Owned by Antioch family and serving Indian and Pakistani Cuisine for 20 years

Welcome to Mehran Restaurant’s Banquet Facility, where we make your special events memorable with our all-inclusive services. Our banquet package offers everything you need for a seamless celebration, including:

•  Set-Up & Clean-Up: Let us handle the details so you can focus on enjoying your event.
•  Linen & Utensils: Beautifully arranged, with ivory tablecloths and Chiavari chairs, plus your choice of napkin color.
• Food Service: Choose from our customizable menu Indian and Pakistani Cuisine. In addition, we also offer an American menu and would be open to discussing other options.
•  Projector & Screen: Perfect for slideshows and presentations to make your event even more special.
• Cake Slicing & Serving
• Facility Details
• Small Hall: Up to 130 guests
• Large Hall: Accommodates up to 200

Total Capacity – Up to 330 guests

In addition, Mehran Restaurant is a family-owned business and has been around for 20 years – a treasure located in Pittsburg serving Indian and Pakistani cuisine. We pride ourselves on our authentic flavors and love serving our community. We also do off-site catering to meet our customer’s needs.

Please call (415) 215-8695 for additional information and visit mehranrestaurant.com.

Mehran Restaurant is located at 3841 Railroad Avenue.

Paid advertisement

Former Antioch resident trained two of the Olympians on Team USA’s four-member taekwondo squad

By Allen D. Payton

Contra Costa County is well represented at the 2024 Olympics in multiple sports. According to the Team USA website, there are nine athletes who qualified to compete in the quadrennial games in Paris. In addition, former Antioch resident and taekwondo training center owner, Ed Givans has two Olympians that he’s trained, who earned spots on the four-member Team USA taekwondo roster.

CJ Nickolas – Brentwood – Taekwondo

As previously reported, Carl “CJ” Nickolas, Jr. of Brentwood is competing for gold in taekwondo in his first Olympics during the Paris 2024 Games. He was trained by Givans – his dad – until he was 18 and had heart surgery in 2020. As of last December, Nickolas was ranked number two in the world.

Learn more about Nickolas on the USA Taekwondo website and his experience and victories through the years, here, here, here and here. Watch video of CJ’s victory at the 2024 President’s Cup in Costa Rica, here.

Watch Nickolas represent Team USA and compete in the Men’s Welterweight 68-80kg division on August 9th.

Kara Kohler – Clayton – Rowing

Bronze medal winner, Kara Kohler from Clayton is competing in rowing in the Women’s Single Sculls. The three-time Olympian competed at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo where she placed 9th in Women’s Single Sculls, and at the 2012 Olympic Games in London 2012, where she won bronze in Women’s Quadruple Sculls.

On Saturday, Kohler took first place in Heat 6. She competed again in Quarterfinal 1, Lane 3 on Tuesday, July 30 at 12:30 a.m. Pacific and took second place qualifying Kohler for the semifinals on Thursday, Aug. 1 at 12:30 a.m. Pacific. (See related article)

Maggie Steffens – Danville – Women’s Water Polo

Three-time gold medal winner Maggie Steffens will compete at her fourth Olympic Games in Women’s Water Polo for her fourth gold medal in a row. She won her first gold at the 2012 Olympic Games in London, here second at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and her third in 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.

According to USA Water Polo, The two-time MVP is also the Team USA captain and considered one of the best in the world” and Steffens “Hails from a massive water polo playing family and was joined on the 2012 team by older sister Jessica.” (See related article)

Jewell Roemer – Martinez – Water Polo

Playing in her first Olympics, Martinez native Jewell “Roemer’s journey to the Olympics is marked by a series of impressive achievements. She has been a part of the Stanford University’s women’s water polo team, where she contributed to the team’s success as NCAA Champions in 2022 and 2023,” according to an iHeart Radio report.

According to USA Water Polo, Roemer “Attended Acalanes High School…Four-year letter winner and senior season team captain in water polo…Three-time first-team All-American (2018-20)…Two-time North Coast Section MVP (2019-20)…CIF Northern Division MVP (2020)…Three-time first-team All-Conference (2018-20)…Team went undefeated in back-to-back seasons, winning North Coast Section championships…Two-time Junior Olympics MVP with 680 Water Polo Club.

Won 1st place at the 2024 World Aquatics World Championships in DOHA, QATAR, 1st place at the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile and 1st place at the World Aquatics World Cup in Long Beach.

During their second Group B match on Monday against Spain, Steffens and Roemer each added one goal apiece, but the Americans were handed a rare 13-11 loss. Team USA Women’s Water Polo next plays Italy on Wednesday.

Megumi Field – Danville – Artistic Swimming

East Coast transplant Megumi Field, of Danville, will compete in her first Olympics on the Artistic Swimming team. She started synchronized swimming at five years old and earned among many other victories since 2018, Field won a bronze medal for Technical Team at the 2023 World Championships.

According to USA Artistic Swimming, as part of the official 2024 Olympics roster, Megumi and her teammates “made a statement in their debut” at the World Cup Super-Final hosted in Budapest, Hungary by winning three gold medals for Team Technical, Team Acrobatic and Team Free in the final competition before the Olympic Games.

In addition, “Jaime Czarkowski and Megumi Field made their second appearance as duet partners in Budapest, choosing to participate in the Technical Duet receiving 7th place overall with a score of 222.5134.”

