WATSONVILLE, CA—— U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) met with families, small business owners, and farmers in Watsonville and Pajaro impacted by the recent extreme storms in California. During his visit, Padilla surveyed damage near Highway 1 where the breached Pajaro River levee caused devastating flooding to surrounding communities. During the visit, Padilla was joined by Representative Jimmy Panetta (D-Calif.-19), Mark Strudley, PhD, Executive Director of Pajaro Regional Flood Management Agency, and Tommy Williams, Deputy Chief of Project Management at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for the San Francisco District. The visit comes after Padilla and Lofgren successfully led the California Congressional delegation in urging the Biden Administration to approve a Major Disaster Declaration for the most recent severe winter storms and atmospheric river systems.

“It’s clear the communities around Pajaro have a long road ahead of them—not just to rebuild the communities affected by this year’s atmospheric rivers, but to protect the region from future natural disasters,” Senator Padilla said. “I am committed to continuing to push for increased federal investments as we work to address the inequities in our infrastructure that have long existed in our most vulnerable communities. The need will only grow as we continue to experience more frequent and more devastating natural disasters due to climate change.”

“As extreme weather events continue to put pressure on the Pajaro River levee, its antiquated embankments will continue to fail causing flooding in the surrounding fields and forcing families to flee their homes,” said Rep. Panetta. “It’s taken persistent political pressure to secure the necessary federal and state funding and solidify the partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to prioritize the Pajaro River Flood Risk Management Project and put it on an expedited path forward. Nevertheless, we must keep up the pressure to start the project as soon as possible so that we can provide the necessary protections to the produce and people of the Pajaro Valley.”

Padilla surveys damage caused by the Pajaro levee breach and is briefed on the damaging effects of the flood waters reaching the nearby Watsonville Wastewater Water Treatment Plant that threatened over 60,000 residents and 4,000 acres of agricultural land

“Families and businesses in California’s 18^th Congressional District have been uprooted by the recent storms, and the Pajaro River levee breach, specifically, caused much devastation. That’s why Sen. Padilla, Rep. Panetta, and I are pushing to accelerate the federally-authorized levee upgrade project. Since the storms, we learned from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that they could use even more funding to fast-track the improvement efforts, so I am now requesting an additional $200 million for Fiscal Year 2024 through the Community Project Funding process. Unfortunately, severe weather events could get worse, not better, because of climate change, and leaders at all levels of government must make sure our communities are as resilient as possible,” said Rep. Zoe Lofgren.

“At the local level, as project sponsors, we are ready, willing, and able to start building new levees, said Mark Strudley, PhD, Executive Director of Pajaro Regional Flood Management Agency. “We are taking action to remove regulatory obstacles by working with our State and federal partners to hasten project delivery and in the interim to ensure the levees are repaired and ready for next winter.”

“We all continue to quickly respond to this disaster and to ensure sufficient funding is provided for all necessary work,” said Tommy Williams, Deputy Chief of Project Management at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for the San Francisco District. “The Army Corps is committed to delivering near term emergency repair work and providing long term, equitable, and sustainable support for this underserved community with the construction of an improved flood risk management system beginning in the Summer of 2024.”

Senator Padilla along with Senator Feinstein, and Representatives Zoe Lofgren and Jimmy Panetta recently sent a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers urging them to accelerate construction of the federally authorized project to reduce flood risks faced by surrounding urban and agricultural areas, and to provide emergency repairs and response for the towns of Pajaro and Watsonville. Last month, Padilla pressed Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Shalanda Young to ensure adequate resources go to historically overlooked and low-income communities like Pajaro, California, which disproportionately bear the impacts of natural disasters due to lack of adequate protections.

Padilla, Feinstein, and Panetta secured $149 million from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law with Lofgren’s support to address the urgent flood risks along the Pajaro River, including the modernization of the 74-year-old levee system that was breached before improvements could be made.

By Lou K Coleman

War is Coming! The battle lines have been drawn in the sand. The forces have taken their positions. The leaders have exhausted every resource and have resigned themselves to the inevitable. Weapons are ready, now aimed toward the enemy [America]. A war that has been waged for many years but has intensified in the last few centuries. Fighting will be as fierce as it has ever been and if you aren’t under the wings of the Almighty God, you are in trouble. I’m talking about the War in Revelation!

