Category: Opinion

Joe W. Bowers Jr. | California Black Media In August, the California Attorney General’s Office, publicly apologized for its role in the unjust incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II. This belated acknowledgement highlights America’s capacity for prejudice and injustice. Attorney General Rob Bonta’s apology, issued on the 35th anniversary of the Civil Liberties…

By Anthony Jenkins, Ph.D. As gun violence continues to plague our nation, mass shootings and other acts of senseless violence have spilled onto college and university campuses across Maryland. Incidents like the recent campus shootings violate everything held sacred in our lives, and in academia. The acts of cowards violate our sense of personal safety,…

Joe W. Bowers Jr | California Black Media Oct 7, 2023, will be known as Israel’s 9/11. Hamas terrorists crossed the Israel-Gaza border and indiscriminately slaughtered Israeli civilians in their homes and apartments. They killed nearly 300 young people at a music festival and took at least 200 hostages including 30 children. The atrocities they…

By: Assistant Democratic Leader James E. Clyburn October 3, 2023, was Groundhog Day in the U.S. House of Representatives. The Republican Caucus voted to remove Kevin McCarthy (R-CA-20) as Speaker of the House just nine months after electing him to the position in a saga that spanned four days and 15 ballots. We have in…

Rev. Edgar Boyd | California Black Media Every Sunday, I look out at the faces of my congregation, and I am grateful that we have overcome the many challenges we have faced over the past few years. At the same time, I am also reminded of all the beautiful souls we have lost to COVID-19….

NNPA NEWSWIRE — With the suspension of Worrell, said Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried, DeSantis has pulled a veil over justice and imposed a reign of his own making. The voice of democracy has been stifled, replaced by a chorus of self-interest, and the repercussions of the governor’s power play extend beyond state lines….

Rev. Edgar Boyd | California Black Media Every Sunday I look out at the faces of my congregation, and I am grateful that we have overcome the many challenges we have faced over the past few years. At the same time, I am also reminded of all the beautiful souls we have lost to COVID-19….

Why the FDA Menthol Ban is Not Good for Communities of Color By Elliot T. Boyce, Sr. (Ret.), Former Director of the New York State Police Employee Assistance Program (EAP) With the FDA’s pending ban on menthol cigarettes growing ever closer, it’s important that policymakers contemplating passing legislation that will impact the interactions between Black…

Diabetes is often invisible to everyone except those living with it, and for too long, minorities have gone without better access to better healthcare technology. By Patti LaBelle More than 25 years ago, I collapsed onstage while performing. I had no idea what was happening, but that night in the hospital, when I was diagnosed…

By: Assistant Democratic Leader James E. Clyburn (SC-06) There is an increased focus on “Bidenomics” as President Joe Biden and his administration implement and communicate his economic policy agenda to the American people. President Biden gave a major speech on the subject in Chicago last month. Listening to that speech, I was struck by one…

By Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr., President and CEO, National Newspaper Publishers Association All Americans should have equal access to high quality healthcare. As our nation steadily emerges out of the awful debilitating aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, the majority of communities of color, and in particular the African American community, are all facing lingering…

By Assistant Democratic Leader James E. Clyburn (SC-06) In 2019, my daughter Jennifer and I took part in a Congressional Delegation to Ghana that included my good friend, the late Congressman John Lewis. Our visit was to commemorate the 400 years since Blacks were forcibly taken from the continent of Africa and enslaved in America….

Dominique Ulloa and Lori Condinus | Special to California Black Media As industry insiders, advocates for change, and social justice activists, we are joining forces in this Op-Ed to shed light on the critical need to strengthen California’s Film Tax Credit program through community and stakeholder participation and oversight. Thankfully, Sen. Lola Smallwood-Cuevas (D-Los Angeles)…

NNPA NEWSWIRE — The truth is, crime is out of control in this country, especially in too many of our cities. While many choose to turn a blind eye, it is people of color who are the majority of the victims: People of color account for 73 percent of rape victims; 72 percent of robbery…

NNPA NEWSWIRE — “Education should be the space where you can learn about everything and anything that you want. There should be no limits to the creativity of the ideas and the dreams that you inspire into every child,” said Derrick Ramsey, co-founder of the nonprofit Young, Black & Lit.. “This really takes away a…

Anna Lee Mraz | Special to California Black Media Partners The fifth of May, Cinco de Mayo, is a holiday that celebrates the Battle of Puebla, which took place in 1862 near the Mexican city of Puebla. On this day, the Mexican army, led by General Ignacio Zaragoza, defeated the French in their attempt to…

By Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. Whether we accept it or not, obesity continues to be a complex, chronic disease that kills thousands of Black Americans every year. Indeed, nearly half of Black Americans live with obesity, so we cannot afford to ignore this national emergency any longer. The public discourse around weight loss that…

Financial illiteracy is harming California’s students. The issue of young people being unprepared for adulthood is often attributed to a lack of financial literacy. However, we believe that the root of the problem lies in the fact that many adults in California are themselves financially illiterate and therefore unable to impart this knowledge to the…

By Ben Jealous Vice President Kamala Harris is sure to be remembered every March in Women’s History Month as the first woman and the first person of color to serve our nation in that position. As notable as those two facts are, she may grow to be known just as much for a single vote…

By Congressman James E. Clyburn Following the murders of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd in 2020 at the hands of law enforcement—two in a long line of avoidable tragedies—Democrats reaffirmed our commitment to ensuring that law enforcement truly protect the communities they serve. House Democrats passed the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act to prevent…

By Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens Atlanta has a proud legacy as the cradle of the civil rights movement. Throughout our history, Atlantans from Martin Luther King, Jr. to the trailblazers of Sweet Auburn not only helped birth the modern movement to create justice for all but had a laser focus on economic empowerment for everyone…

Dr. Lenore A. Tate | Special to California Black Media Partners Numerous studies have confirmed that homelessness and behavioral and mental health problems affect African Americans at disproportionate rates in California and around the United States. On a very primary and personal level, homelessness affects an individual’s mental health. Looking at the data: approximately 30%…

Paul Cobb | Special to California Black Media Partners As the publisher of the Oakland Post, I am disappointed with recent mainstream media coverage and editorials trying to make tabloid news out of the appointment of Assemblymember Mia Bonta (D-Oakland) to be chair of the California Assembly Budget Subcommittee #5 on Public Safety. Bonta a…