By Charles Ellison, b|e note

At some point, the leftovers conversation about Black male voters was bound to catch up with us. A week of apoplexy over the self-absorbed political leanings of Big Chain rap icons Ice Cube then 50 Cent led to widespread social media and pop Black discourse condemnation about the electoral behavior of Black men overall. Once again, an entire classroom of the well-behaved was punished for the “spit balling” antics of the very few in the back of the classroom. 

Many people, particularly those in the Black academic, political and media space, carried on a careless, angry exchange since 2016 focused on the contemptible Black male voter. According to exit polls, a small, yet noticeable, collection of activated Black male voters (13 percent) supported Donald Trump for president. That led to a bizarre, irresponsible and very knee-jerkish rejection of Black men voters as a whole and conveniently aligned with a Trump Era-timed celebration of Black women voters as the only known hope to restore any semblance of Black political power. Ignored was the fact that the overwhelming majority of Black men voting had sense enough to support Hillary Clinton, 82 percent. Still, Black women voters scrambled to save the world that ill-fated night four years ago (I wrote the headline). But, Black male voters, on the other hand, felt wiped from the electoral map after 2016: disgraced, dishonored and alienated even as the majority of them did the right thing.

Those sentiments had consequences, particularly for the next Generation Z of young Black men who should have spent much of the past several years looking forward to participating in their first election. Instead, they’ve been hearing commentary on their electoral worthlessness. Their presence was mad invisible in key election cycles since then. Now, as 2020 looms, the political world needs them – but, just how psychologically battered and bruised are they? Stressed Democrats looking for a convincing leg-room margin for Joe Biden-Kamala Harris against incumbent Donald Trump-Mike Pence are now begging for Black male votes. Democratic Party leaders fret privately and publicly that much of the Black male electorate has tapped out. But, where was all this clamoring for brothers over the past several years? Much of the sudden focus seems a day late and a dollar short. As a result, we’re seeing troubling pro-Trump and “not voting” Black voter numbers like these …

This is compared to overall Black voter breakdowns in 2016 … 

During the Alabama U.S. Senate race concerns arose that the Black male vote either did not exist or would not show up – because of, once again, that knuckleheaded 13 percent in the back of the classroom. Yet, the Black male vote did show up. It certainly took a back seat to Black female voter performance in terms of pure numbers, representing 11 percent of the overall state electorate while the “sister vote” represented 18 percent of it. But, Black male presence at the polls was equally significant and decisive.

In 2018, Black male voters once again, voted mostly in their community’s best interest: 88 percent voting for Democrats to retake the House versue 12 percent voting for Republicans. Granted, that didn’t match the support shown by Black women (92 percent), but it was still a significant majority …

It’s a delicate conversation. Observers tiptoe gently around the subject out of fear that it will be misinterpreted as an act of political chauvinism. It’s a cautious assessment, but a real and valid one: no conversation on Black vote behavior should be divisive, least of all from the perspective of Black people engaged on the topic. Any analysis should be thoughtful and respectful, with great care not to diminish the verypowerful, essential and decisive role Black women played in that race and many others before it — as they will continue to do.

Indeed, when it comes to Black voting trends and Black political efficacy, Black women do indeed lead. That has been the case for quite some time.

However, any discussion on Black voter behavior and patterns should be holistic and unifying; in the case of Alabama (U.S. Senate) and Virginia (Governor) in 2017 and the 2018 Congressional midterms, there is a sense that mainstream discussion on that Black vote has not been as complete as it should be. It would be difficult to ponder Black Electorate effectiveness if the zeitgeist and Democratic Party planning focused disproportionately on one half of the equation. No Black voting bloc — no voting bloc for that matter — is totally effective without coordination of all parts. For example, registered Black African and Caribbean migrant communities, which are mainly clustered alongside Black American communities, must be taken into account when mobilizing modern Black voting blocs. The same must, naturally, occur with the Black vote in its entirety; there is no whole or pluralistic Black vote without both Black women and men factored in.

While the commentary on Black female voter power is welcome, aspects of it are being presented by mainstream media discourse as something that existed alone, by itself, in the context of overall Black voter participation.

Black thought leaders should have approached and assessed that conversation with caution. Many did not … and are still getting trapped in it. 

