. Established in 2013, AWT’s RainPay program has served a crucial role in the District’s credit trading market providing a tre-
mendous opportunity for landowners in the Anacostia watershed to install storm water projects on their property and generate an income stream by selling credits to the marketplace. RainPay counts as a way for both sides to meet their objectives. As an intermediary in the credit trading market, the RainPay program has two complementary components: RainPay Gardens and RainPay Credits. RainPay Gardens provides landowners in the most critical areas of the Anacostia drainage area with an experienced partner in developing storm water retention that will reduce monthly water fees and create an ongoing income stream. RainPay Credits provides developers and building owners a simple, easy way to achieve compliance and know that those efforts make a difference by, among other things, driving value around the river. “We hope that this is just the beginning and we are looking to install similar projects throughout the watershed,” said Chris Karakul, AWT’s water program manager. “Faith-based institutions will be a key partner as we work to achieve better water quality for the Anacostia River,” he said. With former D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams serving as board chair, the AWT promotes ambitious ideas to create a world-class Anacostia waterfront where residents come together and collaborate with public and private partners to coordinate and implement efforts to improve the water, land and communities of the Anacostia River corridor. The Trust ensures that changes within the river corridor contribute toward a unified vision that achieves more than the sum of its individual part, officials said. In addition to PNBC, the Trust has partnered with Casey Trees, the DOEE, Anacostia Riverkeeper and Green Scheme for different aspects of the project. Casey Trees has donated two river birch trees for the rain garden while the Anacostia Riverkeeper and Green Scheme will conduct a series of educational workshops at the site. The Trust promises more announcements soon. “The PNBC project has been substantially completed. The construction work is done and the plants are in the ground,” Siglin said. “It isn’t beautiful yet, but the plants will be growing and blooming in the coming weeks.” SS
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EARTH DAY NETWORK
We Can Have It All: A Prosperous, Clean and Healthy Energy Future more likely to be disconnected from electricity service. FACT: Wind and solar energy can be used to create electricity without air pollution or radioactive waste, which can allow us to live more sustainably with our natural environment. And it is currently cheaper than ever to create energy from the sun and wind. Many people have installed rooftop solar panels – and even if you don’t own your roof, innovations like community solar can enable you to generate your own clean, renewable energy.
By Lyn Griffith Taylor Coordinator Marylanders for Energy Democracy and Affordability (MEDA) Spring has sprung, at last! Yet even now, many dread the record-setting temperatures to come, given the unseasonable warmth of this past winter and the sweltering heat of last summer. Extremes in temperature – be it a blistering day in July or sub-zero temperatures in January – pose challenges to healthy human living. We must increasingly rely on heating and air conditioning to provide comfortable and productive indoor environments, sometimes far removed from the temperatures outdoors. The availability of energy is what makes modern lifestyle possible. Environmental literacy – this year’s Earth Day campaign -- is about understanding that human activities impact our natural environment, and vice versa. But what does air conditioning have to do with storms like the Derecho? Let’s review the facts. FACT: Electricity is traditionally created by burning fossil-fuels like coal, and from nuclear reactors. This creates air pollution (carbon dioxide) and nuclear waste, which reduces air quality, poisons the environment, and decreases public health. Air pollution prevents the Earth from naturally regulating its temperature, which can lead to extreme weather events such as intense heat/ cold, prolonged droughts, and massive hurricanes and floods.
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ELECTRICITY IS TRADITIONALLY CREATED BY BURNING FOSSIL-FUELS LIKE COAL, AND FROM NUCLEAR REACTORS. THIS CREATES AIR POLLUTION (CARBON DIOXIDE) AND NUCLEAR WASTE, WHICH REDUCES AIR QUALITY, POISONS THE ENVIRONMENT, AND DECREASES PUBLIC HEALTH. FACT: Energy is still unaffordable for many. Energy takes up a larger portion of low-income households’ budgets than it does for the average household. Due to energy unaffordability, extreme weather puts poorer households at greater risk because they are
FACT: This is a crucial time for energy consumers in DC and Maryland. Both Public Service Commissions (PSCs - the agencies that regulate utilities) have started investigating grid modernization: upgrades to the electric system to improve sustainability and resilience. This is an opportunity to transform energy from a necessary burden in people’s lives into an engine of equity, prosperity, and empowerment. Marylanders for Energy Democracy and Affordability (MEDA) is a network of consumer advocates, ‘green’ jobs, clean energy, and environmental action groups, working to advance the transition to a just, affordable, and clean energy economy. MEDA works to empower consumers; protect low-income residents; strengthen communities; achieve environmental and economic justice; and live more sustainably with the Earth. We are actively engaged with the Maryland PSC, and if successful in our policy recommendations, all Marylanders will benefit. FACT: Affordable and sustainable energy is within reach! Contact your local representatives to voice your support for clean energy, energy democracy and energy affordability. Visit www.mdenergyforall.org to find out more about MEDA’s policy objectives and to stay up-to-date with news, events, and opportunities for action from our network. W W W. M D E N E R G Y FORALL.ORG | 6930 Carroll Avenue, Suite 340, Takoma Park, MD 20912 | T. (301) 270- 6477 SS
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Pepco Earns ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year Sustained Excellence Award
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has named Pepco a 2017 ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year – Sustained Excellence Award winner for the fourth consecutive year for its continued success in helping customers save energy and money through a variety of energy efficiency programs. Pepco along with sister Exelon utilities Delmarva Power in Wilmington, Del., ComEd in Chicago, and BGE in Baltimore, will be honored at an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. on April 26, 2017, for their continued leadership in protecting the
environment through superior energy efficiency achievements. This year, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) are honoring 143 businesses and organizations in 34 states and the District of Columbia for their commitment to saving energy, saving money, and protecting the environment through superior energy efficiency achievements. “We are very grateful to be recognized with this award four years in a row, mostly because it signifies our energy efficiency programs are benefiting our customers,” said Dave Velazquez, Pepco Holdings
president and CEO. “We are committed to continuing to provide tools and programs that help our customers save energy and money, but also help preserve and protect the environment.” The Sustained Excellence classification recognizes organizations that have received the Partner of the Year award more than three times and continue to surpass previous energy efficiency achievements. “It is truly an honor to be named a Sustained Excellence partner again this year. Creating industry leading programs to better help our customers manage and control their energy usage is key as we partner with our customer to meet their future energy needs,” said William Ellis, manager of Energy Efficiency Programs, Pepco Holdings. Pepco Maryland residential, commercial and industrial energy efficiency programs have saved 1,940,563 MWh in en-
ergy savings starting from 2009 through December 31, 2016. This is equivalent to eliminating over 1.3 million metric tons of
greenhouse gases from the atmosphere, removing 288,000 cars off the road or planting 35 million trees. SS
Thank you to these Ward 7 and 8 businesses 2016 Small Business Solar Pilot Program Participants Big D Liquor Store Bowen Discount Liquor Broughton Construction Capitol Market
DC Eagle Dollar Plus Dynamic Concepts Justina’s Hair Gallery Kraft Studio
Menick’s Market Nastos Construction Powell Manufacturing Taylormade
202-479-2222 • www.dcseu.com
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EARTH DAY NETWORK
WE, THE PEOPLE OF COLOR, gathered together at this multinational People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit, to begin to build a national and international movement of all peoples of color to fight the destruction and taking of our lands and communities, do hereby re-establish our spiritual interdependence to the sacredness of our Mother Earth; to respect and celebrate each of our cultures, languages and beliefs about the natural world and our roles in healing ourselves; to ensure environmental justice; to promote economic alternatives which would contribute to the development of environmentally safe livelihoods; and, to secure our political, economic and cultural liberation that has been denied for over 500 years of colonization and oppression, resulting in the poisoning of our communities and land and the genocide of our peoples, do affirm and adopt these Principles of Environmental Justice:
The Principles of Environmental Justice (EJ) 1) Environmental Justice affirms the sacredness of Mother Earth, ecological unity and the interdependence of all species, and the right to be free from ecological destruction.
10) Environmental Justice considers governmental acts of environmental injustice a violation of international law, the Universal Declaration On Human Rights, and the United Nations Convention on Genocide.
2) Environmental Justice demands that public policy be based on mutual respect and justice for all peoples, free from any form of discrimination or bias.
11) Environmental Justice must recognize a special legal and natural relationship of Native Peoples to the U.S. government through treaties, agreements, compacts, and covenants affirming sovereignty and self-determination.
3) Environmental Justice mandates the right to ethical, balanced and responsible uses of land and renewable resources in the interest of a sustainable planet for humans and other living things. 4) Environmental Justice calls for universal protection from nuclear testing, extraction, production and disposal of toxic/hazardous wastes and poisons and nuclear testing that threaten the fundamental right to clean air, land, water, and food. 5) Environmental Justice affirms the fundamental right to political, economic, cultural and environmental selfdetermination of all peoples. 6) Environmental Justice demands the cessation of the production of all toxins, hazardous wastes, and radioactive materials, and that all past and current producers be held strictly accountable to the people for detoxification and the containment at the point of production. 7) Environmental Justice demands the right to participate as equal partners at every level of decisionmaking, including needs assessment, planning, implementation, enforcement and evaluation.
12) Environmental Justice affirms the need for urban and rural ecological policies to clean up and rebuild our cities and rural areas in balance with nature, honoring the cultural integrity of all our communities, and provided fair access for all to the full range of resources. 13) Environmental Justice calls for the strict enforcement of principles of informed consent, and a halt to the testing of experimental reproductive and medical procedures and vaccinations on people of color. 14) Environmental Justice opposes the destructive operations of multi-national corporations. 15) Environmental Justice opposes military occupation, repression and exploitation of lands, peoples and cultures, and other life forms. 16) Environmental Justice calls for the education of present and future generations which emphasizes social and environmental issues, based on our experience and an appreciation of our diverse cultural perspectives.
8) Environmental Justice affirms the right of all workers to a safe and healthy work environment without being forced to choose between an unsafe livelihood and unemployment. It also affirms the right of those who work at home to be free from environmental hazards.
17) Environmental Justice requires that we, as individuals, make personal and consumer choices to consume as little of Mother Earth's resources and to produce as little waste as possible; and make the conscious decision to challenge and reprioritize our lifestyles to ensure the health of the natural world for present and future generations.
9) Environmental Justice protects the right of victims of environmental injustice to receive full compensation and reparations for damages as well as quality health care.
More info on environmental justice and environmental racism can be found online at www.ejnet.org/ej/
Delegates to the First National People of Color Environmental Leadership Summit held on October 24-27, 1991, in Washington DC, drafted and adopted these 17 principles of Environmental Justice. Since then, the Principles have served as a defining document for the growing grassroots movement for environmental justice.
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Environmental Racism and the Environmental Justice Movement One-on-one with Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr.
By Jade James-Gist WI Contributing Writer Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., entrepreneur, global business leader, educator, veteran civil rights leader, NAACP Life Member, award-winning syndicated columnist and author is currently the president and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association. Chavis was the first to define and coin the term “Environmental Racism” in 1983, later co-authoring the landmark national study “Toxic Waste and Race in the United States” published by the United Church of Christ Commission for Racial Justice in 1987. In addition, he’s viewed as one of the definitive founders of the Environmental Justice Movement. In light of the approaching annual Earth Day observance and the ongoing environmental injustices faced by people of color communities like Flint, New Orleans and Detroit, Chavis, the “Godfather of the Environmental Justice Movement,” sat down with the Washington Informer to share his insights on both the victories and challenges facing the movement today. What do environmental racism and environmental justice mean? I first coined and defined the term environmental racism in my 1983 work, “Toxic Wastes and Race in the United States.” Environmental racism [ER] is racial
discrimination in the deliberate targeting of communities of color for toxic waste facilities, the official sanctioning of the presence of life threatening poisons and pollutants near communities of color and the history of excluding people of color from leadership of the environmental movement.” There are different forms of racism, yet environmental racism is a particularly insidious and intentional form of racism that negatively affects millions of Black, Native Americans, Hispanics and Asian Americans, as well as people of color around the world. Environmental justice is the corrective antidote to the reality and prevalence of environmental racism and the movement continues to grow and expand throughout the world. The movement that emerged in North Carolina, Texas, New Mexico and California in the late 70s and 80s has now grown into an organized global justice movement with community activists, scholars, public-policy makers, government and United Nations officials. Why did you originally get involved in environmental justice? My long-term involvement in the civil rights movement in the U.S. and in the African Liberation Movement in Africa and the Caribbean for over five decades led me to initially become involved in the Environmental Justice Movement.
