By Lou Yeboah

“You have neither heard nor understood; from of old your ears have not been open. Well do I know how treacherous you are; you were called a rebel from birth.” [Isaiah 48:8]; “Hear this, you foolish and senseless people, who have eyes but do not see, who have ears but do not hear.” [Jeremiah 5:21]; “To whom can I speak and give warning? Who will listen to me? Their ears are closed so they cannot hear. The word of the Lord is offensive to them; they find no pleasure in it.” [Jeremiah 6:10);] “Son of man, you are living among a rebellious people. They have eyes to see but do not see and ears to hear but do not hear, for they are a rebellious people.” [Ezekiel 12:2].

In these passages, we see God lamenting the hardness of a rebellious people, His chosen people, to His wisdom and advice, given to them through His prophets. They have ears, but their ears [of hearing] are not open, and so they do not hear [comprehend, take to heart, heed] what God has to say to them.

“He said, “Go and tell this people: “‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving. [Isaiah 6:9-10]. “With your own eyes you saw those great trials, those signs and great wonders.  But to this day you have not paid attention, taken heed. I am fed up with your hardness of heart, and so He says, in effect, “Have it your way, then. I will close your ears myself, so that you will not be able to hear, to repent and to be healed until I restore your hearing to you when the time is right.

Listen, Jesus is calling for us to “Listen up! Pay close attention!” Jesus told his disciples that the past is the key to the future. [Matthew 24].  For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage. They were buying and selling and continuing in all the usual activities of human life. Business as usual.  They paid no attention to Noah as he warned them of impending judgment; they paid him no mind whatsoever until the day that Noah entered the ark. One translation said, “They did not know.” What a damning indictment. It was an age of enlightenment. But they did not know. It was an age of great progress. But they did not know. It was an age of military might. But they did not know. It was an age when mighty men roamed the earth. But they did not know. They knew so much but understood so little. They knew more and more about less and less until they knew everything about nothing and nothing about what really mattered. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools. They had no time for God until it was too late. That is the world of Noah’s day. They were wise fools who did not heed the warnings of the preacher of righteousness. Then the flood came and took them all away.  For those that have ears, let them hear what the Spirit is saying.

The day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. Where do you stand?” Pardon or Punishment. The Book of Haggai, the second shortest in the Old Testament, has a potent message. It tells us to put first things first in our lives. It was written to people, like us, who would have told you that God must be first. They believed that; but, they had drifted into a way of life where their intellectual belief in the supremacy of God was not reflected in the way they were living. They gave lip service to the priority of God, but in fact they lived with other priorities. God sent this prophet to help His people get their priorities in line with what they knew they should be. Putting first things first [Haggai 1:1-15]. Kingdom First [Matthew 6:33].  Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. Live in light of Eternity. Your very salvation depends upon the priorities you set in your life as a Christian.

Let us be wise in light of the brevity of life and the fact that we will one day stand before Jesus Christ and give an account for what we have done in our body, whether good or bad (2 Corinthians 5:10;  Ecclesiastes 12:14).  Now is the time to establish our priorities and stay with them in the coming days, months, and years.

 “Be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil” [Ephesians 5:15-16]. 

Yusef Tahiru was an explorer. An adventurer. A traveler and collector of experiences who loved humankind and built a community everywhere he went.

He grabbed a passport, secured a visa, and lived overseas as soon as he was able — quietly but forcefully using his gifts to live out an enduring truth: the idea that few things match the power of creating and nurturing connections. He dreamt of setting foot on new worlds, but never left the roles that mean the most on this one: loving son, brother, cousin, friend, mentor, teacher, teammate, motivator, and confidant.

Yusef — son of Abdur and Evelyn Tahiru, brother of Zachari — departed this life on July 5, 2020 in Vietnam. Born in Bellflower, California on May 9, 1991, and raised in Corona, Yusef’s childhood was spent cultivating the deep curiosity and championship-level athleticism that brought him joy throughout his life. He could often be found riding his bike around the neighborhood or playing basketball and soccer with his brother and friends. He enjoyed taking things apart to see if he could put them together again — often with mixed results.

A voracious reader whose eyes were never far from the pages of a book, Yusef was a thinker whose thirst for knowledge and love for culture would never be contained. He could not resist good music, enjoyed anime and was fascinated by movies and television shows about science and animals.

