By Williamena Kwapo | OBSERVER Staff Writer

Sacramento welcomed more than 300 vibrant women June 26-29 for the 59th annual national convention of Carrousels Inc., a unique and distinguished social organization of African American women who gather for one powerful reason: fun.

The Carrousels began in Columbus, Ohio in 1956 when a group of young mothers sought to build community and lasting friendship. What started as casual gatherings in the Eastgate neighborhood has since blossomed into a national sisterhood with 25 chapters. The group was founded by Glenna Watson and the late Betty Brewer. Now 94, Watson attended this year’s convention and was celebrated throughout for her vision and vitality.

The past national presidents for Carrousels Inc. gather around founding member Glenna Watson, 94, during the gala at the Sheraton Grand. Russell Stiger Jr. OBSERVER

“We meet just for fun – no work to be done have we!” is the group’s proudly proclaimed motto. It’s a guiding principle that has kept the Carrousels grounded in joy and connection for nearly seven decades.

The Carrousels brought their signature sparkle to California’s capital city. Hosted by the Sacramento chapter, which was established in 2016 by Barbara Ross and Susan Andrews Blanchett and is led by chapter President Robbin Welch.

“We’re all at the age now that we contributed to the community, contributed to raising kids, committed to our churches, committed to our family, but we want the social,” Ross said of her motivation to help establish the Sacramento chapter.

Carrousels Inc. National President Venetta Armstrong, front center, with her Houston chapter at a dinner at the Elks Tower during the Carrousels 59th national convention. Louis Bryant III OBSERVER

This year’s convention carried the theme “Living Life Like It’s Golden.”

And golden it was.

The convention featured a citywide celebration that showcased the Carrousels’ legacy and Sacramento’s rich cultural offerings. It kicked off at the historic California Railroad Museum, where “boots on the ground” dancers brought Wild West energy to life. Later in the weekend, members dressed to impress for a formal gala themed “Golden Glitz and Glitter,” honoring the elegance, sisterhood, and enduring spirit of the organization.

Though the Carrousels gather purely for joy and steer clear of politics, religion, or policy, their presence speaks volumes. During a luncheon, the organization donated to Mollie’s House, a local nonprofit founded by a Black woman that serves young survivors of sex trafficking.

Carrousels from the Sacramento chapter dance to “Pretty Girls” to open the evening of dancing, casino games, and food at the “Wild, Wild West & Boots on the Ground” evening event at the California Railroad Museum. Louis Bryant III OBSERVER

With an average member age of 70, they still keep up with changing times. Included in the convention was a session focused on the age of AI and learning to use the technology.

The convention also focused on educating guests about Sacramento, with featured historians speaking of the city’s past, present, and possible future. “Many of the guests had never been to Sacramento,” Ross said. “So we set out time to tell our story. They were just totally surprised, and many have said they want to return.”

The next time the Carrousels convention returns to Sacramento? Not until 2049.

By Willy Blackmore | Word In Black

(WIB) – Among the many, many provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that was signed into law on the Fourth of July are a host of environmental measures that continue the Trump Administration’s work to undo any and all progress on climate change. “It is not an overstatement to say this is the most anti-environment bill in history,” Patrick Drupp, director of climate policy for the Sierra Club, said in a statement.

And as the Biden Administration was very focused on environmental and climate justice in particular, the new bill targets many of those programs, too, and rescinds the Environmental Protection Agency’s Environmental and Climate Justice Program entirely.

Environmental activist Mustafa Ali put it plainly: “The bill greenlights pollution — literally. It weakens the Clean Air Act, disables the EPA’s ability to regulate toxic emissions, and rolls back protections for drinking water. It tells corporations they can dump, poison, and profit without consequence. And who suffers? The same people who always suffer.” Black, Brown, Indigenous, and low-income Americans.

