Riding for peace, love and family in South LA

July 6, 2012 By Leave a Comment


by Jessica Kendall-Bar

imageThe South LA ride and festival organized by Shuntain Thomas of the Real Rydaz brought people from many different parts of Los Angeles to Vermont and Exposition to ride together on July 1. With support from other local bike clubs, including the East Side Riders and Los Ryderz, the Real Rydaz led this ten mile bike ride through South Los Angeles. They encourage being active and fighting obesity by biking in the local community. They raised awareness of the problem of child obesity by having the bike tour end with live performances from local artists, a raffle bike give-away, and presentations by health outreach services.

imageShuntain Thomas, the Real Rydaz, and We Are Responsible People (WARP) worked to create this event not only to spread awareness of the possible health problems related with inactivity, but also to encourage the creation of bike lanes and bike friendly city planning in South L.A. This year has given rise to many more bike lanes than in previous years, but safety concerns still exist. There are complicated intersections which make community members concerned that children or other bikers may be hit by trains and cars. The Real Rydaz surpassed many obstacles in acquiring the needed permits for the ride and put on an event which effectively brought people together to celebrate their community and what it has to offer.

Filed Under: Community Tagged With: , , , ,

Opinion: Fat People Don’t Need Government Sponsored Counseling

July 6, 2012 By Leave a Comment


By Jasmyne A. Cannick

The federal government’s idea to “counsel” obese people on their eating habits is as backwards as the government’s war on drugs championing the D.A.R.E. program after the CIA supported the trafficking of cocaine into the U.S. to help finance the purchase of guns for the Contras.

The announcement that a federal health advisory panel recommended that all obese adults receive “intensive counseling” in an effort to rein in a growing health crisis in America is to me just another sign of our government’s “hero complex” and leads me to believe that maybe they are the ones in need of the counseling.

As someone who falls into America’s clinical definition of being obese, let me be the first to say that intensive counseling is not to going to tip the scales one weigh or another for me. Besides, if I wanted to be counseled on my eating habits, all I have to do is turn on my television to [insert the name of network here] and watch the latest craze in celebrity TV doctors.

America’s obesity epidemic wasn’t created overnight. It was methodically planned out and designed by the same people who are now overly obsessed with how much I weigh—but not necessarily what I eat and where I can exercise.

The same institution that wants to send people like me to “intensive counseling” co-signed the land use permits that paved the way for theproliferation of fast food restaurants we see today. It’s also the same institution that would rather see a 24-hour gym erected where taxes can be collected than design apark using taxpayer dollars where residents can exercise for free.

And what about the cost of food? Everybody who eats fast food doesn’t enjoy it. But when you can feed a family of 4 on a 10-piece bucket of chicken (with biscuits) for $5 verses spending $20 or more at the grocery store to buy the same ingredients to make the same meal—what are you going to do? The unemployed and those living on a tight budget will tell you that dollar menus start to look pretty good when you’re broke and hungry.

Even though I can appreciate the First Lady’s White House Kitchen Garden—a lot of the same obese people she’s targeting with her Healthy Food Initiative and Let’s Move program, don’t have a yard—let alone a garden to grow vegetables for their children to eat. I like a good farmer’s market as much as the next person, but urban communities plagued with obese children and adults still need a grocery store that offers more than lettuce, corn, apples, bananas, and oranges. A variety of fresh, affordable fruits and vegetables should be available all and not just the wealthier and healthier communities.

But alas, the plot thickens because almost seemingly in cahoots with the government and the fast food industry is Big Pharma. Thanks in part to Big Pharma, I ended up with a RiteAid, CVS Pharmacy, and Walgreens all in one block and I guess that wasn’t enough because now Kaiser is moving in.

So after I guzzle down my hamburger, french fries, 32-ounce soda, with a side of diabetes and stroke, I can just drive next door to the pharmacy and get my insulin prescription refilled, high blood pressure, cholesterol, and heart medicines. How convenient.