Watch Artistic Swimming at the 2024 Paris Olympics beginning Monday, Aug. 5th.

Daniella Moroz – Lafayette – Kiteboarding

The first member of the U.S. Sailing team to qualify for the Paris 2024 Games, 23-year-old Daniella Moroz of Lafayette will compete in Olympic Kiteboarding for the first time in the sport’s history, after the sports’ athletes have been waiting for two decades.

According to a report on Paris2024.Sailing.org, Moroz has six consecutive Formula Kite World Championships titles to her name before the age of 22.

“Everything I do and have been doing the last several years is to give myself a shot at a medal,” she said. “At the Olympics I want to deliver my best possible performance and I know I’m capable of winning a gold medal if I do my best. It would mean everything to me and my family and to bring a gold home to the US after we’ve really struggled as a nation the last few Games’ would be really special.”

“I just want to keep enjoying it and keep racing for as long as possible. I am definitely thinking about LA 2028 since it will be a home Games,” Moroz added.

Women’s Kiteboarding will take place in the Marseille Marina in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea and begins Sunday, Aug. 4th with the medal round on Thursday, Aug. 8th.

Drew Holland – Orinda – Men’s Water Polo

The 2013 graduate of Miramonte High School in Orinda, Drew Holland returns for his second Olympic Games. He played in the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo where the U.S. Men’s team placed sixth and he tallied 52 saves. According to his USA Water Polo profile, Holland accumulated 26 saves at the 2024 World Aquatics World Championships in Doha, Qatar; Racked up 33 saves at the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago, Chile; Notched 12 saves at the 2023 World Aquatics World Championships in Fukuoka and named top goalkeeper at the 2021 FINA World League Super Final recording 41 saves.

Holland played at Stanford University where he holds the all-time save record with 925 and was a four-time All-American.

Team USA Men’s Water Polo lost to Italy on Sunday, 8-12 and was to play again Tuesday morning, July 30 against Romania at 7:30 a.m. Pacific. (See schedule)

David Liebenberg – Richmond – Sailing

Competing in Sailing during the 2024 Paris Olympics, 32-year-old David Liebenberg of Richmond has three National Championship titles and three North American Championship titles. According to U.S. Sailing, as a member of the Tufts University Sailing Team he was a team captain during his senior year and led the team to their first Collegiate Match Racing National Championship in 2012. In the summer of 2013, Liebenberg was the tactician for the American Youth Sailing Force, which was selected to represent San Francisco in the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup.

Sailing a Nacra 17, he took first at the Oakcliff Sailing Triple Crown #3 (Oyster Bay, USA) in 2018 and second sailing a 49er at the Cork Olympic Classes Regatta (Kingston, CAN) in 2016.

He will be sailing the Nacra 17 with his teammate, Sarah Newberry Moore of Miami, FL. The pair qualified the U.S. as a country at the Pan American Games in Chile on November 3, 2023. They won athlete selection at the 2024 Nacra 17 World Championship in France in May and secured their spot to represent the U.S. at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

Following that final step Liebenberg said, “It’s quite a relief. It has been nearly 10 years coming and to finally secure a spot feels amazing.”

See video of the team sailing out of the Richmond Yacht Club and watch Liebenberg and Newberry Moore compete in the Nacra 17 (Mixed Multihull) sailing competition beginning Saturday, Aug. 3rd with the medal round Aug. 7th.

Amit Elor – Walnut Creek – Wrestling

A 20-year-old female wrestler from Walnut Creek, Amit Elor, a New Year’s Day baby, attended College Park High School in Pleasant Hill and Diablo Valley College, and has been on Team USA since 2022. She is competing in her first Olympic Games. According to her Team USA profile, Elor is an eight-time gold medalist at World Championship events across the U17, U20, U23 and Senior age divisions, including the freestyle and beach wrestling disciplines.

Wrestling during the 2024 Paris Olympics begins on Monday Aug. 5th and ends on Sunday, Aug. 11th.

Learn more about Elor on her official website.

Sabrina Ionescu – Walnut Creek – Basketball

The 26-year-old Sabrina Ionescu is a Walnut Creek native, graduate of Miramonte High School and University of Oregon and is playing in her first Olympics during the Paris 2024 Games as a member of the Women’s Basketball Team. According to USA Basketball, “Ionescu will make her Olympics debut after helping the USA to gold at the 2022 FIBA Women’s World Cup. She has extensive experience with USA Basketball at the junior level, winning gold with the 2013 U16 Women’s National Team, 2014 U17 Women’s National Team and 2017 U23 Women’s National Team, in addition to experience in 3×3.”

In high school, Ionescu was the 2016 USA Today and MaxPreps National Player of the Year; MVP of the McDonald’s All-American Game. In college, she helped lead Oregon to a gold medal (6-1) at the 2019 Red Bull 3×3 Nationals in Las Vegas and was named MVP and as a junior in 2018-19, led the Ducks to their first NCAA Final Four.

Ionescu was selected No. 1 overall by New York in 2020, has played four WNBA seasons with New York and is a two-time WNBA All-Star (2022, 2023). In addition, according to her WNBA profile, she was the first player in WNBA history to record 500+ points, 200+ rebounds and 200+ assists in a single season and the first player to record a Triple-Double in less than three quarters in WNBA history, as well.

