Rep. Meeks Becomes First African American Chair of House Foreign Affairs Committee

On December 3, 2020 Congressman Gregory W. Meeks (NY-05), senior Member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, was elected to Chair the House Foreign Affairs Committee, becoming the first African-American Chair in the committee’s history.

Meeks released the following statement:

“I am incredibly honored to be elected Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, a committee that I have served on throughout my tenure of service in Congress. There is extraordinary talent across the committee and Democratic caucus, and I look forward to working closely with Members as we look ahead to a new era of US global affairs.

“The committee under the next Congress will preside over an historic shift in US foreign policy, and there is no shortage of work ahead of us. Not only will we need to re-engage with a world that has felt the marked absence of US global leadership, but we must also rethink traditional approaches to foreign policy.

“This will not be a return to normal, but a leap towards a new way of doing business. We will broaden our scope and outreach to parts of the world we’ve historically overlooked. We will return as partners to our European allies, but we will also need to build new multilateral relationships in the Western Hemisphere and Africa. We can only address the systemic challenges posed by Moscow and Beijing with the help of like-minded friends.

“We will work to rejoin the JCPOA and WHO, but we will also need to establish new coalitions to address the existential crisis of climate change and emerging threats. In pushing further on the fight for human rights across the world, we must lead by humble example with the weight of US moral credibility. We will need to take back Congress’ constitutional authority, tightening the scope of AUMFs that have led to ambiguous forever wars.

“None of that work, however, can be completed without a considerable rebuilding of our Department of State. Diplomacy must be moved front and center as the primary tool for conducting US foreign policy, no longer second to military action. The Foreign Affairs Committee must take a leading role in how we rebuild the State Department. We will broaden the conversation, hearing testimony from organizations and non-traditional diplomats. We will press for greater diversity so our diplomatic corps looks more like the America it represents abroad, strengthening the initiatives that serve as a pipeline for diverse communities.

“In order to deepen the expertise of the committee and prepare for the challenges ahead of us, there is no substitute for on-the-ground experience, engaging with foreign governments and the people they’re meant to serve, through bi-partisan delegations. As Chair, I will utilize the expertise of our Committee members both in the Committee room and abroad, repairing old relationships and establishing new ones.

“We can no longer be America first, but America forward. Our challenges before us are global in scale, and it will require global cooperation, spearheaded by American leadership. I am eager to begin work with my colleagues on the committee, and look forward to working with the new Biden-Harris administration on the tasks ahead of us.”

'He Lost': Ex-Hillside Police Captain Sues Township and Loses in Court, Vindicating Former Mayor Garretson

(Union County, NJ, Dec. 4, 2020) The Township of Hillside won a major victory against a former disgruntled police captain early this week.  A Superior Court Judge also declared that former Mayor Angela Garretson acted appropriately in choosing the Hillside Police Chief in 2017.  The controversy arose after the captain was rejected for the Chief position by Garretson.  The former Mayor stated that “the personnel structure was reminiscent of the good old boys’ network that had been in place throughout the 20^th century.” She also recognized that the department lacked women in upper leadership.  

Captain Lomonte’s case raised claims of unlawful retaliation and hostile work environment in violation of the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination.  Based on the strong evidence and credible testimony from Mayor Garretson, the Union County Judge dismissed the case of Nicola Lomonte v. Township of Hillside, indicating that the matter had no basis.  “In the court’s opinion, there is not a scintilla of evidence in the trial record that would support the conclusion that Mayor Garretson unlawfully strayed when she bypassed Captain Lomonte.”.  On that basis the case was dismissed.   By following Garretson’s lead to oppose any monetary settlement and proceed to trial, the Township saved over a half million dollars in damages fees and costs. 

The claims in the case were politically motivated by police brass and their associates against the former Mayor.  In a similar case, the current Mayor chose not to follow the guidance of former Mayor Garretson regarding the same promotional list and the township awarded money damages to another disgruntled police executive.  Both cases centered on the selection process for the position of Police Chief.   The Judge’s legal analysis refuted every claim against Garretson.

It was clear that the police allegations and various oppositional encounters were engineered to derail Mayor Garretson’s political career.  However, it did not work.  She came out stronger garnering a seat on the Union County Freeholder Board immediately after her mayoral term ended in 2017.  In the November 3, 2020, election, she was a top vote getter in the County.  Her reputation and legacy were exalted even higher as she demonstrated a high level of political acumen to get the governor and the entire state legislature to acknowledge racial equity in changing the slave era term of “Freeholder” to be renamed as “County Commissioner”.

Retired Captain Nicola Lomonte, a white, male, 25-year member of the force, complained that he was not promoted to serve as Chief of Police based on discrimination and that he was subjected to a hostile environment and retaliation at the hands of former Mayor Garretson, a Black female.  Lomonte demanded to be paid a lucrative six-figure confidential settlement in damages from the taxpayers of Hillside.  However, Mayor Garretson opposed any settlement on the matter of promotions and demanded a trial to be heard in open court under oath.  The Judge scoured the record and stated that [Lomomte’s] contradictory testimony more than six years later cannot now morph the matter into an issue of race. 

Read the judge's order below:

ORDER 12-1-20 by Councilman George L. Cook III on Scribd

Byron Allen To Launch TheGrio.TV Television Network

Byron Allen's Allen Media Group is proud to announce its recently-acquired MGM over-the-air broadcast television network Light TV will officially transition to TheGrio.TV television network on January 15, 2021 – the start of the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday weekend. The newly-rebranded broadcast television network TheGrio.TV will feature African American-focused content reaching over 100 million U.S. households via over-the-air broadcast television stations, cable/telco/satellite platforms, and free digital streaming.

TheGrio.TV – with its new network brand slogan "Our Culture Forever" – will feature movies, sitcoms, dramas, concerts, talk shows, variety shows, game shows, news, and lifestyle content.

At one time owned by NBCUniversal, TheGrio.com was purchased by Byron Allen in 2016 when it had less than 1 million monthly active users. In Summer 2020, TheGrio.com achieved its peak of over 10.5 million monthly active users. TheGrio.com is now one of the most visited news and entertainment sites for the African-American community, and is the largest employer of African-American journalists.

"The Grio – which means 'storyteller' in Africa – is the first platform to offer an online digital news destination, a free streaming app providing local news, weather, sports, traffic, and entertainment content geofenced to the user's zip code, and an over-the-air broadcast television network," said Byron Allen, Founder/Chairman/CEO of Allen Media Group. "TheGrio.TV is especially important to me as it will both serve and uplift all viewers. TheGrio.TV is the first and only 100 percent African American-owned and targeted broadcast television network and free digital platform – making us truly authentic, without being filtered or controlled by others outside of the community."

Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman wants Biden to do better with African Americans appointments to his administration

During an MSNBC interview, Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ, 12th District) said that while she's been impressed with Pres-Elect Biden's appointments so far, she is concerned that qualified Black candidates, especially black women, are being assigned to 2nd tier positions.

Watch her full interview below:

While I've been impressed with Pres-Elect Biden's appointments so far, I'm concerned that qualified Black candidates, especially black women, are being assigned to 2nd tier positions. pic.twitter.com/S450m7gWH8

— Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (@RepBonnie) December 2, 2020

Barack Obama discusses African American Doubt About the COVID-19 Vaccine

During an interview with SiriusXM's View Channel with Joe Madison host of The Joe Madison Show, former President Barack Obama discussed the doubt about any Covid-19 vaccine in the African American community. Obama also stated that he trusted Dr. Anthony Fauci and would take any vaccine that Fauci said was safe.

Listen to that segment of the interview below: