July 21, 2016
By Brandon Brooks, Managing Editor,
and Danny J. Bakewell, Jr., Executive Editor
Phil Washington is not immune to criticism and as the CEO of the Los Angeles Metro Authority he has received his share. But what does make Phil Washington unique is that he is a problem solver. When Washington received statistical evidence showing people of color are overwhelmingly subjected to the L.A. Sheriff’s “stop and frisk” practices, he didn’t sweep it under the rug.
Instead he, along with the head of security for Metro Alex Wiggins who is also African American took a proactive role in bringing an end to the practice.
Washington wants community members to understand that Metro does not have a “stop and frisk” policy, but that the data appears to demonstrate that over the past four years a “stop and frisk” practice has certainly existed.
“I want people to understand that all we want is for our riders to pay their fare and ride to their destination in a safe and joyful environment,” he said during a recent interview with the Sentinel.
Following are excerpts from that interview.
Said Washington, “In looking at the stats, we want to inform the people that if you don’t have your fare, transit police are going to run your name. But, if you do have your fare ($1.75), transit police should not and will not run your name just to collect the fare. We want to make sure riders understand that there are certain things that law enforcement is going to do. But we don’t want people to be subjected to [police harassment] for $1.75.
“We want to make sure that people are not being singled out for things that have nothing to do with fare enforcement. You don’t want to go to jail for $1.75. There are some things that we are going to be working on as far as law enforcement that protect people of color.”
LAWT: Are people being harassed even with their fare?
“Metro does not have a stop and frisk policy and we don’t encourage our officers to contact anyone unless they are committing a crime. If it is happening, it is nothing that Metro endorses; we will put a stop to it. If they are investigating a crime, absolutely we need them to protect other riders. But if you have your fare and you’re not causing any trouble you shouldn’t have any problems”.
LAWT: The stats show a high number of African American males [are victims of stop and frisk]
“We have a high rate of people of color as our ridership. We are trying to get to the root of it, whether it’s them not paying fare or what…
African Americans are at the top of the list of fare evasion numbers. We are trying to start an education campaign on why everyone must pay to ride. I think the number will go down as well as the number of arrests will go down and must go down. If the number of fare evaders go down, but if the arrests remain up, then we will investigate if people are being targeted”.
LAWT: What about the person who can’t buy a ticket (not enough time, etc.) is there an option to pay on the train?
“Those people do have an opportunity to pay the fare if caught during a fare inspection. Our goal is not to write citations but only to have people pay their fare”.
LAWT: What about the officer that doesn’t give that opportunity?
“We would remind that officer of that change (of the rules). The fare inspector gets on the train, they have hand held devices that can detect if a person has paid their fare.
LAWT: As far as arrests, being that they are so high, what are you doing to combat that?
“Those stats cover all crimes on Metro, not just for fare evasion. That’s why we think that having a campaign about fare payment will lower those stats. (Paying the fare helps people to avoid interaction with the police.) I want people to be able to ride the system without any problems”.
LAWT: If there are certain areas of higher arrests, are you doing more town halls and other forms of outreach in those areas or is the campaign just going to be blanketed (over all of L.A. County).
“Essentially, with our fare enforcement operations, we conduct them countywide. That pattern that seems to be emerging, we want to address. With our fare education campaign, though we want to target the areas that have the highest frequency of evasion it should be something we share across the system.”
All types of people evade fares, not just African Americans. We are dealing with this issue everywhere this is not just something that happens in South L.A.
LAWT: What can Metro say against those who would believe the stats? (That there are more African Americans that get citations on public transit) What are you doing to combat it?
“Let me reiterate the importance of paying your fare and you won’t have a problem with law enforcement. We are also hiring a number of new transit security officers. They are actually civilians and will be taking over fare enforcement.
They are unarmed and they don’t have arrest powers. That leaves our law enforcement officers to take care of crime prevention”.
LAWT: What about the people who don’t respect the security officers’ authority?
“What we find during our fare inspections, the vast majority of people are compliant. If we do run into such a person, they have created a situation that officers would have to be called. One of our goals is crime prevention on the system. We want to make sure that we get out in front of issues and that we are studying the data, we are looking at the high number of arrests of people of color and we want to know why?
LAWT: is there a campaign name/ launch date?
Not yet, we are just now addressing this data… We want to do it right.
LAWT: What does Metro want the public to know?
