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Cultural Center to fight eviction

WAVE NEWSPAPERS — Controversy continues to brew over the fate of the AFIBA Center, a long-standing cultural institution and popular meeting place that was served an eviction notice on Aug. 28 by the city of Los Angeles. The community landmark, located at 5730 Crenshaw Blvd., is also the headquarters of the African Firefighters Benevolent Association. It offers tutoring services for local youth as well as health seminars and regular lectures on African and African-American history and culture.

Published

7 years ago

October 6, 2019

Oakland Post

AFIBA Center (Photo by: wavenewspapers.com)

By Shirley Hawkin

CRENSHAW — Controversy continues to brew over the fate of the AFIBA Center, a long-standing cultural institution and popular meeting place that was served an eviction notice on Aug. 28 by the city of Los Angeles.

The community landmark, located at 5730 Crenshaw Blvd., is also the headquarters of the African Firefighters Benevolent Association. It offers tutoring services for local youth as well as health seminars and regular lectures on African and African-American history and culture.

Although the center is officially charged $1 a year to occupy the space, Jabari Jumaane, the executive director of the AFIBA Center for 20 years, said that yearly rent is offset due to the services the center offers to the community.

“The building is actually owned by taxpayers,” he said. “What rights do we have as taxpayers and stakeholders? “We are a service organization and the city does not give us anything. People bring in water, paper towels and soap and we recycle cans and bottles. We operate under a tight constraint.”

According to reports, Eighth District Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson wants to use part of the AFIBA parking lot to erect a 12-story tower emblazoned with the “Crenshaw” logo and knock down the walls of the parking lot to build a pocket park.

The changes are part of Destination Crenshaw, an art project that is in the planning stages that will be a major attraction throughout the Crenshaw corridor when it is completed several years from now.

Jumaane, who is also an inspector with the Los Angeles Fire Department, said that using a portion of the parking lot for a pocket park would seriously impact the number of parking spaces at the center.

“I objected to those changes. Where will people park?” he asked. “There is hardly any place near the AFIBA center to park as it is right now.

“I was notified on August 28 by a representative of the city of Los Angeles General Service real estate division about the eviction,” Jumaane said. “They emailed me a notice to vacate [the premises] and said they wanted us out by Sept. 9. I immediately responded to their question that the benefit of the full 30-day notice should have been extended to Sept. 30.

“Two days later, the city attorney called me and said there would be no problem extending the time to vacate to by Sept. 30.”

But Jumaane disputes that he ever got the official notice in writing.

“A letter in an envelope was thrown on the grass through a wrought iron fence and was not posted on site,” he said. “The city of Los Angeles real estate division provided me with a picture of the serving of the 30-day notice. But the gardener who does the weed whacking and leaf blowing collected the notice with the trash. Had it been taped to the post, we would have seen it and it would not have been collected with the trash.”

The city-owned building is more than 95 years old and city officials said that it is in bad need of repair.

Jumaane said that he and friends of the AFIBA center met at Harris-Dawson’s office six times to talk about the upcoming Destination Crenshaw.

“First, those meetings were to discuss the adverse impact that Destination Crenshaw was having on the Crenshaw and Hyde Park area,” he said.

Secondly, we talked about how key members in the community were deliberately overlooked and not invited or included in the planning that will affect the community. We also felt that the economic development component that should be incorporated in Destination Crenshaw is sorely lacking and needed to benefit this community.

“All of those concerns were consistently dodged and promises were made that were not kept at this point,” Juumane said.

“It goes to credibility, lying and trying to push us out,” he said. “We have documentation of every little thing we have not received.”

Juumane and supporters of the center have appeared before the City Council twice to protest the eviction and recently held a meeting at the AFIBA Center to discuss the matter.

“People are fired up, appalled and feel disrespected,” said Juumane, who added that the center has many loyal supporters.

Harris-Dawson recently issued a statement about the controversy, stating that he has attempted to solve the dispute to no avail.

“My office and I have worked tirelessly with representatives of the African Firefighters in Benevolent Association (AFIBA), an unincorporated association, to extend an agreement with the city of Los Angeles to use a city-owned building on Crenshaw Boulevard,” it read.

“Unfortunately, after nearly a year of repeated requests, face-to-face meetings and written communication, AFIBA representatives remain unwilling to meet the most basic requirements of using a publicly owned facility.

“First and foremost, the building must be available to the residents of our community. This includes neighborhood councils, community organizations and the City of Los Angeles (the owner) itself.

“Secondly, the building must be opened and well maintained. Since the agreement does not require any payment by AFIBA, the expectation, outlined in the agreement, is that AFIBA would maintain the property, provide stated programming and services, and carry the necessary insurance coverage to provide for injury and/or mishaps.

“Notwithstanding these failures, I have tried to negotiate a new agreement that would allow AFIBA to continue to use the space. The requests for negotiation have been met with silence by AFIBA.

“This week the Los Angeles city department that manages public assets was refused entry onto the property. This is completely unacceptable and inevitably triggered eviction proceedings.