He was a seeker of God who was raised in the church — attending Gospel Memorial Church of God in Christ in his early years and Greater Victory Church of God in Christ as an adult.

Yusef excelled in the classroom, graduating in 2009 from Santiago High School — where he ran track all four years and cemented his love of athletics, including soccer, which he began playing before he entered kindergarten. He continued his track and field career at Riverside Community College — where he ran the 800 meters and was a member of the 2010 state championship team. In 2011, Yusef transferred to Cal State San Marcos, joining the track team and choosing a major that combined his passion for athletics with his devotion to helping people. He described the decision in his senior project:

“Kinesiology is my passion and it has been since I began playing soccer at the tender young age of 4 years old. Sports have been a major part of my life ever since the second I touched the soccer ball and my interest in sports only expanded as I grew older to include football and most recently in my life track and field.”

Yusef graduated in 2015 with a degree in kinesiology and exercise science. After practicing as a physical therapist, he set out for Vietnam to become an English teacher and start seeing the world. Yusef excelled in every aspect of his life there: claiming first prize in 5K runs, leading teams to victory in soccer tournaments, and being named Teacher of the Year. He fulfilled his love for going fast — which many will remember from the passenger seat in his Mazda 3 — on the motorbike he loved to race through the streets of Ho Chi Minh City.   

He accomplished so much on his own in 29 years, but Yusef had a talent for bringing people together. Everyone he encountered was drawn to his encouraging attitude, signature smile and incomparable laugh. He always had an empathetic ear ready to listen, a joke for those in need of a laugh, and wisdom to share with anyone who needed clarity and guidance. He inspired all who knew him — a man whose light shone brightest in the fulfillment he found in helping others. There is no higher calling in life, and no better way to live.

Yusef was preceded in death by his father, Abdur. He is survived by his mother, Evelyn, and brother, Zachari, Godparents Ida and George Martin Aunt Beverly, Uncle Sidney(Hazel),Uncle Myles and Uncle Byron(Regina) and a host of cousins, relatives and friends.  A private funeral service will be held on July 22 at Greater Victory Church of God in Christ. In lieu of donations to the family, his survivors ask for seed contributions to a scholarship fund that has been established in his name. The Yusef Tahiru Scholarship Fund can be found at https://gf.me/u/yfw95h

A well-known face at the West Valley Water District’s Board meetings, Don Griggs served with honor and integrity as the President of the West Valley Water District Ratepayers Association and Westside Action Group. In addition to his work in the water industry, for 40 years he fought to improve the political and economic condition of Black Americans across the county. Ultimately, his leadership and tenacity for civil rights and equity led to improvements and victories for every resident. His life and legacy of leadership, service and most of all, friendship, will be missed by all.

GoFundMe pages, idled workers and “good-bye and thank you” signs popping up on one long-standing storefront after another. America’s Main Street businesses are on the ropes and many of our moms and pops are facing early retirement. Sadly, an overwhelming eight in 10  small business owners say our nation’s leaders don’t understand their needs–and favor big business anyway–during this time of crisis, according to a new survey of 1,200 entrepreneurs from Small Business for America’s Future.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the protests around the murder of George Floyd and so many other black Americans have exposed and highlighted the structural racism that exists in our healthcare and economic systems. For small business owners—and for all of us who rely on them for jobs and essential and enjoyable services—the aftershocks could be profound. Shutters and closures raise the specter of Main Streets that more resemble the first years of the Great Recession, or the aftermath of an extreme weather event, than a rebounding recovery.

Small businesses–particularly small business owners of color–are suffering and the Trump Administration’s confusing, uneven and lackluster response has left many entrepreneurs feeling poorly understood and left behind. There has been little progress on advancing a comprehensive recovery plan that will help our nation’s primary job creators survive and rebuild over the long term.

This is an unacceptable state of affairs. We cannot let our small businesses bear the economic brunt of the turmoil in our country. It was small businesses—not giant corporations—that led the country out of the Great Recession. They created nearly two-thirds of new jobs following the recession, according to the Small Business Administration. With a long-term recovery plan dedicated to helping small businesses, they can lead the way out of the COVID-19 recession, too.

But we have a lot of work to do. Small business owners were already feeling betrayed by the 2017 Trump tax cuts, citing windfalls for corporations and lip service for them. The feeling only intensified when, under the administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) implementation plan, it became known that chains like Ruth’s Chris Steak House and Shake Shack had an easier time getting a PPP loan than your neighborhood bistro or barber shop.