Both Black women and men have experienced brutal oppression over several hundred years, with white supremacist male-dominated constructs also placing great emphasis on the emasculation and destruction of Black men. Is the exclusion of mainstream media conversation on Black male voter presence and effectiveness in these election cycles deliberate? What we do know is that mainstream media institutions have long been extensions of white supremacist thought and action – and that same thought and action puts heavy focus on eliminating Black men. 

Back to Alabama: Black male voters were not as numerically superior (11 percent) as Black female voters (18 percent). However, with all ballots counted, Black male presence was double digits and support for Democratic nominee and now Senator Doug Jones was 93 percent. That’s a sharp 5 percentage points less than Black women’s support for Jones, but it is nevertheless impressive and well above the 90th percentile range. It should have been recognized and factored in for future planning on Black voter mobilization efforts. That should have been a story.

Interestingly enough, during the 2008 election, Black Alabama male voter support for then-Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama actually surpassed Black Alabama female voter support for Obama by 4 percentage points — 100 percent of Black men voters in Alabama supported Obama compared to 96 percent of Black women. Still, Black Alabama men only accounted for 11 percent of the state electorate.

In 2012, that turnout dropped by 1 percentage point. But, they voted to re-elect President Obama at 96 percent compared to Black women voters in the state at 95 percent.

Black male voters have not yet been forgiven (by some) for increased support of Democratic nominee Bernie Sanders during the caustic 2016 Democratic primary and what was considered, later on in the general, an unusually higher number of Black male voters who voted for Republican candidate Donald Trump. Observers have pointed to sexism as the culprit influencing the decisions of some Black male voters.

In contrast, Black women voters were fairly focused and unified in their opposition to Trump in 2016. While accounting for 7 percent of the overall U.S. electorate, they voted 94 percent for Clinton versus only 4 percent for Trump and 2 percent “other.” 

Still, 2016 aside, Black male voters prominently figure in any race without question. Commentators, particularly those in the Black thought leadership space, would be wise not to completely discount or casually dismiss the Black male voter, especially at a time when conversation must encourage greater turnout from them in 2020. Yet, they still are. Is it too late? With Black male voters so invisible from the conversation during all those key moments of Black electoral enthusiasm and reflection, there was always a high risk of psycho-social alienation that would show itself in reduced Black male voter turnout in future elections. At this stage, Black people will need all the voter turnout they can get – from both Black women and Black men. You can’t half-step a Black vote. 

YUCAIPA, CA— The faculty at Crafton Hills College (CHC) are pulling out all the stops to make distance learning fun, fresh and effective.

While college-wide distance learning will continue through the upcoming spring semester, prospective students are invited to enroll in classes with instructors who are both understanding of difficult circumstances and engaging communicators in their field of expertise.

Brandi Bailes, mathematics professor, admits that statistics can be a dry subject, but humor, she has found, is a helpful remedy.

“I’ve always been a ham in the classroom, but COVID has made me need that more as a teacher,” Bailes said. “People have a lot of math anxiety, so humor always helps with that. In a traditional classroom setting, there’s more natural camaraderie, so now it’s either I am humorous, light-hearted and funny, or this class is not going to be successful.”

With student achievement at the forefront of her mind, Bailes crawls under her desk each week as she logs onto Zoom. Her students watch expectantly as a small grey elephant appears on the screen to teach them the next lesson in Statistics. Using her child’s puppets – Eli the Elephant, Lion, Cow and Cat – Bailes presents effective lectures enhanced with funny anecdotes. 

“It keeps students engaged on one hand just because it’s different, but also it helps to not ignore the fact that my students have family around,” Bailes explained. “It puts a lot of pressure on the students who are at home with kids to have to pretend like they are like other students in a distraction-free environment. I like to draw the kids in rather than ignore them and allow them to enjoy the puppet show while their parent is learning.”

Bailes acknowledges the reality of her students’ learning environment and adjusts her expectations accordingly. “We use Snapchat filters in class a lot,” she said. “The students really like using them because it’s more comfortable for them to not have to put their face forward while still having their camera on. Allowing them to hide their appearance as a duck or whatever allows them to still engage without feeling self-conscious.”

Gwendolyn DiPonio, English professor, has taught online for more than ten years and has made adjustments to accommodate students who simply prefer face-to-face classes. Recently she dressed up as Professor McGonagall, fictional Hogwarts professor from the Harry Potter series, to spice up an English lesson on the correct format for research papers.