“Since AFIBA is unwilling to work through these issues, we will move forward to make sure the building can in fact be used for the stated purpose of the agreement. All groups or activities that have been able to use the AFIBA center will be able to continue to do so after this situation is resolved.”

Juumane said that he is puzzled as to why Harris-Dawson claims that representatives from the city were refused entry into the AFIBA Center and that neighborhood councils and other community organizations were also refused entry.

“That is not true,” Juumane said. “I believe that Harris-Dawson is seriously intent on removing me as the executive director of the AFIBA Center.

“There is a legal eviction process and the city cannot come into the AFIBA Center and change the locks. They think we’re going to back down on this issue, but we won’t,” said Juumane, who said he is currently speaking to attorneys.

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2026 Lucid Air Grand Touring Review — Is This $136K EV Sedan Worth It?

AUTONETWORK ON BLACKPRESSUSA — Finished in Stellar White Metallic with the Tahoe Grand Touring interior, this Lucid makes a strong first impression. The shape is sleek and low, but it still feels elegant instead of trying too hard. Features like soft-close doors, powered illuminated door handles, 20-inch Aero Lite wheels, and the Glass Canopy Roof help the car feel expensive before you even start it.

Published

2 weeks ago

May 3, 2026

Oakland Post

The 2026 Lucid Air Grand Touring is the kind of luxury EV that makes people stop and ask a simple question: Is this really better than a Tesla Model S, Mercedes EQS, or BMW i7? At $136,150, it has to do more than look futuristic. It has to feel special every time you get in it.

Finished in Stellar White Metallic with the Tahoe Grand Touring interior, this Lucid makes a strong first impression. The shape is sleek and low, yet it still feels elegant rather than trying too hard. Features like soft-close doors, powered illuminated door handles, 20-inch Aero Lite wheels, and the Glass Canopy Roof help the car feel expensive before you even start it.

Inside is where the Air Grand Touring really makes its case. The 34-inch Glass Cockpit Display and retractable Pilot Panel screen give the cabin a clean, modern look that still feels different from other EVs. The Tahoe Extended Leather and Lucid Black Alcantara headliner lifts the sense of occasion, and the front seats are a highlight. They are 20-way power-adjustable, heated, ventilated, and include massage. That matters because luxury buyers at this price expect comfort first.

Rear passengers are not ignored either. You get 5-zone heated rear seating, a rear center console display, and power rear and rear side window sunshades. Add in the Surreal Sound Pro system with 21 speakers, and the Air feels like a true long-distance luxury sedan.

Lucid also gives this car serious EV hardware. The dual-motor all-wheel-drive system, 900V+ charging architecture, and Wunderbox onboard charger are big talking points. Buyers in this segment care about range, charging speed, and everyday ease, not just raw performance. That is where the Lucid continues to stand out.

On the technology side, the Air Grand Touring includes DreamDrive Premium, with 3D Surround View Monitoring, Blind Spot Warning, Automatic Park In and Out, Automatic Emergency Braking, and a Driver Monitoring System with distracted and drowsy driver alerts. This one also has DreamDrive Pro, which adds future-capable ADAS hardware.

There are still some real-world annoyances. Based on your notes, the windshield wiper control is hard to find and use, and that matters more than people think in a high-tech car. When controls become less intuitive, even a beautiful interior can feel frustrating.

Still, the 2026 Lucid Air Grand Touring succeeds where it matters most. It feels luxurious, advanced, comfortable, and thoughtfully engineered. For buyers who want an EV sedan that feels truly premium and less common than the usual choices, this Lucid makes a very strong case.

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Snoop Dogg Celebrates 10 Til’ Midnight at the Compound

LOS ANGELES SENTINEL — The album is paired with a film that stars Snoop Dogg, Hitta J3, G Perico, and Ray Vaughn, and one of the strongest elements of the whole project is that the production stayed rooted right here in Los Angeles.

Published

2 weeks ago

May 3, 2026

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Snoop Dogg celebrated the premiere of 10 Til’ Midnight at his Inglewood recording studio & multipurpose facility, The Compound, but the night felt like much more than an album release. It felt like Los Angeles. It felt like legacy. And it felt like another major move from one of the city’s greatest cultural architects as he continues to prove that he is not just dropping music — he is building moments, shaping narratives, and pushing the culture forward in real time.

What made the event so powerful was the clarity behind the vision. During a panel conversation with DJ Hed, Snoop opened up about the heart behind 10 Til’ Midnight, explaining that the project was created to help bridge older and younger generations while also speaking to the long-standing divisions between Bloods and Crips in a unique way through film. That alone gave the project a different kind of weight. This was not just about songs. This was about using creativity as a tool for connection. This was about taking a story rooted in Los Angeles and telling it in a way that could bring people together.

Snoop Congratulated By Rapper & Fellow 10 Til Midnight Cast Member G Perico (CreativeLB/KreativeKapturez)

The album is paired with a film that stars Snoop Dogg, Hitta J3, G Perico, and Ray Vaughn, and one of the strongest elements of the whole project is that the production stayed rooted right here in Los Angeles. The film was shot in the city, including at WePlay Studios in Inglewood, which gave the entire project an even deeper hometown feel. It was not just a West Coast story in content — it was a Los Angeles-made production from the ground up.