Two beasts—end-time political powers that are Satan’s human agents to carry out his war against the woman and her offspring. This is the same war that began in heaven and quickly moved to earth and is now in its final phase. And in this phase of the war, Satan will succeed in gaining the political control that he failed to achieve in heaven, for Revelation says that he will be “given authority over every tribe, people, language, and nation.” Brace Yourself!

War in Revelation identical to Jesus’ warning that deceptions from end-time signs and miracles by False Christs and False Prophets will be so subtle that they will “deceive even the elect. [Revelation 13:16-17]. The first beast will “make war against the saints and . . . conquer them,” and the second beast will cause anyone who refuses to worship the first beast to be killed! Brace Yourself! Another World War is coming, and it will be the biggest World War ever. According to the Bible, one out of three people on the earth will die in this war of all wars. And out of the chaos and destruction, a strong leader will rise to promise peace and security. The Antichrist will step onto the world scene at just the right moment. He will provide firm direction, but he will also demand absolute obedience. Brace Yourself!

I want you to know that there are four prophetic developments occurring right now that demonstrate how close we are to the Euphrates River War, otherwise known as World War III. Get under the wings of the Almighty God NOW! DO NOT DELAY!

Read and understand the prophetic truths found in the Book of Revelation. [Revelation 6:2; 4; 11:7; 12:7; 13:4, 7; 16:14; 17:14; 19:11; 19:19]. As Daniel related too in the final chapter of his book God will open up the prophetical books at the end times so that those with wisdom can discern what is coming. Because what God prophesied for ancient Judah also applies to America. Brace Yourself!

SACRAMENTO, CA— Assemblymember Dr. Corey Jackson has introduced Assembly Bill (AB) 702, the Promoting Youth Success and Empowerment Act (PROMYSE Act), to support community-based youth development services in juvenile justice programs. The bill will reduce the involvement of law enforcement entities in these programs, by shifting resources to Community Based Organizations (CBO) and other non-law enforcement agencies, that provide trauma informed, restorative programs and services for youth impacted by the juvenile justice system.

In 2022, 63% of JJCPA funds were spent on probation salaries and benefits, with half of all California counties spending more than 70% of their JJCPA funds on probation salaries and benefits. Riverside County alone spent 15% more this past year on probation salaries and benefits than in 2021. The record low numbers of youth being referred to probation does not match the JJCPA allocation. Referrals to juvenile probation declined 66% between 2006 and 2020, with an additional 24.7% drop between 2020 and 2021.

According to Assemblymember Dr. Corey Jackson, “AB 702 (PROMYSE Act) will help ensure that our juvenile justice system is centered around the needs of our youth and their families, rather than punitive measures. By prioritizing community-based youth development services and increasing community representation in the Juvenile Justice Coordinating Council (JJCC), we can create programs that promote healing and restoration for our at-promise youth.”

Co-sponsored and supported by a broad coalition of CBOs (listed below), AB 702 will require programs and strategies funded under these provisions to be modeled on healing-centered, restorative, trauma-informed, and positive youth development approaches in collaboration with community-based organizations. This bill recognizes the critical support and skills that CBOs bring, and the added value that in-community programming provides to not only prevent recidivism, but can address the needs and challenges that youth face in their neighborhoods. To increase the success of this supportive arm, this bill also requires no less than 95% of JJCPA funds to be allocated to community-based organizations and public agencies or departments that are not law enforcement entities. Programs such as those provided by Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice (CURYJ) in Oakland include culturally-competent community healing work, youth leadership development programs catered to systems-impacted youth and young adults, life coaching, violence interruption work, build youth leaders and have shown to prevent violence, crime, and further re-entrenching youth in the criminal justice system.

Breon Hatcher, Leadership Development Programs Associate at CURYJ, and a formerly incarcerated youth who went through CURYJ programming before becoming an employee said, “Through CURYJ, I gained a deeper understanding of how the school-to-prison pipeline affected me directly, and the ways the system could have invested in building us up and giving us a pathway to flourish, rather than using $600k to incarcerate a youth. Being a part of CURYJ, I am able to turn my pain into healing by reimagining how the system works,”

Organizations such as SBX Youth & Family Services provide a variety of programs and services to youth and their families in the Inland Empire. Their prevention and intervention programs offered to young people are restorative, culturally focused, trauma-informed and youth-centered. These include mentoring programs, restorative justice programming, youth civic engagement initiatives, and culturally focused programs that build cultural and historical appreciation of self while also establishing confidence in identity.

