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CSUSB professor comments on federal oversight of Columbus Police Department
Associated Press
Sept. 14, 2021
Zachary Powell, an assistant professor of criminal justice at California State University, San Bernardino, commented on the announcement that the federal government will review the Columbus Police Department and provide technical assistance in areas such as training and recruitment. The review announced last week will be conducted by the Justice Department’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services and follows a series of fatal police shootings of Black people and the city’s heavily criticized response to last year’s racial injustice protests.
If Columbus can “show that they’re being cooperative, they’re being proactive, they’re maybe hoping they can get funding to support some of the changes that they need to,” Powell said. “And also to have a more cooperative relationship with the Department of Justice, if the Department of Justice decides that they need enforcement action.”
Read the complete article at “Federal oversight of Columbus police collaborative — for now.”
CSUSB history professor and John M. Pfau Library partnering in relaunch of ‘The Bridges that Carried Us Over’ oral history project
Voice
Sept. 12, 2021
The relaunch of “The Bridges that Carried Us Over” oral history archive project is being done in partnership with the California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB) John M. Pfau Library. Joining the collaboration is Marc Robinson, CSUSB assistant professor of history. Robinson was welcomed to the project after hearing about the partnership and reaching out to University of Redlands professor Jennifer Tilton last year during Black History Month.
The project was launched by the Wilmer Amina Carter Foundation and from its inception has been a collaborative effort between the foundation and local community organizations. Co-sponsors of the project include Black Voice News, REST Program at the University of Riverside, California (UCR), COPE, NexGen United, UCR Public History and Second Baptist Church.
“I think I can be the bridge to make sure that Cal State San Bernardino and the larger African American community are in communication and collaboration and working together,” said Robinson.
Robinson has been teaching at CSUSB for about four years and while he does not consider himself an expert in the history of the Black Inland Empire community, his background in African American history and interest in learning more about the local region where he works adds to his commitment to contributing to the oral histories project.
“I have a background in African American history and so in terms of thinking about what are some larger trends over time, you know, how does the story of the Inland Empire’s Black community fit in to broader traditions of struggle or traditions of African American achievement, I can offer comments and observations in that regard, of course,” said Robinson.
Read the complete article at “The Bridges that Carried Us Over.”
Inland Empire manufacturing hits one-year milestone, CSUSB report shows
IE Business Daily
Sept. 13, 2021
The Inland Empire’s purchasing managers index in August was 57.7, comfortably above the 50 benchmark that determines growth or decline, the Institute of Applied Research and Policy Analysis at Cal State San Bernardino reported Sept. 1.
The August report, although a three-point decline compared with July, marked the 12th consecutive month that the index was above 50. That’s a significant accomplishment in any economy, but particularly so during a pandemic.
Although largely recovered now, the U.S. manufacturing sector took a severe hit in 2020, mostly because international supply lines were so disrupted. By the end of last year, the U.S. Industrial Production Index was at 105.7, a “substantial dip” from its pre-pandemic level of 110, according to Deloitte, the London-based international accounting and professional services firm.
But no one should be too surprised that manufacturing in Riverside and San Bernardino Counties kept its head above water during the past year, said Barbara Sirotnik, director of the institute and co-author of the index.
“No, I really wasn’t that surprised,” Sirotnik said. “It’s about what I expected to happen. Most of the numbers indicated that manufacturing would stay up. One thing that helped us was that manufacturing was doing well before the pandemic hit. It wasn’t in the stratosphere, but it was doing well.”
“And logistics was doing wonderfully because more people were shopping online. That has really helped the Inland Empire economy a lot. People still have to buy things, even during a pandemic.”
Read the complete article at “Inland Empire manufacturing hits one-year milestone.”
Insurrectionist view of the Second Amendment is dangerous to American democracy, CSUSB professor says
The San Diego Union-Tribune
Sept. 4, 2021
Brian Levin, director of Cal State San Bernardino’s Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, was quoted in an opinion column by former politics reporter Charles T. Clark on the growth of partisan animosity, and how polls indicate most Americans anticipate violence in response to future election results.
Levin said political rhetoric, such as one candidate’s interpretation that Second Amendment allows for potential violence and vigilantism, appears to embolden “bad actors and provides potential vigilantes a sense of legitimacy.”
“Bottom line: The insurrectionist view of the Second Amendment — the idea that somehow if the government is tyrannical it gives armed citizenry a right to rebellion — is, I think, a dangerous one because we actually now have what we didn’t have back before, the ability to throw out elected officials through the power of the ballot, not the bullet,” said Levin, who wrote a book about armed civilian militias.
Read the complete article at “Column: Political violence is a growing fear; let’s watch the rhetoric during elections.”
CSUSB center’s hate crime data matches revised data released by Ohio Department of Public Safety
The Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch
Sept. 14, 2021
Hate crimes surged to potentially record levels in Ohio last year, and Black people are among those most likely to be the target of such attacks. That's according to updated tallies the state submitted to the FBI after a technical glitch caused Ohio to drastically underreport its 2020 figures for the bureau's annual hate crimes report that it issued Aug. 30.
A record 580 hate crimes were reported in Ohio last year, according to figures provided by Bret Crow, a spokesman for the Ohio Department of Public Safety. Those figures match preliminary data provided to The Dispatch by Brian Levin, director of the Center for the Study of Hate & Extremism at California State University at San Bernardino.
However, the FBI still has to certify the new tally before including it on its online database, leaving the possibility that the figure will be reduced if the agency determines that some of the reported incidents do not meet its standards for verified hate crimes.
But between 2019 and 2020, the hate crimes that Ohio reported to the FBI increased by 41.5%, according to Ohio Incident-Based Reporting System data provided by Levin.
Read the complete article at “Ohio records record-high hate crimes in 2020 after state submits updated data to FBI.”
Keep online and offline times distinct to reduce stress and reflect on what’s important in your life, CSUSB professor writes
Psychology Today
Sept. 13, 2021
The fifth column in a series by Anthony Silard, CSUSB associate professor of public administration, on “Success Without Surrender,” focused on keeping online and offline periods distinct. He wrote: “Keeping online and offline periods distinct is likely to result in much more offline time, which will reduce your stress level and yield more strategic thinking and time to reflect on what’s most important in your life.”
Read the complete article at “How to Choose the Real and Now Over-the-line Cravings.”
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