Civil Rights

Vietnam Veteran Thomas Carroll Fought Two Fights: One Overseas, One at Home

Dana Elaine Carroll, Contributing Writer November 6, 2024

Vietnam veteran Thomas Carroll faced two fights: one for his country and one for civil rights. Serving during this era, he grappled with fighting for freedoms abroad while freedom wasn’t fully available at home. Like many Black service members, his experience included resisting injustices that followed him and the Black community at large. Carroll enlisted in the Navy in 1964, studying avionics and aviation firefighting in Memphis, Tennessee. Traveling with a White-passing Navy recruit revealed the contrast in treatment. “We took a cab to the YMCA. They gave him a room, but told me they didn’t have any,” recalls

Op-Ed Opinion

Why the Black and Brown Community Should Stand with the LA Labor Movement and Vote Yes on Measure A

Yvonne WheelerOctober 10, 2024

The fight for social justice and economic equity has deep roots in the Black and Brown communities of Los Angeles. Throughout history, we have found strength in unity, power in our collective voice, and hope in our shared struggles.

Local News Political

Labor, Civil Rights, and Elected Leaders Join Forces in Support of Proposition 6

Sentinel News Service September 18, 2024

A powerful coalition of labor leaders, elected officials, and formerly incarcerated individuals came together for a press conference to urge Californians to vote Yes on Proposition 6 – a groundbreaking initiative that seeks to end forced labor in California’s carceral system, expand rehabilitation opportunities for incarcerated individuals, and save taxpayer money.

Opinion

Dr. Martin Luther King: Power Under Control

Larry Buford, Contributing WriterJanuary 11, 2024

Dr. Martin Luther King who became a powerhouse in the civil rights movement, trumpeted non-violence with the “bit” of the gospel in his mouth. Like the horse, as a minister, he was restrained by that bit.

National News

60th Anniversary of March on Washington, Black Americans Under Attack

Dr. Valerie Wardlaw, Contributing WriterAugust 31, 2023

As thousands gathered on the Mall of Washington last Saturday, August 26, to continue the fight for social justice and civil rights, commemorating the 60th Anniversary of the March on Washington, it was clear that it remains unsafe to be Black in America today just as it was 60 years ago.

News

Cinco de Mayo – A Celebration of Latinx Revindication in the U.S.

Anna Lee Mraz, Special to California Black Media Partners May 4, 2023

The fifth of May, Cinco de Mayo, is a holiday that celebrates the Battle of Puebla, which took place in 1862 near the Mexican city of Puebla. On this day, the Mexican army, led by General Ignacio Zaragoza, defeated the French in their attempt to take over the country. While this date is not widely celebrated in Mexico, except for perhaps in Puebla itself, it has become a popular holiday in the United States.

Local

Los Angeles Urban League Host Whitney M. Young Awards Gala

By Danny J. Bakewell, Jr. , Executive EditorMay 3, 2023

By Danny J. Bakewell, Jr. Executive Editor The Los Angeles Urban League will host the Annual Whitney M. Young Awards Gala on Thursday, May 18, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. This year’s honorees include Paula Madison, CEO of Madison Entertainment Group, who will receive the Whitney M. Young, Jr. Award. Martin Muoto, founder and managing partner of SOLA Impact Fund, will receive the Trailblazer Award, and Sekou Kaalund, executive vice president at U.S. Bank, will receive the Corporate Partner Award. The keynote speaker will be Bishop T.D. Jakes, world-renowned spiritual leader and chairman and CEO of the T.D. Jakes Group.

Religion

Scholar Traces How Black Churches Became Centers of Political Engagement

Jeff Brumley, Baptist News GlobalMarch 9, 2023

Black churches became centers of political engagement during the 19th century when Black Christians determined to achieve the full benefits of citizenship in U.S. society, scholar Nicole Myers Turner said during a Baptist History and Heritage Society webinar. Racial politics was driven “by the need to access resources that free Black people had been denied and a deep sense that Black freedom and equality must be recognized,” she said. “There was a development of this resistance to being marginalized in the post-emancipation period.” Myers Turner, an assistant professor of American religious history at Yale University, lectured on her 2020 book, “Soul

Education News

Loyola Marymount Recognizes Danny Bakewell Sr. in Special MLK Interfaith Service

Devyn Bakewell, Assistant Managing Editor January 26, 2023

A beautiful service in honor of Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. was held at Loyola Marymount University on January 18, 2023.

History News

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Los Angeles Have History

Brian W. Carter, Contributing WriterJanuary 12, 2023

Martin Luther King, Jr. made frequent visits to Los Angeles. Many of his visits in the late 1950s to 1960s consisted of private fundraisers, places of worship, educational institutions and conferences.

Local News

Faith, Civil Rights Leaders Call for Resignations of Gil Cedillo and Kevin de León

Brian W. Carter, Contributing WriterDecember 1, 2022

“So, we’re here today, to join the voices of unity, in unity, a call with clarity, demanding Gil Cedillo and Kevin de León resign from their office and resign immediately,” said Pastor J. Edgar Boyd, senior minister of First AME Church of Los Angeles.

National News (Sports)Sports

Las Vegas Raiders, NFL Host Social Justice Roundtable

Sentinel News ServiceMay 16, 2022

More than 300,000 football fans traveled to Las Vegas for the 2022 NFL Draft. To kick off the three-day, star-studded event, the Las Vegas Raiders, and the NFL brought together local activists and thought leaders representing academia, business, and civil rights communities for the League’s highly acclaimed Social Justice Roundtable discussion.

Basketball Sports

Lakers Carmelo Anthony Receives Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion Award

E. Mesiyah McGinnis, Staff WriterApril 14, 2022

Los Angeles Lakers forward Carmelo Anthony received the NBA’s new Kareem Abdul-Jabbar trophy that was awarded to the league’s Social Justice Champion. The presentation was made on April 3, prior to the Lakers vs. Nuggets game.

National News

Toxicologist testifies that drugs did not kill George Floyd

Steve Karnowski, Associated PressFebruary 17, 2022

A toxicologist testified Wednesday at the federal trial of three former officers charged with violating George Floyd’s civil rights that it wasn’t drug use, heart disease nor an agitated state known as “excited delirium” that caused Floyd’s death after officers pinned him to the pavement in May 2020.

News

After Guilty Verdicts, Civil Rights Leaders Exhort Black America to ‘Never Stop Running for Ahmaud’

Stacy M. Brown , NNPA CorrespondentDecember 2, 2021

After nearly two years of pain, suffering, and wondering if the men who killed Ahmaud Arbery would pay for their heinous crime, the 25-year-old’s family finally received justice.