For entrepreneurs of color, emergency aid has fallen far short. A recent poll of Black and Latino business owners from Color of Change and UnidosUS found just 12% of the owners who applied for aid from the Small Business Administration — most seeking a PPP loan — reported receiving what they had asked for and nearly half say they will be permanently out of business by the end of the year.

The result, unfortunately, is that small businesses have lost faith that government leaders care about them. We can’t go on like this. Our leaders must commit to helping small business owners recover and rebuild over the long-term. To help the small business community in this effort, a coalition of business owners and leaders have come together to launch Small Business for America’s Future.

We need a strong small business voice in Washington committed to ensuring policymakers prioritize Main Street by advancing policies that work for small businesses and their employees. If we don’t empower our job creators, our economic recovery will be much slower and more painful.

Our survey shows the need for a long-term recovery plan for small businesses is undeniable:

?       Nearly a quarter (23%) of small business owners have considered closing their business permanently and 12% are facing the possibility of having to declare bankruptcy because of COVID-19

?       53% have new debt related to COVID-19. Of those, one-third have $50,000 or more in new debt.

?       Three in 10 small businesses will dip into their personal savings to finance reopening while 2 in 10 will use credit cards to do so

Small business owners are in this situation for doing their part to prevent the spread of the virus. Now, it’s time for policymakers to do their part to make sure small businesses can rebuild.

In our survey, small business owners identified three primary areas of concern that need to be addressed in the recovery: lowering healthcare costs, creating common-sense tax policies that put small businesses on a level playing field with big businesses, and ensuring a just and equitable recovery and economy.

The virus has not gone away and the road to recovery will be steep. Small business owners will have to struggle through lower sales volume and depressed consumer demand as people cautiously test the waters. Only 38% of small businesses expect revenue to increase over the next 12 months, according to a CNBC survey.

We need our leaders to dedicate themselves to creating policies that give Main Street a chance to get off the ropes. And we’ll be in their corner fighting for small business and America’s future.

San Bernardino County Fire Department donates a fire engine as part of an ongoing relationship with the College

YUCAIPA, CA—- Crafton Hills College Regional Fire Academy is the recipient of the donation of a Wildland Type III fire engine from the San Bernardino County Fire Department. The program currently holds two full-time fire academies per year, and the donation of the fire engine will benefit students directly. An integral part of the Fire Academy curriculum is the emphasis placed on wildland firefighting operations.

With a fire engine of this type on site, students will more effectively learn the various manipulative hose evolutions that are required in the curriculum. 

“This generous donation will greatly improve our program as well as bringing industry consistency to the students during their time in the academy,” said Michael Alder, chief of the CHC Fire Academy.

“It is ironic that this particular fire engine was one that I had actually helped develop and build while heading up our apparatus committee with the San Bernardino City Fire Department so I’m very familiar with this fire engine.” 

The apparatus is a 1999 International / Pierce Type III Brush Engine which served the San Bernardino Area for more than 20 years. The four-wheel drive engine carries 500 gallons of water, pumps 500 GPM & has the ability to “pump and roll” which is crucial for wildland firefighting. Besides the engine, it comes with a full wildland compliment of gear consistent with industry standards.  

“With fire season longer, hotter and more than intense than ever before, this engine will be a great addition to their training fleet,” said Michael McClintock, Battalion 7, Division 4.

“California crews are truly ‘all risk’ and remain busy year around. CHC does a fantastic job with getting academy graduates ready for the work force.” 

The relationship between the Fire Technology program at Crafton Hills College and the Fire Department is a rich partnership. More than 100 SBCOFD firefighters have completed CHC Fire Academy, including McClintock. The Fire Academies at CHC are an integral part of San Bernardino County’s “Cradle to Career” program, providing educational training and tracks to a career. Additionally, many instructors are current or retired firefighters from the Department. 

“On behalf of our long running program as well as the Crafton Hills College and the San Bernardino Community College District, I would like to thank the San Bernardino County Fire Department for this great donation and all of the support that they have provided us throughout the years,” said Alder.

“We truly value our great working relationship and the positive impact it has on our communities.” Previously the Fire Department has donated two other Type I fire engines as well as a “Rescue Squad.” 

For more information about Crafton Hills College Fire Technology program, visit  https://www.craftonhills.edu/academic-and-career-programs/divs-and-depts/career-ed-and-human-dev/public-safety-and-services/fire-technology/. 