Watch her play for Team USA’s Women’s Basketball team.

Former Antioch Resident Ed Givans, Trainer, USA Taekwondo

As mentioned, Nickolas’ dad, former Antioch resident Ed Givans, who owned Givans Taekwondo in the city before relocating it to Las Vegas a few years ago, trained CJ until he was 18.

Givans is also on the Tournament Committee for USA Taekwondo and has another athlete he trained who made the four-person U.S. taekwondo team at the Olympics, Faith Dillon. According to the Team USA website, she earned her spot during the Pan Am qualification tournament in April.

Read more about her and watch Faith fight in the 57 kg. category on August 8th.

Learn more about all the members on the Team USA 2024 Olympic Roster at www.teamusa.com/paris-2024/olympics/roster and watch all the athletes compete on NBC channels.

Go, Team USA! Bring home the gold!

A nurse from Antioch has nurtured her 22-year-old son’s taekwondo ambitions since he was 3

Expected to compete for gold, CJ Nickolas, a former Heritage High student, was first trained by his father at Givans Taekwondo in Antioch

By Elizabeth Schainbaum, Manager, Regional Content, Corporation Communications, Kaiser Permanente Northern California

Over the years, wound care nurse Denise Nickolas would talk with colleagues about her kids’ sports activities — just as others would talk about their own kids.

Most colleagues didn’t realize her kids were different. They didn’t know how seriously athletic they were after he won a medal in World Taekwondo Championship in May 2023 when her son, CJ, received publicity as he vied for a spot on the U.S. Olympic team.

CJ is competing in the Paris Olympics in taekwondo on August 9, 2024. The 22-year-old is ranked second in the world.

“She doesn’t go around telling just anyone how he ranked at tournaments,” said Daniella White, a colleague who has cheered Nickolas on through CJ’s injuries and other challenges. “If someone asks, she will humbly share how well he did. That’s not to say she wasn’t overly proud or excited for him, but she just continued to show humility in the process.”

Kaiser Permanente fan club

Nickolas is happy everyone knows now.

“Everyone is so excited, and they asked why I didn’t say anything,” said Nickolas, who was a gymnast in college and also achieved a taekwondo black belt during her son’s practices. “They’ve been so supportive and even started a Teams group to cheer us on and check the progress of his Olympic bid.”

Her boss, Darci Walker, is a big fan.

“I remember her sharing one of CJ’s competitions where he won first place, and he moved the entire crowd and audience by singing the national anthem. The whole stadium joined in and sang together,” Walker recalled. “This was a very proud moment that Denise shared with me. When I watched the video on her phone, it brought me to tears as well. We are all excited for CJ and their entire family.”

A ‘family-friendly’ organization

Nickolas has worked at Kaiser Permanente since 2001. Since then, as a single mom, she’s juggled full-time work with 2 kids who were competitive athletes.

Her older daughter, now 24, was an elite gymnast for a long time. She pivoted to diving, and that was the sport she did in college.

Her kids’ sports often required traveling to competitions. Nickolas said her managers and colleagues have been supportive and accommodating when she’s had to take time off, evenn last minute. 

“Kaiser Permanente is absolutely a family-friendly organization,” she said. “I was able to have the life I wanted with my kids because of Kaiser Permanente.”

To make it work, she would essentially work two part-time jobs and lived just 10 minutes from the hospital.

She would start the morning at the Antioch Medical Center and then take the kids to their practices. Later, she would work another shift with Home Health Department.

“I was exhausted, but it was worth it, totally worth it,” Nickolas said. “I’m so grateful.”

Walker said Nickolas also worked hard to make it work. She coordinated well with colleagues before she would travel so there were no bumps with patient care. When she returned, she was ready to get back into the swing of work.

Going for gold

Nickolas followed this routine for years. She realized in 2007 that CJ, who had been doing taekwondo for three years at that point, had a future in competitive sports.

At the age of three, he said he wanted to do martial arts. She hesitated because she was against combat sports at the time.

She pushed that feeling aside because she could see how eager he was to do it. She steered him to taekwondo because it was included in Ivy League sports programs and was an Olympic sport.

When he was about six, she noticed he was intense and focused. She checked in with the coach.

“’Am I just proud or is he really good?’” she recalled saying. “The coach said, ‘No, he’s really as good as you think he is.’”

That coach, until CJ turned 18, was his father, Ed Givans, who previously owned and trained his son at Givans Taekwondo in Antioch which he relocated to Las Vegas in 2018.

Many injuries later, including a broken toe that she said Kaiser Permanente did an excellent job of repairing, he’s now going for Olympic gold.

Nickolas will be there watching, with her Kaiser Permanente colleagues rooting for her son.

“I can’t believe this day has come,” she said. “He’s worked so hard, but it still feels so surreal.”

Watch CJ represent Team USA and compete on Friday, August 9th on the NBC channels.

Learn more about CJ’s experience and victories through the years, here, here and here.

Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.