Billions in Promised Grants Now in Jeopardy

Established through the Inflation Reduction Act, the program earmarked $2.8 billion in grants, and $200 million in technical assistance to invest in underserved communities —“80 times more than any federal investment in environmental justice in history,” Chandra Taylor-Sawyer, senior attorney at the Southern Environmental Law Center, told Rolling Stone last year.

While many grants have already been paid out (which hasn’t stopped the EPA from attempting to take that money back), a significant amount of funding through the program remains unawarded. In February, a report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities said that over $1 billion in IRA environmental justice funding has not yet been obligated. The funding was supposed to remain available through September 30, 2026.

Lawsuits Push Back Against EPA’s Rollbacks

Green and Healthy Homes Initiative, which was named by the Biden Administration as a regional grantmakers for the Thriving Communities Grantmaking Program, one of a number of ways that the EPA’s IRA funds were being distributed, was one of three plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the EPA filed earlier this year after the agency tried to unilaterally cancel its block grant. The nonprofits won that suit last month.

“In the bill that went through the House and Senate, the Senate amended to not repeal obligated funds, but only rescind non-obligated funds,” explains Ruth Ann Norton, president of Green & Healthy Homes Initiative (GHHI). “Our funds are obligated, as our fourth-circuit ruling deemed. The cancellation of those grants was unlawful, in the words of the judge.”

Fighting for Communities

The Maryland-based GHHI is in the process of distributing its block grant to community-based organizations throughout the mid-Atlantic, the region the Biden EPA put it in charge of. “We do have about 111 identified subrecipients, 72 of which are fully contracted and have already started to draw on payments,” Norton says. “The whole reason that we work through this dispute is simply to ensure that communities have funds to address issues of environmental quality and to advance public health.”

In another class-action lawsuit that was just filed in June, a similar argument is being made that the EPA can’t reclaim money that was congressionally allocated. That suit seeks to have some 350 previously awarded grants, totaling $3 billion, reinstated.

The End of a Short-Lived Climate Justice Era?

While there’s a good chance that the legal argument will win there too, and the awarded grants will remain rewarded, the funding that was still available is now likely dead and gone – and the all-too-short era of when the federal government made an effort to address climate justice, funneled billions of dollars into doing so, now seems even more squarely behind us.

“We can’t lose our focus on mission,” Norton said, “but I don’t have an answer entirely where we’re gonna go for all of the money, cause even philanthropy doesn’t have enough money to backfill in many communities what government was otherwise funding.”

By Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. | President and CEO, National Newspaper Publishers Association

(NNPA) – President Donald Trump’s housing policy is shaping up to be both an economic and humanitarian disaster and if leaders across the political spectrum don’t act soon, the damage may be irreversible.

To be clear, housing policy was already broken long before Trump returned to office. But instead of tackling the root causes — like the chronic shortage of Section 8 vouchers and affordable units — some policymakers chose to blame tools like rent-pricing software, which simply reflect the market’s conditions.

Rather than confront the real barriers to affordability, politicians have chosen to target the messenger. That never made sense, and it still doesn’t — a point that Democratic Governor Jared Polis made clear last week by vetoing a bill to ban such technology. If we want lower rents, we don’t need to ban software that reports current prices. We need to build enough housing so the data reflects abundance, not scarcity.

Unfortunately, President Trump has not gotten this memo, and he is making our broken housing system worse. He has already driven up lumber prices with protectionist trade wars and targeted immigrant communities who make up a vital part of the construction workforce. Now, the president is laying the groundwork for another housing crisis that could rival 2008.

In late May, Trump announced he is “giving very serious consideration” to taking Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac public again. These government-backed mortgage giants were central players in the last financial collapse. Under pressure to expand homeownership without oversight, they helped inflate the subprime mortgage bubble. Ten million Americans lost their homes. The institutions got bailed out. Families didn’t.

To prevent that kind of disaster from recurring, the government placed both firms under conservatorship. Releasing them now would create the same reckless incentives that crashed the global economy, and it would benefit deep-pocketed investors just in time for the 2026 elections. When the next economic crash comes, everyday Americans, and especially Americans in underserved communities, will be the ones paying the price.

