Claremont

Apr 1 2011

John Floyd Thomas Jr.

LOS ANGELES, Calif.—A 74-year-old man pleaded guilty today to the sexually motivated killings of seven women in the Southland during the 1970s and '80s and was immediately sentenced to seven life prison terms, one without the possibility of parole.

John Floyd Thomas Jr.—nicknamed the Westside Rapist—pleaded guilty to seven counts of first-degree murder involving victims who ranged in age from 56 to 80 years old.

May 7 2009

DNA solves cold case, 30 possible victims

Los Angeles, CA -- Los Angeles Police held a press conference Thursday to announce the arrest of a man who they believe to be the “Westside Rapist” who raped and murdered a string of elderly women in Claremont, Inglewood and Los Angeles.

Across Black America

Here’s a look at African American people and issues making headlines throughout the country.

California
San Diego college students and volunteers will carry out their sixth home restoration project on Wednesday, July 10 through Sunday, July 14. as part of the “Healing our Heroes’ Homes” (H3) program created by the nonprofit Embrace. The five-day effort will take place at the home of medically retired Marine Corps Capt. Sarah Bettencourt. Bettencourt served with many different units across the country during the Global War on Terrorism and developed a rare neurological disorder in 2008. With a focus to restore the homes of disabled veteran homeowners, H3 falls in line with Embrace’s mission to mobilize college-student volunteers and community members to serve less fortunate members of civilian and veteran communities. The project for the Bettencourts’ home includes kitchen and bathroom remodeling, building ADA-compliant disability ramps, widening their driveway to ADA standards, widening doorways and landscaping.
 
District of Columbia
The 2013 Smithsonian Folklife Festival will showcase its five-year community research project on African American identity with the program “The Will to Adorn: African American Diversity, Style, and Identity.” This multicity collaboration examines the history and culture of the aesthetics of African Americans. The festival will be held June 26-30 and July 3-7, outdoors on the National Mall between Seventh and 14th streets. “Whether we realize it or not, we are all dress artists. The way we compose our look is a creative expression of our ideas about who we are and who we aspire to be,” said Diana N’Diaye, program curator. “This program explores the diversity of African American traditions of style, but also teaches young people the importance of documenting their own culture and saving that information for themselves and future generations.”