As a protester in 1983 in Warren County, NC, I was arrested and unjustly jailed for protesting what I then defined as a glaring case of environmental racism. Given my background in chemistry, I knew that the PCBs (Polychlorinated Biphenyls) were in fact dangerous, cancer-causing, chemical agents. In Warren County, these chemicals were being buried in the Warren County landfill where they’d eventually leak into the well water that African-American communities were using. All forms of racism need to be challenged and my responsibility as a freedom fighter propelled me to help lead mass protests to expose and to challenge environmental racism and eventually establish the Environmental Justice Movement. Where and who are most affected by environmental injustice? People of color communities are disproportionately exposed and affected in the U.S. by environmental injustice and racism. This leads to high levels of severe, and at times fatal, public health crises in those communities. My report detailed the existence of environmental injustice in people of color communities as a national problem. Who did you work alongside with in this movement? I worked with many talented activists and community organizers during the 80s and 90s, espe-
Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., has earned the nickname “Godfather of the Environmental Justice Movement.” /Courtesy photo cially Charles Lee, Damu Smith, the Rev. Leon White, Hazel Johnson and Dolly Burwell in the initial stages. Damu Smith was one of the first African Americans to work as a Greenpeace executive staff organizer. Charles Lee was my co-editor of the report “Toxic Waste and Race in the U.S.” and later became the director of the Office for Environmental Justice in the Environmental Protection Agency. They were all close colleagues and fellow freedom fighters. Later, an outspoken Illinois State Senator, Barack Obama, joined us and became an advocate of the Environmental Justice Movement focusing on Chicago and other nearby cities. How has the movement evolved since your involvement? The Environmental Justice Movement continues to grow and expand throughout the world. The United Nations in particular has adopted many of the issues and principles of the movement. There are two important milestones that should be noted in the evolution of the EJ Movement:
A little girl ponders her future with hazardous chemicals in her midst. /Courtesy photo
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1. In the 1980s, I worked for the United Church of Christ [UCC] Commission for Racial Justice, in their national office located in New York City. In 1987, as executive director and CEO of the UCC Commission for Racial Justice, we
funded, wrote and published the landmark national statistical study, “Toxic Wastes and Race in the United States of America.” This unprecedented national study statistically proved the direct correlation between the location of toxic wastes landfills, facilities and other hazardous wastes areas with the location of residences of African Americans and other people of color throughout the U.S. based on U.S. Census and U.S Environmental Protection Agency data. 2. In October 1991, the UCC Commission for Racial Justice and numerous other people of color national organizations convened the First National People of Color Summit on Environmental Justice in Washington, D.C. which drafted and adopted the Principles of Environmental Justice. On Earth Day 2017, we must all stand together in unbridled solidarity to demand environmental justice and equality for all people in all nations. What happened in Flint, Michigan is not an isolated incident. It is symptomatic of a much broader problem that needs urgent attention. Grassroots and community organizing can still make a big difference in helping communities achieve a better quality of life. SS
2017 SUSTAINABILITY SUPPLEMENT / APRIL 2017 / www.washingtoninformer.com ®
EARTH DAY NETWORK
Prince George’s Looks to Clean Itself Up
By William J. Ford WI Staff Writer @jabariwill
Prince George’s County has collected nearly 3½ million pounds of trash this fiscal year but it’s not enough for residents who assert that trash remains a problem in some neighborhoods – a disturbing reality that often results in decreased property values. However, thanks to the County Council, the Department of Public Works and Transportation will receive $2 million to spread equally in all nine council districts to combat litter. “Our goal is to beautify Prince George’s County as much as we can,” said Darryl Mobley, director of the county’s Public Works Department. The department will lead the “Litter Movement” to collect trash and recyclables in neighborhoods in an effort to make the county more sustainable. Announced March 30 at the Woodlawn Recreation Center in Hyattsville, the new Transforming Neighborhoods Initiative will boost economics, property values and an overall quality of life. Other county agencies will participate including the Department of Corrections where inmates will be directed to pick up trash and recyclables on various streets. In addition, high school students will be able to do their part – receiving credits or service learning hours that may be used toward graduation on various clean-up projects like Earth Day on April 22 along the Anacostia Watershed. “The importance of litter . . . is just as important as public safety,” County Executive Rushern L. Baker III said. “Not one square inch in Prince George’s County is [litter] acceptable. We needed to treat this as the most important issue that it is.” Meanwhile, the county has a “PGCLitterTRAK” smartphone app to keep track of locations where trash gets collected. Tiaa Rutherford, litter reduction program manager for the county’s Department of the Environment, recently spoke with several dozen Largo residents on how to use the app. When leaders of community groups, civic organizations and individual citizens log onto the app, they will be asked a series
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of questions such as the kind of clean-up work being done, the number of bags of litter or recyclables collected and what type. A picture can also be uploaded through the app. After inputting the informa-
tion, it will be received by Rutherford and others in her office and then disseminated to public works for collection. Andrew Carter, 34, said the app will let county officials know more about his Lewisdale
community in the Hyattsville area. “There’s trash that’s lined up on certain streets as well as graffiti, so inputting information to let the county know [what we’re facing] is a good thing,” said
Carter, a member of the Lewisdale Citizens Association. For more information, go to http://www.princegeorgescountymd.gov/2607/PGCLitterTRAK. SS
A flier showcases information on the “PGCLitterTRAK” smartphone app. Nearly two dozen people heard a presentation March 30 in Largo on how to log on and use the app. /Photo by William J. Ford
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EARTH DAY NETWORK
pepco.com
ENERGIZED TO
MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
Providing our customers with the tools and resources to save money and energy helps all of us share a role in creating a sustainable future in the District of Columbia. Customers who visit our website can easily find tips for saving, information about budget billing and video tutorials that demonstrate how a few simple changes can impact energy consumption and costs. We also now feature an online energy management course developed in partnership with the George Washington University Environmental and Energy Management Institute to help people take control of their energy use and save on monthly energy bills. All of this information is available at pepco.com/everyonesaves. Our commitment to energy efficiency is helping the communities that we serve to reduce their carbon footprint and make a difference – on Earth Day, and every day.
© Pepco, 2017 ®
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OPINIONS/EDITORIALS
EDITORIAL Families East of the River Deserve More Than Lip Service
Here we go again. In a report just released by an area advocacy group, we hear that the overall median income for District families has consistently risen since 2010. But for those families in Wards 7 and 8, the two wards that are east of the Anacostia River, life hasn’t been so rosy. And those who suffer the most are children. So, while the District continues to add more dollars to its budget, enjoys a healthy and growing reserve of funds, and with housing prices going out of the roof, poverty has a firm grasp on many who live East of the River. Further, it seems that as families find themselves unable to keep up with the increasing cost of living in more affluent parts of the District, they are moving to Ward 8, the city’s poorest ward – an area that has few banks, fewer grocery stores and the highest unemployment rate in D.C. It’s pretty tough to get ahead when, as the report shows, more than 40 percent of District residents spend over a third of their monthly income on rent and other related costs. And so, another report tells us something that we’ve known for many years – the District is for all practical purposes, two cities, divided by socioeconomics and race. We are a city of the haves and the have nots. Tragically, many of the have nots are Black representing generations of Washingtonians who have gotten very little from their leaders except a basketful of broken promises. It’s doubtful that these families care about getting on the road to the middle class – something that has been one of the Mayor’s goals for the District’s residents. They just want to secure ways that will help them break the chain of poverty. We have the resources and the minds to improve the health, lives and future of those who have been left behind in the District’s financial growth. Let’s get things started with a real sense of urgency. We’re looking for action – not another report. WI
White House Secrecy Sounds More Like Russia Than America President Trump has decided that because of “grave national security risks and privacy concerns,” he will break with former president Barack Obama’s policy of voluntarily disclosing the names of most visitors to the White House. The decision, counter to Trump’s campaign promise of greater transparency, signals a significant and disconcerting shift from the Obama administration where the names of close to six million visitors, lobbyists included, were released for public scrutiny. But watchdog groups aren’t taking this latest move by the president laying down. They’re mounting a movement and preparing to go to court – something that was also done when Obama first took over and seemed to be reluctant to release a list of White House visitors. It seems reasonable that there could be those who visit the White House whose names and identities may best be kept unannounced and unrevealed. But certainly, that cannot be the case for the majority of visitors. One has to wonder if the Trump Administration believes that there will be a slew of clandestine meetings that should be hidden from the public – from taxpayers and voters who deserve real transparency. This latest move sounds very little like the America so many of us have grown to support and love. Instead, it feels like we’re being shuttled behind a red, white and blue iron curtain. We do not support this new policy and are hopeful that efforts of resistance from the public and our elected officials will lead the president to reconsider. WI WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM
TO THE EDITOR County Shouldn't Share Casino Jackpot
Informer Wins On and Off the Web
The article in your paper, "MGM Reaches Goals for Hiring, Contracting Minority Businesses," by William J. Ford was good to read. First, because I didn't believe that the MGM casino would honor its commitment to the county to hire minority contractors and county residents, and second, I didn't believe the county would give any of the money it made to education. Well, it seems, according to the article, I was wrong. The article brought up another question I would like to know about and that is why does the MGM casino in Prince George's County have to share proceeds with the casinos in Baltimore and Anne Arundel counties? Did those casinos share with Prince George's County when we didn't have a casino? Our schools need all they can get, and if our casino at National Harbor brings in a lot of money, it should stay in our county.
I have been a loyal reader of The Washington Informer for the past 20 or so years. I have looked forward to your paper on every Thursday morning at my local newsstand. The articles are very informative and keep me abreast of what's happening in Washington, D.C. My daughter has married and moved out of the area and when I asked her if she wanted me to get a subscription to receive The Informer, she told me no because she reads The Informer online. She told me that she gets all of the information when I do and would not have to wait on receiving a newspaper. All I could say was "Wow!" I never thought of it that way, and never thought to even look online for The Informer. But to be honest with you, I still like reading my newspaper; it just feels real good.
Robert Novak Bowie, Md.
George Hall Washington, D.C.
Readers' Mailbox
The Washington Informer welcomes letters to the editor about articles we publish or issues affecting the community. Write to: lsaxton@washingtoninformer. com or send to: 3117 Martin Luther King Jr Ave., SE, Washington, D.C. 20032. Please note that we are unable to publish letters that do not include a full name, address and phone number. We look forward to hearing from you.
THE WASHINGTON INFORMER
APRIL 20 - 27, 2017 23
OPINIONS/EDITORIALS Guest Columnist
By Marian Wright Edelman
The Scourge of Poverty, Hunger and Hopelessness in Rich America
In March 1967 when I was working as a young civil rights lawyer for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund in Mississippi, I was asked to come to Washington to testify before the Senate Committee on Labor and Public Welfare's Subcommittee on Employment, Manpower, and Poverty about how the War on Poverty was working in the state. I told the committee I had become deeply and increasingly concerned about the growing hunger in the
Mississippi Delta. The convergence of hostility towards black citizens and workers involved in civil rights activities, development of chemical weed killers, farm mechanization, and recent passage of a minimum wage law covering agriculture workers on large farms had resulted in many black sharecroppers being pushed off their near feudal plantations that no longer needed their cheap labor. Many displaced sharecroppers were illiterate and had no skills or income. Free federal food commodities like cheese, powdered milk, flour, and peanut butter were all that stood between them and
Guest Columnist
hunger and malnutrition — even starvation. At the hearing, I invited the senators to come to Mississippi and hear directly from local people about the crucial and positive impact the anti-poverty program was making and the state's actions to encourage people to leave. Four of the nine subcommittee members — Sens. Joseph Clark (D-Pa.), Jacob Javits (R-N.Y.), Robert F. Kennedy (D-N.Y.), and George Murphy (R-Calif.) — agreed to come. So 50 years ago this month, on April 10, 1967, I testified alongside local community leaders at a followup hearing held by the Senate sub-
committee in Jackson, Mississippi, sharing again the desperate plight of hungry people. I urged the visiting senators to go one step further and visit the Mississippi Delta with me to see and experience for themselves the hungry poor in our very rich nation, and to visit the shacks and look into the deadened eyes of hungry children with bloated bellies — a level of hunger many people did not believe could exist in America. "They are starving and someone has to help them," I said. Kennedy and Clark responded positively to my plea. Early the next day we flew from Jackson to the Greenville airbase in
the Mississippi Delta and drove from Greenville to Clarksdale, stopping in Cleveland guided by one of the great unsung heroes of the Civil Rights Movement — Amzie Moore. We visited homes where the senators asked respectfully what each family had for breakfast, lunch, or dinner the night before. Robert Kennedy opened their empty ice boxes and cupboards after asking their permission. I watched him hover, visibly moved, on a dirt floor in a dirty dark shack out of television camera
EDELMAN Page 41
By James Clingman
Talking a Good Game is Useless
There are many black folks who can tell us what "we need to do" in the context of economic empowerment and other issues that matter. They have all the answers, but too often deal with them from a symptomatic perspective rather than a problematic perspective. Some of us believe that simply talking about a problem, mainly by delineating its symptoms, is actually doing the work necessary for a solution. Think about it. We cite criminal justice symptoms and ed-
ucational symptoms, we talk about the wealth gap and the health gap and the income gap, and we regurgitate statistics that justify our symptomatic approach to the dire situations we face every day. But merely talking and writing about the symptoms have never solved our problems. Someone has to execute. I hear and read a great deal of information as I look for the solution to our problems. It's almost to the point of information overload. You would think that with all of the activists we have within our ranks that some actual activity, beyond mere exercising our
Guest Columnist
powers of speech and penmanship, would take place. That is especially true on radio talk shows. Those I call "Radio-Activists" are adept at identifying the symptoms and saying what "we need to do" while seldom, if ever, laying out the problem and offering a solution — a solution on which they are willing to work and help implement. Mere "Radioactivity," and I would add "TV Activity," while informative, is just more information if not acted upon. And just like knowledge, information is not power unless you use it — use it to your own advantage. So all the pontificators, prog-
nosticators, pundits and philosophizers who simply offer their assessments of our problems by describing their symptoms should do a little introspection to see if they are really interested in contributing what they can to solve our problems. Instead of, or at least in addition to sounding the alarm, they should also offer real solutions and then prepare to contribute some time, talent, and treasure toward solving those problems. Radio activists are usually busy telling others what must be done, as they continue to sit on the sidelines and critique problems. They seldom are willing to get into the
game by initiating the solutions they espouse; instead, they tell others what to do and how it should be done. Radioactivity, when it comes to economic and political action, is dangerous and seldom results in any real progress, that is, unless someone other than the Radio-Activist picks up the gauntlet and executes a strategy that evolves into a movement to empower our people. Don't be a Radio-Activist. The next time you have the opportunity to speak on the air — or via any medium — don't just say what
CLINGMAN Page 41
By Julianne Malveaux
I Won't Be Silenced By the Solar Industry Being a journalist who covers issues important to the African-American and other marginalized communities, I have taken on powerful forces over the years. I have provided a voice for underrepresented communities and engaged both the private and public sector, but always strove to be accurate and respectful. After all, how can I demand civility and fairness from others if I don't practice it myself? Earlier this year, I wrote a piece in a publication that focuses on issues in
24 APRIL 20 - 27, 2017
the African-American community, about the rooftop solar business, and expressed concerns that industry bad actors were misleading consumers. I focused on three aspects that worried me: First, that new customers may be unaware that the panels can cost upwards of $15,000 and can generate an additional lien against their home, making it harder to sell. Second, rooftop solar salespeople often tell customers that they will save a lot of money on their utility bill, which is not always true. Third, salespeople engaging in high-pressure tactics often do so in the hope that a customer will sign a contract before they un-
derstand all of the complexities of a long-term financial agreement. In response to my article, the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) — which represents the rooftop solar industry in Washington — wrote a response in the same publication refuting my piece. I didn't fully agree with SEIA, but I respected their right to voice their opinion. I saw their response and was hopeful that going forward the industry would take more steps to protect minority consumers. I decided to move on and continue writing about the other issues important to me. However, in the last few weeks, I
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have become a target of an intimidation campaign led by SEIA. Specifically, a gentleman named Michael Schmidt, a senior vice president at Crosscut Strategies, who claims to be an agent of SEIA, has repeatedly called and emailed me and my staff. In one call, he even asked a staff member why I had not responded to him, questioning what was I "afraid of." In his correspondence to a woman in my office, Mr. Schmidt states that I wrote that solar companies "are targeting communities of color." He went on to say that "the SEIA team finds this abhorrent" and they want-
ed to follow up with me about what I know, "since the column didn't provide details." "SEIA takes this issue and consumer protection generally very seriously," he wrote. "Would it be possible to arrange a quick call between Dr. Malveaux and SEIA's general counsel about this?" I believe that Mr. Schmidt's suggestion that I speak with SEIA's general counsel, Tom Kimbis, is an attempt to assert that my comment about "targeting communities of color" could be libelous. If SEIA
MALVEAUX Page 41
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OPINIONS/EDITORIALS Guest Columnist
By Rep. Frederica S. Wilson
Remember the Chibok Girls Three years ago, Boko Haram terrorists burst into dormitory rooms at the Government Secondary School in the northern Nigerian town of Chibok and kidnapped nearly 300 girls simply because they dared to get an education. In the days leading up to anniversary of their kidnapping, there were plenty of headlines devoted to the "Chibok girls," as these now young wom-
en are famously known. On April 14, 2017, we reached another sad milestone. Some of us paused to remember the anniversary of this horrific, ongoing tragedy. Soon the news reports will fade and the story of the still missing Chibok girls will slip once more to the backburner. The 195 Chibok girls who haven’t been able to escape their captives or were not among the 21 released last October, are still the most compelling symbols of the Boko Haram insurgency, but we must never forget that the group
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has committed increasingly heinous acts in the past three years from which innumerable victims may never recover. Let me count the ways. More than 2.6 million people are currently displaced across Nigeria and its neighbor nations in the Lake Chad region, and Nigeria is in the process of building a comprehensive orphanage to house approximately 8,000 children who’ve been separated from their parents. At least one million children have been forced out of school. Millions more Af-
ricans are at risk of starving to death and countless men, women and children all of ages, both Christians and Muslims, have been kidnapped, tortured and/ or killed. It gets worse. In addition to engaging in the human trafficking of women, forcing them into sexual and domestic slavery, the insurgents also use children as suicide bombers. Even ISIS, to whom Boko Haram has pledged allegiance, has expressed concern that the group goes too far.