“My videos have a twofold purpose, both to ease the tension students must feel about electronic communication and to entertain them a bit,” she said. “My dressing up as characters or adding humor to required academic content adds an element of fun we might have if we were in a room together.”

CHC faculty members’ creativity is not limited to character acting though. Alexander O’Brien, instructor of multimedia and computer information systems, was inspired to find a way to make slides more accessible in Canvas, the College’s online learning platform. In an attempt to include an interactive feature, O’Brien found that there was no easy way to accomplish that without HTML coding.

Knowing that other faculty members may be looking for a similar solution, he found that he could make a Google Slides presentation, publish it to the web, and place the provided coding from Google Slides into Canvas for a simple, looping set of images.

“It wasn’t the fully interactive element I was originally hoping for,” O’Brien said. “But it still provided a new way to look at the content.”

The end result allowed students the ability to see images before photo editing, and then blended into the altered image, which helps to distinguish the content from regular, static images. While it was a small change to the online course, O’Brien said it’s vital to make every aspect of distance learning accessible and engaging for students.

“Our students are struggling to perform their best in this new world,” O’Brien said. “It is up to us as teachers to be sure we continue to be vigilant and innovative in our approach to education.”

“For those students new to this online world, I hope our creativity shows them that taking online classes doesn’t have to be as frightening as they might think,” added DiPonio. “Hopefully professors will discover that teaching them doesn’t have to be frightening either!”

Classes for the spring semester will begin in January, and will continue to be remote through the semester. Prospective students are invited to submit an application at craftonhills.edu/prospective-students as registration will begin in November.

UPLAND, CA— The Inland Valley News, an African American Newspaper based in the Upland/Pomona area is seeking a Part-Time Office Assistant. The ideal candidate must be highly organized, skilled, computer literate, and office decorum is a must. Please send your resume to officeassistant2020@gmail.com. 

The Biden for President Victory Fund invites the public to join Senator Kamala Harris, Maya Harris, Andrew Young, and special guests for “A Celebration” on Saturday, October 24, 2020. The time will be announced upon registration. 

Special guests include Margaret Cho, Connie Chung, David Henry Hwang, Padma Lakshmi, Lucy Liu, Aasif Mandvi, Kumail Nanjiani, Ravi Patel, Lou Diamond Philips, Maggie Q, Lea Salonga, and George Takei. 

Video calls will also be provided to all confirmed guests 24 hours prior to the event. To register, please visit https://secure.joebiden.com/a/aapi-celebration?attr=103876375.

For more information, please contact Sreyashe Dhar at sdhar@joebiden.com.  RSVP is REQIRED. 

RIVERSIDE, CA— – The 4th annual SoCal Women’s Cancer Conference led by The Pink Ribbon Place, a program of Riverside Community Health Foundation, and co-hosted by Anthem Blue Cross returns this year on October 21-24 for the English conference, and October 28-31 for the Spanish conference. This four-day virtual conference is a one-of-a-kind event that focuses on what it means to be a woman and a cancer survivor. This event promises to offer a memorable and incredible experience for all participants!

Breakout sessions during the conference include intimacy during cancer, navigating cannabis and the connection between genetics and cancer.

To kick-off the 4-day event, live speakers on October 21 will include: Dr. Shannon La Cava, Chief Clinical Officer at Cancer Support Community Los Angeles and Monique Tiffany, MSN, RN, Regional Medical Specialist II for Myriad Genetics, Inc. Dr. La Cava will explore finding meaning, purpose, and joy while living with a cancer diagnosis and COVID-19 isolation and Monique will identify the common body changes that occur during and after cancer treatment that may affect sexual health.

The cancer conference will feature over 40 speakers and eight categories of information related to cancers of the breast, gynecological, colorectal, skin, and more.

The English conference begins October 21 through October 24. Registration is now open at www.socalwcc.org. The Spanish conference begins October 28 through October 31. One can also register for the conference in Spanish at espanol.socalwcc.org.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA—- San Bernardino County residents are urged to prepare for the upcoming influenza (flu) season by getting a flu vaccine, especially in light of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Getting a flu vaccine will not only reduce risk of illness, hospitalization, and even death, but will also help reduce the burden on our healthcare systems responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The single best way to protect against the flu is to get vaccinated,” said Dr. Erin Gustafson, County Interim Health Officer. “Early vaccination will provide protection throughout flu season and into the spring.”