By Anthony Advincula

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — When Ditas Katague was growing up in Kansas City, Missouri, in the 1960s, only 150,000 Filipinos lived in the United States.

About five decades later, when she began leading the U.S. Census Bureau’s National Advisory Committee on Race, Ethnicities and Other Populations, the Filipino population in the country had risen to nearly 2 million.

Katague now is heading up her third decennial census, and nearly 4 million Filipinos live in America. Of those, more than 1.6 million call California home.

This rapidly growing ethnic group overall has significantly higher incomes compared to the country’s total foreign and native-born populations, but the Filipino voter turnout is only 46%.   It is in closing gaps like this that Katague found her calling early on in census work.

“It has been my desire to be an agent of change and guide census efforts,” said Katague, now director of the California Complete Count – Census 2020 Office. “I am a proud Filipino American.”

Rites of passage to census

Katague’s father had his early years of medical practice in the 1960s in Kansas City. When she was 10 years old, her family moved to a new subdivision in Modesto, California, where she had an experience that forever changed her perspective on the decennial count.

The father of her best friend in the neighborhood had a stroke and was taken from their house in an ambulance. But because the hospital was far from where they lived, the stroke damaged him seriously. 

That terrible memory has always reminded her that if the federal government had allocated more resources to their neighborhood, there might have been a hospital nearby that could have given her friend’s father immediate care.

“I always wonder, if that ER was even 10 minutes closer, would he have suffered less damage? Would he have been able to walk on his own?” Katague said. “If we are not counted, those facilities or things that we need would be a lot farther away.”

Census participation in California

In an effort to achieve a complete count in California, and despite the difficulties of achieving that during the coronavirus pandemic, Katague continues to encourage communities across the state to participate in the census.

As of June 28, she said, California’s count rate was 68% — more than 9 million households have submitted their census questionnaires by phone, online or mail. The state’s rate is higher than the 61.8% national average.

San Mateo, Contra Costa, Santa Clara, Marin, Orange and Ventura counties lead California’s census responses.

“It is a huge achievement, considering what we are facing right now, but we still have a lot further to go,” Katague said.

Those most at-risk of going uncounted in the census include minorities, immigrants, residents in hard-to-reach or remote areas, renters and children ages 5 and under.

“[Census] brings the fair share of our representation back to our communities, and that’s why it is really important,” Katague said. “But most importantly, as Filipino Americans, it shows how we are growing and to have the data [that does] not just lump us [all] in with Asian American and Pacific Islanders.”

Challenges in the Filipino community

Anecdotal evidence suggests that Filipinos who don’t participate in the census are mostly undocumented immigrants and those who are too busy with work, especially those with multiple jobs.

“The census is safe and confidential, but I get the fear,” Katague said. “Many of our hardest-to-count populations … our TNTs (undocumented) within the Filipino community are definitely like, ‘I’m not going to answer that.’ But we need the data to understand the impact that Filipino Americans are having on a lot of different things … especially during this time of COVID-19.”

The deadline to submit the questionnaire to the U.S. Census Bureau has been extended to Oct. 31 because of the pandemic.

Katague acknowledges that many households in the Filipino community are composed of multigenerational families, which poses challenges to count.

“We have those living with lola (grandmother) or lolo (grandfather) and staying with them, or tita (aunt) is staying over, and then they’ll often see an undercount because they won’t report everyone,” Katague said. “Maybe tita’s not supposed to be living there at that time, or maybe they think they’ll get their own forms. But since the housing crisis, we have seen houses that are doubling up.”

Is Filipino Asian or Pacific Islander?

Katague is American, born and bred. She attended American public schools, and established her career mostly in American public service.

By identifying herself as Filipino, her ethnicity offers a thread, a more significant meaning for her commitment that every Filipino living in California and the United States —  young and old, documented and undocumented, biracial and multiracial — gets counted.

Katague talked about how being a Filipino American has shaped her personal and political identity, and she mused aloud about questions her own daughter grapples with.

The teenager is multiethnic — half Filipino, a quarter Italian and a quarter Irish.

According to the Census Bureau, an individual’s response to the race question is based upon self-identification. The Bureau does not tell individuals which boxes to mark or what heritage to write in. Instead, the questionnaire gives the respondent the option to self-identify with more than one race or ethnicity.