As a mother, a former educator, and indeed, a human being, I have felt heartbroken, shocked and angered by the daily horrors our West African sisters and brothers have been forced to endure. The actions of the world’s most deadly terrorist group have also emboldened me to use my voice and every resource available in the fight to ensure that the Chibok girls are not forgotten and to help eradicate Boko Haram and repair the damage it has
JACKSON Page 42
By Austin R. Cooper Jr.
How Arthur Ashe Changed My Life
I believe sports figures have an obligation to be role models, especially to minority youth. I remain thankful to Arthur Ashe for filling that role for me and not, for example, Charles Barkley, who once said, "I'm not paid to be a role model." In August 1974, my family traveled from Cleveland to Miami for vacation. Our parents were born in Miami, so this annual trip was an opportunity for
my sisters and me to see our extended family. What stands out about this particular visit, however, is my father introducing me to tennis. From the moment that I first set foot on a tennis court as an 11-year-old at the Kirk Monroe Park in Coconut Grove, I fell in love with the game and immediately began following Arthur Ashe. At that time, he had won the U.S. and Australian Opens. In addition, he was the first African-American to be selected for the U.S. Davis Cup team. On July 5, 1975, Ashe became
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the first African-American male to win the Wimbledon singles title, defeating Jimmy Connors, 6-1, 6-1, 5-7, 6-4. It was then that I decided that I would become the next Arthur Ashe. From six through ninth grades and despite my love of reading, I studied minimally and my poor study habits were usually reflected in every report card. Yet, I always made time for tennis. Everything changed one June afternoon in 1977. I had come home from playing tennis and could hear what sounded like a tornado, which
appeared to coming from my bedroom. I asked my sisters what was going on and was enthusiastically advised that my grades had arrived. With a faint hope of optimism, I opened the envelope and saw that my academic accomplishments for the fourth quarter included four F's, two D's and one C. Wearing my Arthur Ashe Head sneakers, I walked upstairs to my room, which was a shrine to him. I honestly did not recognize the woman that had brought me into this world. My mother appeared possessed and had taken down all
of my posters and packed up all of my tennis clothes. My tennis bag was yanked off my shoulder as she screamed, "Austin, you are going to get an education even if I have to beat it into you. This summer there will be no tennis and you will be attending both sessions of summer school." With that, she stormed out of my room. I slammed the door behind her, climbed into my bed and began to cry. After 10 or so minutes, I sat
COOPER Page 42
By Marian Wright Edelman
Trump Has Found His Footing — Now Get Ready for War After having endured the worst opening-100-day-catastrophe of any president since William Henry Harrison caught pneumonia and died on his 31st day in office in 1841, the incumbent, Donald J. Trump seems to have found his presidential footing. He's impulsive, unpredictable, and he likes to throw his military weight around. He already shed crocodile tears for the Syrian "beautiful babies" he saw on TV news, apparently
killed by chemical weapons on April 4. With his usual pucker on his lips, he gloated about this "beautiful chocolate cake" being eaten by Chinese President Xi Jinping at Trump's Palm Beach, Florida resort when he informed the Chinese leader he had just ordered a Tomahawk missile attack on Syria … by the way. He let the military do its own chest-thumping just one week later when he ordered that the Massive Ordnance Air Blast, or MOAB, nicknamed "The Mother of All Bombs," be dropped in eastern Afghanistan.
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Finally, a president who's giving the Pentagon a blank check — a blank check! First, the warmongers deplete all the arsenals of the older weapons so they can be replaced with the newer versions, the military industrial complex will be humming again, in production mode. Then, under the rubric of fighting ISIS, the Trump apparatus will find a more vulnerable Arab target than Syria—like Somalia maybe—one which does not enjoy the Russian protectorate. The U.S. is already supporting a Saudi repression of Yemen,
the poorest country in the Arab world. But Trump is doubtlessly looking for an easy target for intervention, utilizing U.S. boots on the ground. We'll see soon enough! After embarrassing defeats on his Muslim immigration ban, and his promise to repeal and replace Obamacare, Trump engaged "The Troops" and his approval ratings started to rise from historic lows. What a concept: a narcistic, impulsive, bully, commander-in-chief of a nuclear armed U.S. military apparatus … "Hey!
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Does this button work??! What does this do??!" It's often referred to as the "learning curve" when a new president comes into office. In the case of Trump, President 45, he's receiving full-course onthe-job-training, and has given would-be interns daughter Ivanka, and her husband Jared Kushner senior advisory slots. It's like a "wrasslin' smackdown." The Donald may not know how to be president of the United States, but he certainly knows
ASKIA Page 42 APRIL 20 - 27, 2017 25
LIFESTYLE Remembering Prince One Year Later By Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer Members of The Revolution were compelled to put their feet in the water and see whether or not they could find some kind of place for their grief to land.
That's the description of guitarist and Revolution member Wendy Melvoin gave when explaining the depth of the pain experienced by the loss of pop icon Prince, who died one year ago on April 21 at his famed Paisley Park estate near Minneapolis. "A real, profound sense of shared
grief," Melvoin told Billboard magazine, noting that's what led Prince's former band to reunite for a tour this spring after paying tribute to their late boss last year at Minneapolis' First Avenue. The tour kicks off April 21 at Paisley Park.
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"We're going to take it to different areas and see if we can let the fans have a place to kind of taste a little bit of him," she said. "We're not attempting to try to go out there and replace him or mimic or anything. We're just gonna go out there and see if we can give taste of what was, and hopefully the fans are gonna go 'Thanks,' and it'll help us, too." The Revolution — with keyboardist Matt Fink and drummer Bobby Z — backed Prince from 1979 through 1987's "Sign O' The Times," though it wasn't credited under that name until 1984's "Purple Rain" album. Bassist Brown Mark, keyboardist Lisa Coleman and Melvoin, who joined for "Purple Rain," round out the tour lineup, which will only play material from the Revolution era, including "a bunch of unreleased stuff that the fans know," Melvoin said. "To me that era for him was such a culmination of everything he wanted to be," she said. "He made no apologies and he wasn't fighting as hard to prove himself. What we gave to him was his freedom, a true, safe environment to really explore every part of himself. "None of us were the virtuosos that he had towards the end of his life who could play circles around any of us, like 5,000 notes in 10 seconds," Melvoin said. "We were the musicians that would play one note and one note well. We became the freight train, which makes for a better band, and he could feel safe knowing we were happy to give him exactly what he wanted from each of us." Prince died suddenly of a reported accidental overdose of pain medication. Like that of pop superstar Michael Jackson seven years earlier, his death shook the music world and spurred signs of appreciation around the globe. Fans flocked to Prince's home, lighting candles, leaving flowers, notes and other gifts of remembrances.
5 Prince died April 21, 2016, at his home near Minneapolis. / Courtesy photo
The tributes poured in from various sources worldwide, as Atlanta turned its City Hall building purple after Prince's death. The King and Queen towers in Dunwoody followed, as did New York's Empire State Building, the Eiffel Tower in Paris, the High Roller Ferris wheel in Las Vegas, the Chicago Skyline and Target Field in Minnesota. Celebrities also paid homage. "I want to be delicate to not disturb our Prince's peace and eternal rest," CeeLo Green wrote in an Instagram post. "I find myself being afraid now feeling alone in the world without him. … What I miss most is that medication with our master. "His confidence in doing so is the evidence that his even greater talent was the ability to listen to the spirit and share shamelessly, unselfishly, and with so much style," Green wrote. "He is now and forever immortalized as a noun, as I have often referred to him. Undoubtedly a person, a very special place, and absolutely everything." Just one week before his death, Prince performed his last concert at Atlanta's Fox Theatre, and the venue plans to honor The Purple One in a grand way for the one-year anniversary of his death, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution. From 9 a.m. to 11:59 p.m. on Friday, April 21, the Fox will post a rolling rotation of lyrics from Prince's iconic song "Purple Rain" on its marquee. One of the most gifted artists ever, Prince became a megastar in the 1980s during a period where Jackson, Madonna and Bruce Springsteen found their niche atop the music world. However, Prince stood out not
PRINCE Page 40
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3 Protesters march from the Cap-
itol down Pennsylvania Avenue past Trump International Hotel toward the National Mall ending at the World War 2 Monument in a demonstration against President Trump who refuses to show his taxes on April 15, 2017 in Northwest. /Photo by Roy Lewis WE’RE EMPOWERED TO ACHIEVE THE iMPOSSIBLE
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LIFESTYLE
MoCo Organization Champions Poetry for Youth By Lauren Poteat WI Contributing Writer Standing on the principles of empowering children, a Maryland-based organization will hold this weekend its very first spoken-word poetry event for community youth. On Saturday, April 22 at 3 p.m. at the Montgomery College Cultural Arts Center, Jack and Jill of America, the oldest and largest black family organization in the United States, will highlight the ingenuity and creativity of youth, with an added oratorical presentation from prolific award-win-
ning educator and public speaker Donovan Livingston, author of "Lift Off: From the Classroom to the Stars." Yaminah Leggett-Wells, president of the Montgomery County chapter of Jack and Jill of America, championed the experience for youth. "While thinking of additional programs to offer Montgomery youth, we decided that really wanted to offer some sort of forum that would really help are children express themselves," Leggett-Wells said. "What made us choose spoken word were the words recited by Donovan
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Livingston during his Harvard Graduate School of Education speech that went viral. It resonated with so many of us because I believe that as parents and educators and officials, that we all want to see out youth progress into great leaders and dynamic adults." The event is purposed to provide the youth an opportunity to recite personal narratives, jumpstart their thinking concerning life to and post-college and to provide them with an opportunity to hear from Livingston. "You know, anything that involves the youth I am excited
about," Livingston said. "I am honored to be a part of this event and to be able to tell students that it is OK to rise above any institution that may try to silence them. That anyplace they find themselves in, that they have the
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right to be themselves. "Usually my time is spent speaking to educators, teachers and politicians, but I find that it
is so important not to lose sight of why we are really here in the first place," he said. "I learn a lot from [youth]." WI
5 Award-winning educator and public speaker Donovan Livingston
will speak at an upcoming youth poetry event. /Courtesy photo
CENSUS from Page 14 the advertising budget, which they said would have devastating effects in minority communities that have experienced a growth not seen in the 2010 census count. "These populations need culturally and linguistically appropriate outreach and information to trust the process and participate in the effort, particularly when Latinos and other immigrant families are fearful of increased immigration enforcement activities in their communities," said Rosa Tock, the legislative and policy director for MCLA. "This is why Latino news outlets are so important to help connect and reach out to these communities. But for this, appropriate funding is necessary to support their work and also to design a comprehensive and coordinated outreach strategy." Cutting the advertising budget will reduce the participation of the Latino population which would reduce counts in traditionally Democratic areas and lead to a reduction in representation and receipts from programs that depend on the counts, said Eileen Crimmins, professor of Gerontology at the Davis School of Gerontology at the University of Southern California.