Flu is a contagious respiratory illness caused by influenza viruses that can cause mild to severe illness and at times can lead to death. Since the flu can affect all age groups, everyone six months of age and older should get a flu vaccine in early fall, just before the flu season starts in November.

To stop the spread of flu and other respiratory illnesses:

• Cover your mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze and throw the tissue in the trash after use.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after a cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand sanitizers may be used if soap and water are not available.
• Avoid close contact with sick people and stay home from work or school if you get sick and limit contact with others.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth.

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is also important to continue to avoid gatherings, wear a face covering, and keep six feet distance from others.

This is also the perfect time for residents to ensure they have received all needed vaccinations, especially older adults. Adults over the age of 65 are at higher risk of developing serious complications from flu, such as pneumonia and are highly encouraged to get the pneumococcal vaccine.

To find free flu vaccination clinics throughout the county, visit https://wp.sbcounty.gov/dph/flu. 

By Lou Yeboah

“For I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot, but because you are lukewarm, I’m about to spit you out of My mouth. And because you say, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,” and you do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked, be zealous and repent, so that you may live and not die, [Galatians 5:19-21] and pray that you are found worthy to escape the tribulation that is coming upon the whole world. [Galatians 5:19-21]. I tell you, the night is fading away, the sun is peeking over the Eastern horizon, and I am coming soon!” [Romans 13:11]. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. [Revelation 3:15-22].

God’s message to each of us is as it was to Hezekiah, “SET THINE HOUSE IN ORDER FOR THOU SHALT DIE AND NOT LIVE.”  Just as Isaiah did not have anything else to say, neither do I. Isaiah delivered his message and left. Why? Because the message was plain enough that it did not need to be explained.  

Getting “our house in order” MUST become a priority in all of our lives. The Bible declares that there will be a 2nd coming of Christ. When? We do not know. But when He do come, He will be coming as Judge this time.

I can only hope and pray that today is the day that you put into action, the steps needed in getting your house in order. This is our finest hour!  The present shaking that we are experiencing is proof positive that God’s Kingdom is advancing on the earth and the hour of His return is near.  Be vigilant.  Be focused.  The present world as we watch it is undergoing shaking. Governments who are previously unmovable are trembling. Kings and Rulers who are untouchable in the past are being removed from their glorious palaces. [Haggai 2:6-7, 21-22] Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober.” [1Thessalonians 5:6].

“A watchman stood on the city wall and warned the people… [Ezekiel 3:17].

Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. On account of these the wrath of God is coming. In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices …y. [Colossians 3:5-10].

“He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming quickly.” Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!” [Revelation 22:20].

By Quinci LeGardye | California Black Media  

California voters will decide whether or not to go tougher on crime through a November ballot initiative that makes changes to previous propositions and bills designed to reduce the state’s prison population.  

California’s Proposition 20 proposes expanding the list of offenses that disqualify incarcerated persons for parole. It also calls for upgrading several theft-related fines from misdemeanors to felonies. It would also require law enforcement to collect the DNA of people who commit certain misdemeanors. 

If Prop 20 passes, vehicle theft, firearm theft, unlawful use of a credit card and other specific types of theft and fraud crimes will be chargeable as “wobblers,” which means the prosecutor will decide whether to charge them as misdemeanors or felonies. Under the current criminal code, these crimes are considered misdemeanors.  

Prop 20 would establish two new types of crimes: serial crime and organized retail crime, and it would increase penalties for repeat shoplifters.  

Changing the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation’s (CDCR) parole review program, Prop 20 would reclassify 51 crimes and sentence enhancements as violent in order to exclude them from the program, which is only available to nonviolent offenders. It would also require that an incarcerated person’s entire criminal record is taken into account before becoming eligible for parole, instead of only looking at that individual’s most recent offense. It would also allow prosecutors to request a review of the parole review board’s final decision. 

The initiative makes critical adjustments to 2011’s AB 109, 2014’s Proposition 47, and 2016’s Proposition 57, all of which were California legislative responses to the 2011 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that declared overcrowding in California’s prisons violated the Eight Amendment’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment. Together, those measures changed several crimes from wobblers to misdemeanors, increased parole chances for incarcerated people convicted of nonviolent crimes and shifted the imprisonment of non-violent and non-sexual offenders from state prisons to local jails. 