“My daughter is also trying to find her identity,” Katague said. “She’d say, ‘Mom, we are the Latinos of Asia.’ But the census gives her the opportunity to choose her identity — the way anybody wants to choose it. Now, she’d say, ‘Mom, I’d only fill out Filipino,’ because that’s what I identify with and that’s what resonates with her.”

By Pilar Marrero, Ethnic Media Services

When Imperial County emerged as California’s number one hot spot in COVID-19 infection rates, it exposed three variables – low wage workers, overcrowded households and inadequate health care – that make some regions a prime target for the corona virus. 

These same variables also explain why standard  COVID-19 public health protocols tailored to the middle class are unlikely to flatten the curve much less bend it in the county.

“All these years we kicked the can down the road – now we’ve run out of road,” said longtime community activist Luis Olmedo, CEO of Comite Civico del Valle Inc.

Imperial – with 88% of its population Latinx – hugs the border with Mexico and Arizona, making it both heavily agricultural and a typical border economy with a massive cross border movement of products and people every day.

Since the start of the pandemic, the county’s infection rate has been about six times the state average, with 2,835 cases per 100,000 people versus 491 cases per 100,000 statewide.

“The guidelines and policies on the pandemic were developed in a way that applies largely to the middle class  that can afford to stay home or miss work,” said Edward Flores, a sociologist at UC-Merced. “They’re not addressing the reality of (a certain number of) people who have to work, regardless of the situation” – people Flores calls “distressed workers.”

Flores released a new report “Hidden Threat” co-authored by Ana Padilla, director of the Community and Labor Center at the University, during a recent news conference organized by Ethnic Media Services (EMS).

The data indicates that a high level of “worker distress” – making less than a living wage and living in large households – is related to COVID-19 positivity rates.  Some 35.8% of households in the county have workers who earn less than a living wage – the third highest rate in the state — and the average household size is  three persons, which is the fourth highest in the state, according to the report.

“There is a striking relationship between these variables,” Flores added. “In most counties where those two measures are larger than the average of the state, there is also a higher number of COVID-19 infections.”  

“Stay at home” orders have proven relatively ineffective in counties with large populations of “distressed workers,” according to Flores’ analysis of 1.5 million  records of COVID tests by the Centers for Disease Control.  “During the state at home, COVID fell for all groups except for Latinos, whose rates rose continuously during that time.”

Community advocates have begun pushing for strategies to deal with the pandemic that are tailored to the county’s endemic poverty and lack of resources.

In June, when local officials began moving towards reopening the county in keeping with the lower infection rates of other counties, more than 2,000 residents signed a letter of protest, asking the County Board of Supervisors to keep the “stay at home” phase in place. 

“We believe it’s an artificial choice between economic stability and public health,” said Luis Flores, an activist with the Imperial Valley Equity and Justice Coalition which spearheaded the letter signing drive. “We are also not exceptional. What we see here is a dramatic version of the inequalities common in immigrant and low-income communities across the country.”

The letter and the media coverage it received caught the attention of Gov. Gavin Newsom who pushed the county to move back its reopening plans.  But activists argue that the most vulnerable workers who can’t stay at home need other measures to be protected.

“We are pushing to hold large scale retailers and agricultural companies accountable, we are pushing for eviction moratoriums, and for more protections in the workplace,” said Flores of the Justice Coalition.

 A typical “medically underserved” community, Imperial County lacks  speciality care providers and enough medical personnel to cover its needs, said Janet Angulo, director of Public Health for Imperial County.  “We have a lot of residents who seek medical care in Mexicali on the other side of the border,” she noted. “Mexicali is larger, has more hospitals and speciality care providers.  It’s also a very short drive.”

Angulo reports that the county has had more than 7,700 COVID-19 cases and 132 fatalities since the start of the pandemic, and the infection rate continues to rise.  Over 500 patients have been transferred to hospitals outside the county through mutual aid agreements.  Patients who need care but aren’t critical are being treated in the gym of Imperial Valley College, Angulo said.

Making matters worse is the fact that many residents who already suffer from diabetes or other illnesses that make them more vulnerable to infection don’t know how to manage their conditions, according to Michelle Garcia, a nurse practitioner with Calexico Wellness Center.  “They don’t take their glucose levels, they don’t know how to eat properly, and they don’t get the appointments they need,” she said.  “Many don’t have smart phones so  video consultations may not be possible.”