Jessica Aparicio, Director of Engagement & Social Impact from SBX Youth & Family Services, also expressed support for the bill, stating that “AB 702 (PROMYSE Act) is a step in the right direction towards creating a more just and equitable juvenile justice system. By promoting healing-centered, restorative, trauma-informed, and positive youth development approaches, we can create programs that empower our youth and their families to thrive rather than continue to punish them.”

Furthermore, AB 702 (PROMYSE Act) requires the Juvenile Justice Coordinating Council (JJCC) of each county to provide annual, data-driven reports to the Counties Board of Supervisors and the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) relating to their programs. AB 702 (PROMYSE Act) has been referred to the Committee on Public Safety and is set to be reviewed on Tuesday, April 25, 2023.

The bills co-sponsors include:

Alliance for Boys and Men of Color
Bend the Arc: Jewish Action, California
California Alliance – Youth & Community Justice
Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice
Children’s Defense Fund-California
Community Interventions
Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice
Fresh Lifelines for Youth
National Center for Youth Law
National Prevention Science Coalition to Improve Lives
SBX Youth & Family Services

PACIFIC OCEAN (April 10, 2023) Aviation Electronics Technician 3rd Class Adrian Diaz, left, a native of Hesperia, Calif., and Aviation Electronics Technician Mason Schepf, a native of Winnie, Texas, perform general maintenance on a thermal imaging camera aboard Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70). Vinson is currently underway conducting Group Sail. Group Sail demonstrates Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group’s ability to rapidly aggregate the strike group units and provides an opportunity to conduct progress training to enhance levels of excellence, increase lethality and tactical proficiency of U.S. Navy units operating in the 3rd Fleet area of operation.

By Lue Dowdy | LUE Productions

Who does not love old-school music? It is something about them classics that still hits just right. Let me take a moment to introduce you to The Bromatics. The Bromatics are an Old-School R&B singing group Based in Southern California, Inland Empire to be exact.

Currently managed by STONEGAS ENTERTAINMENT, The Bromatics are singing, snapping, sliding, and spinning their way right into the hearts of many. The group was founded in 2017 and includes current members: Bill Vincent (The Doctor), Melvin Smith (Melly Mel), Robert Harris (Iceman), Victor Andrade (Magic) and Henry Andrade (Smokey). The group has performed throughout southern California at various venues.

Below is a listing of past gigs, future, gigs and five things you should know about this dynamic group.

Past Events: Private Anniversary party (Mel’s)-Temecula August 2021, The Canyon (Montclair) April 2022, The Lemon Festival-Upland June 2022, The Stuffed Potato-Anaheim-Sept 2022, The Adelanto Festival—Adelanto-October 2022, The Stuffed Potato-November 2022, Private Christmas party- Temecula December 2022, Private Christmas Party-Long Beach December 2022, Oak Mountain Winery-Temecula-Feb 2023

Upcoming Events:

The Fine Arts Theatre-Beverly Hills, 8556 Wilshire Blvd, Beverly Hills 90211 Saturday, April 29, 2023

The Mother’s Day Brunch-Haven City Market Place,8443 Haven Ave, Rancho Cucamonga 91370 Sunday, May 14, 2023

The Five (5) things you should know about the Bromatics:

1. The group performs an exciting show filled with great Old School 70’s songs, creative choreography, and sharp dress attire.
2. The group is professional on and off stage.
3. The Bromatics have a solid personal following.
4. The group is interested in all forums of musical entertainment including Jazz Festivals, Soul Cruises, and Casinos.
5. They’re committed to expanding their brand, shows and overall appeal.

For more information on booking inquiries please visit their website at www.BROMATIC.com

By Angela Coggs
The community is invited to attend the San Bernardino-Riverside Area Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Thera Sorority, Inc.’s Black & White Brunch Affair on Saturday, April 29, 2023, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the beautiful rolling hills of the Indian Hills Golf Club at 5700 Club House Drive in Riverside.