1) Metro does not have a “Stop and Frisk” Policy
2) We want to prevent crime including fare evasion on our system
3) Metro wants to make sure every rider is treated fairly.
July 14, 2016
By Elizabeth Marccellino
City News Service
The Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 this week to ask voters in November to approve a special marijuana business tax of up to 10 percent of gross receipts to fund the fight against homelessness.
“There’s an emergency,” said Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, who has unsuccessfully pressed Gov. Jerry Brown to declare a statewide emergency to free up additional funding. “It is urgent that we address this issue.”
However, in the end, Ridley-Thomas voted against the marijuana tax, even after his push for a quarter-cent sales tax failed to garner the four votes it needed to pass. Supervisor Michael Antonovich cast the other dissenting vote.
The county’s chief executive officer has estimated that $450 million in annual funding will be needed to effectively combat homelessness in the region. A marijuana tax is projected to raise $78-130 million annually, leading Ridley- Thomas to call it the “least effective” choice.
The board also considered a three-cent parcel tax — which was taken off the table before a vote — a quarter-cent sales tax and a general tax on medical and recreational marijuana that would not have been dedicated to fighting homelessness.
More than 100 advocates for the homeless urged the board to move forward with at least one of the measures, including a homeless man who said he hadn’t showered in months.
Many activists pushed for the sales tax, saying it would be the most reliable and timely source of funds. That option was projected to generate $355 million annually.
Others chose not to dictate a particular path, while some suggested that the board put all measures on the ballot and let voters decide.
Pollsters hired by the county found roughly equivalent public support — ranging from 67-69 percent — for all the options.
However, poll numbers fell below two-thirds when measures were in the third rather than first position on a hypothetical ballot or when voters heard additional messaging about the issues. The marijuana tax will require two-thirds of voters to approve its passage.
Revenues from the marijuana tax would also depend on voters passing a separate November measure to legalize the use of recreational marijuana.
The tax would be on businesses that grow and sell medical and recreational marijuana. When paired with state and other taxes, it could mean that buyers pay up to 34 percent in taxes on purchases, assuming business owners pass costs through to buyers.
Some marijuana advocates warned that high taxes could create a continuing black market for the drug.
Based on experience in Colorado, Washington and Oregon, staffers said revenue would come in slowly and build over a period of about two years after legalization. No tax on recreational marijuana could take effect until at least 2018, according to county attorneys.
Supervisor Michael Antonovich objected to the idea of taxing a drug that he believes should be illegal.
“Drugs don’t build strong societies,” Antonovich said, adding that legalization “runs counter to our public health approach” as “marijuana is tied to dependence and addiction.”
Supervisor Hilda Solis said the issue “makes me feel a bit uncomfortable,” but believes that voters are likely to pass legalization and the board should begin to worry about “bringing in revenue that this county deserves.”
The county could chose to ban marijuana even if the state legalizes it — though it could not ban personal indoor use or cultivation or the use of public roads for transportation — but in that case would not receive any of the state taxes generated by the drug.
Supervisor Sheila Kuehl said the board shouldn’t worry about answering all the questions about how to regulate marijuana before moving forward with a ballot measure to tax cannabis.
“It’s time to do this now,” Kuehl said.
The county had previously considered a millionaire's tax, a half-percent tax on personal income in excess of $1 million that was projected to raise $243 million per year to combat homelessness.
State legislators who would have had to grant the county the right to levy that tax failed to take the issue up before the summer recess, leaving the measure unable to meet deadlines for the November ballot.
Solis, who also voted in support of the sales tax, said she believed the business tax on marijuana would be effective.
“I believe we moved forward with our most viable ballot option for this November’s ballot,” Solis said.
July 07, 2016
LAWT News Service
There is a way for black women executives to increase their numbers in business leadership positions if conscientious and intentional steps are taken to recognize and reward their talents and contributions to business success. A qualitative study conducted by The Executive Leadership Council, the preeminent membership organization for the development of global black leaders, in collaboration with Springboard – Partners in Cross Cultural Leadership, builds on the findings of the groundbreaking research in the Black Women Executives (BWE) Research Initiative in 2008.
The Executive Leadership Council
The current findings, published in the Black Women Executives Research Initiative Revisited, examine the facilitators and impediments to Black Women Executives (BWEs) in reaching the C-Suite. The new findings show that while nearly 27 percent of BWEs received promotions or advanced their positions in the same or a different company during the period, more than 50 percent stayed in the same or similar position, made lateral moves in the same or different company, or lost ground through diminished roles or transitioning out of the corporate workplace entirely. All of which took place during a severe recession, one of the most difficult economic periods in modern history.
