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In One Section of Queens, Gun Violence Has Left Activists with Plenty of Work to Do

NNPA NEWSWIRE — “If young people who have experienced gun violence receive wraparound supports to empower them to fulfill their basic needs and sustain mental, physical, and economic health and wellness, they will lead healthier lives,” said Erica Ford, the founder and CEO of Life Camp, Inc., a mobile trauma unit that brings trauma recovery services to African American communities.

Published

7 years ago

September 12, 2019

Oakland Post

On September 4, Ford, hip-hop and business mogul Russell Simmons, civil rights activist and Women's March on Washington Co-Chair Tamika Mallory, and others attended a wake for a 22-year-old victim.

Erica Ford, Tamika Mallory and Russell Simmons Offer Comfort to Families

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia

The latest shooting spree in the New York City borough of Queens has rocked the foundation of the community – the parents and grandparents of both the victims and the perpetrators.

It has also nearly broken a dedicated and longtime activist, who said her organization desperately needs help.

“I’m hurting,” said Erica Ford, the founder and CEO of Life Camp, Inc., a mobile trauma unit that brings trauma recovery services to African American communities.

As of September 4, the Jamaica, Queens neighborhood where Ford grew up and now serves, has seen 12 people shot and nine of them killed over a 13-day period.

On September 4, Ford, hip-hop and business mogul Russell Simmons, civil rights activist and Women’s March on Washington Co-Chair Tamika Mallory, and others attended a wake for a 22-year-old victim.

Mourners packed a local church as at least a dozen New York City Police officers stood outside. Ford, Simmons, and Mallory offered some of the victim’s family members and friends, comfort.

“We’ve had nine deaths in Southeast Queens,” said Ford, who was selected in 2012 to join a gun-violence task force established by then-President Barack Obama.

“Among the victims are a 13-year-old and all of these deaths were preventable,” said Ford, whose work has led to global recognition with features by Oprah Winfrey and Essence Magazine among others.

The level of violence in Queens is shocking and previously unseen since Ford founded Life Camp nearly 20 years ago.

The gun violence occurred as Ford continued her cry for help.

While the city provided funding for the mobile trauma units, Ford hasn’t gained enough help with other needs.

“We need to expand. We can’t do it alone, and nobody is reaching out,” Ford said.

It isn’t as if Ford’s organization hasn’t been successful in combating violence.

Over the last three years, the crisis management system that was co-created by Life Camp has contributed to a 15 percent decline in shootings in the 17 precincts with the most violence.

With the motto, “making peace a lifestyle,” Life Camp provides youth and families impacted by violence, the valuable tools needed to stay in school and out of the criminal justice system.

The organization provides programs and other holistic approaches to reinforce self-esteem and respect for life among young ones. Life Camp also connects and mobilize youth to prevent and heal from violence in New York’s most underserved communities.

Life Camp supplies job training and resume development for community members. Organization members travel to crime scenes and hospitals to try and avert retaliation after a shooting has occurred.

“If young people who have experienced gun violence receive wraparound supports to empower them to fulfill their basic needs and sustain mental, physical, and economic health and wellness, they will lead healthier lives,” Ford said.

“They will also be less likely to resolve conflicts with violence,” she said.

Ford said her team is always busy.

Life Camp is comprised mostly of working mothers who have lost their children. They offer therapeutic and healing services and funeral and security preparation.

The Life Camp team canvasses affected neighborhoods to help de-escalate tensions and to provide intervention and mediation to help stop the violence.

Ford said the organization needs the support to hire credible community messengers and for its neighborhood communication campaign.

They’d also like to purchase uniforms and supplies for team members and extend the hours of its mobile crisis unit.

“We want to create safe corridors for our kids and for our staff to get to and from school and work safely,” Ford said.

The program “is a shining example of how much better and effective local interventions are than the police who, in many cases are disconnected, not trusted, brutal and too often fatal,” said Simmons, who has sponsored an annual dinner for the parents of gun violence victims in Queens.

“Violence cannot be contained. It has to be prevented by trusted and effective community-based programs,” Simmons said.

Simmons hosted the September 4 dinner at “The Door” restaurant in Queens where dozens of mourners and Life Camp staff members gathered after the wake.

“Unfortunately, we had this planned [before] we had 12 people shot in queens in last two weeks,” Ford said.

“It’s usually just for the mothers, but my staff is here. I see my staff every day. But, as a shell. I don’t’ see people inside of them because they are broken, they’re in pain because when you lose nine people in one community in two weeks … this ain’t right,” she said.

“We want to bring us together because we’ve got work to do. We’re glad Russell snatched up Tamika and Hasaun [Simmons’ aide] and brought them here because we’ve got work to do. This is our community, and when they talk about gun violence in New York City, they’re talking about us.”

“We want to break bread, and we want to smile and relieve some of that pain that’s heavy on our hearts. We have a funeral tomorrow, and we have another funeral next week. We still have work to do to make sure nobody else gets killed,” Ford said.

To donate to Life Camp, visit https://7days7shootings.funraise.org

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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.

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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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