Several civil rights organizations and census experts also expressed concern. "Communities of color, urban and rural low-income households, immigrants, and young children are all at risk of being missed at disproportionately high rates," said Wade Henderson, president and CEO of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights. "The health and well-being, as well as the political power of all of the diverse communities The Leadership Conference represents, rests on a fair and accurate count," Henderson said. The persistent undercount of the nation's second largest population group represents a civil rights issue, said Arturo Vargas, executive director of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials Education Fund. "Unless we bring all Latinos out of the shadows and into the light in census 2020, the Latino community will continue to have disproportionate access to fair political representation and public services," Vargas said. "Congress must make the investments necessary today to ensure an accurate and cost-efficient count of Latinos tomorrow. Anything less would mean a failed census 2020." WI
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LIFESTYLE
Youth Entrepreneurship Competition Set
WETATi Hosts 6th Annual Convention and Gala By Jade James-Gist WI Contributing Writer
This weekend, April 21-23, the WETATi Center for Creative Thinking, Leadership and Entrepreneurship holds its highly anticipated 6th annual WETATi Convention and Gala at the University of Maryland, Nyumburu Cultural Center and the Adele Student Stamp Union Colony Ballroom. “If the answer to financial freedom was just getting a college degree, we’d be okay,” said WETATi CEO and President, Dr. Margaret Dureke of the African-American community. “But the truth is, we have to teach our children to be more practical.” WETATi stands for “We’re Empowered To Achieve The impossible” and Dr. Dureke believes her program can ignite the untapped potential of her program participants, usually women and minority millennials. “You can’t aspire to achieve something that has not been introduced into your consciousness,” Dureke reflected. To that end, WETATi invites entrepreneurs of all ages and their
5 Princes George's Community College Hillman Entrepreneurs Honors class with speaker Dr. Margaret Dureke (center). /Photo courtesy WETATi
families to attend three days of panel discussions on “Business Development & Economic Empowerment,” “Women Empowerment,” and “Entrepreneurship and Generational Wealth Building in the Next Generation.” As in previous years, the WETATi 2017 Convention and Gala brings together local business moguls, aspiring entrepreneurs, students, community leaders, and politicians in panels and networking sessions to spark inspiration and insightful discussions on entrepreneurship. As a J.D., Prince George’s Community College Adjunct Faculty Member, Guest Lecturer at Howard University School of Business,
entrepreneur and recently appointed Goodwill Ambassador to the Republic of Gambia, Dr. Dureke believes that too many young people fall into the only track presented to them. In her estimation, the well-worn path of attending school, working 9-to-5 for 30 years, and retiring offers little in the way of true financial freedom. Dr. Dureke created WETATi to encourage young students and entrepreneurs of all ages to break out of this mold. “In order to attain true financial freedom and create generational wealth, the present-day professional must hone their talents, self-start, and create opportunities for them-
selves,” she said. WETATi 2017 will host its first ever Entrepreneurship Competition on Friday, April 22. Six aspiring entrepreneurs and disadvantaged small business owners aged 11 through 67 will pitch their business ideas to a panel of investor judges. Prizes range from business grants up to the amount of $7,500 to a minimum of $1,500. The three winners will be announced at the WETATi Scholarship, Grants and Awards Gala, open to all on Saturday, April 23. They additionally receive Business Development Training from WETATi partner Prince George’s Community College (PGCC) Center for Entre-
preneurial Development (CED) and ongoing training and support through WETATi Center for Creative Thinking, Leadership and Entrepreneurship. WETATi’s ultimate mission is to equip the next generation with an entrepreneurship education and allow the space and tools for students to ask themselves, “How can I turn what God has given me into an opportunity?” and change their narratives. A dedicated founder, Dr. Dureke states, “This is my last calling, I want to die doing this. Mark your calendar, a lot of lives will change.” Visit http://wetaticonvention. com/ to register for the convention. WI INSTALLERS PROFESSIONAL the BBB A+ Rating From t! 13 Years Straigh
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(L to R) Jaysen Wright as Jackson Moore and District native Lorene Chesley as Valerie Johnston, pictured here, are cast members in the D.C. debut of “Smart People.” The play opened at the Mead Center for American Theatre, running April 14 – May 21. /Photo by C. Stanley Photography WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM
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LIFESTYLE African Americans Experience Success After Ivy League By Stacy M. Brown WI Senior Writer
5 Selena Cuffe, co-founder of
Heritage Link Brands, the largest importer of black produced wine from South African and the African Diaspora, is an Ivy League graduate. / /Photo courtesy of Harvard University.
Ifeoma White-Thorpe, an African-American teen from New Jersey, made headlines earlier this month when reports surfaced that she’d been accepted into all eight Ivy League schools. For most of the eight schools – Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Dartmouth, Brown, UPenn, Cornell, and Columbia – acceptance counts as rare with Cornell at the top end admitting just 14 percent of applicants and Harvard, at the low end, just 5.9 percent. For students of color, it’s all the more rare. Although Ifeoma’s accomplishment has been done before and remains a feat worthy of applause, many African-Americans and other minorities have often
shied away from applying and attending Ivy League institutions because of its elitism and a perceived not-so-welcoming approach to urban culture. However, for many who’ve attended, the bond between them and other minorities proved vital in their success. “If there’s one thing that Brown gave me, it was definitely a constant sense of family especially in the black community,” said Isabelle Thenor-Louise, a 2016 graduate of Brown University who works as a program associate for Health Career Connection. “Even though Brown can be an extremely white space, it was my fellow black students who taught me to stand tall within my skin,” said Thenor-Louis, who graduated with honors and a Bachelor’s
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in Anthropology. Alexandra Sepolean graduated from the undergraduate honors program offered through Brown University’s School of Public Health and she’s pursuing a Master’s in Public Health from Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. She still values the experience of an Ivy League education, she said. “My time at Brown provided me with both the personal and professional development tools to engage in the work that I am doing now,” said Sepolean, co-founder of Brown’s grassroots student coalition, Health Equity 4 Black Lives. “Brown’s academic environment helped foster a sense of creativity and independence especially in my current interests in merging my knowledge of health and medicine with advocacy and law. Brown’s environment also reinforced my appreciation for the shared communities formed by aspiring Black professionals in institutions of higher education,” she said. Sepolean further added that, “Graduating from an Ivy League institution ultimately gave me exposure to people, resources, and skills that have enabled me to tremendously excel in both academic and professional arenas.” Stephanie Klein Wassink, a principal at AdmissionsCheckup. com and a Brown and UPenn graduate, also enjoyed her experience. She said her son will enroll in Dartmouth in the fall. “All Ivy League Schools are difficult,” Wassink said. “I have worked with students for 20 years on the college admission process and I can see why parents are focused on the Ivy League. Whether most of us want to believe it, the Ivy League opens doors and, in some respects, offers a safety net,” she said. “It gives black students a great education and it offers a network of motivated and motivating peers. It also gives its graduates confidence to take chances they might not otherwise take without a safety net,” Wassink continued. Wassink’s AdmissionsCheckup.com has been designed to help students who might not have the resources to go into an Ivy League school. “We match students and former admissions officers from Ivy
League, Big Ten and small liberal arts schools with students applying to those schools,” she said. “I would never have been able to see myself in this world had I not attended Brown, a place where ideas thrive, and the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School which is all about smart strategy. I have also been able to call on classmates who run investment banks for mentoring,” Wassink said. Selena Cuffe, a Harvard graduate, said her life changed completely because of her Ivy League experience. “It has been huge. I met my husband at Harvard and we got married on campus at the Class of 1959 Chapel and I had my first of three children while living on campus,” said Cuffe, the co-founder of Heritage Link Brands, the largest importer of black produced wine from South African and the African Diaspora. Still, Cuffe admits there were challenges. “The occasional question about whether or not I played a sport and some assuming that I was staff and not student. I used to get followed around as if I were about the steal something,” she said. However, Cuffe, who also attended Stanford University, said she had no problem calling out individuals who were skeptical. “The African-American population was roughly 10 percent. Since my mom never graduated high school, getting my degree and the prospect of making real money is what kept me focused,” she said. “I’m guessing other students viewed me as happy and bubbly which is my demeanor most days. The lifelong relationships are priceless. I still talk to my Harvard classmates on a weekly, if not daily, basis about issues of life, love, marriage, work, kids and other things,” she said. “And, in their respective fields, everyone is making big moves.” The Ivy League can be an intimidating environment because those who attend are among the most privileged in the world, said Columbia’s Akia Mitchell. “You have to know your worth. You have absolutely nothing to prove,” Mitchell said. “The way to thrive in this environment is to leave your comfort zone, always volunteer, show up and be authentic,” she said. WI
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LIFESTYLE
wi book reviewA
Horoscopes
APRIL 20 - 27, 2017
ARIES You seem to be making progress, yet it may seem like you're beset by more delays than usual. You might just have to take this in stride and do your best. Also, there is a mix of energies — slow and steady as well as nimble and light — so you could find yourself testing a number of ideas and exploring their potential before you decide where to focus. Lucky Numbers: 24, 26, 54
"Finding Gideon" by Eric Jerome Dickey
TAURUS Now is your opportunity to bring your dreams to life by acting on those that appeal to you most. An idea you relished in the past could reappear and move up your priority list. Take a look at the present state of play and get your money to work harder for you. Lucky Numbers: 7, 15, 17
c.2017, Dutton $27 ($36 Canada) 372 pages
GEMINI You can gain comfort from standing back and reflecting on life. This is your chance to let go of situations and perhaps people that no longer serve you and resolve issues that seem to be hanging over you. Reflecting on your plans may be better than diving in too impulsively. Lucky Numbers: 1, 28, 40 CANCER This could be a time of reunions or family get-togethers that you'll very much enjoy. Mars also moves into a more private sector of your chart, which could stir up your dreams and psyche. It's an opportunity to explore inner patterns and the workings of your deeper mind and better understand what makes you tick. Lucky Numbers: 12, 17, 45
Finding Gideon
LEO You could be heading into the spotlight in the coming four weeks. This is an
opportunity for you to impress all the right people. Networking could play a big part in your career or business success. If you're looking for love, this can be the perfect time to get back into the dating loop, too. Lucky Numbers: 19, 22, 27
By Terri Schlichenmeyer WI Contributing Writer It wasn't where you put it down. The last time you saw it, it was over there where you laid it. You remember doing that; you even gave yourself a brain-nudge so you wouldn't forget but now it's not where it should be, and that bugs you. Now, as in the new novel "Finding Gideon" by Eric Jerome Dickey, you'll have to chase it down. At an age when most boys are focused on their little toy cars, Jean-Claude was busy saving his mother's life. The French prostitute known as Thelma (or was she Margaret, or Catherine?) had crossed the wrong johns, gotten pregnant, and told their wives. She hinted that Medianoche was a father. She hinted that the Beast was a father. She was lying to one or both, and the Beast told Medianoche to kill her. He was swinging Thelma around by her neck when her "snotty-nosed" seven-year-old son picked up Medianoche's gun … and shot the assassin in the face. That was the first man the boy gunned down. Thelma set him on the second one, too, which changed him, and made him a killer. He was a sought-after, talented assassin when he learned that Medianoche had lived, and Gideon (his professional name) knew he had to finish that long-ago job. Medianoche hadn't planned on killing his best friend, but when he learned that the Beast had been lying for years about Thelma, there was no other choice. Once the Beast was gone, Medianoche could assume leadership of the Four Horsemen, the group that ruled Buenos Aires, and that's how it always should've been. But this young assassin, Gideon, complicated things. Medianoche heard that Gideon was looking for him, to settle a dubious score. It wasn't enough that he'd taken Medianoche's eye, and destroyed his face. No, Gideon was looking for Midnight, and there would be war. Which only meant that Midnight had to find Gideon first … I have to admit, I spent the first 30 pages of this book hating it. As he often seems to do, author Eric Jerome Dickey jumps feet-first into his novel by letting the characters jump feet-first into bed. There is a bit of prelude this time, but it's strangely fixated on dog waste before we get to tiresome erotica. Usually, I'd recommend skipping that and starting the book several pages in, though with "Finding Gideon," you really shouldn't. You need that beginning — it's nasty, but it sets up a first-rate thriller and a surprise: this latest Gideon tale has character development that makes many of the killers human, almost likable. Readers get a better understanding of who Gideon is, and what drives him. We meet his "brothers" and lovers old and new and, because this book screams toward an unsettling cliffhanger, we can only hope to see them again. Certainly, you can read this novel alone but I'd recommend starting with "Sleeping with Strangers." The overall tale relies on it, so enjoy that book first. Won't be long before you'll beg to put "Finding Gideon" in your hands. WI WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM
VIRGO Things may be about to get a little lighter and brighter. A renewed focus on your sector of travel and exploration could put the spotlight on new paths and intriguing opportunities. Work harder at resolving any financial issues. You are spurred on to achieve great things. Lucky Numbers: 2, 11, 34 LIBRA Your life may take on a deeper focus, encouraging you to look beneath the surface, especially when resolving matters that need an in-depth perspective. This four-week period could also enhance your love life and encourage you to take stock of finances. You could also feel guilty for letting someone down buta diplomatic explanation can help. The desire to take a vacation or short trip could be very strong. Lucky Numbers: 17, 23, 54 SCORPIO If key relationships have seemed less settled than usual lately, this feeling may end midweek. You may find that things become steadier as the atmosphere between you softens. Mars moves into a more sensitive sector of your chart, which could influence joint finances and encourage you to sort out any niggling issues. You may also be curious to understand more about yourself and what motivates you to action. Lucky Numbers: 13, 18, 35 SAGITTARIUS Health and wellness issues may have been important to you in recent
