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In compliance with Governor John Bel Edwards’ statewide stay-
VOL. 100, NO. 50
Project Celebration Offers
Support for Domestic Abuse Survivors
Story and Photo
by Ronald Collins Jr.
October is nationally rec-
ognized as Domestic Abuse
Awareness Month. Statis-
tics indicate that one out of
every four American
women report that they
have been physically
abused by a husband or
boyfriend at some point in
their lives, and that addi-
tionally a woman is battered
in the United States by an
intimate partner every 12
seconds. On average four
women are murdered by an
intimate partner each day
and at least 3.3 million chil-
dren witness domestic vio-
lence in their homes yearly.
“When we get a survivor
that comes in seeking our
services we have very well
trained advocates who con-
nect with that individual,
said Petrina Jenkins, an out-
reach manager for Project
Celebration, a state funded,
locally based program that
provides support for domes-
tic violence victims.
In a recent interview with
the Shreveport Sun she em-
phasized that most individ-
uals seeking support from
the organization are seeking
help from some desperate
circumstances.
“Domestic violence is
generally not a stand alone
Judicial Battle Looms
with Ginsburg Passing
Black Leaders Fear Loss of Civil Rights Gains
by Barrington M. Salmon
and Hazel Trice Edney
(TriceEdneyWire.com) -
Civil rights leaders are al-
ternating between sadness
over the death of Associate
Supreme Court Justice Ruth
Bader Ginsburg and deep
concern about what her
death could mean to the
composition of the US
Supreme Court – and ulti-
mately what it could mean
for freedom, justice and
equality for Blacks, women
and other historically op-
pressed people.
Ginsburg reportedly told
her granddaughter on her
deathbed, September 18,
“My most fervent wish is
that I will not be replaced
until a new president is in-
stalled.” But shortly after
news of Ginsburg’s death,
Senate Majority Leader
Mitch McConnell an-
nounced his intention to try
to confirm Ginsburg’s re-
placement before the presi-
dential election in 44 days.
And within minutes of
learning of the open seat
Arizona Sen. Martha Mc-
Sally jumped out as the first
senator to declare that she
will vote for whoever Mc-
Connell and Trump instruct
her to as soon as possible.
“Justice Ginsburg per-
formed a great sacrifice by
not allowing herself to rest
and selflessly stay and
fighting to the very end,”
said Dr. Avis Jones-DeWee-
ver, a political commentator
and author. “Her dying wish
was for her seat to not be
TWELVE PAGES
October is Domestic Abuse Awareness Month
Petrina Jenkins, an outreach manager for Project Celebration.
issue. They may have hous-
ing needs. Sometimes fam-
ilies come in needing food,
or assistance paying bills, or
just a safe place to lay their
head for the night. We try to
look at the individual holis-
tically as we attempt to get
them to become acclimated
to becoming independent
from violence. Most of the
time the survivors that
come to us have been the
victims of calculated ma-
nipulation. When an indi-
vidual comes to us we
recognize the fact that that
PHOTO: Supreme Court of the United States
filled. It was on her mind.
What this means largely is
that we’re up the creek
without a paddle. We know
this because Trump is un-
scrupulous, has no princi-
ple, no integrity.”
She added, “We’re in a
perfect storm. We have the
most unscrupulous presi-
dent that we’ve known in
recent history. The very
same things can be said
about McConnell who is
even more dangerous.
These two individuals are in
power and have the power
to shape the court. I would
expect them to go ahead
and try to put another Re-
publican on the court.”
As legal minds expressed
worst fears, national civil
rights representatives re-
called the contributions of
this person is an expert in
their own safety because
they have survived for so
long.”
Domestic abuse victims
in Caddo, Bossier, Webster,
Red River , Desoto and
Sabine Parish are able to
seek confidential support
services from Project Cele-
bration at no charge. The or-
ganization operates a
24-hour emergency shelter,
programs/support groups
focused on safety planning,
children/legal/court advo-
cacy, assistance in the pro-
Ginsburg and what might
now be lost.
“Justice Ginsburg’s 27-
year tenure on the Supreme
Court was marked by a pas-
sion for justice and the rule
of the law,” said Derrick
Johnson, president/CEO of
the NAACP in a statement.
“Her long, remarkable
record includes her leg-
endary opinions involving
disability rights in Olmstead
v. LC, and gender equality
in the military, the United
States v. Virginia. She was
also known for her power-
ful dissents, many of which
she delivered from the
bench. These include dis-
sents in the voting rights de-
cision of Shelby County v.
Holder, the gender equity
case of Ledbetter v.
(Please See GINSBURG, Pg. 4)
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2020
curement of protective or-
ders, and other services that
meet the need of rural and
urban based survivors.
“Right now Louisiana
currently ranks second in
the nation for domestic vio-
lence fatalities,” Jenkins
said emphasizing that the
Louisiana is not immune to
such startling statistics.
“Over 80 percent of women
who are killed in connec-
tion to domestic violence
incidents are killed as they
are in the process of trying
to leave.”
