Reuben Franco, Doug Wooley, U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh, Bobby McDonald, Larry Chung and Davina Samuel.
Reuben Franco, Doug Wooley, U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh, Bobby McDonald, Larry Chung and Davina Samuel.
Politics

UC Irvine Host Minority Business Round Table Featuring U.S. Labor Secretary

It is unusual for labor and business to work together in a legislative battle.

However the Biden administration has engaged with the private sector and seems to have shown an appreciation of employers’ struggles to rebound from the Covid-19 disaster and the nation’s crumbling infrastructure.

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Latest Highlights

Former U.K. Black Broadcast News Pioneer ‘Feels Meghan Markle’s Pain’

4 years ago in Social Issues
Barbara Blake Britain's First Black Female News Presenter
Britian’s 1st Black TV news presenter says she’s not surprised to learn racism against Meghan Markle was a key factor the Duke & Duchess of Sussex choosing to leave the monarchy in England for private lives in Southern California!

Barbara Blake-Hannah spoke via videochat from Jamaica, where she returned after anti-Black viewers convinced her then-employer Thames Television to yank her off the air!

Hired in 1968, Blake-Hannah worked 9 months at the now defunct network, one of 3 reporters on “The Today Show” evening newscast hosted by Eamonn Andrews.

Blake-Hannah recalls Thames TV directors telling her in a meeting, 
“We’re not going to renew your contract because every day, people call in and say ‘get that N-word off our screens!’ And they used to use that word as freely as that back in those days. Get her OFF our screens. We don’t want to see THAT on our screens.”

In conversation with the Jamaica Cultural Alliance of Los Angeles, Blake-Hannah linked the racism behind her firing decades ago with the modern treatment of Meghan Markle, the biracial American actor who married into the Royal family four years ago.

Barbara Blake-Hannah says she was deeply disappointed Thames TV didn’t stand up to racists in her day. And she’s certain similar attitudes hounded the Duke of Sussex, his biracial wife and their mixed race son.

“This whole issue with Meghan Markle and her husband Prince Harry has pointed out how endemic racism is in Britain. It’s still a disgrace! Still a disgrace. It makes me ashamed that my home country Jamaica is still ruled by the Crown of England! We’re still a British colony, so to speak.”

During her years in the UK, Blake-Hannah held several journalism jobs including a stint at The Sunday Times, where she interviewed entertainer Sammy Davis Jr., comedian Jack Benny, author Jacqueline Susann (“Valley of the Dolls”) and actor Michael Caine.

Blake-Hannah arrived in the UK with extensive journalism experience after working for SPOTLIGHT and NEWDAY, magazines founded in Jamaica by her father, renowned publisher Evon Blake.

After an international career as a filmmaker, writer and consultant, Barbara Blake-Hannah “semi-retired” in Kingston. This summer, she’ll turn 80 years old.

Barbara Blake-Hannah spoke to the Jamaica Cultural Alliance shortly before the airing of Oprah Winfrey’s bombshell interview with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.

Today she praises Prince Harry and Meghan Markle for leaving the UK to chart their own path in Southern California.

“She endured SO much racism in the media. I can’t blame her. I can well understand why she said ‘No More!’ What was wonderful was, her husband said ‘I agree!’ I will step aside with you.”

“In fact, it looked like he’d been wanting to step aside from that pomp and ceremony for a very long time.”

Historic and Showstopping, Her Words Captivated A Nation

4 years ago in Politics
Amanda Gorman

Amanda Gorman, a 22-year-old poet laureate and the youngest inaugural poet in U.S. history read an original work “The Hill We Climb” after Joe Biden and Kamala Harris were sworn in as president and vice president.

The stunning petite Los Angeles native, dressed in a daffodil-colored coat and strawberry-colored headband, captured the nation’s attention with her emotional recital. Keep Reading

A Retrospective of 2020 Elections California, Florida and Georgia 

4 years ago in Politics
Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock

America begins recovery from the 2020 elections coverage there was no parallel in this nation’s history. Perhaps it’s a sign of the changing political landscape in the county downplays any suggestion that there might be a substantial analysis needed explain the 2020 results. 

The whole voting universe was turned upside down by Covid19. While an overwhelming emphasis was on electoral strategy, and on the problems the coronavirus pandemic and racial justice movement are major stories that have impacted last November’s general election.  Keep Reading

Understanding Covid-19 Vaccines

4 years ago in Health/Social Issues

Authorized and Recommended Vaccines

As Covid-19 vaccines are authorized and recommended for use in US by the Center for Disease Control two vaccines are available, Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech. A third vaccine made by Johnson & Johnson is in late-stage clinical trials.

There is still some confusion of what to expect after vaccination, as well as ingredients, safety, and effectiveness.

Vaccines in Phase 3 Clinical Trials

The CDC says that as of December 2020, large-scale (Phase 3) clinical trials are planned for three COVID-19 vaccines in the United States:

  • AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine
  • Janssen’s COVID-19 vaccine
  • Novavax’s COVID-19 vaccine

#COVID19 vaccines are safe and effective. Millions of people in the United States have received COVID-19 vaccines, and these vaccines have undergone the most intensive safety monitoring in U.S. history. More on COVID-19 vaccine safety: https://bit.ly/3pE2Go7.

Musicians Struggle Through The Pandemic

5 years ago in Entertainment

As the country begins to reopen, government officials are hoping that industries battered by the COVID-19 crisis will start to rebound. But for musicians it may still be a long while before things are normal again.

That’s a harsh reality for musician since live concerts won’t be coming back soon.

“We’re freelancers unless you’re a member of an established group such as the Rolling Stones,” says drummer Marvin “Smitty” Smith. “So for the freelance musician such as myself it’s been devastating because there’s no where for me to play.” Keep Reading

Two Black Churches Evolving During Covid19 Pandemic

5 years ago in Social Issues
John E Cager III conducts his online sermon

Black churches are responding to the threat of the coronavirus pandemic by migrating to online services while feeding and serving its immediate community.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines calls for social distancing as black faith leaders find it necessary to discontinue in-person church services.

Most historically black churches are adapting to a virtual worship service. Keep Reading

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