This event is open to the public and serves to successfully support high school students and sustain meaningful programs and scholarships in our service area. Tickets are $100.00 ($104.12 including PayPal fees). Interested attendees can scan the QR Code or visit www.sbraac-dst.org or mail a check to: SBRAAC, PO Box 7938, Moreno Valley, CA 92552.

There will be delicious food, dancing, a live DJ, 360 Photo Booth, Silent Auction and Vendors. This years honorees include Daphne Hawkins and Neighbors United Political Action Committee.

Please plan to attend this amazing event and support our local programs and scholarships. The deadline to purchase tickets is on Monday, April 24, 2023. If you have any questions, please contact Cynthia Alexander Holt at the email listed above.

We look forward seeing you there.

By Brian Whitehead

SAN BERNARDINO, CA—- The playground at Vermont Elementary School is much greener these days thanks to five brothers who donated a new soccer field to the Muscoy school and greater community where they got their start.

Well before the McGuire brothers built their successful bail bonds company, Cesar, Danny, Gabriel, Gilbert and Marco lived down the street from Vermont Elementary and played football, tag, baseball and every other outdoor sport on the grass field and blacktop at the rear of the school.

The siblings returned Friday, April 14, to unveil their $250,000 gift to the place they called home.

“For some,” youngest brother Cesar McGuire said to those gathered, “this may just be another playground in a neighborhood. But for others, like myself, my brothers and the people of this community, it’s hope. Hope that the kids who play on this field will be inspired, inspired to become athletes, teachers, entrepreneurs, community leaders or anything else that helps contribute to our society.

“Even if the new field inspires just one kid,” McGuire continued, “it was worth it.”
At 2 acres, the McGuire Family Community Soccer Field is plenty big for hundreds of Vermont students to run around freely.

Avagrow, a Holland-based hydroponics grow shop, installed the grass over three months with an eye toward creating strong root development and retaining water.

Six trees on the perimeter of the field represent the five McGuire brothers and their sister.

The natural and healthy grass is as lush as it is green, a perfect playing surface with “a tremendous number of benefits to the environment and community,” McGuire said. “What we do today will set an example for generations to come.”

Serving a high-poverty, low-income community, Vermont has a majority Latino, Hispanic, Mexican student population, Perez said. No matter the challenges, she added, “it’s also one of the most beautiful communities I’ve ever had the pleasure of serving because it is one of unity, love and support.”

Kayden Bejarano, a Vermont student, spoke to those in attendance Friday of the benefits the new field will provide.

“Soccer can be a chance for kids who don’t know how to play soccer to learn how to play,” he said. “A soccer team can make kids get off their phones and work to be good at sports they like. A soccer team can be an influence for kids to learn that when you lose, it can be a good thing because you learn you need more practice to win.”

A gift that will last a lifetime, Perez called the field.

“This is a way for us, the McGuire family, as a whole, to say thank you for allowing the McGuires to leave their mark on a place that we called home almost 40 years ago today,” McGuire said.

“Muscoy.”

By Gina Warren, Marilyn Woods, Damond “Fade” Dorrough, and Sarah Marikos | Special to California Black Media Partners

There is a transformation taking place in an area of Sacramento once notorious for gang violence, sex trafficking, and near decimation brought on by the crack and opioid epidemics.

Despite the cultural taboos around mental health that still exist in many communities, this transformation is healing intergenerational trauma and changing trajectories – by getting to the root.

There’s plenty of evidence documenting how our early experiences shape our health and behavior. Adverse Childhood Experiences, or ACEs, such as abuse, neglect, and growing up in a household with violence, incarceration or problematic substance use, can lead to prolonged activation of the body’s stress response, a condition known as the toxic stress response, which affects both mental and physical health throughout the lifetime – even making changes to our DNA that ripple across generations.

The impacts of ACEs are compounded by factors like racism, poverty, and community violence, leading to even greater risk of developing the mental and physical health problems associated with toxic stress.

Consider that adults with four or more ACEs are 30 times more likely to experience suicidal behaviors than those with no ACEs. That’s one in six US adults. The urgency begins early in life, as children with four ACEs are eight times more likely to experience suicidal behaviors compared to children without ACEs. While these statistics may sound alarming, we see this as a charge – a cause to connect in community, a way to destigmatize what we carry, and a path to prevention.