Obesity is big business. The more we eat, the fatter we are. The fatter we are, the sicker we are. The sicker we are, the more drugs we need and on and on.

At the end of the day, everyone cops a profit—right down to the clothing designers and manufacturers who are trying to keep up with ourdesire to fashionable and trendsetters coupled with our ever-expanding waistlines.

If the government really wants to put a dent in America’s fat problem, why don’t they commission a national study on the impact of price reductions on fresh fruit, vegetables, and other healthy foods in urban neighborhoods where obesity is an issue? What about the development of a taypayer-funded program targeting the clinically obese with free memberships to their local gym? Then the government could report back on whether or not access to cheaper healthier food and a gym free of charge resulted in better eating habits and living choices.

Offering or even mandating counseling as hope or a solution for the millions of obese people in America is just another one of those sound bites that sound good but means nothing. Eat on that.

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Author Jasmyne Cannick

Jasmyne A. Cannick is a political communications strategist after having worked in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the California State Legislature. She is also a radio and television politics, race, and culture critic. Follow her on Twitter @jasmyne and on Facebook at /jasmyne.

Filed Under: Politics Tagged With: , ,

Student credits community activism for high graduation rate

July 1, 2012 By Leave a Comment


By Lizette Tejeda, Fremont Graduating Senior

South Los Angeles is a community that was once associated with poverty and despair, pain and suffering and even hate and crime. All of the negativity isn’t gone just yet, however the community is slowly but surely getting rid of its bad reputation and creating a new and more positive name for itself.

imageI attended John C. Fremont High School in South Los Angeles, and I have been part of an organization called Community Coalition, which strives for change in South LA since my sophomore year in high school.

Thanks to this organization I was able to be part of the restructuring process that Fremont went through. I voiced my concerns as not only a student but as a resident of my community.

We had three main goals that we wanted the school administration to adopt: comprehensive mental wellness programs, a health career academy, and a dropout prevention and intervention program. We set high expectations for not only the school but for ourselves.

The students and staff at Community Coalition got organized and we set out to make classroom presentations, handed out surveys to students, made several speeches and gave it our all to make the most out of the opportunity that the restructuring process presented for our community.

We worked hard to turn Fremont around and make it a model for the rest of the high schools in South LA. The restructuring process seems to have been a success, but Fremont has yet to build a health career academy, which means our work is still not done. However, I am proud of the achievements we have made over the past two years and the results that we have had.

Along with over 750 of my peers, Fremont High School’s class of 2012 made our families, the school and us proud for graduating the biggest class in its history. This is just one of the many accomplishments we have made thanks to all the hard work and effort that was put into the restructuring process.

I graduated Fremont with high honors and it felt great to make my single mother proud. I am an only child and my mother’s biggest treasure. She has always told me “tu eres mi orgullo, mi razón de vivir, mi todo! Tu tienes que estudiar muy duro para salir adelante con una carrera y no tener que trabajar tan duro igual que yo.” In English this translates into, “You are my greatest pride, my reason for being, you are my everything. You have to work very hard to get ahead with a career so you don’t have to work as hard as I do.”

These are the words that have filled my earliest memories. I can still hear these exact words being spoken in my subconscious. My mother is my hero and the reason why I never give up on anything. I will be attending UC Santa Cruz this fall in hopes of returning to my community with a degree in hand and ready to work on the next South LA campaign.
I am an activist that wants nothing but peace and love in this world; however, I understand that it will be very difficult to achieve it. I am proud to be a part of a community that has gone through so much, from riots to everyday gang banging, and yet ,still has the ability to unite as one when the occasion calls for it.

I see the world in a different way than someone who lives in the suburbs. I know how cruel violence and poverty can be. The simple fact that I live here makes me so much stronger and makes me appreciate everything so much more.

I am proud to say that I am an activist for my community and the people who live in it. There has always been and will always be injustice everywhere as long as people allow it, but I will always fight for justice because of the people in my community have strived for so much and ahve yet to see the day when their hard work pays off.