weeks. It can be an time to reorganize and tweak your routines so that they work better for you. There will also be more activity regarding relationships. You could be eager to clear the air or rewrite any unspoken rules in an important bond. Lucky Numbers: 9, 19, 22
CAPRICORN A chance to relax and unwind could do you a world of good. Romance could blossom or the flame of love could be rekindled in your present partnership. From Friday, you'll need to balance work and play as the lively energies of Mars stir up your lifestyle sector. Schedule in time for work and exercise, as well as fun and entertainment. You need both! Lucky Numbers: 4, 12, 27 AQUARIUS From this week on, the cosmos encourages you to take time out for selfcare and relaxation. With a focus on your domestic sector, use this chance to spend time with those you care about most, as well as to nurture yourself with good food and plenty of rest. At the same time, leisure options may beckon, and you could be curious about a certain pastime, sport, or new skill that you would enjoy learning more about. Romance could sparkle, too. Lucky Numbers: 3, 24, 25 PISCES An opportunity could beckon at the start of the week, and if you decide to take it up, you could make some progress in the coming weeks. You should also expect a few delays and changes of plan. This may not be a bad thing, though, and it might even work in your favor. Home and family matters also come to the fore midweek, bringing an opportunity to get everything shipshape. Lucky Numbers: 12, 16, 28
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APRIL 20 - 27, 2017 31
SPORTS Wizards Start Postseason With Win
5 Washington Wizards point guard John Wall goes to the basket while being defended by Atlanta Hawks center Dwight Howard during the Wizards' 114-107 victory in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals series at Verizon Center in Northwest on Sunday, April 16. /Photo by John E. De Freitas
3 Washington Wizards shooting guard Bradley Beal drives past Atlanta Hawks shooting guard Tim Hardaway Jr. during the Wizards' 114-107 victory in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals series at Verizon Center in Northwest on Sunday, April 16. /Photo by John E. De Freitas
Wall, Beal the New Faces of Mural at Ben's Chili Bowl in Northwest By William J. Ford WI Staff Writer @jabariwill A mural on the wall of Ben's Chili Bowl in northwest D.C. now showcases Washington Wizards guards John Wall and Bradley Beal, just in time for the team's playoff run. The two shooting stars stood outside the iconic eatery Thursday, marveling at the painting while dozens of fans cheered. The diner remains a local attraction where former President Barack Obama occasionally stopped by. The temporary Wizards mural — featuring the two clad in the team's Stars and Stripes uniforms — replaces the previous painting of Obama, Bill Cosby, late D.C. music icon Chuck Brown and local radio host Donnie Simpson. "It's surreal to look up and you think about certain things and wonder how you got here," Wall said. "It's definitely an honor to be in a mural on the wall of Ben's Chili Bowl in a landmark spot of D.C. It's cool to see all the fans giv-
32 APRIL 20 - 27, 2017
ing us this support." A portion of the U Street corridor turned into a small pep rally with dozens of fans, a few Wizards cheerleaders and team mascot G-Wiz, who came to root on Wall and Beal before the team’s firstround playoff matchup against the Atlanta Hawks began Sunday at Verizon Center. The Wizards seek payback after the Hawks defeated them two years ago in the Eastern Conference semifinals when an injury forced Wall to miss the final three games of the series. "We're very excited for it," Wall said. "The last two playoff [runs] we played, we started on the road, so to get a home game to begin it is great. This is a different ballgame in the playoffs. Every possession counts and you have a different focus. There's no joking around. You have to lock in." Wall and Beal signed hats, basketballs and jerseys and even took a few selfies with fans such as Mark Bellinger of Northwest. "Seeing Brad is cool [but] I came to see my man John," said Bell-
inger, 24. "I've followed his career since he's been in the NBA." Afterward, the backcourt duo walked inside and chatted with the Ali family, owners of the diner, and some of the workers. While Wall and Beal perused the diner, former Washington Bullets legend Phil Chenier arrived and stood outside to take a picture and sign a Gilbert Arenas Bullets jersey worn by Jerry Dessy of Beltsville, Maryland. Although Dessy, 19, never saw Chenier's silky-smooth jump shot, he listens to him and Steve Buckhantz broadcasts games on CSN Mid-Atlantic. The broadcast duo of 20 years worked their last regular-season game together Wednesday in Miami, as Chenier will go on to conduct other work for CSN and Monumental Sports & Entertainment. "I've heard [Chenier] and Steve Buckhantz my whole life. To see him in person was amazing," said Dessy, who's confident the Wizards will beat the Hawks. "I also got John Wall to sign my jersey, so it has been a great day." WI
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5 Washington Wizards guards John Wall, left, and Bradley Beal pose in front of mural April 13 depicting the two players on a wall at Ben's Chili Bowl. /Photo by Leteef Mangum WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM
SPORTS Nats Top Phillies on Good Friday 6 Philadelphia Phillies catcher Cameron Rupp slides into second base ahead
of Washington Nationals second baseman Daniel Murphy's tag attempt after a fifth-inning double during the Nationals' 3-2 victory in 10 innings at Nationals Park in Southeast on Friday, April 14. /Photo by John E. De Freitas
5 Washington Nationals catcher Matt Wieters heads back to first base ahead of a pickoff attempt while Philadelphia
Phillies first baseman Tommy Joseph awaits the ball in the second inning of the Nationals' 3-2 victory in 10 innings at Nationals Park in Southeast on Friday, April 14. /Photo by John E. De Freitas
Nationals Remember Jackie Robinson on Black Heritage Day Informer Spelling Bee Winners Honored in Pregame Ceremony By Sarafina Wright WI Staff Writer The Washington Nationals on honored Jackie Robinson on their Black Heritage Day 70 years after he broke Major League Baseball's color barrier. In honor of the baseball pioneer, the Nationals recognized Washington Informer Spelling Bee winners from the District and Prince George's County and scholars from the Jackie Robinson Foundation to illustrate their connection to his legacy. "These kids work hard," said Shawn Bertani, the Nationals' executive director for playing and community relations, said Saturday, April 15. "We know they practice a lot and they get up in front of people and it can be nerve-wracking and they really accomplish something." Margaret Isacson of Oyster-Adams Bilingual School in Northwest and Kelly Han of Buck Lodge Middle School in Prince George's County made a pit stop at the home
plate of the Nationals before they compete at the Scripps National Spelling Bee in a few weeks. "I've been to a lot of Nationals games, but I've never been on the field, so this is really cool," Isacson said. "I don't know if you can ever be ready, but I am ready for the Bee." Bertani said the bee winners are kindred spirits with the Jackie Robinson Foundation scholars. "They're great representatives for many of the students in this area, so it's quite fitting we bring them down here and give them a chance to be recognized in front of our fans," he said. "The Jackie Robinson scholars are individuals that have worked really hard, much like the spelling bee students. Given the celebration of Jackie Robinson and what they've accomplished, it only makes sense to recognize them, too." Scholars from the Jackie Robinson Foundation Mid-Atlantic area said they are humbled to represent the baseball legend. "The Jackie Robinson foundation has provided scholarships for many students all around the nation and
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internationally," said University of Maryland freshman Michael White. "Robinson has been an inspiration to all of us here. Without him there would be many things that we wouldn't have had yet. It's always imperative that we celebrate him and everything he's done." World-renowned mathematician Kathrine Johnson, depicted in the movie "Hidden Figures," saw some of the limelight in the opening ceremony with her grandson throwing the ceremonial first pitch to Nationals manager Dusty Baker in her honor. Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Nationals 4-2, but the focus remained on Robinson's legacy to celebrate his achievement in breaking Major League Baseball's color barrier. All players throughout the league wore his number 42 on Saturday. "Baseball has been an institution in this country and Jackie Robinson took things to a whole other level when he broke the color barrier, and was the first African-American to take the field for a Major League
Baseball game," Bertani said. "That diversity is to be celebrated. He was a pioneer and was in front of the civil rights movement which started a little bit later, but it's important not just for us but the whole league
because he changed the face of our game. He opened doors for people that came after him and that's something people should always remember." WI
5 The Washington Nationals annually honor winners of the Washington Informer Spelling Bees during a pregame ceremony. Pictured (from left) are Dr. Elizabeth Primas, spelling bee judge; Jude Martin, 2nd place winner in DC; Robert Foster, 3rd place winner in DC; Margaret Isacson, winner of the DC Bee; Kelly Han, winner of the Prince George’s County Bee; and Ron Burke, Washington Informer director of advertising. /Photo by John DeFreitas
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APRIL 20 - 27, 2017 33
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WATERS from Page 1 caught millennials' attention nationwide when she stormed out of a recent press conference after a meeting with FBI Director James Comey, saying that he had "no credibility." Her crusade against Trump has been just what she's meant to do and it's what the village of black women who raised her prepared her for, she told the Huffington Post. "Millennials have got to be at the table in every conceivable way. And they can change these institutions," Waters said. "So, my message is, your time is now. Take advantage of the opportunities that are opening up and move to help provide new leadership in this country." Even before Trump reaches his 100th day in office, Congressional Black Caucus members such as Waters have already began calling for either his resignation or impeachment. Texas Democrat Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee has admitted to spending many nights wondering what Trump would do next, adding that she, too, has begun investigating the possibility of drafting articles of impeachment against Trump. Jackson Lee pointed to Trump's reported ties to Russia and the ongoing investigation of the role his campaign staff played in wrecking Hillary Clinton's candidacy through hacked and false email servers. The congresswoman said the very fact that the FBI has acknowledged an investigation has commenced into Trump's Russian ties should be enough. She also blasted the president for insinuating that Barack Obama, the nation's first
5 Rep. Maxine Waters and other CBC members are looking for grounds to impeach President Trump. /Courtesy photo
black president, "was just another thug." "First, he spent five years trying to delegitimize Obama, saying he wasn't born here," she said. "Now, he lies and says the first black president committed a felony, that he wiretapped him. That he's just another thug. … Government is under siege in Washington; this isn't a government right now, it's feigning to be one and it's a place of havoc." Jackson Lee said Trump's dealings and his various actions should be enough to bring the "high crimes and misdemeanors" charges necessary for impeachment. According to one web definition, the charges of high crimes and misdemeanors covers allegations of misconduct peculiar to officials, such as perjury of oath, abuse of authority, bribery, intimidation, misuse of assets, failure to supervise, dereliction of duty,
conduct unbecoming, or refusal to obey a lawful order. Offenses by officials also include ordinary crimes, but perhaps with different standards of proof and punishment than for non-officials, on the grounds that more is expected of officials by their oaths of office. "I think about impeachment every day," said Eddie Bernice Johnson, another Texas Democratic Congresswoman. "The reality is, Democrats currently do not have the votes for impeachment." Like Johnson and other Democrats, Waters said she cannot and does not respect Trump as president. "I don't trust this president," Waters said. "He's not working in the best interests of the American people. His motives and his actions are contemptible. The president is a liar and I'm going to fight every day until he's impeached." WI
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! 34 APRIL 20 - 27, 2017
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RELIGION THE RELIGION CORNER
The Griffin Firm, PLLC
When God is Silent Ever notice the worst times in your life seem to be the times when you feel that the Lord is not hearing your prayers? There is a legendary poem titled "Footprints in the Sand." It goes: "One night I dreamed a dream. As I was walking along the beach with my Lord. Across the dark sky flashed scenes from my life. "For each scene, I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand, One belonging to me and one to my Lord. After the last scene of my life flashed before me, I looked back at the footprints in the sand. I noticed that at many times along the path of my life, especially at the very lowest and saddest times, there was only one set of footprints. This really troubled me, so I asked the Lord about it. "'Lord, you said once I decided to follow you, you'd walk with me all the way. But I noticed that during the saddest and most troublesome times of my life, there was only one set of footprints. I don't understand why, when I needed you the most, you would leave me.' "He whispered, 'My precious child, I love you and will never leave you Never, ever, during your trials and testings. When you saw only one set of footprints, It was then that I carried you.'" The poem speaks to those times in our lives when God is seemingly silent, as though He wasn't there at all. But when we've lost all hope of making something happen with our Turning Hearts Church
own strength, amid our time of silence, we gain clarity and a willing spirit to be led as He guides us to. Embrace the silences. Remember the words spoken by Jesus when He was on the cross! He said, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" In the gospel of Mark this statement in Aramaic is spoken by Jesus just before he dies on the cross (Mark 15:34), and in the gospel of Matthew Jesus utters these last words in Hebrew (Matthews 27:46): "Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?" Generally translated as, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Trust God, especially when He is silent. He allowed His Son to go through the crucifixion, to feel He too was forsaken — a clear indication we must go through periods in our own lives when God is silent. Trust and believe in God, and allow Him to do His perfect work. Silence is golden! An excellent example is an oak tree. Where does it come from? It doesn't just appear! First the acorn is planted, then it may be about a month or more before any sprouts begin to shoot out, deep inside the earth. Then after some quiet time, like a baby in the mother's womb, some new shoots from the oak tree finally appear above the ground. God was silent for quite a while in my life, but one day He began to reveal what I needed to do. He will reveal what you must do as well. Obey His word, and don't al-
The Rev. E. Bernard Anderson Priest
4275 4th Street, S.E. Washington, DC 20034 Phone: 202-746-0113 Fax: 301-843-2445
Foggy Bottom - Founded in 1867 728 23rd Street, NW - Washington, DC 20037 Church office: 202-333-3985 - Fax : 202-338-4958
Motto : “A Great Commitment to the Great Commandment” Website: www.turningheartschurchdc.org Email: faithdefender@verizon.net
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low hunches to pass you by as if it was only a thought. As Romans 8:28 says, "And I know that all things work together for good to them who love the Lord, and who are the called according to His purpose." WI
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Historic St. Mary’s Episcopal Church
Virgil K. Thomas, Sr. Senior Pastor/ Teacher
Service and Times Sunday School 8 – 9 AM Worship Service 9 – 11 AM Tuesday Night Bible Study 6:30 – 8:00 PM Wednesday Daytime Bible Study 11 AM – 12:30 PM
Committed to providing services and supports to increase the capacity of individuals, businesses, and communities.
Service and Times Sundays: 10 a.m. Holy Eucharist with Music and Hymns Wednesdays: 12:10 p.m. - Holy Eucharist www.stmarysfoggybottom.org Email: stmarysoffice@stmarysfoggybottom.org All are welcome to St. Mary’s to Learn, Worship, and Grow.