The good news is that healthy environments and resources can help to regulate the stress response and heal and protect us from the effects of ACEs and toxic stress. Some of the most powerful and effective work we can do to address mental health and suicide – including the concerning rates among Black men and boys – is to prevent and address childhood adversity and intergenerational trauma. This is the core of the work we’re doing from our home on the intersection of Grand Avenue and Clay Street in the heart of Del Paso Heights (DPH) in Sacramento, through grassroots organization Neighborhood Wellness.

In DPH, like so many neighborhoods all over the US, many of our Black families are navigating intangible complexities of poverty every day.   They are suffering – some out loud, spreading their pain through violence. Some move with what appears to be a reckless disregard, coping in ways that put themselves and others at risk. Some hold it together in stoic silence, grinding through the days but barely calling it a life, or masking their inner world as they perform to others’ expectations.

Childhood in DPH is far from carefree. In addition to carrying their own baggage, Black people have been handed down the traumas of our elders. They navigate systems hostile to them while bearing these tremendous burdens. Since Neighborhood Wellness got its start in 2015, we’ve been disrupting cycles of intergenerational trauma. We work to remove stigma around accessing help, and to change what help can look like. For many in our community who have felt institutionally and structurally betrayed and neglected, just learning to trust somebody is the beginning of breaking the cycle.

Programs like our Restore Legacies restorative justice program and our Higher Heights self-paced high school diploma program for adults, along with services ranging from parenting skills and DUI classes with trauma education to lifesaving opioid overdose reversal and wound treatment response trainings all address a legacy of inequities and lower barriers to thriving in our community. Our Healing Circles create a trusted space to help us deconstruct what we carry – the effects of our childhoods, what we’ve inherited from those who came before us, the ways racism and trauma have impacted our ability to learn, grow, and create our own paths.

In DPH, transformation is taking place. Mixed generations are sharing in our Healing Circles, acknowledging the need to be mindful of what others may be carrying, stepping into their roles in their families as the innovators – the ones to help make change. We’re working to empower our community, to help them see their value. Consider the fortitude, the resilience, the strength it requires just to keep showing up most days. To do the work of unburdening what we can and shouldering what we must continue to carry, and still trying to find happiness, joy, love, and greatness. Students in our high school Healing Circles get an early start on this work of unburdening, and we provide additional behavioral health services on campus to ensure our young people have a safe space to make strong strides toward promising paths.

At Neighborhood Wellness, we provide the kind of community care that shines like a beacon in any kind of weather, calling our neighbors home and reminding us: no one is on this journey alone.

When we disrupt cycles of trauma and reduce childhood adversity for the next generation – through awareness, education, skill-building, mental health care, access to resources, and lowering barriers – this is suicide prevention. This is helping keep each other alive. This is building the future of our neighborhood, and beyond.

About the Authors

Gina Warren, Pharm.D. – CEO & Co-Founder, Neighborhood Wellness

Dr. Warren, who earned her doctorate from UCSF, brings both clinical and grassroots perspectives to leading an interdisciplinary team to serve the Del Paso Heights community, her childhood neighborhood.

Marilyn Woods – CFO & Co-Founder, Neighborhood Wellness

The retired CEO/CFO/co-owner of the Institute for Fiduciary Education, Marilyn manages corporate development, assists with strategic development and executive management, and serves on the board.

Damond “Fade” Dorrough – Senior Neighborhood Navigator, Neighborhood Wellness

Damond is generationally rooted in DPH and provides historical perspective and understanding that help address the challenges in the current conditions.

Sarah Marikos, MPH – Executive Director, ACE Resource Network

A public health leader and epidemiologist, Sarah leads ACE Resource Network’s national and community-based efforts, along with their work to advance research on the biology of trauma.

California Black Media’s coverage of Mental Health in California is supported by the California Health Care Foundation

SAN BERNARDINO, CA— Earth Day is April 22, and the High Desert has several cleanups planned in honor of the occasion.