And it doesn’t stop there. Trump’s proposed budget would cut federal rental assistance by about 40% at a time when nearly half of renters are spending more than a third of their income on housing. “We would see, I think, homelessness escalate in a way that has been really unprecedented,” warned Kim Johnson of the National Low Income Housing Coalition.

Remaining funds would be handed to states as “block grants,” echoing past efforts to gut safety net programs through decentralization and attrition. This is not a serious answer to the housing crisis. It’s an ideological move that risks deepening inequality and instability that will result in a type of “housing apartheid.”

Policymakers from both parties should reject this approach and unite around a new vision: one that builds. Writers Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson call this the “abundance agenda.” In their book Abundance, they challenge local, state, and federal leaders to confront the self-imposed zoning restrictions and regulatory delays that have made it almost impossible to build enough housing.

“You cannot be the party of working families when the places you govern are places working families can no longer afford to live,” Klein wrote. That means reforming exclusionary zoning, streamlining permitting, and shifting the political culture that demonizes developers while ignoring demand. It means prioritizing supply, not just subsidies.

Because if we don’t solve the housing crisis ourselves, voters will turn to anyone who claims they will, even if the solutions are fake or destructive. The values are already there. What we need now is strategy and action. Increasing housing affordability and availability isn’t just good policy. It’s the only way to keep working Americans housed, the economy stable, and America’s future secure and inclusive.

By NY Carib News | NNPA

(NNPA) – Clarendon-born fashion designer Mikayla Salmon has turned a lifelong dream into a remarkable reality, securing a coveted collaboration with global fast-fashion powerhouse Shein—a breakthrough that has propelled her from a small-town creative to an international designer.

What began as a passion nurtured in high school took an extraordinary leap last November when Shein unexpectedly contacted Salmon to partner on a collection. Initially, she was skeptical.

“At first, I thought it was a scam,” she laughed. “I said to myself, ‘Shein just texted my phone? That can’t be real.’ I left the message on read for about two hours until I literally heard a voice say, ‘Respond to the message.’”

When she finally replied, Shein promptly sent over a contract. The result: her debut four-piece spring collection, launched in April 2025, featuring modern, trend-forward designs and a runaway best-seller.

A Star Collection

Salmon’s Shein collection blends her bold creative vision with contemporary fashion sensibilities. It features:

A playful pink romper

A denim bubble mini dress

A sunset ombré cut-out bodycon dress

A standout two-piece orange skirt set

The two-piece quickly became her best-selling item, selling out twice, with Shein preparing to re-release the design in a new, top-secret color.

To Salmon’s knowledge, she is the second Jamaica-born designer to collaborate with Shein on this scale—an achievement that fills her with pride. The company gave her five months to design the collection, during which she submitted 14 designs, of which four were selected.

“Shein handled everything else—the cutting, sewing, branding, marketing, and fulfillment,” she explained. “My only responsibility was to create and send the original sketches.”

From Clarendon to the World

Salmon’s journey is rooted in resilience and ambition. The 29-year-old part-time pharmacy technician first made waves when she won the Campari Pop Style competition in 2018, and last year, she showcased her designs in Cuba. Despite her growing international profile, she still sews for clients attending local events like Chillin’ on the Farm and Teacup Sundays and customizes bridal wear, swimwear, and pageant gowns.

The designer launched her brand, Young Addiction, with a mission to create clothing for all body types—especially plus-size women.“It’s always been important for me to make people feel beautiful, especially women like me who struggle to find stylish clothes that actually fit,” Salmon said.

Her creative energy is heavily influenced by Jamaica’s golden era of the 1990s, when bold colors, daring silhouettes, and fearless self-expression dominated local fashion.

“A lot of people had their own unique style then, and the world was looking to Jamaica for fashion cues,” she reflected.