During special meeting; Ogorchock, Barbanica will not attend citing scheduling conflicts

By Allen D. Payton

During a special meeting called by Antioch Mayor Lamar Hernandez-Thorpe for Tuesday, March 19, 2024, the Antioch City Council, on a possible a ceasefire resolution for the Israel-Hamas War as proposed by District 1 Councilwoman Tamisha Torres-Walker. (See meeting agenda)

The council’s consideration follows requests by members of the public during recent Antioch Council meetings at which Torres-Walker, some speakers and members of the audience could be seen wearing black and white, fishnet pattern scarves known as keffiyehs. They have become a national symbol of pro-Palestinian activists in the Israel-Palestine conflict dating back to the 1936–1939 Arab revolt against the British. Former Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) and Palestinian National Authority (PNA) leader Yasser Arafat could regularly be seen wearing one.

This is perhaps the first time ever the council will delve into international matters and possibly give direction to the president and representatives in Congress. One idea is to tell the Biden Administration to not spend any tax dollars generated in Antioch on weapons sent to Israel.

During Tuesday’s meeting, the council will receive public comments, discuss the matter and provide direction to city staff on a possible proposed resolution.

Councilwoman Lori Ogorchock said she would not attend as she only learned of the special meeting in a text from Acting City Manager Kwame Reed over the weekend and had already made other plans. Councilman Mike Barbanica will also not be in attendance as he also has a scheduling conflict, which he said he told the mayor last Monday.

The agenda was just issued on Monday afternoon, March 18, 2024, complying with the 24-hour minimum notice requirement.

It also follows the Richmond City Council’s 5-1 vote last October to condemn Israel and support the “Palestinian People of Gaza”. Contra Costa County District 1 Supervisor John Gioia opposed the resolution writing, “The passage of any resolution, regardless of attempts to amend it, will only contribute to the divisiveness.” It also follows a requested resolution by members of the public and the Brentwood City Council last November, but it has not been placed on a meeting agenda, as of yet.

The Antioch Council meeting will begin at 6:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 200 H Street.

It takes a village: Carlos Cortez – Class of ’24 – and the people of Zináparo bring music and soccer to their youth

By Lou Chen, Trenton Arts at Princeton Program Manager

Originally published by Princeton University’s Pace Center for Community Service. Republished with permission.

Carlos Cortez ’24 straddles two worlds.

The 2020 Dozier-Libbey Medical High School graduate’s family is from Zináparo, a small rural village in Michoácan, Mexico, where few people have ever heard of Princeton University.

The son of Carlos and Eréndira Cortez is a senior at Princeton University, where few people have ever heard of Zináparo.

But Carlos, the student, had an idea to bring these two worlds together. Last year, with the funding he won as Princeton’s 2023 Projects for Peace award recipient, he started a music and soccer summer camp for Zináparo youth.

Now everyone in Zináparo knows Princeton. And Princeton is just getting to know Zináparo.

An Idea

Even though Carlos was born and raised in Antioch, California, he considers his real hometown to be Zináparo, where most of his extended family still lives. Twice every year, he travels to Zináparo to enjoy the balmy summers and festive winters, hiking in the nearby mountains and participating in the annual peregrinación (religious pilgrimage).

Accepted into Princeton as a Questbridge scholar, Carlos chose to major in neuroscience and committed to the pre-med track, supplementing his coursework with research and tutoring jobs. Despite his busy schedule, he felt restless. His thoughts constantly returned to Zináparo.

“My dream was to become a doctor and open a pediatric clinic in Zináparo,” he says. “But I realized that it would be many years before I could accomplish this. I didn’t want to wait that long. I wanted a chance to do something now.”

That chance soon arrived. During his junior year, he heard about the Pace Center for Civic Engagement’s Projects for Peace initiative, which provides Princeton undergraduates with a $10,000 award to implement a service project anywhere in the world. With his family’s encouragement, he proposed a music and soccer summer camp for children in Zináparo.

“Growing up in California, music and soccer were very important for me in making community,” he says. “I wanted the kids in Zináparo to have the same experience.”

In the spring of 2023, he won the award.

According to a preview article about his project, “He saw his project as an opportunity to not only influence the youth of his town, but to have positive reverberations for the entire community and surrounding communities as well.

He summarizes this hope as he looks forward to this summer by saying, ‘just like a musical note can travel through both time and space when it is played, I am hopeful of learning how my project’s ideals and goals are going to have transgenerational effects on the future generations of Zináparo and ultimately transcend beyond the borders of my hometown,’ he shared before the project began.”

A Village

As any entrepreneur will tell you, the road from idea to execution is a winding one. “Right before arriving in Zináparo, I was feeling that the process would be easy,” Carlos says. “But when I landed in Zináparo, I started to realize that it was going to be a long journey with a lot of challenges.”

The first challenge was recruiting children for the camp, which Carlos had titled, “Musical Notes: A Composition for Peace.” Even though Carlos was a frequent visitor to Zináparo, he remained an unfamiliar face to many people. It didn’t matter that Princeton was supporting the camp; none of the children knew what Princeton even was. 

He began by visiting the local high school where his aunt Noemí taught history and ethics, going from classroom to classroom and telling students about his new program. He later found out that one of the students called up Noemí, a widely respected community leader in Zináparo, and told her that someone from Princeton University wanted to start a summer camp. “Do you know about this?” the student asked. “Can we trust him?” 

“Of course, you can,” Noemí replied. “He’s my nephew!”