That matters because, in a city like this, authenticity still carries weight. Snoop understands how to make sure that what he creates does not just represent Los Angeles on the surface, but actually comes from it.

What also makes 10 Til’ Midnight significant is that it represents another major step in Snoop’s evolution as both an artist and executive. Public reporting around the project identifies it as his 22nd studio album, but the bigger story is what it represents in this season of his life. This is one of several consecutive moves he has made in his 50s that show he is still building, still expanding, and still finding new ways to reinvent what the next chapter looks like.

Snoop Dogg at the Premiere of 10 Til Midnight (CreativeLB/KreativeKapturez)

Now, as the head of Death Row Records and the newly aligned leader of Death Row Pictures, he is taking the brand into a new dimension. That is what made this moment feel bigger than music. Snoop is not just protecting the legacy of Death Row — he is stretching it. He is expanding it beyond records and into film, visual storytelling, and larger creative worlds that can continue carrying the label’s impact forward. Public reporting has noted that this project arrives as part of that broader cinematic push.

That is a major Los Angeles move because the city has always been built on the intersection of music, film, neighborhood identity, and cultural storytelling. With 10 Til’ Midnight, Snoop is leaning all the way into that intersection.

The room at The Compound reflected that. It felt like a private premiere, but it also felt like a statement — a reminder that Snoop Dogg’s staying power has never been based only on nostalgia. It comes from his ability to remain connected, remain visionary, and remain in tune with how to move the culture without losing the essence of who he is.

That is why this premiere mattered. It was not just about celebrating another album. It was about witnessing a Los Angeles legend continue to evolve, continue to unify, and continue to use art to tell stories that hit deeper than entertainment alone.

In that sense, 10 Til’ Midnight became more than a project launch. It became another example of how Snoop Dogg is still taking Los Angeles to the next level — using music, film, and legacy together to build something bigger than a moment.

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OP-ED: Small Businesses Need Minnesota to Act on Pass-Through Tax Policy

MINNESOTA SPOKESMAN RECORDER — A Twin Cities immigrant entrepreneur who built several businesses including grocery stores in underserved neighborhoods is calling on Minnesota lawmakers to extend the Pass-Through Entity tax option before it expires, warning that its loss would hit small businesses already recovering from Operation Metro Surge with higher federal tax bills.

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2 weeks ago

May 3, 2026

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A Twin Cities Small Business Owner Is Urging Minnesota to Extend a Tax Policy That Could Save Thousands of Businesses

By Daniel Hernandez | Minnesota Spokesman Recorder

I came to the United States as a teenager with a clear goal: to build something meaningful through hard work. I put in long days in construction, restaurants, and landscaping; doing whatever it took to learn, save, and eventually start my own business.

Over time, I built and ran several successful ventures, including an event photography company, a magazine, a tax and accounting firm, and now grocery stores serving neighborhoods across the Twin Cities where other retailers chose not to invest. I’ve created jobs, supported families, and committed to communities that deserve stability and opportunity.

That’s why I’m speaking out now.

Small business owners in Minneapolis and the communities we serve are recovering from serious disruptions, including the impacts of Operation Metro Surge. That event hit immigrant communities especially hard. In my own case, I lost nearly half of my 60 employees and saw revenue drop by about 85%. While I worked to provide competitive wages, health benefits, and paid time off, the real hardship fell on the people who lost their jobs and income.

Even as we rebuild, small businesses are facing another challenge. The Minnesota Legislature is considering letting an important tax policy expire: the Pass-Through Entity tax option.

Here’s what that means in plain terms.

Many small businesses, including mine, are pass-through businesses. That means the business itself doesn’t pay income tax. Instead, the owners report the income on their personal tax returns. But under current federal rules, there’s a limit on how much state tax we can deduct. That often leads to higher federal tax bills.

The Pass-Through Entity option fixes that. It allows the business to pay the state tax directly, which means the business can fully deduct those taxes on its federal return and lower the total amount of income taxed federally. The result is straightforward: small business owners pay less in federal taxes, without reducing what the state collects.

This policy is not new or controversial. Thirty-six states already offer it. It doesn’t cost Minnesota anything, it’s revenue neutral. And it benefits more than 66,000 businesses across the state.

In a state where the cost of doing business is already high, it’s hard to understand why we wouldn’t offer the same basic tax treatment as states like California and Illinois.

Small businesses have carried a heavy load in recent years, through a pandemic, rising costs and public safety disruptions. We’ve adapted, reinvested and stayed committed to our communities. What we need now are practical policies that support that work, not make it harder.

If the Minnesota House does not act soon, many businesses will face significantly higher federal tax bills. That’s money that could otherwise be used to hire workers, raise wages or reinvest in local neighborhoods.

I urge Gov. Tim Walz and members of the House Tax Committee to pass House File 3127 and extend the Pass-Through Entity election.

Small businesses are the backbone of our communities. We’ve proven our resilience. Now we need our state leaders to show the same commitment to us.

Daniel Hernandez is the owner of Colonial Market located at 2100 E. Lake St.

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