Archive for the ‘Al Sharpton’ Category

CPC Joins #StopAsianHate Actions with City and Community Leaders – cpc-nyc.org

CPC joined community and city leaders theweekof March 16th to condemn the rise in anti-Asian hate and violenceand to mourn the loss of 8 lives during a mass shooting inAtlanta.

CPC leadership and staff attended press conferences and a vigil hosted by Asian American Federation on Friday, March 19th.President and CEO Wayne Ho spoke with Public Advocate Jumaane Williams and other leaders to denounce hate. See coverage of that press event on CBS here,fromPix11 here, and in Brooklyn Paper here.

Unfortunately, in the last year, I have had staff who have been spat on, who have been beat up, had things thrown at them, had racial slurs told to them, said Wayne Ho.

If weve learned anything in the last year as were marching for Black lives, the police is not only the answer. We need to have restorative justice, we dont need incarceration at this time. What we need right now are resources from the state and from the city. Asian Americans make up 15% of New York City, 10% of New York State but we get less than 1% of New York City social service contract dollars.

Also on Friday, Mitch Wu, CPC Director of Queens Community Services, spoke at thepress conference organized by the Flushing Chinese Business Association with the NYPD 109th Precinct to condemn anti-Asian violence. State Senator John Liu, Council Member Peter Koo, and community leaders also spoke at the press conference. Thank you to Peter Tu for organizing this event. Wayne also joined Borough President Eric Adams on Sunday, March 21st at a press conference. See a video of the Brooklyn press conference here (starting at 36:00).

Earlier in the week, Wayne joined mayoral candidates and community leaders at a press conference hosted by Rev. Al Sharpton's National Action Network. See video of the press conferenceon Twitter here.

CPC commits to #StopAsianHate and advocates for more resources and support for our communities, including Asian lead and Asian-serving providers. Follow our actions as they happen on Twitter and Instagram, and by subscribing to our emails here.

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CPC Joins #StopAsianHate Actions with City and Community Leaders - cpc-nyc.org

Anti-Asian Attacks Place Andrew Yang in the Spotlight. How Will He Use It? – The New York Times

Mr. Yang was not, however, the first contender to condemn the Georgia shootings, tweeting late that night instead about a St. Patricks Day scarf, in a move that struck some observers as tone deaf. (He later said that he had not seen the news on Tuesday. He issued a series of tweets about Atlanta on Wednesday morning, before making public remarks.)

On Thursday, Mr. Yangs voice appeared to waver with emotion as he spoke at an event convened by the Rev. Al Sharpton, the civil rights leader. Speaking in starkly personal terms, Mr. Yang discussed the importance of seeing that Asian-Americans are human beings, Asian-Americans are just as American as anyone else.

Im glad that hes leaning in, said Representative Grace Meng, the only Asian-American member of New Yorks congressional delegation. I felt like he was getting a little emotional. And I think that the Asian-American community likes to see more of that.

Jo-Ann Yoo, the executive director of New Yorks Asian American Federation, said there were signs that Mr. Yang was connecting in particular with younger Asian-American voters.

Theyve said, well, nobody has invited us, drawn us into politics, we dont see ourselves reflected in any of these spaces, she said. If those are the reasons Asian-American young people are not engaging, I think Yangs done a pretty good job of leading the conversations and drawing young people in.

But, she added, Other non-Asian candidates should not assume that Asians only vote for Asians.

Interviews with around a dozen community leaders, elected officials and voters suggest that the candidates who are best-known to Asian-American New Yorkers include Mr. Yang, a son of Taiwanese immigrants, and two veteran city officials: Eric Adams, the Brooklyn borough president, and Scott M. Stringer, the city comptroller.

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Anti-Asian Attacks Place Andrew Yang in the Spotlight. How Will He Use It? - The New York Times

NY Coronavirus Vaccine Open To People 50 And Over – Patch.com

LONG ISLAND, NY With millions of New Yorkers now vaccinated against the coronavirus and an influx of doses available, New Yorkers 50 and older can receive the vaccine starting Tuesday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Monday.

Up until Monday, only New Yorkers 60 and older could be vaccinated.