Prop 20 is supported by the Republican Party of California, the California Grocers Association, police and peace officer associations, Crime Victims United and Crime Survivors, Inc. Supporters argue that the previous criminal justice reforms were misguided and caused significant public safety problems, and that Prop 20 would close loopholes that let out violent offenders. 

They also say that the proposition would rightfully reclassify crimes as violent that are currently considered nonviolent, including felony assault with a deadly weapon, human trafficking of a child and rape of an unconscious person. 

“Prop. 57 was misleading because it promised that only nonviolent inmates would be released from prison early,” said Citrus Heights Police Chief Ron Lawrence, former president of the California Police Chiefs Association. “But under California law, a number of violent crimes are classified nonviolent.” 

Opponents of Prop 20 argue that tough-on-crime stances do not reduce crime, and that Prop 20 would only increase the state’s spending on prisons and tear families apart. They also highlight that the criminal justice system disproportionately incarcerates Black and Brown people, and that the proposition would only deepen the devastation mass incarceration has caused in Black and Brown communities. 

Groups that oppose Prop 20 include the ACLU of California, the California Labor Federation, the California Teachers Association, Equality California, the Public Defenders Association, Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice and the National Center for Crime Victims.  

Gov. Gavin Newsom and former Gov. Jerry Brown also oppose it.  

Brown, who signed AB 109 and developed Proposition 57, said, “Proposition 20 is supported by a very narrow group of people who don’t accept even the modest prison reforms that I was able to achieve. It’s driven by ideology and, in some cases, by a total lack of understanding of human nature and no sense of redemption or allowing people to put their lives on track.” 

By Quinci LeGardye | California Black Media  

Ahead of the November election, a group of dialysis nurses and patients have come out in strong opposition to Proposition 23.  

If passed, Proposition 23 would require all kidney dialysis clinics to have a physician, nurse practitioner or physician assistant on site during dialysis treatment. It would also prohibit clinics from reducing their services without state approval and make it illegal for them to refuse treatment for patients based on their insurance or payment source. 

Although the proposition’s supporters say passing it would improve clinics across the board, opponents argue that requiring the presence of a physician at each clinic would force many clinics to shut down and increase healthcare costs for 80,000 California dialysis patients. Opponents also point out that the ballot measure would not require the physician to be a nephrologist or kidney specialist. 

Dialysis is an important medical procedure for patients with kidney failure, with risk of death increasing by 30 % after one missed appointment. Patients need to attend a regular clinic to avoid complications in treatment that may arise if patients were forced to visit emergency rooms.  

Opponents of Prop 23 argue that many smaller clinics would not be able to afford the new staffing requirements and would be forced to shut down, leaving dialysis patients without a regular clinic. 

“They’re not going to be able to operate because they’re not going to be able to afford the additional expense of paying this doctor when some of these expenses could be utilized to improve the equipment we have and which basically impacts the improvement in the care of a patient. It’s a waste of money,” said Kim Bailey, an Inglewood-based dialysis nurse. 

African Americans make up the majority of dialysis patients. According to the National Kidney Foundation, more than 35 percent of all patients receiving dialysis for kidney failure in the U.S. are Black, even though Black people make up only 13.2 percent of the U.S. population. 

Bailey spoke about her staff, using tasks her employees perform as examples of the services that dialysis clinics already provide without Prop 23 in place. She emphasized that the patients, who come three times a week, are treated by nurses who match their shifts. This allows the nurses to bond with their patients and understand their conditions through familiarity. 

“This clinic is one of the largest ones in Southern California. I have 58 chairs, I have about 350 in-center patients, and then I have a home program as well. I have a medical director and associate medical director that are very accessible to us at any given time. Each patient has an assigned nephrologist. My physicians frequent the clinic. There is always someone in this clinic,” said Bailey. 

Los Angeles-based dialysis patient DeWayne Cox spoke about his own experience with dialysis, including what happened when he missed treatment, as an example of what might happen to other dialysis patients if the proposition passes. 

“I missed a shift for work on a Friday. I ended up in the emergency room that Saturday, and the physicians there did not know how to treat me. I received kidney failure because of high blood pressure, but I am not diabetic, but the physician there treated me like I was a diabetic and gave me insulin. I’d never had insulin before in my life, and I nearly died. And other patients do because of something like that, because they end up in the emergency room, because they miss a session,” said Cox. 

Kathy Fairbanks, the No on Prop 23 spokesperson who hosted the presentation, also spoke about the political backstory behind the ballot measure.  