Another challenge was procuring instruments. Almost 40 kids wanted to learn guitar, violin, or bass—but none of them had their own instrument. One hot summer day, Carlos, his younger sister Natalia, his mother, his uncle Adrián, and his grandfather Guillermo piled into the family van and drove two hours to Paracho, a small town in Michoácan that specializes in making instruments. (Paracho inspired the setting of the Oscar-winning animated film Coco.)

Once in Paracho, they purchased several instruments from a local luthier. Somehow, they crammed one bass, five guitars, and seven violins into a van that already contained five people. “I was pressed up against the side of the van,” says Carlos. “It was definitely an experience.” They made several return trips to Paracho for more instruments, and on one occasion, the aforementioned luthier drove a second bass all the way to Zináparo by himself. 

Carlos was surprised by how enthusiastically the Zináparo community rallied around the camp. Countless people pitched in: the neighbor who let them use his house for rehearsals; the business owner who let them use his shop for a private recital; and Carlos’ 10-year-old student Hector and Hector’s mother Luz, who cleaned up after every rehearsal. “Without everyone’s help, this project would not have been possible,” says Carlos. 

The camp exceeded even Carlos’ wildest expectations. Every Monday through Thursday for two and a half months, almost 100 children aged four to 17 participated in one or more classes: soccer, choir, guitar, and violin/bass. Carlos coached the soccer team and hired teachers for the other subjects. “I wanted teachers who were passionate about working with kids,” says Carlos. “I didn’t want them to treat this as just another way to make money.”

On the last day of camp, his soccer team surprised him with a loud round of applause. One student cried out, “Carlos for president!” Carlos promised to buy them jerseys out of his own money if they continued to practice soccer.

Continue they did. Even though Carlos had to return to Princeton for his senior year, he was determined to keep the camp going. He found two people to coach the soccer team on a volunteer basis; they had recently moved to Zináparo and had long dreamed of coaching their own team. He used his leftover Projects for Peace funding to pay for weekly choral and instrumental lessons for his students until December and let them keep their instruments. Noemí took his place as the point person for the program. 

For Carlos, the experience was a blessing. “I just wanted to change the future of even one of the kids,” he says. “I’m seeing that difference already.”

A Debut

On January 7, Carlos woke up with butterflies in his stomach. Today was the debut of Musical Notes: A Composition for Peace. Since the summer, the choir and orchestra (consisting of guitar, violin, and bass) had been rehearsing weekly for a big concert in the Zináparo town square. The entire community had been invited, and Carlos’ extended family in California had flown out to watch. 

First, Carlos stopped by the soccer field to observe a match between his team and a team from a neighboring town. He had kept his promise: His team was wearing brand-new orange and black jerseys. Natalia had designed the jerseys, including the iconic image of a Princeton tiger glaring through claw marks.

“In one of our first games, we played against a team from a much wealthier town,” says Carlos. “I could tell how discouraged my students were to see how much nicer [the opposing team’s] field was. I got them jerseys because I wanted them to feel proud to be on this team. I wanted them to feel like they were a part of something bigger…like they had the support of Princeton University.” The new jerseys seemed to do the trick: After putting them on, his team won the next game. 

After the match, Carlos and his parents walked to the town square to set up for the performance. The owner of the local funeral home, whose daughter was in the choir, had donated 150 chairs for the audience—and had even purchased new ones so that there would be enough. 

Carlos was worried that not enough people were going to show up to fill the seats. But as people started entering the town square, he realized that he had the opposite problem: He didn’t have enough seats. His family raced to the rehearsal space, grabbed as many chairs as they could, carried them back, and set them up with only minutes to spare. The new chairs were quickly occupied, and latecomers had to stand. At least 350 people were in the audience. 

As Natalia helped tune the guitars, she noticed a student looking forlorn. She asked him what was wrong, and he quietly asked if this was the last day of the program. “Of course not,” Natalia assured him. He smiled.

The choir opened the concert with six Christmas carols. During “Noche de paz” (Silent Night), they cradled candles in their hands, their faces glowing as if lit from within. For their final song, “Ven a Cantar” (Sing with Us), they rolled up their sleeves, revealing bracelets made of jingle bells. As they clapped their hands, the ringing of bells filled the crisp winter air.

The orchestra was up next, performing two songs that featured a 15-year-old choral student named Andrea. Her voice, initially hesitant and wavering, gradually grew in power. The guitarists kept the orchestra together with their steady strumming, and the violinists trained their eyes on the conductor, determined not to miss their tremolo entrance. In the very back, a student plucked away at the bass that Carlos had brought back from Paracho.

After the orchestra finished, Noemí invited Hector and Luz to the stage and thanked them for keeping the rehearsal space clean. She presented them with gifts and embraced a clearly overcome Luz. The crowd cheered.

Next to speak was Carlos’ student José, who at 17 years old was the oldest member of the program. “I want to give a special thank you to Carlos for giving me and the children of this town the opportunity to learn music,” he said. “I hope this continues…Zináparo needs these programs.”

Carlos walked onstage to deliver the concluding remarks. “Thank you to my grandparents for giving me a love of Zináparo,” he said, choking back tears. “I know I wasn’t born here, but this is my home.”

As Carlos left the stage, he was mobbed by students, parents, complete strangers—all of whom wanted to take a picture with him. Grown men were crying and little kids were beaming. “Before this camp, the children of Zináparo didn’t have anything like this,” said Eréndira. “But now, they do.”