"The findings of the Black Women Executives Research Initiative Revisited present an insightful perspective on the performance and opportunities for black women executives during a turbulent and challenging period for global business," said Ronald C. Parker, President and CEO of The Executive Leadership Council. "It shows that although more than a quarter of the respondents advanced their careers under difficult circumstances, there is much more that needs to be done by black women and companies to recognize and reward the underutilized talent of these exceptional leaders."
The interviews with the BWEs identified four factors critical to understanding why BWEs were both successful and challenged during the 2007 – 2015 timeframe. Four areas of opportunity for BWEs to influence positive outcomes were revealed: (1) Alignment of Values; (2) Agility and Repurposement; (3) Sponsor Relationships; and, (4) Relationship-building as Politics. These four areas of focus could create a "roadmap" leading to an increase in the representation of BWEs in corporate C-Suites and on boards. Of the four, the two most important areas suggested by the research were relationship building and agility, and repurposement.
"The 'runway' is so important," said Pamela Carlton, president of Springboard - Partners in Cross Cultural Leadership and Co-Founder of The Everest Project, which explored contributions of multicultural women to business success. "It is clear that BWEs must start early in their careers, in the first 5 – 7 years, to develop strategic multiple relationships with the people who can support and advance their careers. The most successful BWEs take risks and have the opportunity for big roles early in their careers, allowing them to build the long runway of leadership experiences all executives need, build alliances and create a track record of success," Carlton added.
Details on the findings are available in an Executive Summary available on The ELC's website at www.elcinfo.com. Two areas of particular interest are "Sponsorship: Who's in Your Wallet," and "Relationship-building as Politics." Both speak to the importance of BWEs building and nurturing a network of allies, in addition to sponsors, in a very competitive environment where everyone performs at a high level, demonstrates agility and an alignment with the values and mission of the enterprise, and is willing to take risks with so-called "glass cliff" assignments. The study found that BWEs are willing to take on daunting assignments, but frequently are not recognized with promotions for successfully achieving or exceeding favorable outcomes.
"This is the kind of research that helps us develop the necessary leadership development programs, strategies, and research that will help BWEs navigate the corporate landscape and find a path to the top," said Steven Williams, Ph.D., SHRM-SCP, SPHR, Vice President & Chief Learning Officer of The ELC's Institute for Leadership Development & Research. "The findings of this research will help guide our efforts to develop a pathway to success for BWEs that we believe will contribute to more positive results."
The findings from the Black Women Executives Research Initiative Revisited also contributed to a larger study of multicultural women as part of The Everest Project, which examined the influence of women's leadership in today's global economy and provided insight into how the intersection of gender, race, ethnicity, culture, and sexual orientation impacts women in the workplace. The study titled Eve of Change: Women Redefining Corporate America involved participants who identified as Black, Hispanic, LGBTQ, Pan Asian or White and represented over eighty Fortune 500 corporations from a range of different industries and regions. It found that female executives are leading transformation and "making their mark by creating the capacity of teams to innovate, a phenomenon that will fuel corporate growth well into the future," Carlton underscored.
The issue of women in corporate leadership and on corporate boards has been explored and discussed in a number of studies and blogs, including a GAO Report on women on corporate boards, a study of women leaders from Capitol Hill to the board room in Barriers and Bias: The Status of Women in Leadership by the American Association of University Women (AAUW), The ELC Institute and a blog exploring the nuances of a blended masculine-feminine style of leadership contributing to business success. Trends are leaning towards increasing the representation of women in corporate leadership and women of color have the most ground to make up to reach parity.
June 30, 2016
LAWT News Service
Gary L. Toebben, President and CEO of the Greater Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce, is presented the 13th Annual Grinni Award for, among many other reasons, his percipient, inspiring and trailblazing work in bringing and fostering “Business-friendly Climate Change” to Los Angeles, his help in optimizing employment, education, and cultural enrichment opportunities for the people of this city, his muscular and efficacious efforts to increase the Gross Domestic Product of our civic region, and for his chief, high yield, waxing crescent smile!
The Grinni Awards were created to help promote the importance of good oral health and hygiene to the public by honoring a positive, dynamic, influential, and readily identifiable person that helps to make the world a better and brighter place to live and has an anatomically and orthodontically great smile.