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RELIGION The Miracle Center of Faith Missionary Baptist Church Bishop Michael C. Turner, Sr. Senior Pastor 9161 Hampton Overlook Capitol Heights, MD 20743 Phone: 301-350-2200 Fax: 301-499-8724
Service and Times Sunday Worship Times : 7:30 a.m. 7 10:00 a.m. Communion: 1st Sunday Sunday School: 9:00 a.m. Bible Study: Wednesday, 12 Noon Bible Study in homes: Tuesday 7:00 p.m. Website: www.themiraclecenterFMBC.com Email: Miraclecenterfmbs@gmail.com Motto: “We Walk by Faith, Not by Sight”
Pilgrim Baptist Church Rev. Louis B. Jones II Pastor 700 I Street, N.E. Washington, D.C. 20002 (202) 547-8849 Service and Times Worship Sundays: 7:30 & 11:00am 5th Sundays: 9:30am 3rd Sundays: Baptism & Holy Communion Prayer & Praise: Wednesdays @ Noon & 6:30pm www.pilgrimbaptistdc.org
Church of Living Waters
Allen Chapel A.M.E. Church
Crusader Baptist Church
Rev. Paul Carrette Senior Pastor
Rev. Dr. Michael E. Bell, Sr., Pastor
Rev. Dr. Alton W. Jordan Pastor
Reverend Dr. Calvin L. Matthews Senior Pastor
Harold Andrew Assistant Pastor
2498 Alabama Ave., SE - Washington D.C. 20020 Office: (202) 889-7296 Fax: (202) 889-2198 - www.acamec.org
800 I Street, NE - Washington, DC 20002 202-548-0707 - Fax No. 202-548-0703
4915 Wheeler Road Oxon Hill, MD 20745 301-894-6464
Service and Times Sunday Worship Services: 8:00am and 11:00am Sunday Church School - 9:15am & Sunday Adult Forum Bible Study - 10:30am 2nd & 4th Monday Women’s Bible Study: 6:30pm Tuesday Jr./Sr. Bible Study: 10:00am Tuesday Topical Bible Study: 6:30pm Tuesday New Beginnings Bible Study: 6:30pm Wednesday Pastoral Bible Study: 6:30pm Wednesday Children’s Bible Study: 6:30pm Thursday Men’s Bible Study: 6:30pm Friday before 1st Sunday Praise & Worship Service: 6:30pm Saturday Adult Bible Study: 10:00am “The Amazing, Awesome, Audacious Allen Chapel A.M.E. Church”
Service and Times Sunday Morning Worship: 11:00am Holy Communion: 1st Sunday Sunday School: 9:45am Men’s Monday Bible Study: 7:00pm Wednesday Night Bible Study: 7:00pm Women’s Ministry Bible Study: 3rd Friday -7:00pm Computer Classes: Announced Family and Marital Counseling by appointment
1200 Isle of Patmos Plaza, Northeast Washington, DC 20018 Office: (202) 529-6767 - Fax: (202) 526-1661
Service and Times Sunday Service: 8:30am& 11:00am Bible Study: Wednesday 7:30pm Communion Service: First Sunday www.livingwatersmd.org
E-mail: Crusadersbaptistchurch@verizon.net www.CrusadersBaptistChurch.org “God is Love”
Covenant Baptist United Church of Christ
St. Stephen Baptist Church
Third Street Church of God
Dr. Dekontee L. & Dr. Ayele A. Johnson Pastors
Drs. Dennis W. & Christine Y. Wiley Pastors
Bishop Lanier C. Twyman, Sr. Senior Pastor
Rev. Cheryl J. Sanders, Th.D. Senior Pastor
Bishop Alfred A. Owens, Jr.; Senior Bishop & Evangelist Susie C. Owens – Co-Pastor
4001 14th Street, NW Washington, DC 20011 (202) 265-6147 Office 1-800 576-1047 Voicemail/Fax
3845 South Capitol Street Washington, DC 20032 (202) 562-5576 (Office) (202) 562-4219 (Fax)
5757 Temple Hill Road, Temple Hills, MD 20748 Office 301-899-8885 – fax 301-899-2555
1204 Third Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 202-347-5889 office 202-638-1803 fax
610 Rhode Island Avenue, NE Washington, DC 20002 (202) 529-4547 office • (202) 529-4495 fax
Service and Times Sunday School: 9:30am Sunday Morning Worship Service: 11:00am Communion Service: First Sunday Prayer Service/Bible Study: Tuesday, 6:30pm
Services and Times Sundays: 10:00am Worship Services Bible Study: Wonderful Wednesdays in Worship and the Word Bible Study Wednesdays 12:00 Noon; 6:30pm (dinner @ 5:30pm) Sunday School: 9:00am – Hour of Power
Blessed Word of Life Church
www.blessedwordoflifechurch.org E-mail: church@blessedwordoflifechurch.org
Campbell AME Church Rev. Dr. Henry Y. White 2562 MLK Jr. Ave., SE - Washington, DC 20020 Adm. Office 202-678-2263 Email: Campbell@mycame.org Service and Times Sunday Worship Service: 10:00 am Sunday Church School: 8:45 am Bible Study Wednesday: 12:00 Noon Wednesday: 7:00 pm Thursday: 7: pm “Reaching Up To Reach Out” Mailing Address Campbell AME Church 2502 Stanton Road SE - Washington, DC 20020
Mt. Zion Baptist Church
“An inclusive ministry where all are welcomed and affirmed.” www.covenantbaptistdc.org
Services and Times Sunday Early Morning Worship: 7:45am Church School: 9:30am Sunday Morning Worship: 10:45am Tuesday: 7:00pm/Kingdom Building Bible Institute Wednesday: Prayer/Praise/Bible Study-7:30 pm Baptism & Communion Service: 4th Sunday – 10:30am
Services and Times Sunday School: 9:30am Sunday Worship: 11:00am Prayer Meeting and Bible Study: Wed. 7:30pm
“We are one in the Spirit” www.ssbc5757.org E-mail: ssbc5757@verizon.net
www.thirdstreet.org
“Ambassadors for Christ to the Nation’s Capital”
Greater Mt. Calvary Holy Church
Sunday Worship Service: 8 AM and 10:45am Sunday Youth Worship Services: 1st & 4th 10:45am; 804 R.I. Ave., NE 5th 8 AM & 10:45am; Main Church Prayer Services Tuesday – Noon, Wednesday 6am & 6:30pm Calvary Bible Institute: Year-Round Contact Church Communion Every 3rd Sunday The Church in The Hood that will do you Good! www.gmchc.org
Service and Times Sunday Worship Services: 7:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Holy Communion: 2nd Sunday at 7:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Sunday Church School: 9:20 a.m. Seniors Bible Study: Tuesdays at 10:30 a.m. Noon Day Prayer Service: Tuesdays at Noon Bible Study: Tuesdays at 7 p.m. Motto: “A Ministry of Reconciliation Where Everybody is Somebody!” Website: http://isleofpatmosbc.org Church Email: ipbcsecretary@verizon.net
St Marks Baptist Come Worship with us... Dr. Raymond T. Matthews Pastor and First Lady Marcia Matthews St. Mark's Baptist Church 624 Underwood Street, NW Washington, dc 20011 Services and Times Sunday School: 9:00am Worship Service: 10:00am Wed. Noon Day prayer service Thur. Prayer service: 6:45pm Thur. Bible Study: 7:15pm
Twelfth Street Christian Church Reverend Dr. Paul H. Saddler Senior Pastor (Disciples of Christ) 1812 12th Street, NW - Washington, DC 20009 Phone: 202-265-4494 Fax: 202 265 4340 Service and Times Sunday Worship Service: 11:00 am Communion every Sunday: 11:00 am Sunday School: 10:00 am Bible Study Tuesday: 12 Noon Pastor’s Bible Study Tuesday: 6:30 pm Motto: “Discover Something Wonderful” Website: 12thscc.org Email: Twelfthstcc@aol.com
Mount Carmel Baptist Church
Rev. John W. Davis Pastor
Joseph N. Evans, Ph.D Senior Pastor
5101 14th Street, N.W. Washington, DC 20011 202-726-2220/ 202-726-9089
901 Third Street N.W. Washington, DC. 20001 Phone (202) 842-3411 Fax (202) 682-9423
Service and Times Sunday Worship Service: 8:00am and 11:00am Sunday School: 9:15am Holy Communion 4th Sunday 10:00am Prayer and Bible Study Wednesday 7:00pm TV Ministry –Channel 6 Wednesday 10:00pm
Isle of Patmos Baptist Church
Service and Times Sunday Church School : 9:00am Sunday Morning Worship: 10:10am Bible Study Tuesday: 6: 00pm Prayer Service Tuesday: 7:00pm Holy Communion: 3rd Sunday 10:10am themcbc.org
gsccm.administration@verizon.net
36 APRIL 20 - 27, 2017
THE WASHINGTON INFORMER
WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM
RELIGION Shabbath Commandment Church
All Nations Baptist Church
King Emmanuel Baptist Church
Bishop Adrian A. Taylor, Sr. Pastor
Rev. Dr. James Coleman Pastor
Rev. Daryl F. Bell Pastor
7801 Livingston Road Oxon Hill, MD 20745 301-534-5471
2001 North Capitol St, N.E. - Washington, DC 20002 Phone (202) 832-9591
2324 Ontario Road, NW Washington, DC 20009 (202) 232-1730
Service and Times Sabbath School 9:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. Service 11:00 a.m. Praise & Worship Preaching 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. Motto: “A Church Keeping It Real for Real.” Website: Shabbathcommandmentchruch.org Email: Praisebetoyhwh@gmail.com
Zion Baptist Church
Service and Times Sunday Church School – 9:30 AM Sunday Worship Service – 11:00 AM Holy Communion – 1st Sunday at 11:00 AM Prayer – Wednesdays, 6:00 PM Bible Study – Wednesdays, 7:00 PM Christian Education School of Biblical Knowledge Saturdays, 9:30 AM – 11:00 AM, Call for Registration Website: www.allnationsbaptistchurch.com All Nations Baptist Church – A Church of Standards
Israel Baptist Church
Service and Times Sunday School: 9:30 am Sunday Worship Service: 11:00 am Baptismal Service: 1st Sunday – 9:30 am Holy Communion: 1st Sunday – 11:00 am Prayer Meeting & Bible Study: Wednesday -7:30 pm
Emmanuel Baptist Church Rev. Dr. Clinton W. Austin Pastor
Dr. Earl D. Trent Senior Pastor
Rev. Dr. George C. Gilbert Senior Pastor
2409 Ainger Pl.,SE – WDC 20020 (202) 678-0884 – Office - (202) 678-0885 – Fax “Come Grow With Us and Establish a Blessed Family”
623 Florida Ave.. NW - WDC. 20001 Church (202) 667-3409 Study (202) 265-0836 Home Study (301) 464-8211 Fax (202) 483-4009
4504 Gault Place, N.E. Washington, D.C 20019 202-397-7775 – 7184
Service and Times Sunday Worship: 7:30am & 10:45am Baptism/Holy Communion: 3rd Sunday Family Bible Study Tuesdays – 6:30pm Prayer Service: Tuesdays – 8:00pm
Service and Times Sunday Worship Services: 10:00 a.m. Sunday Church School: 8:45 – 9:45 a.m. Holy Communion: Every First Sunday Intercessory Prayer: Monday – 7:00-8:00 p.m. Pastor’s Bible Study: Wednesday –7:45 p.m. Midweek Prayer: Wednesday – 7:00 p.m. Noonday Prayer Every Thursday
www.emmanuelbaptistchurchdc.org
“Where Jesus is the King”
Lincoln Park United Methodist Church
Sermon On The Mount Temple Of " Joy Apostolic Faith
Matthews Memorial Baptist Church Matthews
Rev. Keith W. Byrd, Sr. Pastor 4850 Blagdon Ave, NW - Washington D.C 20011 Phone (202) 722-4940 - Fax (202) 291-3773 Service and Times Sunday Worship Service: 10:15AM Sunday School: 9:00am Monday: Noon Bible School Wednesday: Noon & 7PM: Pastor’s Bible Study Ordinance of Baptism 2nd Holy Communion 4th Sunday Mission Zion Baptist Church Shall; Enlist Sinners, Educate Students, Empower the Suffering, Encourage the Saints, and Exalt Our Savior. (Acts 2:41-47) www.zionbaptistchurchdc.org
Rev. Dr. Morris L Shearin, Sr. Pastor
Rev. Dr. Diane Dixon Proctor Pastor
Elder Herman L. Simms Pastor
1251 Saratoga Ave., NE Washington, DC 20018 (202) 269-0288
1301 North Carolina Ave. N E Washington, D C 20002 202 543 1318 - lpumconthegrow@gmail.com www.lpumcdc.org
5606 Marlboro Pike District Heights, MD 20747 301-735-6005
Service and Times Sunday Worship Service: 10:00 A.M. Sunday School: 8:30 A.M. Holy Communion1st Sunday: 10:00 A.M. Prayer Service: Wednesday at 6:30 P.M. Bible Study: Wednesday at 7:00 P.M.
Service and Times Sunday Worship: 10: am Holy Communion: First Sunday 10: am Sunday School: 9: am Bible Study: Wednesday @ 12 noon and 6:30pm Motto: “A CHURCH ON THE GROW”.
Holy Trinity United Baptist Church
Florida Avenue Baptist Church
MemorialRev. Joan E. Buchanan
Executive Pastor
Baptist Church
2616 MLK Ave., SE - Washington, DC 20020 Office 202-889-3709 - Fax 202-678-3304
Rev. Joan E. Buchanan Service and Times Executive Early PastorWorship Service:
7:30am Worship Service: 11:00am New Member’s Class: 9:45am 1st Sunday, 11:00am ServiceHoly andCommunion: Times Church School: 9:45am Early Worship Service: 7:30am Wednesday 12:00pm Bible Study Prayer,11:00am Praise and Bible Study: 7:00pm Worship Service: Saturday Bible Study: 11:00am Apostolic in Doctrine, Pentecostal in Experience, New Member’s Class: 9:45am Baptism 4th Sunday: 11:00am Holiness in Living, Uncompromised and Unchanged. st 1 Sunday, 11:00am The Apostolic Faith is still alive –Acts 2:42Holy Communion: “Empowered to love and Challenged to Lead a Service and Times Sunday Apostolic Worship Services 11:00 A.M and 5:00 P.M Communion and Feet Wash 4th Sunday at 5:00 P.M Prayer/Seeking: Wednesday at 8:00 P.M.
