SACRAMENTO, CA—- Assemblymember Chris Holden hit the ground running in 2022 and recommitted to improving upward mobility for people of color by introducing AB 1604, after Governor Newsom’s veto of his Upward Mobility Act of 2021, AB 105. This legislation will be reintroduced and is the first of its kind in the nation – to promote upward mobility for people of color in California’s civil services system and require diversity on state boards and commissions.
“California has led the nation on other social justice and equity issues and now is another chance to continue that legacy,” said Assemblymember Chris Holden. “My goal is to promote transparency and accountability with this bill – both in government and private workplaces as we saw with AB 979. I am hopeful for what we can accomplish together this year.”
AB 1604 gives the Reparations Task Force more accurate data to utilize in its deliberations. Additionally, the bill requires that SPB establish a process that includes diversity and best practices in each aspect of the design, announcement, and administration of examinations for the establishment of employment lists.
By July 1, 2023, the Department of Human Resources shall develop model upward mobility goals to include race, gender, and LGBTQ as factors to the extent permissible under state and federal equal protection laws. The goals will be based on department workforce analysis and shall post the model goals on its internet website.
“I will work with my colleagues in the Legislature to improve California leadership and uphold equal opportunities for workplace growth,” said Holden. “The promise of doing the right thing remains, and I am more committed than ever to creating more inclusive workplace environments and remove barriers that hinder qualified individuals to move up within their department simply based on the color of their skin.”
Black leaders in California are remembering the life and accomplishments of Willard H. Murray Jr., an engineer and United States Air Force vet, elected to the California Assembly in 1988. He served in the State Legislature for eight years until he termed out in 1996.
Murray died on Dec. 20 of natural causes. He was 91.
“It is with heavy hearts that we bid farewell to our former Chair and colleague, the Honorable Willard H. Murray, Jr., who passed away yesterday afternoon,” read a statement the California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC) released the same day. “Willard Murray, Jr. was an exceptional man and public servant.”
In the Assembly, Murray represented California’s 52nd Assembly District in Southern California.
Murray and his son, Kevin Murray made history as the first father-and-son duo to serve in the Assembly simultaneously.
The younger Murray represented the 47th Assembly district which covered a part of Los Angeles. Later, he won the 26th Senate district seat based in Culver City.
Murray worked in government for more than 25 years at various levels. Before he was elected to the Assembly, he worked for former California Lieutenant Governor and U.S. Congressman Mervyn Dymally (D-CA-31). In addition to serving as an adviser to the California Senate Democratic Caucus, Murray also served on the staffs of former Los Angeles Mayor Sam Yorty and two former Los Angeles City Councilmembers, Robert Farrell and Billy Mills.
In the Assembly, he chaired the Assembly Budget Subcommittee on State Administration and served on a number of other committees. A civil rights activist in the 1960s, Murray’s political and legislative priorities included education, criminal justice, economic development and healthcare.
In 1998, Murray was also elected to serve on the board of the Water Replenishment District (WRD) of Southern California. He also served on the board of Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, the largest water public agency in the United States.
“Willard had a long, distinguished career as a leader and public servant in our state. He was giant in the water industry and a champion for the districts he served,” Dale Hunter, Executive Director of the California African American Water Education Foundation (CAAWEF), told California Black Media.
Hunter said Murray introduced African American professionals, including himself, to the water industry, teaching them the ins and outs, mentoring them, and guiding them so that they moved ahead in their careers.
“Willard truly made a difference,” Hunter continued. “He was not afraid of diving into policy and making changes that needed to happen. I’m thankful for his contributions and saddened by him leaving us. I’m also grateful for his teaching. I definitely would not be where I am if it were not for his influence.”
Murray earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Northridge State, a Juris Doctorate from Loyola Law School, and MBA from Loyola Marymount University.
In 1956, he married Barbara Farris Murray. The couple had two children, Kevin and Melinda, who are both attorneys.
“We mourn with the friends and loved ones of Willard H. Murray, Jr. and celebrate his life and tremendous legacy as a public servant,” the CLBC statement continued. “May he rest in peace.”
People who the state of California had a hand in forcing or coercing to undergo vasectomies or get their tubes tied are now eligible for compensation. The payments will come from a $7.5 million state fund.
“California is committed to confronting this dark chapter in the state’s past and addressing the impacts of this shameful history still being felt by Californians today,” said Gov. Newsom last week when he announced the program which began Jan 1 and is included as a line item in the state’s 2021-22 budget.
The Governor’s office estimates that there about 600 survivors, eligible and alive, who underwent the now-illegal method of birth control either at state medical facilities or in prison.
The survivors have until Dec. 31, 2023, to apply for compensation. $4.5 million of the fund will be used for payments evenly divided among people who apply and are approved. Each will receive a check for an amount up to $25,000 dollars.