Anything and everything that’s worth doing in life has its struggle and activism is one of those things that requires a lot of hard work and perseverance for any change to occur. Activism is more than a passion to me, it is the need to not only create, but to maintain a much-needed social change in a poverty-stricken community like mine.

Filed Under: Education Tagged With: , , , ,

June 27th:  HIV testing day

June 25, 2012 By Leave a Comment


Each year, on June 27, the National Association of People With AIDS (NAPWA), in partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), AIDS.gov, and other national and local entities across the country organizes National HIV Testing Day. This unique initiative sends the message, “Take the Test, Take Control,” to those at risk from HIV from those already living with HIV.

National HIV Testing Day was developed in response to the growing number of HIV infections in communities of color and other heavily impacted communities. Nearly 1.2 million people are living with HIV in the U.S., and almost one in five don’t know they are infected.

Who should get the HIV test?
Here is what the CDC’s website says:
The following are behaviors that increase your chances of getting HIV. If you answer yes to any of them, you should definitely get an HIV test. If you continue with any of these behaviors, you should be tested every year. Talk to a health care provider about an HIV testing schedule that is right for you.

—Have you injected drugs or steroids or shared equipment (such as needles, syringes, works) with others?
—Have you had unprotected vaginal, anal, or oral sex with men who have sex with men, multiple partners, or anonymous partners?
—Have you exchanged sex for drugs or money?
—Have you been diagnosed with or treated for hepatitis, tuberculosis (TB), or a sexually transmitted disease (STD), like syphilis?
—Have you had unprotected sex with someone who could answer yes to any of the above questions?
—If you have had sex with someone whose history of sex partners and/or drug use is unknown to you or if you or your partner has had many sex partners, then you have more of a chance of being infected with HIV. Both you and your new partner should get tested for HIV, and learn the results, before having sex for the first time.

For women who plan to become pregnant, testing is even more important. If a woman is infected with HIV, medical care and certain drugs given during pregnancy can lower the chance of passing HIV to her baby. All women who are pregnant should be tested during each pregnancy.
For more information on HIV testing visit the CDC website at http://hivtest.cdc.gov/faq.aspx

Participating organizations, including the Inglewood Wellness Center, believe that HIV testing is a critical first step in taking control and responsibility over one’s health.  To find a South LA location to take a free HIV test log onto the CDC’s website.

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Filed Under: Blog

OpEd: The Accidental Hero - Remembering Rodney King

June 19, 2012 By Leave a Comment


By Jasmyne A. Cannick

Rodney King’s sudden death on Sunday caught us all by surprise. After embarking on a media tour to promote his new autobiography “The Riot Within” that was released to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the 1992 Civil Unrest, King had once again become a part of our lives as we all reflected back on where we were on April 29, 1992.

While we know that King wasn’t the first Black man to be beaten at the hands of the Los Angeles Police Department, the fact that it was caught on videotape – at a time when cellphones didn’t come equipped with cameras and video capability—forced America to deal with something that Black people for generations were facing everyday.

A struggling alcoholic who had numerous brushes with the law before and after the March 3, 1991 beating, King, like many others involved in the incidents that led up to Florence and Normandie, became an accidental “hood” hero.

And just like the L.A. Four+ involved in the beating of white trucker Reginald Denny that lit the fuse for 1992’s rebellion, King, wasn’t looking for the spotlight. In fact, on more than one occasion he said that he didn’t want it and didn’t deserve it.

But there was nothing he could do. That train had long left the tracks the moment that George Holliday sold that video to KTLA for $500 and they aired it.

For everyday people who aren’t looking for their next opportunity to be on television or in the news media, the amount of pressure of being suddenly thrown into the limelight brings can be intense. It means never being alone, and being recognized everywhere you go. For those who make a living chasing TV news trucks in the way that some lawyers chaseambulances, it’s almost a dream come true. But for people like King, it was a nightmare having to relive what was probably the worst day of his live over and over again every time some recognized him.