Carlos hopes that the camp will take place every summer, with weekly programming throughout the rest of the year. He hopes that someday his music students will be paid to perform or even to teach. (This is already happening: José has been invited by his guitar teacher to perform in a mariachi band, and Carlos wants him to teach for the camp.) He hopes to solicit donations from Zináparo residents who have immigrated to the United States, and to potentially seek funding from the Mexican government. 

These are all big dreams. It’s a lot for one Princeton student—and soon-to-be-alum—to take on alone. 

But Carlos knows he isn’t alone. “I feel honored to have so many different communities believe in the project,” he says. “It ensures the life of the project, because there are so many people invested in wanting to see the kids succeed.”

To learn more about Musical Notes: A Composition for Peace, follow them on Instagram. Their full debut performance can be viewed on YouTube.

Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.

On potential threats in response to Hamas’ call for “Day of Jihad”

SACRAMENTO – In response to Hama’s call for a global “Day of Jihad” on Friday, 13, 2023, the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services Director Nancy Ward, who serves as California’s Homeland Security Advisor, released the following statement yesterday on the efforts underway to protect the well-being of all Californians:

“As California’s Homeland Security Agency, we are actively monitoring the developing situation in Israel and Gaza and closely coordinating with our security partners to track potential impacts on the domestic threat environment.

“The situation remains dynamic and evolving. I continue to actively brief the Governor on the current situation and state intelligence and law enforcement officials are working around the clock to safeguard the safety and security of all Californians.

“We are in touch with faith leaders and communities across the state to provide support, listen to their concerns and offer the full resources of the state.

“While we are aware of statements made about potential threats on Friday, October 13, I want to emphasize that no specific and credible threat to California has been identified at this time.

“As with any potential threats to our state, Cal OES will coordinate with our partners at the local, state and federal level to ensure they have the resources and information necessary to keep our communities safe.

“All Californians have an important role to play in protecting our communities, and I encourage everyone in our state to be alert, vigilant and prepared and immediately report any suspicious activity through proper channels.”

About Cal OES

With over 38 million residents (12 percent of the US population), the State of California is the most populous state in the nation and has the third largest land area among the states (163,695 square miles). California is culturally, ethnically, economically, ecologically, and politically diverse, and maintains the eighth largest economy in the world with 13 percent of the U.S. gross domestic product. California also faces numerous risks and threats to our people, property, economy, environment and is prone to earthquakes, floods, significant wildfires, prolonged drought impacts, public health emergencies, cybersecurity attacks, agricultural and animal disasters, as well threats to homeland security. Cal OES takes a proactive approach to addressing these risks, threats, and vulnerabilities that form the basis of our mission and has been tested through real events, as well as comprehensive exercises that help us maintain our state of readiness to plan for and mitigate impacts.

Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.

See 10/13/23 UPDATE for her responses to questions about her comments. Now claims “entire department…under review.”

Joined by another Contra Costa organization leader at Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva, Switzerland

“Tamisha Torres-Walker…has now misrepresented what is truly happening at the Antioch Police Department to the world…” – APOA attorney Mike Rains

Barbanica Also Disputes Colleague’s Claims

By Allen D. Payton

According to an announcement by the Richmond, CA-based Safe Return Project, “on October 5, 2023, (Antioch Mayor Pro Tem) Tamisha Torres-Walker, (the organization’s) Executive Director and Co-Founder of, alongside James Heard, Director of Lift Up Contra Costa, sat in the grand auditorium in Geneva, Switzerland, at the United Nations to shed light on the decades of alleged racism and corruption of local law enforcement of nearly half the Antioch, CA police force and the impact on Black lives and civil rights at the 38th Meeting – 54th Session of Human Rights Council.”

The announcement also shared, “The United Nations Human Rights Council welcomed 45 speakers from around the globe who gave an enhanced interactive dialogue with the High Commissioner and the International Independent Expert Mechanism to Advance Racial Justice and Equality in Law Enforcement. The EDFU Foundation invited Tamisha for the prestigious honor of providing a statement before the Human Rights Council based on two reports, the EMLER and OHCHR.

The Human Rights Council will report back to the United Nations to make recommendations using the presented EMLER. OHCHR Report calls upon America to “do something” about the fundamental protection of human rights of Black people and their civil rights when it comes to cruel and unethical acts committed by the institution of American policing as well as ending the war on drugs, that has led to the incarceration and disenfranchisement of missions of Black Americans.

Torres-Walker’s statement to the Human Rights Council, United Nations, Geneva, Switzerland:

‘I was encouraged to see solutions to police corruption and use of force driven by community engagement stated prominently in the EMLER and OHCHR Reports.

Civilian oversight of law enforcement is a crucial and necessary mechanism that plays a vital role in ensuring transparency, accountability, and the protection of civil rights.

Antioch, CA, is the second most diverse city in the US Bay Area, with a population of over 115,000, with 20.2% of its population identifying as African American. It has a police department with more than 80% of its department sworn and non-sworn personnel under federal and state review for civil rights, use of force, and other violations of public trust.

Oversight serves as a check and balance and has the ability to promote sustainable solutions to public safety that are not simply alternatives to policing but have a higher success rate of preventing crime and harm while keeping communities safe.