• City of Victorville will host its Community Cleanup Day on April 22. Volunteers work in teams at multiple locations throughout the city from 8 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., picking up litter from roadsides. The city provides volunteers with bottled water, gloves, trash bags and litter sticks, and then disposes of all the trash/litter collected. For more information, call (760) 955-3306.
• Town of Apple Valley is celebrating Earth Day on April 22 with a Community Cleanup. All families, clubs, churches, businesses, organizations, or individuals are welcome to join. Pre-register at Town Hall to receive a free shirt, water, and trash bags, while supplies last. For more information, call 760-240-7880.
• City of Hesperia will host its Community Cleanupon April 22. Hesperia holds two Cleanup Days each year to clean up vacant areas and encourage the community to get involved. Volunteers work in teams at multiple locations throughout the City from 8 a.m. to noon. Volunteers receive a free event t-shirt and clean-up supplies.

Join the Victor Valley Museum on April 22 to celebrate Earth Day. Make wildflower “seed bombs,” and create spring arts and crafts with the family. The event runs from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. All activities are included with museum admission. For more information, call 760-995-8770.

The National Park Service invites the community to visit Mojave National Preserve for an Earth Day Weekend Campout and Cleanup on April 21-23. The event will include free camping, outdoor barbecues, a night sky program and live entertainment. Learn more and register.

Victor Valley Transit will celebrate Earth Day by providing free rides on all buses on Saturday, April 22. For more information, please call (760) 948-3030.

By Svante Myrick
There are moments when we know, suddenly and with total clarity, that we have just experienced a seminal moment in history. Sometimes those events are tragic. And sometimes, as in the last two weeks, they are beautiful and inspiring and renew our faith in humanity.

I’m talking about the history that was made in Tennessee this month by “the Justins,” Reps. Justin Jones and Justin Pearson. I was in Tennessee for the fight to reinstate both of them to their state House seats after being expelled by the Republican House leadership. Their “crime”? Daring to call for common-sense gun safety measures.

Never mind that the majority of Tennesseans want gun safety; never mind that hundreds of people were protesting in favor of gun safety at the state capital, in the wake of the horrific Covenant School shooting. Reps. Jones and Pearson, two young Black freshman lawmakers, had to go. And to make it even more obvious how racist this was, a third lawmaker who had spoken out along with Pearson and Jones – Rep. Gloria Johnson, a white woman – was not expelled.

What began as a shameful attempt to humiliate these young people turned instead into a hero-making moment. It was incredible to see the energy of the coalition that rallied around Pearson and Jones. It was even more incredible to see the grace and brilliance with which both of them carried themselves throughout this ordeal. These two men are brave, unflappable and principled to the core. In just a few days, both were back – reinstated by officials in their districts. Both will be reelected in the special elections ahead, I am sure.

This event is historic and significant on so many levels, it’s almost impossible to absorb it all. We saw naked racism on the part of GOP lawmakers, and we saw it rebuked. We saw a desperate effort to resist the will of the people through the antidemocratic act of expelling duly-elected lawmakers, also defeated. We saw one of the clearest examples yet of the promise of youth leadership that is determined to right wrongs not just when it comes to gun violence, but climate change, racial equity, reproductive freedom, and all the problems that older generations have struggled to solve.

We saw the future.

This gives us so much to look forward to as the Pearson-Jones generation rises to power. It’s been a truism for decades that as younger generations age, they become more conservative – shoring up entrenched power structures. But that has all changed.

Polls show that unlike past generations, millennials are not becoming more conservative as they get older. As a millennial myself, I can see why: we grew up with the invasion of Iraq, an economy that failed us, a dangerously warming climate, Donald Trump as President of the United States and the loss of abortion protections. My generation has a different vision. Millennials and younger GenZ folks are fighting for our values, organizing across race, age, and every other difference, and carving a new path.

On the day he was reinstated to his House seat, Justin Pearson spoke out boldly about being expelled from the legislature, saying “you can’t expel hope.” He’s right. Not only could they not expel it, Tennessee’s House Republicans fueled it. Their effort to stop the future from coming galvanized a legion of young progressives whose heroes are Pearson and Jones.

It won’t be the last time the Old Guard pushes back against progress. And there will be more threats to our democracy when they do. But all of us will remember this amazing moment in history when two young Black men stood up and the world rallied to their side. So what we need now is an interracial, intergenerational commitment to keep our democracy intact for this young generation that will take the lead. Tennessee showed us: that day is coming soon.

Svante Myrick is President of People For the American Way. Previously, he served as executive director of People For and led campaigns focused on transforming public safety, racial equity, voting rights, and empowering young elected officials. Myrick garnered national attention as the youngest-ever mayor in New York State history.