While the vaccine supply hasn't increased enough yet to vaccinate all of those 50 and older in the state, Cuomo said he wants people to start making appointments so they are ready when more doses arrive.

Cuomo, speaking from the Grace Baptist Church in Mount Vernon, announced a new vaccination center at the facility and said to date, 7 million New Yorkers have received a vaccine.

He announced the "Roll Up Your Sleeve" campaign, a partnership with faith-based facilities to vaccinate people at houses of worship. Rev. Al Sharpton joined Cuomo in announcing the campaign.

"We are fighting for our very lives," Sharpton said. "All we ask you is to come to a house of faith and roll up your sleeves and do it for your loved ones."

The leaders stressed the importance of Black and Hispanic communities getting the vaccine. Black people are twice as likely to die of the coronavirus and Hispanic people are 1.5 times as likely to die, officials have said.

On Sunday, New Yorkers with underlying health conditions became eligible to receive the vaccine.

"New Yorkers with comorbidities are among our state's most at-risk residents, and access to the COVID-19 vaccine protects this vulnerable population as we work to defeat the virus and establish the new normal," Cuomo said. "As New York receives more doses and more people receive the vaccine, we're able to expand the population pharmacies can serve, and this is a common-sense step forward that will help make it easier to protect New Yorkers."

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NY Coronavirus Vaccine Open To People 50 And Over - Patch.com

Morning Briefing: Biden Press Conference, Cuomo’s Latest Scandal, and the Racism of the Filibuster – Pajiba

Good morning. Joe Biden will hold his first press conference today. The cable-news media, which really doesnt have much of anything scandal-worthy to report these days, outside of the Governors mansion in New York and the litany of crimes involving the previous administration, will probably try and make it about Biden gaffes. If he flubs a word or three as he often does Tucker Carlson will spend half an hour on his show tonight talking about how hes unfit for office, never mind that the previous occupant bragged about passing a test for dementia and could barely walk down a ramp. Its all noise. Dont give it a second thought.

The latest scandal against Andrew Cuomo, meanwhile, is that he apparently made tests available to his family members (specifically his brother, Chris) before the tests were widely available. That sucks. Also, completely unsurprising, not just for Cuomos office, but for half the Governors offices in the country, at least. Most politicians are trash, even our favorites. I would add, however, that this is a story that probably couldve been unearthed weeks or months ago, and it wouldnt have registered much, but because the news media wants to keep that drumbeat going against Cuomo, its getting extra play. Thats fine with me. I think he should resign. I also think that this is a footnote in todays news cycle, at best.

Voting among Amazon workers in Bessemer, Ala. ends on Monday. Bernie is heading to Alabama tomorrow to meet with the union, and thats probably good, although this is still Alabama. I have no idea how the vote will shake out, but to be honest, I dont really understand why anyone would not vote to unionize when youre dealing with the largest company in the world.

After AstraZeneca was accused of cherry-picking data in its efficacy results, they updated the company analysis and found that the vaccine was 76 percent effective at preventing symptomatic illness, slightly lower than the earlier result of 79 percent.

Mitch McConnell is still working double-time to save the filibuster, arguing on Tuesday that the filibuster has no racial history at all. None. Theres no dispute among historians about that. Thats not true, as this article (among many) shows, and as this Twitter thread shows.

Black civil rights leaders are taking that argument to Democrat holdouts Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, arguing that the filibuster is racist and saying that they are, in effect, supporting racism, Rev. Al Sharpton said yesterday. Its unclear how effective that will be. Unfortunately, having Al Sharpton come after the Senator from West Virginia is not exactly going to hurt him.

Finally, Dr. Rachel Levine is the new assistant health secretary; she is the first openly transgender person to be confirmed by the Senate. Thats great news. Alas, only two Republicans Murkowski and Collins voted to confirm her.

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Dustin is the founder and co-owner of Pajiba. You may email him here, follow him on Twitter, or listen to his weekly TV podcast, Podjiba.