Community-based solutions to public safety and protecting the rights of black Americans should be a priority, not over-policing and hypersurveillance. The city of Los Angeles’s police department’s budget, for example, is $3.2 billion annually and climbing; this is a budget the size of most developing countries’ military budgets. These sustainable solutions, like civilian peacemaker operations across America and elsewhere need to be funded at the same scale.

Again, thank you for this report, and thank Edfu Foundation for this opportunity.’”

False Information Corrected

However, part of what Torres-Walker shared is incorrect about the Antioch Police Department officers. As previously and extensively reported, the FBI and Contra Costa District Attorney’s Office have been investigating alleged “crimes of moral turpitude” involving a handful of Antioch officers. The larger number of officers caught up in the racist text scandal are undergoing an internal City investigation using an outside contracted investigator. (See related article here and here)

Furthermore, of the 105 sworn officers currently on the Antioch Police force, 80% would mean 84 are under investigation which is not correct.

Questions for Torres-Walker Go Unanswered

Questions were sent to Torres-Walker asking her to back up her claims. She was asked, “where did you get your statistics and facts that you mentioned in your speech at the U.N. meeting last week? What state review of the sworn  and non-sworn personnel for civil rights, use of force and other violations of public trust is currently underway? Which agency is conducting it? Other than the FBI investigation, along with the CCDA’s office of the handful of officers for alleged ‘crimes of moral turpitude’ what federal review are 80% of the department’s sworn and non-sworn personnel undergoing? Which agency is conducting it? Why didn’t you say anything positive about our city? Do you think spreading negative and false information will benefit the Antioch Police Department and city? What good were or are you hoping to result from your speech? Are you wanting the United Nations to get involved in the current investigations of Antioch police officers? Did the City of Antioch pay for your trip?”

Questions for Chief, APOA VP & Attorney

Questions were also sent to Acting Antioch Police Chief Joe Vigil, APOA Vice President Lauren Bledsoe and APOA attorney Mike Rains asking for the details on the number of officers on the force and how many are under investigation.

APOA Attorney Says No State Involvement, Provides Correct Statistics

Michael Rains, of the Rains Luca Stern St. Phalle & Silver law firm, which represents the APOA responded with the following:

“Tamisha Torres-Walker is apparently not content simply misrepresenting the facts to the local media in Contra Costa County, or to the constituents in the City of Antioch.  She has now misrepresented what is truly happening at the Antioch Police Department to the world at a conference in  Geneva, Switzerland, which will no doubt give the City of Antioch a bad reputation internationally if someone cares to check the accuracy of her statement that ‘. . . 80% of (the Police Department’s ) sworn and non-sworn personnel are under federal and state review for civil rights, use of force, and other violations of public trust.’

First, she neglected to mention that the former Police Chief, Steven Ford, initiated a request on behalf of his Police Department for an ‘audit’ of the Department by the State of California Department of Justice. State DOJ stated that it was willing to conduct an audit but has not initiated any type of audit or review as of this date.

Civil rights attorney John Burris has ‘demanded’ that the federal government initiate an investigation of the department, but apparently, the federal government does not respond to Mr. Burris’ demands, and has thus not initiated an investigation or notified the department it intends to do so as of this date.

There is currently an administrative investigation underway relating to approximately 17 officers who have been placed on administrative leave by city officials (not at the direction of, or the concurrence by former Chief Steven Ford), for engaging in inappropriate text messaging on their personal cell phones. That pending administrative investigation has nothing to do with either civil rights violations or use of improper force.

The placement of those officers on administrative leave represents approximately 20% of the sworn workforce, not 80%, as stated by Torres-Walker, and of the 17 who have been languishing on paid administrative leave for over half this year, the incompetent City leaders (outside of the police department) who are supposedly ‘managing’ the administrative investigation by hiring ‘outside’ lawyers to interview the officers have only had about half of the officers interviewed thus far, and have no interviews at all scheduled for the other half.

Of the seven or eight officers who were interviewed, other than two who declined to answer questions and face discipline for that reason, there are no adverse findings in possession of the City against those officers.

Alternatively, the City leaders who are supposedly ‘managing’ the investigation, for whatever reason, including the fact that the findings by the outside lawyers do not play into the ‘racist culture’ narrative they have perpetuated, have not shared those findings with the officers or their attorneys.

It sounds like just another day of misrepresenting the truth to the public, but here the distortions were delivered to a much larger audience.” 

Barbanica Also Disputes Torres-Walker’s Claims

District 2 Councilman Mike Barbanica was also reached for comment and said in response, “I’m unaware of 80% of our department being investigated. I’m very proud of the city that I was raised in and still live in. Having the opportunity to speak on a world stage I would have personally used that opportunity to highlight the positives the city has to offer, while addressing those issues honestly and factually.”

“The investigation is going to weed out anyone who should not be part of our department. The system is designed to identify the bad cops and eliminate them and keep the good cops and make sure those who should be working are,” he continued. “It’s unfortunate, this issue is being dragged back into the news when the situation is being dealt with by the FBI, the DA’s office, the courts and internally through an independent investigator. But I want it to be reported factually. 80% of our officers being investigated is news to me.”

“What she could have said is there is a small number of officers that are being investigated by the FBI and DA’s office. The others are undergoing an internal investigation,” Barbanica added.