As a border county, Imperial County has a “day population” of workers crossing over every day to work in the fields. Armando Elenes, Secretary Treasurer of the United Farm Workers (UFW), says infection rates are rising among farm workers, not just in Imperial County but across the state.  Letters sent to agricultural companies and contractors warning that safety measures needed to be put in place “went largely unheeded,” Elenes said, “and now we’re seeing the effects of that.”  Elenes says that some employers refuse to pay workers when they are infected, blaming them for not taking care of themselves.  Both undocumented and guest workers “work in fear” that they will lose their jobs if they complain about the virus, he says.

On Wednesday June 24, 2020, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine announced the agency’s headquarters building in Washington, D.C., will be named after Mary W. Jackson, the first Black American female engineer at NASA.

Jackson started her NASA career in the segregated West Area Computing Unit of the agency’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. Jackson, a mathematician and aerospace engineer, went on to lead programs influencing the hiring and promotion of women in NASA’s science, technology, engineering, and mathematics careers. In 2019, she was posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal.

Administrator Bridenstine said, “Mary W. Jackson was part of a group of very important women who helped NASA succeed in getting American astronauts into space. Mary never accepted the status quo, she helped break barriers and open opportunities for African Americans and women in the field of engineering and technology…we proudly announce the Mary W. Jackson NASA Headquarters building. It appropriately sits on ‘Hidden Figures Way,’ a reminder that Mary is one of many incredible and talented professionals in NASA’s history who contributed to this agency’s success. Hidden no more, we will continue to recognize the contributions of women, African Americans, and people of all backgrounds who have made NASA’s successful history of exploration possible.”

The work of the West Area Computing Unit caught widespread national attention in the 2016 Margot Lee Shetterly book “Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race.” The book was made into a popular movie that same year and Jackson’s character was played by award-winning actress Janelle Monáe.

In 2019, after a bipartisan bill by Sens. Ted Cruz, Ed Markey, John Thune, and Bill Nelson made its way through Congress, the portion of E Street SW in front of NASA Headquarters was renamed Hidden Figures Way.

“We are honored that NASA continues to celebrate the legacy of our mother and grandmother Mary W. Jackson,” said, Carolyn Lewis, Mary’s daughter. “She was a scientist, humanitarian, wife, mother, and trailblazer who paved the way for thousands of others to succeed, not only at NASA, but throughout this nation.”

Jackson was born and raised in Hampton, Virginia. After graduating high school, she graduated from Hampton Institute (an HBCU) in 1942 with a dual degree in math and physical sciences, and initially accepted a job as a math teacher in Calvert County, Maryland. She would work as a bookkeeper, marry Levi Jackson and start a family, and work a job as a U.S. Army secretary before her aerospace career would take off.

In 1951, Jackson was recruited by the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, which in 1958 was succeeded by NASA. She started as a research mathematician who became known as one of the human computers at Langley. She worked under fellow “Hidden Figure” Dorothy Vaughan in the segregated West Area Computing Unit.

After two years in the computing pool, Jackson received an offer to work in the 4-foot by 4-foot Supersonic Pressure Tunnel, a 60,000-horsepower wind tunnel capable of blasting models with winds approaching twice the speed of sound. There, she received hands-on experience conducting experiments. Her supervisor eventually suggested she enter a training program that would allow Jackson to earn a promotion from mathematician to engineer. Because the classes were held at then-segregated Hampton High School, Jackson needed special permission to join her white peers in the classroom. 

Jackson completed the courses, earned the promotion, and in 1958 became NASA’s first Black female engineer. For nearly two decades during her engineering career, she authored or co-authored research numerous reports, most focused on the behavior of the boundary layer of air around airplanes. In 1979, she joined Langley’s Federal Women’s Program, where she worked hard to address the hiring and promotion of the next generation of female mathematicians, engineers and scientists. Mary W. Jackson retired from Langley in 1985.

In 2017, then 99-year-old Katherine Johnson was there to personally dedicate a new state-of-the-art computer research facility the bears her name at Langley. Johnson, another original member of the West Area Computing Unit, also was honored as a trailblazer and given the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015. In addition, Johnson was part of the group honored with the Congressional Gold Medal, and NASA’s Independent Verification and Validation facility in Fairmont, West Virginia, also bears Johnson’s name. 

