Side of the Rhode: Who’s Hot and Who’s Not? - August 21, 2020

HOT

YESpvd Summit

Juan Wilson, one of the organizers of the #YESpvd! Youth Summit taking place on August 29, appeared with GoLocal News Editor Kate Nagle on GoLocal LIVE to announce the latest speakers to the event lineup — and more. 

“The summit started in 2015 — YESpvd is the “Youth Empowerment Summit,” formerly Turn Up RI,” said Wilson. “It’s a culturally relevant, diverse career conference. We actually put practitioners in front of youth in the community, so that the practitioners resemble the community they’re coming from — and professions they might not see emulated in their community.”

“We have a lot of great speakers and workshops and we also give incentives to the youth,” said Wilson about gift cards and giveaways, thanks to event sponsors.

Wilson provided an overview of the summit and the speakers that will be taking part, focusing on such topics, advice, and career paths including financial literacy, the entertainment industry, political engagement, mental health, and guest speaker Dr. Deana Waite — a Providence native who went from earning her GED — to earning her doctorate. 

Read -- and watch -- more here. 

HOT

Social Security 

A new AARP survey finds that Americans highly value Social Security, and even more so due to the pandemic.

"The vast majority of Americans – 93% of Republicans, 99% of Democrats, and 92% of Independents – see Social Security as an important government program, and 56% believe it is even more important for retirees in light of the coronavirus pandemic," said AARP.

In a letter sent to President Donald Trump, AARP asked him to explain his plan to replace Social Security funding.

More than 228,000 of retired Rhode Islanders receive Social Security retirement benefits and represent more than half of the income for nearly 47% of families.

For 20.74% of families, the benefits represent 90% or more of their annual income. 

“AARP Rhode Island is fighting to protect voters 50-plus and make their voices heard on the issues that matter – protecting Social Security and Medicare, lowering prescription drug prices, and ensuring you can vote safely from home or in-person,” said AARP Rhode Island State Director Kathleen Connell.

HOT

Boston Celtics and Bruins

The playoffs may look different but the Bruins looked very good in sending the Hurricanes packing

And, through two games, the Celts have looked like championship quality against the 76ers. Jason Tatum is a top 10 player in the NBA. 

HOT

401 Tech Bridge

The new 401 Tech Bridge is an economic development organization and this week it announced the completion of a $6 million funding round.

A recently secured $2.3 million implementation grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) rounds out the capital raise to support the launch of 401 Tech Bridge, which includes the addition of a new 17,000 square-foot Advanced Materials and Technology Center in Portsmouth, RI.

The organization connects manufacturers, small businesses, research and development entities, trade organizations and state and defense agencies to collaborate in the development of new advanced materials and technologies, today 

The EDA grant will cover construction costs for the new Advanced Materials and Technology Center, expected to open in the first half of 2021. 

HOT

Dave's Marketplace & Carpionato Group

Carpionato Group, one of New England’s largest real estate development companies, is opening a new Dave’s Fresh Marketplace at the location of a former Benny’s store in Warwick. 

Benny’s closed in 2016 and the company sold many of the properties to Carpionato.

The new 32,263 square foot state-of-the-art Dave’s will be the company’s flagship store, and is part of new shopping plaza built by Carpionato Group that is across the street from the original Dave’s store -- and is on the site where Dave’s Fresh Marketplace founder Dave Cesario’s first fruit and vegetable stand was located more than 50-years ago.

“Since its founding as a fruit and vegetable stand more than a half-century ago, Dave’s Fresh Marketplace has become an icon in the Ocean State, and so it is only fitting that Dave’s Store Number One is returning to its birthplace and replacing Benny’s, another icon held warmly by Rhode Islanders,” said K. MacArthur Coates, President & CEO of Carpionato Group.

NOT

Jorge Elorza

The Providence Mayor's lack of understanding of how cities thrive after nearly six years in office is simply sad.

The "Giving Meter" Mayor continues to blunder nearly every meaningful decision -- schools, basic services, and public safety.

Any chance if Joe Biden wins, the new President would take Elorza and name him Ambassador to Narnia.

NOT

Steve Bannon

Thursday was not a good day for the former top strategist to President Donald Trump. 

READ MORE

NOT

Projo's Whiteness

The Providence Journal published a story this week unveiling that their newsroom was nearly all white and overwhelmingly male.

Is this news?

Is this news to them?

In 2017, GoLocal reported that the Projo may be the whitest paper in the U.S.

The Providence Journal currently does not employ a minority reporter or editor. For the daily newspaper in an urban community that is majority-minority, the lack of any representation in the newsroom is stark contrast to the community it covers. 

In 2015, the Providence Journal wrote a multi-piece series titled "Race in Rhode Island," but now less than two years later, the last minority reporter, Alisha Pina, has resigned and taken a job in public relations for the State of Rhode Island.

“I was saddened to see Alisha Pina move on. While our communities have become more diverse in cultures, races and languages spoken, the newsrooms made up of people of color have reduced drastically,” said Ann Clanton of the National Association of Black Journalists, New England Chapter.

NOT

RI's Testing Problems

The number of Rhode Islanders being tested continues to drop.

Governor Gina Raimondo continues to say testing is critical and that the state is gearing up to improve testing availability, but in recent days the number of Rhode Islanders tested has plummeted.

On Wednesday, Raimondo said at her weekly press conference, “In the past couple of weeks it might take you a few days to get that test set up. It’s better now. When we showed up overnight on the travel list for states we were overrun with people who wanted to get tested. I'm sorry if it took a few days before could get an appointment. It is definitely better now."

"I think I can safely say the worst is behind us. We're much better than we were a month ago [on turnaround time] and next month expect us to be even better. Although it’s been a year of surprises," she added.

Moving the Goalposts

Forget that Raimondo promised Rhode Island would be testing 10,000 people per day by the end of July.

Raimondo said in May. “I’d like to see us at 10,000 a day by July. And then we want to get to 20,000 a day…by end of September.”

In the past six days, the average number of tests has fallen to just 2,792 per day -- far below June and July’s testing numbers.

NOT

Boston Red Sox

They are awful and boring.

The Sox have the worst record in the American League and the second-worst record in baseball. Thank god they got rid of Mookie.