Service and Times 9:30AM. Sunday Church School 11:00 Am. Sunday Worship Service The Lord’s Supper 1st Sunday Wednesday 7:00pm Prayer & Praise Services 7:30pm. Bible Study Saturday before 4th Sunday Men, Women, Youth Discipleship Ministries 10:30am A Christ Centered Church htubc@comcast.net
Christ Embassy DC
Kelechi Ajieren Coordinator 6839 Eastern Avenue, R1 Takoma Park, MD 20912 (202) 556-7065 Service and Times Sunday Worship Service: 10:00 A.M. Wednesday Bible Study: 7:00 P.M. Friday Evening Service: 7:00 P.M. ; Last Friday “…Giving Your Life a Meaning” www.Christembassydc.org Christ.embassy.dc@hotmail.com
Church School: Multitude 9:45am of Souls to Christ”
Wednesday 12:00pm Bible Study
St. Luke Baptist Church Rev. Aubrey C. Lewis Pastor 1415 Gallatin Street, NW Washington, DC 20011-3851 P: (202) 726-5940 Service and Times Sunday Worship: 11:00 a.m. Sunday School: 9:15 a.m. Holy Communion: 11:00 a.m., 3rd Sun. Bible Institute: Wednesday - 1:30 pm Prayer Meeting: Wednesday - 12:00 Noon
Mount Moriah Baptist Church Dr. Lucius M. Dalton Senior Pastor
Damion M. Briggs Pastor
Rev. Stephen E. Tucker Senior Pastor
1636 East Capitol Street, NE Washington, DC 20003 Telephone: 202-544-5588 - Fax: 202-544-2964
8213 Manson Street Landover, MD 20785 Tel: (301) 322-9787 Fax: (301) 322-9240
13701 Old Jericho Park Road Bowie, MD. 20720 (301) 262-0560
Service and Times Sunday Worship Services: 7:45 am and 10:45 am Holy Communion: 1st Sundays at 7:45 am & 10:45 am Sunday School: 9:30 am Prayer & Praise Service: Tuesdays at 12 noon & 6:30 pm Bible Study: Tuesdays at 1 pm and 7 pm Youth Bible Study: Fridays at 7 pm
Service and Times Early Morning Message: 7:30 AM Sunday Morning Worship Service: 10:00 AM Sunday Church School: 9:00 AM Holy Communion: 1st Sunday 7:30 AM & 10:00 AM Prayer, Praise and Testimony: Wednesday 7:00 PM Bible Study: Wednesday 7:30 PM
Service and Times Sunday Worship: 11 AM Sunday School: 10 AM Wednesday Mid-Week Worship, Prayer & Bible Study: Wed. 7 PM
Web: www.mountmoriahchurch.org Email: mtmoriah@mountmoriahchurch.org
St. Matthews Baptist Church
Eastern Community Baptist Church
New Commandment Baptist Church
Rehoboth Baptist Church
“Real Worship for Real People” Website: www.easterncommunity.org Email: ecc@easterncommunity.org
Salem Baptist Church
Prayer, Praise and Bible Study: 7:00pm Saturday Bible Study: 11:00am
Peace Baptist Church
Baptism 4th Sunday: 11:00am
“Empowered to Love and Challenged
Rev. Dr. Michael T. Bell
to Lead a Multitude of Souls to Christ”
“A Church Where Love Is Essential and Praise is Intentional”
712 18th Street, NE Washington, DC 20002 Phone 202-399-3450/ Fax 202-398-8836 Service and Times Sunday Morning Worship Service: 7:15 am & 10:50 am Sunday School: 9:30am Wednesday Prayer & Testimonies Service: 7:30pm Wednesday School of the Bible: 8:00pm Wednesday - Midweek Prayer Service: 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
Pennsylvania Ave. Baptist Church Rev. Dr. Kendrick E. Curry Pastor 3000 Pennsylvania Ave.. S.E Washington, DC 20020 202 581-1500 Service and Times Sunday Church School: 9:30 A.M. Sunday Worship Service: 11:00 A.M. Monday Adult Bible Study: 7:00 P.M. Wednesday Youth & Adult Activities: 6:30 P.M. Prayer Service Bible Study
“The Loving Church of the living lord “ Email Address pbcexec@verizon.net
Shiloh Baptist Church
First Rising Mt. Zion Baptist Church
Mt. Horeb Baptist Church
Rev. Dr. Maxwell M. Washington Pastor
Rev. Curtis l. Staley Pastor
Rev. Alonzo Hart Pastor
Rev. Dr. Wallace Charles Smith Pastor
Rev. Oran W. Young Pastor
Rev. Dr. H. B. Sampson, III Pastor
Worshiping Location Knights of Columbus - 1633 Tucker Road Fort Washington, MD 20744 (240) 838-7074
621 Alabama Ave., S.E.- Washington, D.C. 20032 P: (202) 561-1111 - F: (202) 561-1112
917 N St. NW - Washington, DC 20001 (202) 232-4294
9th & P Street, N.W. - W. D.C. 20001 (202) 232-4288
Service and Times Sunday Service: 10 am Sunday School for all ages: 8:30 am 1st Sunday Baptism: 10: am 2nd Sunday Holy Communion:10 am Tuesday: Bible Study: 6:30 pm Prayer Meeting: 7:45 pm
Service and Times Sunday Morning Prayer Service: 8:00 a.m. Sunday Church School: 9:15 a.m. Sunday Morning Worship: 10:40 a.m. Third Sunday Baptismal & Holy Communion:10:30 a.m. Tuesday Church At Study Prayer & Praise: 6:30 p.m.
Service and Times First Sunday Worship Service (one service): 10:00 a.m. Second, Third, Fourth, and Fifth Sunday Worship service: 7:45 a.m. and 10:55 a.m. Sunday Church School/Bible Study: 9:30 a.m. Thursday Prayer Service: 6:30 p.m.
602 N Street NW - Washington, D.C. 20001 Office:(202) 289-4480 Fax: (202) 289-4595
2914 Bladensburg Road, NE Wash., DC 20018 Office: (202) 529-3180 - Fax: (202) 529-7738 Service and Times Worship Service: 7:30 a.m. Sunday School: 9:00 a.m. Worship Service: 10:30 a.m. Holy Communion: 4th Sunday 7:30 a.m. & 10:30a.m. Prayer Services:Tuesday 7:30 p.m. Wednesday 12 Noon
Motto: “Where God is First and Where Friendly People Worship”
The Church Where GOD Is Working.... And We Are Working With GOD
Service and Times Sunday Worship Services: 10:00 am Sunday School: 9:00 am Holy Communion 3rd Sunday Morning Prayer / Bible Study: 6:15 pm - 7:20 pm (Tuesday) Theme: “The Kingdom Focused Church” Matthew 6:33 and Mathew 28:18-20, KJV Email: stmatthewsbaptist@msn.com Website: www.stmatthewsbaptist.org
WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM
Email: sbc@shilohbaptist.org Website: shilohbaptist.org
THE WASHINGTON INFORMER
Service and Times Sunday School for All Ages: 8:00 a.m. Sunday Worship Services: 9:30 a.m. Midday Prayer & Bible Study: Wednesday 11:30 a.m. Evening Prayer & Bible Study: Wednesday 7:00 p.m. Laymen's League: Thursday 7:00 p.m. Email: Froffice@firstrising.org Website: www.firstrising.org “Changing Lives On Purpose “
Email:mthoreb@mthoreb.org Website:www.mthoreb.org For further information, please contact me at (202) 529-3180.
APRIL 20 - 27, 2017 37
LEGAL NOTICES
LEGAL NOTICES
LEGAL NOTICES
LEGAL NOTICES
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
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
Administration No. 2017 ADM 305
Administration No. 2017 ADM 338
Administration No. 2017 ADM 332
Administration No. 2017 ADM 365
Administration No. 2017 ADM 390
Frank Lynn aka Franklyn Lynn Decedent
Mary Elenora Brooks Decedent
Jacqueline Elva Hart Decedent
Louise Pauline Longus Decedent
Ethel L. Colbert Decedent
Murray D. Scheel Whitman-Walker Legal Services 1701 14th Street, NW Washington, DC 20009 Attorney
Ronald Dixon Bynum & Jenkins 1010 Cameron Street Alexandria, VA 22314 Attorney
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
Aaron Bennett, whose address is 6400 Coleton Ct., Capitol Heights, MD 20743, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Frank Lynn aka Franklyn Lynn who died on June 22, 1996 without a Will, and will serve with 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 October 6, 2017. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before October 6, 2017, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.
Bernice Brooks, whose address is 3506 6th Street, SE, #1, Washington, DC 20020, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Mary Elenora Brooks who died on March 29, 2014 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 October 13, 2017. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before October 13, 2017, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.
Russell D. Chaplin and Lisa L. Chaplin-Hobbs, whose addresses are 10904 West Point Pl., White Plains, MD 20695 & 96 Rittenhouse St., NE, Washington, DC 20011 were appointed Personal Representatives of the estate of Jacqueline Elva Hart who died on February 18, 2017 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before October 13, 2017. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before October 13, 2017, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.
Perlia D. Smith, whose address is 5016 Nash Street, NE, Washington, DC 20019, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Louise Pauline Longus who died on January 11, 2017 with a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before October 13, 2017. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before October 13, 2017, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.
Robert L. Bell, Esquire 245 Farragut Street, NW Washington, DC 20011 Attorney
Date of first publication: April 13, 2017
Date of first publication: April 13, 2017
Date of first publication: April 6, 2017
Date of first publication: April 13, 2017
Russell D. Chaplin Lisa L. Chaplin-Hobbs Personal Representatives
Perlia D. Smith Personal Representative
Aaron Bennett Personal Representative
Bernice Brooks Personal Representative
TRUE TEST COPY
TRUE TEST COPY
Anne Meister Register of Wills
Anne Meister Register of Wills
Washington Informer
Washington Informer
TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister Register of Wills Washington Informer
TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister Register of Wills Washington Informer
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Trugaye L. Colbert, whose address is 5616 62nd Avenue, Riverdale, MD 20737, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Ethel L. Colbert who died on February 28, 2017 with a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before October 20, 2017. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before October 20, 2017, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship. Date of first publication: April 20, 2017 Trugaye L. Colbert Personal Representative
TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister 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
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Probate Division Washington, D.C. 20001-2131
Administration Number 2017 ADM 366
Administration No. 2016 ADM 1063
Administration No. 2017 ADM 213
Foreign No. 2017 FEP 35
Administration No. 2017 ADM 348
Thelma O. Jenkins Decedent
Katie McKelvin Decedent
March 4, 2016 Date of Death
Harry D. Easter Decedent
Jacqueline Jones Moore 7605 14th St., NW Washington, DC 20012 Attorney
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
Carlene A. Wright Name of Decedent
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
Estate of Alberta C. Colson aka Alberta Colson Deceased NOTICE OF STANDARD PROBATE Notice is hereby given that a petition has been filed in this Court by Brett E. Cohen and LARCO Property Investment, LLC for standard probate, including the appointment of one or more personal representative. Unless a complaint or an objection in accordance with Superior Court Probate Division Rule 407 is filed in this Court within 30 days from the date of first publication of this notice, the Court may take the action hereinafter set forth. Admit to probate the will date November 1999 exhibited with the petition upon proof satisfactory to the Court of due execution by affidavit of witnesses or otherwise in the absence of a will or proof satisfactory to the Court of due execution, enter an order determining that the decedent died intestate appoint an unsupervised personal representative Date of first publication: April 6, 2017 Brett E. Cohen 7910 Woodmont Avenue, Suite 1430 Bethesda, MD 20814-7047 Personal Representative:
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Jan C. Jenkins, whose address is 234 34th Street, NE, Washington, DC 20019, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Thelma O. Jenkins who died on June 5, 2016 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (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 October 6, 2017. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before October 6, 2017, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship. Date of first publication: April 6, 2017 Jan C. Jenkins Personal Representative
TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister Register of Wills Washington Informer
TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister Register of Wills
Charlene McKelvin and Betty Baucum, whose addresses are 1901 Colette Terr., District heights, MD 20747 and 7523 Catone Court, Oxon Hill, MD 20745 were appointed Personal Representatives of the estate of Katie McKelvin who died on January 28, 2017 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before October 6, 2017. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before October 6, 2017, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT OF FOREIGN PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE AND NOTICE TO CREDITORS Arthene Pugh whose address is 10407 Outlook Court, Ft. Washington, MD 20744 was appointed personal representative of the estate of Carlene A. Wright, deceased, by the Orphans Court for Prince Georges County, State of Maryland, on May 19, 2016. Service of process may be made upon Adam D. Rubin, 400 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, #409, Washington, DC 20001 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: 4428 Kansas 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.
Date of first publication: April 6, 2017
Date of first publication: April 13, 2017
Charlene McKelvin Betty Baucum Personal Representatives
Arthene Pugh Personal Representative
TRUE TEST COPY
Washington Informer
Anne Meister Register of Wills
Anne Meister Register of Wills
Michael T. Robinson, whose address is 281 Athens Drive, Salisbury, NC 28147, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Harry D. Easter who died on March 17, 2017 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before October 13, 2017. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before October 13, 2017, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship. Date of first publication: April 13, 2017 Michael T. Robinson Personal Representative
TRUE TEST COPY Anne Meister Register of Wills Washington Informer
Washington Informer
Washington Informer
38 APRIL 20 - 27, 2017
THE WASHINGTON INFORMER
WWW.WASHINGTONINFORMER.COM
LEGAL NOTICES
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
Administration No. 2017 ADM 313
Administration No. 2017 ADM 349
Administration No. 2017 ADM 386
Ralph Dickerson Decedent
Leroy A. Hazelock, Sr. Decedent
Gertrude Madeline Jones Decedent
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
Phillp B. Zipin, Esquie 8757 Georgia Avenue, Suite 400 Silver Spring, MD 20910 Attorney
Aimee D. Griffin 5335 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Suite 440 Washington, DC 20015 Attorney
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
Leroy A. Hazelock, Jr., whose address is 33 A Street, Albans, WV 25177, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Leroy A. Hazelock, Sr. who died on September 27, 2016 with a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before October 20, 2017. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before October 20, 2017, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.
Barbara Redd, whose address is 1448 Primrose Rose NW, Washington, DC 20012, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Gertrude Madeline Jones who died on July 29, 2016 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before October 20, 2017. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before October 20, 2017, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship.