Another $2 million will be used for public information campaigns promoting the program. $1 million will be used to create and install commemorative plaques at locations where “the wrongful sterilization of thousands of vulnerable people” happened, according to the Governor’s office.
Last year, Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo (D-Los Angeles) wrote and introduced Assembly Bill (AB) 1007 that proposed the program and served as the basis for funding the policy, which was included in the state budget after negotiations with legislative leaders.
Carillo said the launch of the program represents a victory that “comes to fruition after decades of advocacy.” She also highlighted the fact most of the victims were low-income, living with disabilities, or were people of color.
“We often discuss a woman’s right to choose, which includes the choice of becoming a mother, to become a parent. California’s eugenics laws have taken that away from many people,” said Carillo. “This is only the first step in addressing this wrong.”
She was referring to the practice, legal in California, that authorized state-run healthcare facilities to sterilize people that they considered “unfit for reproduction.”
“The compensation finally admits that California was in violation of human rights and reproductive justice. As a state, we must and can do more to recognize the horrific impact of eugenic sterilization programs on California families, and the devastating consequences of this failed attempt to eradicate populations.”
California’s sterilization law remained in effect from 1909, when the Assembly approved it, until 1979 when it was overturned. During that period, an estimated 20,000 people were sterilized.
In 2003, Gov. Gray Davis issued an apology to survivors.
“California led the way in eugenics as legislation was copied across the United States and used as a model for Adolf Hitler throughout World War II,” according to a statement Carillo’s office released.
State-sponsored sterilizations, however, continued in California prisons at least until 2010, according to the State Auditor’s office. That policy was banned in 2014.
Survivors can apply for payments through California’s Forced or Involuntary Sterilization Compensation Program, according to Gov Newsom’s office. The California Victim Compensation Board is responsible for administering the program.
The board says the identities of applicants will be kept confidential and payments will not impact a claimant’s trust, or Medicaid or Social Security status or benefits. The state will also not consider compensation survivors receive as income for state tax or child support purposes.
Gov. Newsom said the program is part of a broader state initiative to redress historical injustices.
“While we can never fully make amends for what they’ve endured, the state will do all it can to ensure survivors of wrongful sterilization receive compensation,” the governor said.
To apply, survivors should visit www.victims.ca.gov/fiscp, reach out to CalVCB at 800-777-9229, or send an email to
fiscp@victims.ca.gov to obtain an application. They can also send a letter to P.O. Box 591, Sacramento, CA 95812-0591.
SAN BERNARDINO, CA—- Four high school teams have advanced to the semifinals of the 40th annual San Bernardino County Mock Trial competition. Currently, Los Osos High School (Gold Team), Oak Hills High School (White Team), Ontario Christian High School and Redlands High School are scheduled to compete in person at the San Bernardino Superior Courthouse on Jan. 12 and 13. Updates to this schedule will be announced prior to the event if circumstances necessitate a change in venue or transition to a virtual platform.
Twenty-eight teams throughout San Bernardino County competed virtually in four preliminary rounds of Mock Trial, which ended on Dec. 8. Only four teams secured a spot in the semifinals.
Los Osos (Gold Team) from Chaffey Joint Union High School District will showcase their legal skills against Redlands High School from Redlands Unified School District while Ontario Christian competes against Oak Hills (White Team) from Hesperia Unified School District for a spot in the finals. Each team will have an opportunity to argue their case as both the prosecution and defense. Only two teams will emerge from the two-day competition with a coveted spot in the finals event on Jan. 22.
The Mock Trial competition simulates a criminal case in which high school students portray principal courtroom attorneys and witnesses, representing both the prosecution and defense. Students present their case before a real judge and use constitutional amendments and legal objections.
This year’s case is People v. Cobey—the trial of Jamie Cobey, a horticulturist living in the community of Burnsley, California. Cobey is charged with the homicide of Cobey’s landlord and next-door neighbor, Erik Smith. Cobey is accused of intentionally placing a venomous snake in Smith’s mailbox, which fatally bit Smith and led to his death. Prosecution teams will argue that the defendant should either be convicted of first-degree murder or the lesser-included offense of voluntary manslaughter.
The San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools and the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s office co-sponsor the event. The winner of the county competition will advance to the California Mock Trial Finals scheduled for March 18 – 20.
SAN BERNARDINO, CA—- The San Bernardino County Public Health Department on Friday (Dec. 17) delivered more than 1,000 over the counter COVID-19 testing kits and face masks to Congregations Organized for Prophetic Engagement (C.O.P.E.), a nonprofit faith-based organization of Black churches in the county.
“Our County is among the first in California to provide these over-the-counter tests to our nonprofits,” said San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors Chairman Curt Hagman. “We are leading the way on COVID-19 response by working with trusted community organizations to provide tests kits and masks to keep our communities safe and healthy.”