“NASA facilities across the country are named after people who dedicated their lives to push the frontiers of the aerospace industry. The nation is beginning to awaken to the greater need to honor the full diversity of people who helped pioneer our great nation. Over the years NASA has worked to honor the work of these Hidden Figures in various ways, including naming facilities, renaming streets and celebrating their legacy,” added Bridenstine. “We know there are many other people of color and diverse backgrounds who have contributed to our success, which is why we’re continuing the conversations started about a year ago with the agency’s Unity Campaign. NASA is dedicated to advancing diversity, and we will continue to take steps to do so.” 

The Trump Administration’s History of Honoring “Hidden Figures” and Promoting Black Americans at NASA

• In 2018, Vanessa Wyche was appointed as the first Black American to serve as Deputy Director of Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.
• In 2019, President Donald J. Trump signed the Hidden Figures Congressional Gold Medal Act that posthumously awarded the honor to Jackson, who passed away in 2005, and her “Hidden Figures” colleagues Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Christine Darden.
• In 2019, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine announced Clayton Turner as the first Black American to serve as Director of NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia.

• In 2020, Vice President Pence visited NASA’s Langley Research Center and honored the “Hidden Figures” women and met with some of Katherine Johnson’s family members.   
• For Black History Month 2020, First Lady Melania Trump hosted Deborah Tulani Salahu-Din, an educator and researcher in African American studies, and faculty members and students from Cornerstone Schools of Washington, D.C. in the Family Theater of the White House for a private screening of the movie “Hidden Figures.”

With COVID-19, businesses have started to scale back a little on their advertising and marketing and other businesses have started to market more within the Black and Brown communities due to the rising social justice issues. It is all about being creative in your marketing approach and screenwriter and playwright, T’ana Phelice is helping businesses get some exposure through her latest film, T. Alexander.

T Alexander is a 30-minute short film about a beloved basketball talent, Tosha Alexander, who lost her basketball scholarship after deciding to move forward with an unplanned pregnancy. Prior to becoming a mother at the age of 17, she was the family’s golden child. Although her mother often speaks of Tosha’s life being ruined, and her sister urges her to make fast money by using her good looks, Tosha is determined to become an actress, a second dream she hasn’t given up on. Her boyfriend Damien works at the local grocery store to support everyone in the household,  but Tosha’s family refuses to respect him.

This film will be a testament to the power of having a positive self image. It will document the struggle of being a young parent while also defying the belief that black men do not honor black women. Voice-overs will be used to set a poetic theme, and allow viewers into the mind of the protagonist as she experiences emotional roller coasters throughout her journey.

The story will not be polished with glamour or cliche’ interactions between its characters. It will be raw and true to the grit that’s paired with anguish, jealousy, substance abuse, illness, resentment, unfulfillment, loss, hustle, setbacks, disagreement, disappointments, ruthlessness, sadness, frustration, heartbreak, confusion, mistakes, choices, and ultimately a small win that pays off the latter.

The ultimate goal is to inspire. The film will accomplish that by demonstrating the odds our young woman is able to move in her favor.

The producer of T Alexander will distribute the motion picture to film festivals, and AmazonPrime. Due to a recent theatrical success tied to the writer, director, and co director, business relationships have been formed to secure the release of the film to the public. To enable wider distribution, we will also place the films promotional materials on public platforms such as Facebook and Instagram.

Product and/or business will be featured in the film. Business name, brand, and/or product will be showcased in the film by being a visual element in a particular scene. Example; if the sponsor would like business featured, the business, including business name, will be a focal point of a scene. Example two; if the sponsor would like product featured, the product will be seen or used in a scene in the film. Product will also be a focal point. Sponsors/businesses will also be included in the films closing credits.

For those that are interested, please contact T’ana Phelice at Mstanaphelice@gmail.com or at 323-327-9208.

$5 million fundraising goal and an innovative model of philanthropy

INLAND EMPIRE, CA—- Thanks to the long-standing leadership of Black-led organizations and the power of the cross-racial coalitions they have built, we are seeing tremendous advancements in racial equity in the United States and globally. Countless government agencies, corporations, and foundations have, in a matter of weeks, redoubled their commitments to racial equity and combating anti-Black racism.

Black-led organizations (BLOs) in the Inland Empire are an important part of this story. Capitalizing on decades of patient work and incremental wins to advance racial equity, BLOs in the Inland Empire have scored some significant policy victories in recent weeks. These include getting San Bernardino County as the first in California to declare racism a public health crisis, replicating these victories in several other cities in Southern California, and getting San Bernardino County to include equity as a standalone element in its Countywide Vision.