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Morning Briefing: Biden Press Conference, Cuomo's Latest Scandal, and the Racism of the Filibuster - Pajiba

Detroit pastor J. Drew Sheard elected as national head of COGIC denomination, Dearborn pastor elected to board – Detroit Free Press

Bishop J. Drew Sheard, presiding bishop of the Church of God in Christ.(Photo: Stephen Savage,Savage Graphics,LLC)

A Detroit pastor, J. Drew Sheard,has been elected to leadChurch of God in Christ (COGIC), a growing denomination with millions of members, the latest example of clergy from Michigan becoming national leaders of faith groups.

Sheard, 62, who leadsGreater Emmanuel Institutional Church in Detroit, was elected Saturday by delegates with COGIC at their national assembly, which was held online, to be COGIC's presiding bishop, its highest ranking leader.

To be elected to serve as the Presiding Bishop for the Church in which I was born, raised, and have learned and served all my life, is a dream and desire that can only be fulfilled by Gods loving grace and guidance," Sheard said in a news release. "The opportunity to serve such an extraordinary organization at our highest recognized level of priesthood is beyond humbling."

Another local pastor, Bishop Michael Hill ofKingdom International in Dearborn, was elected to be one of 12 members of COGIC's board, which includes Sheard.COGIC is reportedly the 5th largest Christian denomination in the U.S. as of 2012, according to the National Council of Churches.

Sheard's election was celebrated by faith and political leaders in Michigan, where COGIC, a predominantly Black and Pentecostal denomination,has a strong presence. Bishop P.A. Brooks, an influential faith leader in Detroit who died last year at 88, was a member of COGIC's national board.

"I am absolutely ecstatic,"Bishop Edgar Vann of Second EbenezerChurch in Detroit, who has been afriend of Sheard for decades since they were teenage preachers, told the Free Press on Monday."He represents in his denomination a whole new refreshing generation of leadership. ... It's a very crucial post in Christiandom right now. It is one of the highest denominational posts in the African American community. And he will lead that denomination with distinction ... with innovation and creativity."

Sheard becoming leader of COGIC is "a great distinction for Detroit and it makes Detroit really the epicenter for this particular denomination," Vann said.

COGIC's national leaders are generally older, and so having Sheardbecomepresiding bishop at a younger agemeans "he's going to, by the grace of God, be there a long time to give a whole new, fresh look at that denomination, to enhance the faith community internationally."

Sheard's father is also a COGIC pastor, Bishop John Sheard, who leadsGreater Mitchell Temple Church of God in Christ in Detroit. His mother, Willie Mae Sheard, died last year of COVID-19 at 84. Sheard's wife,Karen Clark-Sheard, is known nationally for her gospel music along with her sisters.

BET (Black Entertainment Television) once had a reality TV show, The Sheards, about their family.

Detroit City Council President Brenda Jones also praised Sheard becoming presiding bishop, writing on Twitter: "You have worked hard, helped many & deserve this honor."

The Rev. Charles Williams, pastor of Historic King Solomon Baptist Church of Detroit and Chair of the Michigan chapter of the National Action Network, the civil rights group led by the Rev. Al Sharpton, said on Twitter: "Congrats to Bishop J. Drew Sheard! Keep standing with the people! Looking forward to seeing the future ofCOGIC."

Sheard is the latest Detroit pastor to become a national faith leader. In 2010, Bishop Charles Ellis III of Greater Grace Temple in Detroit became the national head of Pentecostal Assemblies of the World, a positionhe served in for several years.

Bishop Edgar Vann gives a sermon at Second Ebenezer Church in Detroit, 2012.(Photo: Monica Farrior)

Sheard has previously served on the general board and led its Michigan branch.

The Church of God in Christ isa Pentecostaldenomination that its leaders say has 6.5 million members. Although headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, its reach is global.

The position of the presiding bishop became open after the previous presiding bishop,Charles Blake Sr., announced hewould not seek reelection and requestedemeritus status.

Here are the other 11 members elected to COGIC's general board, itshighest executive board:

Contact Niraj Warikoo: nwarikoo@freepress.com or 313-223-4792. Twitter @nwarikoo

Read or Share this story: https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2021/03/22/detroit-pastor-j-drew-sheard-cogic-presiding-bishop/4802425001/

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Detroit pastor J. Drew Sheard elected as national head of COGIC denomination, Dearborn pastor elected to board - Detroit Free Press