Since the beginning of the pandemic, the County has worked in partnership with C.O.P.E. to get people tested and vaccinated, Hagman said.
C.O.P.E.’s mission is to train and develop the capacity of religious and lay leaders in congregations across the Inland Empire to protect and revitalize the communities in which they live, work, and worship.
“On behalf of Congregations Organized for Prophetic Engagement (C.O.P.E.), and Inland Empire Concerned African American Churches (IECAAC), we want to thank Supervisor Curt Hagman, as well as the San Bernardino County Department of Public Health for always being great partners,” said C.O.P.E. Executive Director Pastor Samuel Casey. “This is another layer of great partnership in stemming the tide of the pandemic as we see a rise in COVID cases. These take-home kits are a great resource for the community, especially for those who distrust the testing and vaccination process. This partnership is a positive and powerful way to end 2021.”
Friday’s delivery of testing kits and masks to C.O.P.E. was the first group of free supplies that will go out to eligible nonprofit organizations. Non-profit organizations can request an allocation of COVID-19 tests by submitting a request form here. Test kits will be available for distribution starting the week of Dec. 20.
Rapid antigen tests provide results in as little as 10 minutes. Individuals 14 or older can perform the test directly. Adults can help perform the test for children aged 2 or older. The test can be used for individuals with or without symptoms. People who get a positive test result, should self-isolate at home and avoid contact with others and follow care instructions from their healthcare provider.
“Testing continues to be a priority in San Bernardino County and providing COVID testing resources to our non-profit organizations is another way we can mitigate COVID-19 transmission in our community,” said Public Health Director Josh Dugas. “As we enter the holiday season, we want to ensure that travelers have access to fast, reliable, and easy-to-use COVID testing and be able to provide documentation of their results.”
To learn more about the On/Go rapid antigen kit, call the Public Health COVID-19 Testing Program Coordinator at (909) 501-8285.
And then, the Miami Heat have a COVID outbreak, and guess who’s back in the 305 despite struggling in the G League and in Puerto Rico this year? You guessed it: Rio, the former LeBron James soundboard, the damn Alaskan Assassin and two-time NBA champion.
But it signals where we are. This 2021-2022 season, we’ve already seen more basketball players suit up in NBA uniforms than any campaign prior. We haven’t even begun the whole 2022 portion of this yet. In fact, we’re a good two or three weeks from being halfway through the season.
Seemingly everyone’s making jokes about staying ready for that call, but at this point, I’m looking at my high school stats like, hmm, maybe I could fill in for Myles Powell if I still got it. (I don’t. Never quite did either. This…. was always the more likely path.)
Believe it or not, there are still some names we’re going to see pop up who haven’t yet gotten the NBA opportunity during this already historic season. Some veterans are coming close enough to get noticed, while others are overseas yet to get a call because it’s just easier to pull a G Leaguer for 10 days. (More on that later, but not too much later.)
Kenneth Faried, Grand Rapids Gold
Kenneth Faried, 32, might get back on his name, and he was a good-ass player for a time. The explosive rim-runner enjoyed an eight-year NBA run from 2011-2019, which included peak seasons of 13.0 points and 8.7 rebounds per game on 53.6% shooting between 2013-2016 as an everyday starter for the Denver Nuggets. He’s posted 11.4 points and 8.1 rebounds over his NBA career on 54.6% from the field.
Like many other vets, he was a step behind the productivity he once displayed; then, you looked up one day and the dude was out of the league. Even after being a center for the small-ball Houston Rockets of 2018-19, posting 12.9 points and 8.2 rebounds in just over 24 minutes per game, shooting nearly 60% from the field and having the third-best win shares per 48 minutes on the team at .198 (after James Harden and Clint Capela), we haven’t seen him in the NBA since.
In 2019-20, he played in China, averaging 17/10 while primarily coming off the bench, but considering what former NBAers tend to do in the Chinese Basketball Association, it didn’t garner much attention. He suited up for three games in Puerto Rico earlier this year for Leones de Ponce. One of his teammates, Aleem Ford, is currently with the Orlando Magic.
As BasketballNews.com noted earlier this week, Faried is returning to the G League, presumably for an advantage in proximity. Faried is coming off a stint with CSKA Moscow of VTB United and the EuroLeague, where he struggled. He averaged fewer than 3 points and 3 rebounds in 11 games while coming off the bench and shooting 33.3%. Someone might be willing to overlook that if he’s decent in the G League. Faried will be with the Grand Rapids Gold, the Denver Nuggets afflilate (and where Lance Stephenson played before inking his Atlanta Hawks hardship deal).
Earl Clark, Sioux Falls Skyforce
That Earl Clark!?!??!?!?
