By Dianne Anderson Access to money – where to get it, how to make it, and how to keep it – is at the root of most community development concerns. When it comes to meeting local needs, a lot is on the table at the Long Beach Center for Economic Inclusion, including help with housing, ...

By Dr. Margaret Fortune I cannot aptly describe just how complicated running a school has become in the era of COVID-19. New categories of jobs have been created in schools just to contact trace, test, and track the escalation of the virus as it spreads. The county health department gave our school a one-page “decision ...

By Aldon Thomas Stiles California Black Media Until recently, Gov. Newsom’s strategy for responding to the litany of attacks he’s received from Larry Elder, the Republican frontrunner in the upcoming Sept. 14 recall election has been to not respond directly to them. Newsom’s responses have focused on his accomplishments, indirectly alluding to Elder’s attacks, and ...

By Dianne Anderson Sickness and disease, and saying goodbye to loved ones have been a next-level reality check for the community, but Juanita Matthews is no stranger to grief. Her foundation was developed out of her own past devastation, and became the basis for how she is now helping others get through their most difficult ...

By Edward Henderson California Black Media Last week, the U.S. Census Bureau held a press conference to announce its first local level findings from the 2020 data collection cycle. The new numbers — which drill down to provide demographic information at the county, city and block levels — reveal that California is more multiracial, more ...

By Dianne Anderson Robbie Butler finds that the hardest fight against COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in the Black community is getting past all the misinformation that’s floating around. As part of the city’s Black Health Equity collaborative, her organization is reaching out, educating and encouraging the community to get tested and vaccinated. She’s working health fairs, ...

By Aldon Thomas Stiles California Black Media On Aug. 3 in Perris, Lincoln Cooper and Fortunate Hove Cooper handed out free backpacks full of school supplies and hand sanitizers to struggling families during a triple-digit heat wave. They were joined by a handful of volunteers that included representatives from the Moreno Valley School District. “This ...

By Charlene Crowell On August 4, an estimated 11 million American consumers facing imminent evictions gained a short-term reprieve, thanks to an eviction moratorium extension ordered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Effective August 3 through October 3, counties experiencing substantial and high levels of COVID-19 levels, many of which are driven ...

By Dianne Anderson By now, most Americans may be noticing the COVID-19 vaccine works better than imagined against the highly contagious Delta variant, which is probably why some of the staunchest anti-vaxxers are rethinking the fourth wave of the surge. Half of America, about 180 million are now fully vaccinated, but the question remains where ...

Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Sr Natl Correspondent House and Senate Democrats are looking to the White House to immediately act to stop evictions after the federal moratorium expired on July 31. But President Joe Biden said a recent Supreme Court ruling means the administration cannot unilaterally extend the moratorium. For his part, the President ...