By Dianne Anderson Local volunteers recently gathered for their first semi-normal, human-based event in well over a year, dutifully spaced six feet apart in chairs doing breakout sessions with groups of real people. It was a reality check for Reena Carrol, and interesting to hear some of the comments from those attending. “They were – ...

By Dianne Anderson Wherever tens of thousands of dollars of free money are up for grabs, smart students are thinking way ahead of the curve. Now is the time to go for it. Sooner rather than later is the mantra for getting Black and Brown students in the door of higher education for Fall of ...

By Antonio Ray Harvey California Black Media A police reform bill calling for stricter standards on how law enforcement officers across the state use rubber bullets and tear gas for crowd control has been approved by both the California Senate and Assembly. The legislation, Assembly Bill (AB) 48 introduced by Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez (D-San Diego), ...

By Charlene Crowell An estimated 3.5 million renters face the likelihood of eviction over the next two months – despite the availability of $46 billion in emergency rental assistance (ERA) allocated by Congress. The crux of this looming crisis is the uneven local response to providing authorized assistance to both renters and landlords. And the ...

By Aldon Thomas Stiles California Black Media Over the last two weeks, it has been a mixed bag of wins and losses for bills concerned with the rights of people interacting with the criminal justice system. Senate Bill (SB) 262, a bail reform bill that would have established $0 bail for some offenders, was stopped ...

By Dianne Anderson Black men can run and hide from the needle, but they are still over twice as likely to die from prostate cancer than white men, even though a simple PSA blood antigen test starting at age 35 could save their lives. It’s a problem that Eric Burroughs has been chipping away at, ...

By Edward Henderson California Black Media The election to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom is about a week away. Some mail-in ballots have already been counted. In person voting is now possible at voting centers and voting continues by mail, drop boxes and dropping off mail-in ballots at voting centers. But if you expect to be ...

Assemblymember Chris Holden’s police reform legislation, AB 26, cleared its final hurdle in the legislature on the Assembly Floor. AB 26 establishes clear guidelines for police responsibility and accountability when witnessing excessive force by another member of law enforcement. Governor Newsom has until October 10th to sign the legislation. “The vote is a big step ...

By Dianne Anderson Old boxes of wet stuck together paper from a long-defunct teen basketball program were headed for the trash, but something wouldn’t let Jesse Johnson throw out what was destined for better days. That was seven years ago. He is glad he didn’t quit when his basement flooded during a home renovation and ...

by Edward Henderson California Black Media For African Americans, the right to vote was won by the passion, sacrifice and bravery of many who came before us. It is our responsibility to make sure we are doing everything in our power to ensure that our vote counts in every election held at the local, state ...