Continuing in that tradition, the Inland Empire Funders Alliance (IEFA) is proud to partner with the Black Equity Initiative of the Inland Empire in launching the Black Equity Fund—a regional pooled fund with a preliminary goal of raising $5 million over two years and updated thereafter to support long-term investments in Black-led organizations. The Black Equity Fund is being seeded with investments from The California Endowment and the Inland Empire Community Foundation, and has already garnered interest from several foundations and private donors.

The IE Black Equity Fund is the first known regional pooled fund on Black equity that brings together statewide, regional and local funders as well as private donors and corporate philanthropy, working in partnership with leaders of the Inland Empire Black Equity Initiative to advance their priority issues. 

An important innovation of the IE Black Equity Fund is to follow the guiding principles of theTrust-Based Philanthropy Project, which recognizes “the inherent power imbalance between foundations and nonprofits” and approaches grantee relationships “from a place of trust, humility and transparency.” Partners in the regional fund pledge to: 1) give multi-year, unrestricted funding; 2) center IE Black Equity Initiative leaders in decision-making; 3) simplify and streamline paperwork; 4) be transparent and responsive; and 5) offer support beyond the check by participating in peer learning with IE Black Equity Initiative leaders to improve Black equity in funders’ overall grantmaking practice.

Organizers of the Black Equity Fund—including the Inland Empire Funders Alliance, IE Black Equity Initiative, Inland Empire Community Foundation, and the Center for Social Innovation—noted the importance of seizing the moment, and doing so in a way that fundamentally alters power relationships in philanthropy and empowers Black community leaders as much as possible.

 “The Black Equity Fund is being developed through an iterative process based in equity whereby those most impacted and closest to the problems and conditions we need to change are driving the strategy and decision making process.  It’s in those lived experiences where generative and relevant solutions are birthed,” said Margarita Luna, Senior Program Manager at The California Endowment and vice-chair of the Inland Empire Funders Alliance.  

Dina Walker, President & CEO of BLU Educational Foundation noted another innovative aspect of the partnership: “The Black Equity Initiative is a collective impact model with a cultural lens centered on the principles of Kwanzaa,” she noted. “This includes self determination, collective work, and responsibility. It is from this foundation that we work together to create the vision, develop strategy. work the plan and ultimately reap the harvest. We trust and move forward together knowing that our success is intrinsically tied to the success of each other.  This is how we meet the needs and dreams of our community.”

Felicia Jones, Associate Director at Congregations United for Prophetic Engagement, noted that Black led organizations have a powerful track record for leading equity work in the Inland Empire. “Groups began to formally collaborate on issues of educational equity more than a decade ago, moving important reforms in school districts throughout the region,” she noted. “The collaborative, formerly known as the African American Education Collaborative and later renamed the IE Black Equity Initiative, continued to evolve from a group of 10 to now more than 20 Black led organizations and has expanded its collective work into criminal justice reform, higher education, and civic engagement.”

“There is going to be an intentional need for philanthropy to embrace this moment with us, heal with us, learn with us, and see this as a movement building opportunity,” said Pastor Samuel Casey, Executive Director of Congregations Organized for Prophetic Engagement. “We cannot have a short attention span when it comes to systemic solutions. We will need long-term, general operating support to ensure that the gains and wins that have been, and will be achieved, are sustained.” 

Michelle Decker, CEO of the Inland Empire Community Foundation and a co-investor in the Black Equity Fund, underscored the need for funders to repair the damage from decades of underinvestment in Black communities. “We need to come together in a manner that honors the expertise of Black-led organizations,” she noted, adding that “the economic and health challenges of COVID-19, as well as the collective trauma of the killing of Black lives, have shown us that the success of the region will rise or fall based on its progress on racial equity.”

Finally, the Center for Social Innovation led by Professor Karthick Ramakrishnan at UC Riverside is a strategic data partner to both the Black Equity Initiative and the Black Equity Fund. It will provide research support to help motivate, inform, and learn from philanthropic investments in Black-led organizations in the Inland Empire. “The Inland Empire is a center of innovation when it comes to advancing racial equity,” Ramakrishnan noted. “Our communities have come together in even more powerful ways after COVID-19 than they did previously, and we are grateful that our data and narrative work can help strengthen regional investments and support the leadership of Black equity organizations in the region.”