It’s for that reason that I thank Rodney King. He didn’t have to make his life an open book. He could have easily followed in the footsteps of people like Reginald Denny, George Holliday, and the four cops who beat him almost lifeless and just disappeared off of the face of the Earth – but he didn’t. King allowed his private life to be fodder for conservative radio jocks – but more importantly, even after the money was long gone, he continued to honorably serve as the face of police brutality for a community of people who needed him to do so – whether they realized it or not.

While Rodney King’s beating wasn’t the cause of the 1992 rebellion, it certainly played its role just like then L.A.P.D. police chief Daryl Gates, the killing of Latasha Harlin by Korean-American store owner Soon Ja Du, the acquittals of the officers involved in beating King, Reginald Denny and the L.A. Four+ – Anthony Brown, Lance Parker, Antoine Miller, Gary Williams, Henry Watson, and Damian Williams. Those were all people who had no idea that their lives would crash and intertwine in the way they did forever becoming an indelible part of Black Los Angeles’ history.

And while some would have you believe that George Holliday and Reginald Denny are the real hero and victims of 1992 – they are wrong. The real heroes were the people like King because the reality is had he not been beaten senseless that night, George Holliday wouldn’t have had a video to sell for $500, and add to that the L.A. Four+ who, like thousands of other people in South Los Angeles at the time, expressed the rage and frustration of being Black under tyranny and just happened to be caught.

For me King’s legacy wasn’t “Can we all get along?” Because for me, the short answer to that question is no. It was no in 1992 and it is still the same in 2012 and will remain so until we as Blacks are no longer suffering from the effects of slavery and centuries of institutional racism.

At 34, reflecting back to 1991 and 1992, I would offer that King’s legacy is a simple one. For every Black man and woman in Los Angeles who has ever been pulled over for driving while Black since March 3, 1991, a debt of gratitude is owed to Rodney King for the beating they didn’t get. Whether he knew it or not, King helped to shape the changes made in the LAPD. as it relates police brutality and while the LAPD isn’t perfect, today it’s definitely not Parker’s or Gate’sLAPD and for that we can thank Rodney King. Thank you.

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Author Jasmyne Cannick

Jasmyne A. Cannick is a political communications strategist after having worked in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the California State Legislature. She is also a radio and television politics, race, and culture critic. Follow her on Twitter @jasmyne and on Facebook at /jasmyne.

Filed Under: Community Tagged With: ,

West Adams students prepare for science careers

June 14, 2012 By Leave a Comment


By Kyle Holland, LA’s Promise

imageSince 2007, Amgen has made a significant commitment to LA’s Promise schools in South Los Angeles. The partnership provides a first-rate education to students and creates an infrastructure that supports and breeds innovation.

Beyond money, Amgen has provided National Board Certification sponsorship of teachers across LA’s Promise schools. Amgen has also provided LA’s Promise students an opportunity to bring their science classes to life with the Amgen-Bruce Wallace Biotechnology Lab Program.

Ms. WoonjooYang, a five-year Biology teacher at West Adams Preparatory High School who has successfully incorporated the Amgen Bruce Wallace Biotechnology Program into her classroom is convinced of the value of the partnership. “This year I’m using a lot of new strategies that are current in research that I might not have tried if I were not going through the National Board Certification process.”

Check out how and why she enjoys the opportunity to use research grade equipment to give her students a high quality lab experience.

Click here to read more and see a video.

Filed Under: Education

South LA bicycle clubs welcome the city to Watts Towers

June 13, 2012 By 1 Comment


By Ride SouthLA

A hundred cyclists are expected on Sunday June 17 for a group ride to celebrate and test a community bicycling map in South Los Angeles. They will receive free copies of the first map from RideSouthLA.com, a coalition of groups promoting bicycling in South LA and revealing community assets like the Watts Towers along a recommended bike route. The group ride starts at 10am at Augustus Hawkins Nature Park (5790 Compton Ave.), continues to the iconic Watts Towers, runs along the Metro Blue Line, and includes a visit of the Watts Labor Community Action Committee before looping back to the Nature Park.