Goodyear Tire Company
Co., and the affirmative ac-
tion case of Ricci v. Stefano
… Our nation has lost its
North Star for justice. As
we move forward in the
weeks and months ahead,
we must honor Justice
Ginsburg’s memory and ex-
traordinary contributions
and remember that the
Supreme Court is the ulti-
mate guardian of all of our
civil rights and liberties.”
Melanie Campbell, presi-
dent/CEO of the National
Coalition on Black Civic
Participation and convenor
of the Black Women’s
Roundtable, pointed out
how Ginsburg’s arguments
will remain alive and pro-
vide groundwork for future
civil rights battles.
“Justice Ginsburg’s pow-
erful and foretelling dissent
in Shelby County v. Holder
laid bare the majority’s
flaws in the decision that
Section 5 of the Voting
Rights Act was no longer
needed as a deterrent to
voter suppression,” Camp-
bell wrote in a statement.
“In her dissent, Justice
Ginsburg warned that
‘Race-based voting dis-
crimination still exists’ and
cautioned that gutting the
Act’s protections against
voting discrimination was
like ‘throwing away your
umbrella in a rainstorm be-
cause you are not getting
wet.’”
The National Bar Associ-
ation (NBA), with its mem-
bership of thousands of
at-home order, in an effort to combat spread of COVID 19, The
Shreveport Sun office will have reduced operating hours.
Until further notice, new office hours:
Monday, Tuesday & Friday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Shreveport Sun contact numbers: (318) 631-6222, office; (318)
635-2822, fax; NEWS RELEASES by email: sunweekly@aol.com
or ADS: sunweeklyads@ aol.com.
“A lot of times when vic-
tims leave, it is not planned.
It was done in an emer-
gency situation,” Jenkins
said, acknowledging that
they appreciate all the sup-
port received from the com-
munity as the organization
also tries to provide every-
thing from clothing to other
personal care needs in the
recovery process. “Where
are you going to go with six
kids and only three dollars?
Many leave a lot of times
(Please See SURVIVORS, Pg. 4)
Caddo Schools Announce
Phased Transition to More
In-Person Classes
Caddo Parish middle and
high school students will
begin transitioning to a
more traditional in-person
instructional model begin-
ning October 5.
Using a phased-in ap-
proach, Caddo's middle
school students will transi-
tion first with high school
students following suit on
October 19.
According to a press re-
lease, the staggered timeline
will provide Caddo leader-
ship time to ensure all
safety protocols are in place
and can be adequately
maintained with larger stu-
(Please See CADDO, Pg. 4)
Dates for Early
Voting Increased
Early Voting Period for
Caddo Parish for the No-
vember 3, 2020 election has
been increased by 10 days
and will begin Friday, Octo-
ber 16 and end Tuesday,
October 27. Daily hours
have been increased with
voting beginning at 8:00
a.m. and ending at 7:00
p.m. daily. Voting will not
be held on Sundays.
Early Voting will be con-
ducted by the Registrar of
Voters, 525 Marshall St.
(Downtown Shreveport)
with previously announced
health and safe precautions
such as sanitizing, social
distancing and protective
items worn by staff.
COVID pandemic related
issues may be used as a rea-
son for Absentee Voting in
the November 3 and De-
cember 5, 2020 elections.
~The Management
PRICE 75 CENTS
with nothing. Imagine if
someone came to you and
said you have to leave your
house right now … All
abuse is not physical.
Sometimes, in our society,
when we come across
someone identifying as a
victim, people will often
say, ‘Well I don’t see a
black eye’ or some other ob-
vious manifestation. A lot of
times the psychological, the
emotional, the mental abuse
are often times worse than
the physical violence.”
“Children are sometimes
the overlooked and silent
victims of domestic vio-
lence,” Jenkins said in not-
ing that their organization
features therapeutic activi-
ties to help the family all
around. “Children who wit-
ness domestic violence are
twice as likely to either be a
victim or inflict harm upon
another person, and so by
attempting to stop what we
know is a learned behavior
we are rebuilding families.”
“While our domestic vio-
lence safe houses are al-
ways full during the
holidays, our overall num-
bers tend to slack during
that period,” Jenkins said,
reflecting on a common
misperception regarding to
the later parts of the year.
dent populations on campus
each day.
"Throughout this time of
working through our new
normal, it has been essential
for our district to focus first
and foremost on what the
science says is taking place
with the virus specific to
Caddo Parish," said Dr. T.
Lamar Goree, Superinten-
dent of Caddo Schools. "We
are entering this new phase
of district operations work-
ing with our school leaders
to determine what is best for
students as well as staff and
to develop strategies that
address those needs."
The same COVID-19 ballot
request form used in July is
now available for use. The
deadline to return ballots to
the Registrar’s office is No-
vember 2 at 4:30 p.m.
(Completed ballots can be
returned any time prior to
that date.)
OTHER DEADLINES
The deadline to register to
vote online is Tuesday, Oc-
tober 13. Deadline to regis-
ter in person is Monday,
October 5. Deadline to re-
quest a ballot by mail (must
be received by) is Friday,
October 30.
(For more information
contact the Caddo Regis-
trar of Voters; visit the
parish website at Cad-
dovoter.org; or the state’s
website at Geauxvote.org).