The announcement by Torres-Walker’s organization also shared, “The Human Rights Council will report back to the United Nations to make recommendations using the presented EMLER. OHCHR Report calls upon America to ‘do something’ about the fundamental protection of human rights of Black people and their civil rights when it comes to cruel and unethical acts committed by the institution of American policing as well as ending the war on drugs, that has led to the incarceration and disenfranchisement of missions of Black Americans.”

The others did not respond prior to publication time.

Watchthe Full Session Enhanced ID: Excerpt Mechanism on Law Enforcement – 38th Meeting, 54th Regular Session of the Human Rights Council. See related documents: EMLER Report to OHCHR 2023 and OHCHR Report on EMLER 2023.

10/13/23 UPDATE: Torres-Walker Responds, Doesn’t Back Up Her Claims

On Friday, Oct. 13, Torres-Walker responded to the emailed questions with general information and without providing details to back up her claims:

Q. – Where did you get your statistics and facts that you mentioned in your speech at the U.N. meeting last week? 

A. – “The entire department has been under review that’s a fact. Not everyone has been indicted which is why my comments didn’t mention charges or terminations.”

Q. – What state review of the sworn and non-sworn personnel for civil rights, use of force and other violations of public trust is currently underway? Which agency is conducting it?

A. – “You as well as the public knows that there are officers and none sworn personnel facing federal and state charges not misinformation facts. There is also an internal investigation being led by the city attorney’s office again facts.”

Other than the FBI investigation, along with the CCDA’s office of the handful of officers for alleged “crimes of moral turpitude” what federal review are 80% of the department’s sworn and non-sworn personnel undergoing? Which agency is conducting it? Why didn’t you say anything positive about our city?

“I was there to address the topic of law enforcement and its harmful impact on black people and people of color based on two UN Reports. Did you read the Reports? The issues facing the police department is public and has been devastating to the community what’s positive about that?”

Q. – Do you think spreading negative and false information will benefit the Antioch Police Department and city? What good were or are you hoping to result from your speech? Are you wanting the United Nations to get involved in the current investigations of Antioch police officers?

A. – “I also mentioned the budget of the Los Angeles police department the point was to get them to recommend investments in community based violence prevention and intervention programs as stated in my comments.”

Q. – Finally, did the City of Antioch pay for your trip?

A. – “Although I am a council member in Antioch and a resident of Antioch I attended the session as the director of Safe Return Project and a member of the lift up Contra Costa coalition. I included James if you have any questions for him on your fact finding mission.”

Torres-Walker was then asked, “which federal and state agencies are conducting a ‘review’ of the ‘entire department’?” She was also asked, “Where did you get your statistic of 80% of the department? What other personnel besides the sworn officers and the one CSO are under review or investigation?”

She responded simply, “You should be able to get that information from the city attorney.”

The questions and her responses were then sent on Saturday, October 14, to City Attorney Smith, Acting Police Chief Vigil and APD spokesmen asking for them to answer the questions posed to the councilwoman.

Please check back later for their responses and any other updates to this report.

CEO of the Organization for Social Media Safety says Hamas has put your kids at great risk online, parents should lock down or take away kids’ devices  

By Bridget Sharkey, Prime Media Management via prnewswire.com

Social media has long been used as a weapon by terrorist groups like Al Qaeda. Now Hamas is using the power of the Internet to terrify, confuse, and demean its victims.  

“Hamas is planting videos on sites like X that show gory and horrific acts of violence, including mass murders and defiled corpses,” said social media safety expert Marc Berkman, CEO of theOrganization for Social Media Safety (OFSMS).   

According to their website, the organization “is a nonprofit, consumer protection organization focused exclusively on social media. We protect against all social media-related dangers through a comprehensive approach that includes education, advocacy, and technology development. We are available to provide expertise for your story on social media-related dangers.”

Berkman says that these videos have millions of views, despite only being recently uploaded.  

“Terrorist groups often use social media platforms to disseminate hate and extreme violence,” he continued. “Parents around the country are receiving alerts from schools and elected officials over concerns that terrorists plan to disseminate distressing videos, including of hostages, through social media. These officials urge parents to delete TikTok and Instagram from their children’s devices as a protective measure.”

Berkman and the OFSMS concur, saying now is a good time to make your kids log off. He also agrees that major social media platforms, including X, Facebook, YouTube, Reddit, and Discord, may be used as weapons of war, spreading graphic violence and hateful messaging.  

“This is not a concern limited to TikTok and Instagram,” said the social media expert. “Many platforms already contain graphic, violent videos produced by terrorists. In the past, we have also seen videos of extreme violence shared through social media messaging-based platforms like Snapchat.”  

The Organization for Social Media Safety urges all social media platforms to block or immediately remove any content disseminated directly by a terrorist organization. Berkman and the OFSMS share the following tips for parents:  

• Consider pausing children’s social media access to protect their mental health and well-being. 
• Talk with your children about what to do if they come across violent content (We strongly recommend teaching your child about blocking and reporting.) 
• Consider third-party safety software, like our endorsed choice, Bark, that can alert you if dangerous content, like extreme violence, is shared on your child’s social media account. 

“We all have a responsibility to protect our community from the dangers of social media,” Berkman concludes. “Report and block! Don’t keep scrolling.”