The partners behind this effort point to a broad social agenda — from city planning to bicycle and social change advocacy. Central partners include T.R.U.S.T. South LA, Bikerowave, the East Side Riders Bike Club and C.I.C.L.E.. This return ride challenges cyclists to find what the print map is missing, and invites them to add their own live stream of pictures highlighting neighborhood assets they feel should be added. “We support basic cell phones — anything that can take pictures,” said Professor François Bar of the University of Southern California, which advised the project on technology.

“Our goal with each map project is to bring awareness to a different aspect of South LA culture that is easy to bike to and enjoy for both residents and visitors.” declared Tafarai Bayne, Community Affairs Manager with T.R.U.S.T. South LA. Sunday’s route is co-led by the East Side Riders (ESR), one of the bicycle clubs and education groups that calls Watts and Florence-Firestone home. “We see the map and the rides as a way to advocate for safe biking, but also for community service and engagement” said John Jones, who co-directs ESR. Other South LA bicycle clubs will be represented as well, including the Real Rydaz, the Compton Schwinn Masters, and the newly formed Los Ryderz.

For more information, visit RideSouthLA.com

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South LA residents deliver trash from foreclosed Watts home

June 13, 2012 By Leave a Comment


Esperanza Arrizon, Good Jobs LA

imageSouth LA residents determined to hold big banks accountable for cleaning up local communities, delivered trash from a vacant foreclosed home to BNY Mellon, one of LA’s largest holders of foreclosed properties. The action was held ahead of the LA City Council’s scheduled vote on amendments to improve enforcement of city’s blight ordinance.

After a devastating foreclosure crisis caused by greed and recklessness on Wall Street, thousands of bank-owned, foreclosed homes litter LA neighborhoods. These homes – often left unsafe and in disrepair – attract crime, drive down local property values and are a blight on LA’s communities.

imageLA has a blight ordinance that allows the city to collect $1,000 a day from banks that do not maintain their foreclosed homes. To date, LA has failed to collect a single dime from banks violating the law – a lost opportunity to hold irresponsible banks accountable and collect money to rebuild our neighborhoods.

Protesters held up signs reading “Banks Make Bad Neigbors.” One sign claimed banks owe the city of LA almost five million dollars in fines for ignoring the upkeep of foreclosed homes, allowing them to collect trash and centers for criminal activity.

“Big banks are devastating our communities, with blighted houses full of trash, crime, and poverty and taxpayers are covering the cost,” said South LA resident Angelina Jimenez. “It’s time to make the banks clean up or pay up.”

imageActivists collected trash from a home in dangerous disrepair on Wilmington Avenue in the Watts area and delivered three full bags to BNY Mellon’s lobby.

After the event, South LA residents went to city hall, calling on City Councilmembers to approve changes for better enforcement of the blight ordinance and to fine the maximum authorized amount for each bank’s failure to maintain their foreclosed properties.

The protest was organized by Good Jobs LA, SEIU Local 721 and the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment.

Filed Under: Featured, Politics Tagged With: , , , ,

Gates Millennium Scholars Make Manual Arts Proud!

June 13, 2012 By Leave a Comment


By Kyle Holland, LA’s Promise

imageManual Arts High School seniors, John Mendoza and Adedamola Tombrown have been awarded the prestigious Gates Millennium Scholarship. Both are the very first students from Manual Arts High School to ever receive this honor.

Mendoza, the youngest of seven children and an all city Colonel for Manual Arts’ Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (JROTC) will attend the University of Southern California. He plans to major in engineering with a minor in business administration and pursue a career in construction management.

“I can now transform the college going culture within my own family and continue to serve as a role model for my 26 nieces and nephews,” says John.