Overcoming Self-Doubt

Despite her obvious talent, Salmon admitted that self-doubt was her biggest hurdle.

“I second-guessed myself a lot,” she said. “I kept wondering, will people like my designs? Will Jamaicans support me? I wanted to showcase something bold but wasn’t sure how it would be received.”

Her persistence ultimately paid off. Salmon had previously entered two Shein competitions and applied three times to the Shein X designer program without success. She believes her repeated applications kept her on the company’s radar and eventually led to her selection.

Although the Shein collaboration was met with excitement on TikTok and other social media platforms, Salmon noted that many Jamaicans still don’t realize she’s the designer behind the collection.

“I wasn’t expecting the overwhelming response I got when I posted the video,” she said. “People I didn’t even know were messaging me, saying they were proud of me and that it’s a good look for Jamaica. I think this is a really positive push for local fashion on the global stage.”

Championing Local Fashion and Eyeing Lagos

Salmon continues to advocate for growth within Jamaica’s fashion industry but is clear-eyed about its challenges.

“It’s hard to access quality fabrics in Jamaica. We all end up using the same materials, which limits creativity,” she explained. “And shipping costs for international customers are just too high. That really needs to change.”

She believes that revitalizing former industrial spaces like the Garmex Free Zone could reignite Jamaica’s export potential and transform the local fashion economy.

“We used to export garments. We can do it again,” she said passionately. “Designers like me are doing everything—designing, sewing, branding. What we need now is infrastructure for manufacturing.”

Looking ahead, Young Addiction will soon expand into menswear, with Salmon hinting at versatile pieces Jamaican men can wear to church, brunch, or a party. She’s also developing a custom ackee print, a nod to national pride, which will feature in her entry for the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission’s Fashion and Visual Arts competition.

While she has yet to work with local celebrities, she dreams of styling Spice, Masicka, and Vybz Kartel.

“For now, I always say all my customers are celebrities,” she added with a smile.

Bold Dreams and Global Vision

“Fashion is my life—I live, eat, and breathe it. There’s nothing else I’d rather do,” Salmon declared.

She envisions more international collaborations, more best-sellers, and above all, a fashion world where people like her—‘the fat country girl’—feel beautiful, seen, and celebrated.

Her ultimate international ambition? Lagos, Nigeria.

“If I weren’t doing this in Jamaica, I’d want to be in Lagos,” she said. “The fashion industry there is booming—the fabrics, the culture, the creativity—it’s like a dream.”

But for now, Mikayla Salmon is content making her mark right where she started—proving that even a country girl from Clarendon can set global trends.

By Maya C. Miller | CalMatters

Tens of thousands of California state employees were bracing to return to the office on July 1 after Gov. Gavin Newsom declared there was an “operational necessity” for all California state employees to work in person a minimum of four days per week.

That changed just before the deadline when CalHR, which represents the governor in collective bargaining, negotiated a set of deals with public employee unions that delayed the mandate for a year. Relieved workers welcomed the news.

Yet labor leaders – and even some in-office evangelists – said the governor’s willingness to suddenly drop his demand proved the order was a clever political move and undermined his insistence that in-person work is superior, necessary for productivity and builds public trust.

“Many of our members feel the sudden shift toward rigid (return to office) policies had more to do with politics and pressure than performance,” wrote Anica Walls, president of Service Employees International Union Local 1000, in an email. The union, the largest in California state government, represents almost 96,000 state employees. “This pause is a direct result of our members fighting back.”

Walls declined multiple requests for an interview and insisted that CalMatters send questions in writing.

Many state workers had been on edge since March when Newsom penned the executive order that would have required an estimated 108,000 employees who still worked a hybrid schedule to return to the office nearly full time. The new order doubled the number of required in-office days from two to four, building on Newsom’s first crackdown on work-from-home in April 2023.

Several state employee unions filed grievances, and two groups sued Newsom and CalHR, the state’s human resources agency, alleging that the administration’s order wrongfully sidestepped the collective bargaining process by unilaterally changing working conditions.