Nina Dickerson and Lisa Dickerson, whose addresses are 7918 13th St., NW, Washington, DC 20012 and 3811 South Dakota Ave., NE, Washington, DC 20018, were appointed Personal Representatives of the estate of Ralph Dickerson who died on December 20, 2016 with a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (or to the probate of decedent’s Will) shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before October 20, 2017. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before October 20, 2017, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship. Date of first publication: April 20, 2017 Nina Dickerson Lisa Dickerson Personal Representative
Date of first publication: April 20, 2017 Leroy A. Hazelock, Jr. Personal Representative
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Date of first publication: April 20, 2017 Barbara Redd Personal Representative
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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
Administration No. 2017 ADM 335
Administration No. 2017 ADM 336
Administration No. 1993 ADM 1872
Administration No. 2016 ADM 1507
Andrew William Rowland Decedent
Herbert Lee Slater Decedent
Mildred E. Austin Smith aka Mildred E. Smith Decedent
Ronald Alexander Young Decedent
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
Ronald Dixon Bynum & Jenkins 1010 Cameron Street Alexandria, VA 22314 Attorney
NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS
Michelle Lanchester, Esq. 601 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Suite 900 South Bld. Washington, DC 20004 Attorney
Khalid Muhammad, whose address is 1000 I Street, NE, #2, Washington, DC 20002, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Andrew William Rowland who died on December 23,2016 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment shall be filed with the Register of Wills, D.C., 515 5th Street, N.W., Building A, Third Floor Washington, D.C. 20001, on or before October 20, 2017. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before October 20, 2017, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship. Date of first publication: April 20, 2017 Khalid Muhammad Personal Representative
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NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Precious Thomas, whose address is 2557 Elvans Road, SE, #201, Washington, DC 20020, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Herbert Lee Slater who died on May 20, 2014 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 October 20, 2017. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before October 20, 2017, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship. Date of first publication: April 20, 2017 Precious Thomas Personal Representative
Anne Meister Register of Wills Washington Informer
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Ronald K. Austin, whose address is 1609 Madison St., NW, Washington, DC 20011, was appointed Personal Representative of the estate of Mildred E. Austin Smith aka Mildred E. Smith who died on July 30, 1993 with a Will. 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 October 20, 2017. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before October 20, 2017, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship. Date of first publication: April 20, 2017 Ronald K. Austin Personal Representative
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NOTICE OF APPOINTMENT, NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND NOTICE TO UNKNOWN HEIRS Ivy J. Young and Michelle M. Young-Keith, whose addresses are 3344 Blaine St., NE Washington, DC 20019 and 807 Pleasant Hill Ln., Bowie, MD 20716 were appointed Personal Representatives of the estate of Ronald Alexander Young who died on November 29, 2016 without a Will, and will serve without Court supervision. All unknown heirs and heirs whose whereabouts are unknown shall enter their appearance in this proceeding. Objections to such appointment (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 October 20, 2017. Claims against the decedent shall be presented to the undersigned with a copy to the Register of Wills or filed with the Register of Wills with a copy to the undersigned, on or before October 20, 2017, or be forever barred. Persons believed to be heirs or legatees of the decedent who do not receive a copy of this notice by mail within 25 days of its first publication shall so inform the Register of Wills, including name, address, and relationship. Date of first publication: April 20, 2017 Ivy J. Young Michelle M. Young-Keith Personal Representative
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In response, Maddin sued and seven judges ruled in his favor. Only one judge, Gorsuch, did not. California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the senior Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, cited the case as one reason why she opposed Gorsuch for the nation's highest court. "Unfortunately, based on Judge Gorsuch's record at the Department of Justice, his tenure on the bench, his appearance before the Senate and his written questions for the record, I cannot support this nomination," the 83-year-old California lawmaker told colleagues before the scheduled committee vote on his nomination. Like the other justices on the court, Gorsuch comes with impeccable credentials. He is a graduate of Columbia University and Harvard
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Law School. He also received a doctorate in philosophy from Oxford University. The American Bar Association reviewed Gorsuch's judicial history and unanimously declared him to be "well qualified" to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court. The ABA did not consider Gorsuch's ideology, political views or political affiliation. Its evaluation was "based solely on a comprehensive, nonpartisan, nonideological peer review of his integrity, professional competence, and judicial temperament," said Nancy Scott Degan, chair of the ABA. Scott Michelman, senior staff attorney at the D.C. branch of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), differs in his opinion on Gorsuch's impact on the court. The ACLU is a nonpartisan organization whose stated mission is "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States." Michelman said though Gorsuch is not an advocate for civil rights and LGBT rights like his Democratic counterparts, the Supreme Court will continue its legacy of making changes for the best with Gorsuch present. "Although the court was for
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much of its history a conservative institution that protected existing power structures at the expense of African-Americans in the past century and particularly in the past 63 years, the court has protected and advanced the rights of African-Americans in many important ways," Michelman said. "Recent years have seen the court back away from civil rights enforcement, most notoriously in striking down a core provision of the Voting Rights Act in 2013, but the court has also preserved affirmative action and rebuffed an attempt to narrow the Fair Housing Act." WI
PRINCE from Page 26 only for his singing and dancing, but he composed, produced and wrote just about all of his songs and played most of the instruments. He released his first album, "For You," in 1978 which included the hit "I Wanna Be Your Lover." That was followed later by "Dirty Mind," that included "Uptown" and "When You Were Mine. 1981's "Controversy" delivered the hits "Do Me Baby" and the title track. The artist finally broke through to a new level of stardom in 1982 with his double album, "1999," which went platinum, bolstered by the title track and the Top 10 singles "Little Red Corvette" and "Delirious." In 1984, Prince vaulted to superstardom with his signature album, "Purple Rain," which was accompanied by the movie of the same name that featured The Time, Apollonia Kotero, and The Revolution. The soundtrack spent 24 weeks atop the Billboard charts and sold more than 13 million copies in the United States alone. Among the unforgettable singles from the album, "When Doves Cry," "Let's Go Crazy," "Purple Rain," "I Would Die 4 U" and "Take Me With U." The movie earned Prince an Oscar for Best Original Score and his career continued to soar. After his sudden death at the age of 57, Rolling Stone magazine reported a global outpouring of grief and disbelief, with many fans and collaborators sharing memories. With the fate of his estate and unpublished music in doubt, many were left wondering how Prince's legacy would continue. His sister Tyka Nelson said in a statement that Paisley Park would be opened for public tours since it was "something that Prince always wanted to do and was actively working on." "Only a few hundred people have had the rare opportunity to tour the estate during his lifetime," she said. "Now fans from around the world will be able to experience Prince's world for the first time as we open the doors to this incredible place." WI
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That is where I got the line in my piece that SEIA seems to be so upset about. If Abigail Ross Harper, the head of SEIA, or anyone at the association has an issue with what I said in my piece, then they should have reached out to me and asked to speak. I would have agreed and had an open mind. But the fact that they decided to try and use a hired gun to try and intimidate me and my staff only makes me believe that the premise of my original piece — that the rooftop solar industry does not respect minorities — was sadly all too accurate. WI
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wanted to provide me with facts to change my mind, why couldn't Mr. Schmidt provide me with that information, or connect me with SEIA's communications or policy experts? The suggestion that I speak with SEIA's in-house attorney was designed to intimidate. Be assured, I take this threat seriously. I believe I did nothing wrong, but I do not have millions of dollars to defend myself. SEIA represents companies like Tesla that are worth billions of dollars. It wouldn't be a fair fight. I want to be clear: I wrote the
rooftop solar piece based on recent correspondence sent by three Democrats in the Congress to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The letter was read by Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas, a Hispanic, and Reps. Emmanuel Cleaver of Missouri and Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, both African-Americans At the end of the letter sent by those congressmen, they stated that the high-pressure sales tactics used by bad actors in the rooftop solar industry are often targeted at the least sophisticated consumers. Therefore, the matter is a "particular concern for minority communities in our districts and around the nation."
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has been your only reward." Everyone can do something. You don't have to be rich, you don't need to be an intellectual, and you don't have to be a leader. You have something more than words to give to our people. Love, trust, respect, encouragement, a smile, a hug, a couple of dollars to a person in need, the willingness start a project, a movement or an organization are all things we can do as individuals. As a collective we can unify, organize and work on building something for ourselves, because just talking about it will not get the job done. WI
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"we need" to do; follow it up by saying what you either are doing about the issue or what you are willing to do about it. Besides, after making your transition, wouldn't you rather have folks speak of you in terms of what you did in addition to what you said? Don't you want to leave a legacy of putting your words into action? Don't you want your children to know you for your work on their behalf rather than what you said we "needed"? We can see what our ancestors did, many of who never gave a
speech or wrote a book; they simply worked to leave something better for those who came after them. It's more about the actions than it is about the words anyway. Frederick Douglass told Harriet Tubman, "I have had the applause of the crowd and the satisfaction that comes of being approved by the multitude, while the most that you have done has been witnessed by the few trembling, scarred, footsore bondmen and women, whom you have led out of the house of bondage. … The midnight sky and silent stars have been the witness of your devotion to freedom and of your heroism. … ‘God bless you'
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Human Needs, chaired by Sen. George McGovern (D-S.D.) with eight Democrats and five Republicans and they began conducting hearings on the status of hunger, food assistance and nutrition that continued over the next several years. Today, 50 years after Robert Kennedy's and Martin Luther King's trips to the Mississippi Delta, President Trump's first full budget next month is expected to try to take much of the safety net away again by capping funding, proposing block grants and enacting deep cuts to programs like food stamps, now called the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and other nutrition, child and family health supports, crucial early childhood programs, education and housing investments and accountability protections for disadvantaged and disabled children. Stand up and fight back with us with all your might everybody! The day he was assassinated, Dr. King called his mother to give her his next Sunday's sermon title: "Why America May Go to Hell." He warned that "America is going to hell if we don't use her vast resources to end poverty and make it possible for all of God's children to have the basic necessities of life." I think we are going there fast. WI
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range over a listless baby boy with bloated belly from whom he tried in vain to get a response as he lightly touched the baby's cheeks. When we went outside again he asked the older children clad in ragged clothes standing outside their shack "What did you have for breakfast?" They responded, saying, "We haven't had no breakfast yet," although it was nearly noon. And he gently touched their faces and tried to offer words of encouragement to their hopeless and helpless mothers. When we traveled to another Delta town, our motorcade ran over the dog of a small white boy watching from the sidewalk. Sen. Kennedy stopped the motorcade and got out to comfort the boy and tell the police escort to slow down. From this trip and throughout the 15 months I knew him until his assassination June 6, 1968, I came to associate Robert Kennedy with nonverbal communications that conveyed far more than words, touching a child's cheek, head or shoulders. And his capacity for genuine outrage and compassion was palpable. He kept his word to try to help Mississippi's hungry children and he and Clark went the very next day to see Secretary of Agriculture Orville Freeman and urged him to "get the food down there" and to elim-
inate any charges for food stamps for people who had no income. The state had changed from free food commodities to food stamps which cost $2 jobless poor people did not have. Secretary Freeman did not believe there were people in the United States with no income even after the senators told him they had seen them. Secretary Freeman said he would send Department of Agriculture staff to Mississippi to verify. He sent his staff back to Mississippi the next day and Robert Kennedy sent Peter Edelman back with them to lead them through the same desolate shacks and meet some desolate families. Robert Kennedy's pushing, passion, and visibility helped activate a range of important people and set in motion a chain of events that led to major activities and reforms being adopted over ensuing months and years. Following Kennedy's assassination in June and the moving stop of his hearse and funeral procession on the way to burial at Arlington Cemetery where the poor sang him farewell with the "Battle Hymn of the Republic," Resurrection City was dismantled immediately. But copies of Hunger, U.S.A., and a range of specific demands to both the Department of Agriculture and the White House continued. The Senate approved the creation of the Senate Select Committee on Nutrition and
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caused. I have traveled twice to Nigeria to meet with victims’ families and government officials and brought the #BringBackOurGirls movement to the United States. Each week that Congress is in session, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle participate in a "Wear Something Red Wednesday" social media campaign that helps maintain pressure on the Nigerian government to keep working to negotiate the release of the remaining Chibok girls and pull out all stops to defeat Boko Haram. On Dec. 14, 2016, President Barack Obama signed, into law, legislation that Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and I sponsored that directs the U.S. secretaries of State and Defense to jointly develop a five-year strategy to aid the Nigerian government, the
COOPER from Page 25 up and noticed on my nightstand a letter from my Grandmother Hopkins. She had also been urging me to excel academically. Unfortunately, her counsel, as did that from others, was going in one ear and out the other. In addition to her letter, though, was an open letter to minority youth by Ashe, which had recently appeared in the Miami Times, the local African-American newspaper. In a nutshell, he advised all minority youngsters that if we were not "All-Americans" by the 10th or 11th grades, to forget it: we would never make it to the pros. In his letter, he also explained
ASKIA from Page 25 exactly what he's doing on the world stage. He openly mocks and rebukes the Barack Obama presidency, and that seems to be just fine with most white folks who see him as "decisive." His insults and finger-in-the-eye manner are just what they want to see
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Multinational Joint Task Force created to combat Boko Haram, and international partners who’ve offered their support to counter the regional threat the terrorists pose. In a telephone conversation between President Donald J. Trump and Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari in February, the two leaders pledged "to continue close coordination and cooperation in the fight against terrorism in Nigeria," according to a readout from the White House. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson also has reportedly praised the Multinational Joint Task Force’s efforts to defeat Boko Haram a "success story," but while the terrorist group may be down, it is far from out. On June 12, we will mark another milestone in this terrible saga. That is the day the State and Defense departments’ five-year plan is due. It also is
the deadline for the director of National Intelligence to assess the willingness and capability of Nigeria and its regional partners to implement the strategies outlined. We must use our collective voice to ensure they don’t miss this urgent deadline. By now you may be asking yourself why any of this should matter to African-Americans who are fighting their own battles to close the economic and opportunity gaps that still exist here at home and to exercise fundamental rights like the right to vote. Some of you may have never even heard of the Chibok girls. But if we don’t, who will? If we don’t teach the world to acknowledge that black lives matter across the globe, who will? Until then, it will continue to cry for victims of terrorism in European nations, the Middle East and even Russia, while African and African-American lives lost go ignored. WI
that he had completed his Bachelor of Arts, explaining the importance of having an education even if you make it to the pros because of the ever-present risk of sustaining a career-ending injury. He said that it was important to have a career to fall back on. Finally, Ashe cautioned that for every hour spent playing sports, between two and three hours are needed in the library. That letter changed my life. Whereas my parents, grandmother and others had been unable to reach me over a period of four years, my idol did in less than 10 minutes. At that moment, I accepted that I would never play tennis professionally and successfully completed high
school, college and graduate school. I was blessed to meet Ashe on two occasions. I thanked him for the influential role he played in my life. A photo of us taken in 1992 with Center Court behind us, at what would be his final appearance at the U.S. Open, remains one of my most prized possessions. Today, 43 years after first picking up a tennis racquet, my passion for the game has not changed. I remain grateful to my parents and family for not giving up on me. Indeed, sports idols can serve as positive role models for minority youth. For me, it remains Arthur Ashe. WI
in an American leader. So what if he makes a mistake? Nobody's perfect. So, what if he doesn't release his tax returns the way presidents have done for more than 40 years. No one can force him, and his allies in the Republican Party are afraid to go against the White House. Most folks in official Washington — except Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) — are willing to remain quiet and be complicit in the Trump madness. Surprisingly, there is a large number of alert, protest-ready, activists and citizens, but I don't think folks are prepared for the speed at which I fear the president will escalate some confrontation, and Americans will feel duty-bound to rally 'round the flag. Trump wins more time to come up with another trick. Look forward to more and
more swashbuckling President Trump. If he messes up and U.S. military personnel lose their lives the way civilians and women and children are losing their lives under U.S. supported attacks, then, instead of being angry at Trump for needlessly pushing the nation into armed conflict, the U.S. public will be consumed in an orgy of sympathy for the wounded troops. What a life, huh? He's a 70-year-old man who watches television six hours a day; he plays with his Twitter game every day; he goes to a golf resort in Florida every weekend. He's not working as president, he's living the life of a retired person. A retired person who maintains his relevance by playing with his newly discovered war toys. The country is in trouble. WI
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