Tombrown will go to the University of California, Irvine. He and his family relocated to the United States from Nigeria on a visa lottery just so he could pursue robotics. His family’s first stop in the U.S. was on the East Coast. They relocated to South Los Angeles in order for Adedamola to attend Manual Arts High School.

“With the support of my family and mentor, Mr. John Santos, I can achieve my goals,” says Tombrown, who is the lead programmer for the Manual Arts Robotics team that recently placed top ten in the worldwide robotics competition. He plans to study computer science and complete his PhD studies in AIDS research.

These incredible seniors are part of 1,000 students selected nationally each year for this highly competitive scholarship that requires strong academics combined with school and community involvement.

More then 24,000 students applied earlier this year, the largest and most competitive group of candidates in the program’s history. Having two first time Manual Arts High School recipients in such a competitive climate represents the collective support and resources provided to John and Adedamola by their families, teachers and school community.

The Gates scholarship reduces financial barriers for African American, Hispanic American and other minorities that have high academic and leadership promise and significant financial need.

The scholarship helps increase the representation of these target groups in the disciplines of computer science, education, engineering, library science, mathematics, public health and the sciences.

The award renews each year as long as students maintain satisfactory academic progress.

Please join LA’s Promise is in congratulating John Mendoza and Adedamola Tombrown! Their hard work and discipline has truly paid off and prepared them for the most exciting and challenging times of their lives.

Filed Under: Education Tagged With: , ,

Manual Arts MESA named Program of the Year

June 11, 2012 By Leave a Comment


By Koryama Arevalo and Eduardo Avila

Last Friday, the Manual Arts MESA program was named Program of the Year at the year-end banquet held at the USC Galen Center. This yearly banquet is intended to celebrate the achievements of MESA students attending the high schools served by USC’s Viterbi School of Engineering.

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“This is quite an honor for the MESA students involved in this program,” said advisor John Santos. “With L.A.’s Promise deciding to reassign most of the teachers involved in supporting this program, the students had to step up and take on most of the duties that used to be assigned to volunteer teachers….With the help of our mentors, we were able to make up some of the hours dedicated by our teachers, our MESA students stepped up and did the rest.”

“A large part is due to the dedication of our advisor,” said senior Korayma Arevalo. “Mr. Santos promised us he would not let the politics of the school influence the integrity of our program. He worked extremely long hours to make up for the lack of teacher support. When the school administration misplaced our funds, he went and found them and got them back for us.”

“We had plenty of obstacles to overcome this year,” said junior Eduardo Avila. “We had to learn how to purchase our materials, talk to vendors, set up our calendars and schedule our mentors so that we could use their time most efficiently. Some of our teachers who used to work with us were still willing to offer us some support and assisted us in preparation for the SAT test.”

This year the “Robo-skunks,” as they prefer to be called, hosted 54 teams at the JPL Invention Challenge Regional, supported two FIRST Tech Challenge (FTC) robotics teams at nearby schools, supported four local and two international FIRST Robotics Challenge (FRC) robotics teams, held four robotics workshops, made presentations promoting STEM education at seven sites including UC Riverside, LAUSD Linked Learning Symposium; and finished as a semi-finalist in the Las Vegas FTC Robotics Championship and a quarter-finalist in the Los Angeles FRC Regionals. They also competed in Pre-MESA Day, TEAMS National Engineering Exam, and Zerorobotics “Satellite Capture Challenge,” where they finished 8th in the world.

“Last year, in a Los Angeles Times article, the former CEO of L.A.’s Promise called this program marginal. These students were out to prove that L.A.’s Promise and its executive board of outsiders, have no clue as to what students of this community are capable of with the support of their caring teachers and mentors,” said Santos.

“They can’t see us as marginal any more,” said senior Sabas Garcia.

All Manual Arts MESA senior team members will be attending a university next year, including one Gate Millennium Scholar.

Filed Under: Arts, Featured Tagged With: , ,
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