Yeah, Clark is returning to the G League along with Faried, and will be suiting up with the Sioux Falls Skyforce, the Miami Heat’s affiliate. Clark was a lottery pick in 2009, and after six years in the NBA, he hasn’t returned. His career averages stand at 4.4 points and 3.0 rebounds on 40/33/66 shooting splits.
Honestly, there ain’t much else to say here other than, “Wow.” Watching Clark return after seven years would (respectfully) be more improbable than Julianna Peña beating the piss out of Amanda Nunes for the UFC Bantamweight Championship earlier this month. And, well, that did happen…
A strong argument could be made that Rondae Hollis-Jefferson currently is the best player here, and it might be by a safe distance. He’s high on the list of guys who shouldn’t be out of the league entirely in favor of “Undrafted Rookie X,” but because he’s 6-foot-6 and never became an adequate three-point shooter, it’s been held against him, and thus, he’s in Turkey.
Hollis-Jefferson currently leads Beşiktaş Icrypex with 13.1 points per game and also puts up 4.8 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.1 steals in 29.4 minutes per game in the Turkish Super League. Hollis-Jefferson is hitting 49.1% of his shots from the field, 33.3% from three on 1.4 attempts per game and 79.5% on free throws on a team-high four tries per contest. Additionally, he reportedly has an opt-out clause, which would allow him to leave for the NBA if presented with a suitable contract.
Hollis-Jefferson, a first-round pick in the 2015 NBA Draft, made his bones as a part of the Brooklyn Nets’ pre-super-team core. Most notably, he led the team in scoring and initiated the offense on many D’Angelo Russell-less nights during the 2017-18 season.
Covering those games, it felt like he averaged more than 2.5 assists per game; maybe it was all those hockey assists that ended up being Joe Harris, DeMarre Carroll or Allen Crabbe threes. He finished the season at 13.9 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.0 steals per game on 47.2% shooting from the field and 78.9% from the free-throw line on 4.6 attempts per game. He was only 13 of 54 from three, but showed the ability to create mid-range offense and attack the basket better than any other Net that season.
In a few days, he’ll just turn 27 years old. He’s still a multi-positional defender, an effective slasher and an instinctual passer for his position. Surprisingly, he’s not in an NBA rotation somewhere, or even a roster, considering, well, all of this.
ADELANTO, CA— Residents of Adelanto formed the group Adelanto Resident Delegate Committee two weeks before announcing their push for recall efforts against Mayor Gabriel Reyes (shown here) from the City of Adelanto. They have filed the Letter of Intention to circulate the Recall Petition on December 15, 2021, against Mayor Reyes and the San Bernardino County Register of Voters have verified the signatures required to proceed with the recall efforts.
They are hopeful that neighboring communities will support them in our recall efforts as corruption continues to permeate the local governments of the United States of America. They would like to send a message to all elected leaders. The residents are watching, and we are not afraid to take matters into our own hands.
YUCAIPA, CA— Crafton Hills College (CHC) is offering a one-day, virtual registration event on January 5 to help students who want to enroll for spring classes.
On January 5, CHC will hold the Roadrunner Express Enrollment event to help make it easier than ever to get started at the college. CHC staff will assist students through the registration process, including application, orientation, assessment, advisement and enrollment. Those interested in participating in the Roadrunner Express Enrollment event must register at the link below.
The college is offering a variety of perks for students who register for spring, including a free loaner Chromebook and Wi-Fi hotspot, free parking and free textbook rentals. Spring classes at CHC start January 18.
For more information on this opportunity to fast-track your spring registration or register for the event, visit craftonhills.edu/expressenrollment.
The CSUF Black Student Scholarship Fund application opened on December 6. Together, the Orange County Community Foundation and Cal State University, Fullerton have established a dedicated scholarship program to promote the college aspirations of Black students in our community. If selected as a recipient, the student will receive a $1,500 award.
You can also find the requirements listed below, as well as the direct link to the application hosted through the Scholarship America Portal. The deadline to submit applications is February 1, 2022.
Applicants must meet the following eligibility requirements:
Self-identify as Black or African American
Be a prospective, incoming, or current undergraduate student
Plan to enroll full-time at CSUF for the upcoming academic year
SAN BERNARDINO, CA— On Christmas morning, Saturday, December 25, Santa Claus was at The Salvation Army Hospitality House for the first time ever and made a magical morning even more special by delivering donated gifts to homeless children. Santa was played by John Berry, long time bell ringer, supporter of The Salvation Army and retried 20-year veteran reporter from the Press Enterprise.
The Salvation Army put on the event to restore hope to desperate families and children in dire circumstances. In this pandemic Inland Empire, we are called to Restore Hope and share joy through unique opportunities such as this with those who are most vulnerable.
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