Aggrieved state employees also fundraised more than $30,000 to erect billboards around Sacramento that accused Newsom of creating traffic jams. Many workers argued the state had downsized some locations so there would not even be enough room for them to work in person.

Lawmakers, whom the public employee unions view as allies, questioned whether the state was ready to suddenly bring so many workers back to the office. They didn’t get clear answers.

‘You don’t have numbers for us’

During budget hearings in April and May, members of the Assembly subcommittee that oversees government administration grilled officials from CalHR and the Department of Government Services about how much it would cost to have tens of thousands of workers come in four days a week instead of two.

The lawmakers didn’t hide their exasperation when administration officials admitted they did not even have a rough estimate.

“I’m still really astonished that you don’t have numbers for us,” said Assemblymember Liz Ortega, a Democrat who represents Hayward, during a May 22 committee hearing.

“This is pretty bewildering,” echoed Democratic Assemblymember Matt Haney of San Francisco.

But Newsom maintained that the benefits of in-person work, such as increased collaboration, communication and mentorship for newer employees, were undermined by the two-day in-office policy since teams weren’t required to come in on the same days. Four days in office would mitigate that issue.

The tension escalated in May after Newsom announced the state faced a $12 billion budget problem and suggested delaying state worker pay raises for a year, as well as pausing contributions to their retiree health care funds, to cut costs.

Ultimately, CalHR reached new labor agreements with three unions, including the state’s largest, to delay the in-office order until July 2026. Those new deals also included some of the cost savings the governor wanted.

SEIU Local 1000 recently agreed to offset a 3% pay raise this year with five extra hours of “unpaid” leave time each month. The agreement, which affects about a third of the union’s 96,000 represented workers, could ultimately cost the state more since an employee’s accrued hours gain value as their pay rises over time. Many state workers wait to cash out unused leave when they retire, typically at their highest pay rate.

Supporters of SEIU Local 1000 rally in front of the governor’s mansion in Sacramento on June 8, 2023. Photo by Julie A Hotz for CalMatters

Proponents of in-office work were also dismayed by Newsom’s about-face. Michael Genest, who served as Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s finance director, said telework shouldn’t be used as a privilege to sweeten contract negotiations.

“Why is this a bargaining chip?” Genest said. “What it shows is a complete lack of respect for the idea that the taxpayer is paying for something that’s of value.”

Only a fraction have returned to the office

Of the estimated 108,000 employees who continue to work hybrid schedules, only a fraction of them have been required to return to office because their unions did not make agreements to delay the order. Many are state scientists, whose union spent four years fighting for a contract and eventually staged California’s first state worker strike before closing a deal in August 2024.

The scientists’ union, the California Association of Professional Scientists, has so far refused the state’s requests to reopen its contract and negotiate the salary concessions the other unions traded for the extra year of remote work privileges.

“The governor’s RTO mandate is not grounded in any logic, data, or operational need. It’s political,” said Jacqueline Tkac, the scientists’ union president, in a written statement. “We are open to collaboration with the state on this issue, but refuse to compromise our contract to participate in Gov. Newsom’s political games.”

When asked to explain his sudden willingness to delay the return-to-office order, the governor’s office did not respond. In an emailed statement, CalHR spokesperson Camille Travis praised the “collaborative approach” with unions that led to the agreement.

“Departments were preparing to implement the return to office order, and this one-year delay gives us the opportunity to refine those plans and work with our teams to ensure a smooth transition,” Travis wrote.

Genest said Newsom’s sudden reversal on the in-office order, just a week before it was set to take effect, created unnecessary whiplash for departments that were scrambling to prepare enough office space to accommodate returning employees.

“If he’s telling the departments, ‘Gear up,’ and then he’s later going to say, ‘Oh, never mind, we’re going to be able to pay them less so you don’t have to gear up,’” Genest said, “that’s a very cynical thing.”