Prop 23, she said, is a predecessor of 2018’s Proposition 8, which was voted down. Both the previous proposition and this year’s are supported by the SEIU-UHW West, a labor union for healthcare workers. Opponents of Prop 23 argue that Prop 23 is the union’s latest attempt to unionize dialysis clinic workers, 

“I think this is all part of a plan to put these initiatives on the ballot every two years, and essentially use it as a lever to force the dialysis provider to allow a union. If that were to happen, these initiatives every two years would cease to exist. We’d never seen another one on the ballot,” Fairbanks said. 

“I don’t like the fact that it is involving patient care. They need to continue to address the teammates that work in the dialysis facilities in terms of their union and not involve the patients in this,” Bailey said. 

By Quinci LeGardye | California Black Media  

Two years after California lawmakers passed the first consumer data privacy act in the country, voters have a chance to expand the law or leave it as it is.  

Proposition 24 on the November ballot would update the California Consumer Privacy Act to add new provisions and create an agency to enforce the laws. 

California’s consumer data privacy laws were established by the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (CCPA), which requires that large tech companies disclose the kind of data that they collect from people who use their apps and websites. It also allows users, referred to as consumers in the legislation’s language, to opt out of having their data sold to third parties, including advertisers. 

If passed, Prop 24 would give consumers an opt-out option so businesses would not be able to use their sensitive personal information, such as their race, Social Security number or exact location, for advertising or marketing. It also requires businesses to obtain permission before collecting data from consumers who are younger than 16. For children younger than 13, businesses need permission from a parent or guardian to collect data. 

The initiative would also establish the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA), which would enforce the consumer privacy laws. This new office would be separate from the California attorney general’s office, which currently handles privacy concerns, and the office would receive at least $10 million in funding annually.  

The initiative would also triple fines for violations concerning customers under age 16. 

Prop 24 was filed by San Francisco real estate developer Alaistair Mactaggart, who was a proponent of the CCPA in 2018. The measure is endorsed by the California NAACP, Consumer Watchdog, and former presidential candidate Andrew Yang.  

Opponents of Prop 24 include the ACLU of California, Color of Change, League of Women Voters of California and Consumer Federation of California. 

Those in favor of the law argue that consumer privacy laws need to be stronger, especially now that so much of life has been moved online due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sean Dugar, social activist and Yes on Prop 24 supporter, spoke with California Black Media about the need for more data privacy to stop targeted ads and discrimination. 

“You hear the horror stories every day. You hear about women who were at Planned Parenthood clinics being targeted by anti-abortion groups, kids who are logging into their classrooms being targeted by pornographic ads, folks who are on dating apps having their sexual preferences sold to the highest bidder. All that is happening now, in addition to legalized redlining and being able, as a financial institution or as a developer or real estate agent, to opt out of certain communities, especially Black folks, limiting people who see their properties and their services,” said Sean Dugar, social activist and Yes of Prop 24 supporter. 

The Yes on Prop 24 campaign also issued a statement highlighting concerns regarding Black consumers’ data privacy, after recent reports found that the Trump campaign used sensitive personal information to suppress the African American vote in the 2016 presidential election. Prop 24 would stop businesses for compiling racial data. 

“Everything you can imagine is online and available to be sold, or even worse hacked, about you. And so, we need not just strong laws, but an enforcement agency that will be able to ensure that our privacy and our data are protected, and that we as Black folks specifically are no longer targeted and no longer racially profiled online,” said Dugar. 

Opponents of the ballot initiative argue that Prop 24 actually weakens consumer rights by including an Internet “pay for privacy” scheme, where those who don’t pay get inferior service and more pop-up ads. Also, they argue that Prop 24 would force consumers to notify each website and app they use individually to protect their data. 

Opponents also emphasize that the ballot measure was written with input from giant tech corporations, and that the measure’s sponsor rejected input from privacy and consumer rights groups. 

“No one reads the thousands of words of legal fine print that you have to accept before you can use an app or visit a website. The fine print is where you sacrifice your privacy. The same is true of Proposition 24. Its 52 pages are full of privacy reductions and giveaways to Facebook, social media platforms and big tech companies that misuse our personal information,” said?Richard Holober, President of the Consumer Federation of?California. “Advocacy groups that fight for the rights of Californians have read Prop 24’s fine print and that is why they oppose it.”