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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (April 29, 2020)
Page 2 The Skanner Portland & Seattle April 29, 2020 ® Challenging People to Shape a Better Future Now Bobbie Dore Foster Executive Editor Jerry Foster Advertising Manager U.S. Census Bureau www.ceusus.gov Patricia Irvin Graphic Designer Monica J. Foster Seattle Office Coordinator Susan Fried Photographer 2019 MERIT AWARD WINNER The Skanner Newspaper, es- tablished in October 1975, is a weekly publication, published every Wednesday by IMM Publi- cations Inc. 415 N. Killingsworth St. P.O. Box 5455 Portland, OR 97228 Telephone (503) 285-5555 Fax: (503) 285-2900 info@theskanner.com The Skanner is a member of the National Newspaper Pub lishers Association and West Coast Black Pub lishers Association. All photos submitted become the property of The Skanner. We are not re spon sible for lost or damaged photos either solicited or unsolicited. ©2020 The Skanner. All rights re served. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission prohibited. Local News Pacific NW News World News Opinions Jobs, Bids Entertainment Community Calendar LOCAL NEWS BRIEFS LOCAL EVENTS Updated daily online. ebo TheSkannerNews o k • learn • co m me in y o u r c o m m u n n F ac it Hear about it first. Sign up for Breaking News and Events at • nts “ Federal nu- trition pro- grams are among the many rea- sons it is so important to respond School Lunch Program are just two nutrition programs that use census results to inform planning. Other programs include the Na- tional School Breakfast Pro- The Census Bureau works with state and tribal governments to ensure recipients of SNAP don’t lose their benefits if they come to work for the 2020 Census. gram (NSBP), lunch programs for people age 65 years and older and meal delivery to disabled and homebound in- dividuals. The Census Bureau works with state and tribal govern- ments to ensure recipients of SNAP don’t lose their benefits if they come to work for the 2020 Census. They are working to get census income excluded so recipients who receive bene- fits can work as census takers (enumerators) without losing their benefits or eligibility status. The Census Bureau has partnered with the U.S. De- partment of Agriculture (which administers SNAP) to exclude income from tempo- rary employment for 2020 Census. While it is ultimate- ly a state decision whether to exempt 2020 Census income earned, a great majority of states have already agreed to this waiver. Black-Owned Newspapers Are Small Businesses Too! www.TheSkanner.com d ay ! • L i ke u s o A ccording to the Census Bureau, of the 13.8 mil- lion households that receive SNAP, 6.7 mil- lion have children under the age of 18 and 6.4 million have someone living with a disabil- ity. Of all the homes with chil- dren under 18, some 18% re- ceive assistance from SNAP, according to the Census Bu- reau’s 2018 American Com- munity Survey. Students who qualify for SNAP also get free or re- duced-cost school lunches. Federal nutrition programs are among the many reasons it is so important to respond (and report all children, in- cluding newborns, living in your home) to the 2020 Census. Knowing how many chil- dren are in an area helps fed- eral, state and local officials evaluate funding for nutri- tion programs. SNAP and the National PHOTO: ISTOCKPHOTO / NNPA Food Assistance Programs Critical for Low-Income Children and Families Bernie Foster Founder/Publisher to y • Opinion P ublishers of Black- owned community newspapers, including Janis Ware of the Atlanta Voice, Cheryl Smith of Texas Metro News, Chris Bennett of the Seattle Medium, Denise Rolark Barnes of the Wash- ington Informer, and Brenda Andrews of the New Journal & Guide in Virginia, are des- perately trying to avoid shut- tering operations. In a heartfelt and straight- to-the-point op-ed published recently, Ware explained to her tens of thousands of read- ers that The Atlanta Voice has boldly covered the issues that affect the African American community. “Our founders, Mr. J. Low- ell Ware and Mr. Ed Clayton, were committed to the mis- sion of being a voice to the voiceless with the motto of, ‘honesty, integrity and truth,’” Ware wrote in an article that underscores the urgency and importance of African Amer- ican-owned newspapers during the coronavirus pan- demic. To remain afloat, Ware and her fellow publishers know that financial backing and support will be necessary. Following the spread of the pandemic, many advertisers have either paused their ad spending or halted it alto- gether. And other streams of revenue have also dried up, forcing Black-owned publica- tions to find ways to reduce spending and restructure what were already historical- ly tight budgets. With major companies like Ruth Chris Steakhouse and Pot Belly Sandwiches swoop- ing in and hijacking stimulus money aimed at small busi- nesses, the Black Press — and Stacy M. Brown NNPA Columnist community-based publishing in general — has been large- ly left out of the $350 billion stimulus and Paycheck Pro- tection Program packages. To make matters worse, there are no guarantees that a second package, specifical- “ We have a re- sponsibility, a moral obli- gation to use this status to be a source of information, support, and inspiration ly focused on small business, will benefit Black publishers or other businesses owned by people of color. Publications like the New Journal and Guide, Washing- ton Informer (which recently celebrated its 55th anniver- sary) and the Atlanta Voice have been essential to the communities they serve — and the world at large for 193 years. Unfortunately for some publishers, the impact of COVID-19 has brought busi- ness operations to a near halt. While none are thriving, some publishers have devel- oped ingenious and innova- tive ways to continue opera- tions. “Dear World, the entire planet is feeling the devas- tation of the coronavirus pandemic,” Cheryl Smith of Texas Metro News wrote to her readers. “We must be concerned about ourselves, as well as others. You may be aware that the media is con- sidered ‘essential.’ So, guess what? We have a responsibil- ity, a moral obligation to use this status to be a source of information, support, and in- spiration, just as we are at all other times,” Smith wrote. Smith’s statements echo the more than 200 African Amer- ican-owned newspapers in the NNPA family. The ma- jority of the publications are owned and operated by wom- en, and virtually all are fami- ly dynasties so rarely seen in the black community. The contributions of the Black Press remain indelibly associated with the fearless- ness, determination, and suc- cess of Black America. Those contributions in- clude the works of Freder- ick Douglass, WEB DuBois, Patrice Lumumba, Kwame Nkrumah, and former NNPA Chairman Dr. Carlton Good- lett. Douglas, who helped slaves escape to the North while working with the Under- ground Railroad, established the abolitionist paper, “The North Star,” in Rochester, New York. He developed it into the most influential black anti-slavery newspaper published during the Antebellum era. The North Star denounced slavery and fought for the emancipation of women and other oppressed groups with a motto of “Right is of no Sex – Truth is of no Color; God is the Father of us all, and we are all brethren.” DuBois, known as the father of modern Pan Africanism, demanded civil rights for Blacks but freedom for Afri- ca and an end to capitalism, which he called the cause of racism and all human misery. Many large news organiza- tions have begun targeting African Americans and other audiences of color by either acquiring Black-owned news startups or adding the moni- ker “Black” to the end of their brand. However, it was Black- owned and operated news or- ganizations that were on the front lines for voting rights, civil rights, ending apartheid, fair pay for all, unionization, education equity, healthcare disparities and many other issues that disproportionate- ly negatively impact African Americans. Today, the Black Press con- tinues to reach across the ocean where possible to forge coalitions with the growing number of websites and spe- cial publications that cover Africa daily from on the con- tinent, Tennessee Tribune Publisher Rosetta Perry not- ed. The evolution of the Black Press, the oldest Black busi- ness in America, had pro- prietors take on issues of chattel slavery in the 19th century, Jim Crow segrega- tion and lynching, the great northern migration, the Civil Rights Movement, the trans- formation from the printing press to the digital age and computerized communica- tion. Read the rest of this commentary at TheSkanner.com nt • lo c a l n e w s • eve
