By Antonio Ray Harvey | California Black Media 

Eric Garner’s mother Gwendolyn Carr says, for Black Men, selling a single cigarette, known as “loosey,” can lead to an arrest, a prison sentence or even death. 

Six years ago, a police officer put her son in a chokehold and strangled him to death for allegedly selling illegal cigarettes on Staten Island, a borough of New York City. 

Now, Carr is speaking out in a new video against California Senate Bill (SB) 793, which she says will create the same circumstances – the illegal sale and use of menthol cigarettes and aggressive, racially-biased law enforcement — that led to her son’s death. If the Senate passes the bill and Gov. Newsom signs it into law, it would ban the sale of menthol tobacco and other flavored cigarette products. 

“A new law would criminalize menthol cigarettes, which Black people smoke almost exclusively, giving police officers another excuse to harm and arrest any Black man, woman or child they choose,” Carr says in the video opposing SB 793. “A bad law has consequences for mothers like me.” 

Carr is not alone in her opinion of the bill. Across California, there is opposition to SB 793, which, if passed, would become the country’s strongest restriction on flavored tobacco products, including Newport, Kool and Salem cigarettes — three brands Blacks disproportionately smoke. 

Old and young, faith leaders, retired law enforcement officers, and civil rights activists came together to protest SB 793. At protests in Los Angeles and Sacramento on Aug. 20, they called out the inherent discrimination coded into the language and spirit of SB 793, which California Sen. Jerry Hill (D-San Mateo) authored. 

“The goal of this protest is to ensure we are heard,” said Rev. K.W. Tulloss, President of Baptist Ministers Conference Los Angeles and co-founder of Neighborhood FORWARD, a community-based social action organization. “SB 793 is a bad bill that’s not good for California. The unintended consequences of this legislation are real. Bills like this take us backward.” 

But on the same day of the protests, the Assembly Appropriations Committee passed the bill, sending the bill to the full Assembly for consideration. 

The rallies were two in a series of three held against SB793. The first one was held in front of the home of California Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood). 

Like Carr, people and organizations that oppose SB 793 say it is discriminatory because some adult tobacco products — those preferred by Whites – are exempted from the ban. 

Meanwhile, the tobacco products preferred by African American adult smokers, menthol cigarettes, are included in the ban. Exemptions in SB 793 include shisha tobacco, which is used in hookah water pipes, premium tobacco, and loose-leaf tobacco. 

The retail sale of flavored handmade premium cigars with a minimum price of $12 are also not prohibited under this bill. 

Some California residents say that the exemptions for certain kinds of tobacco nearly mirror laws that unequally penalized people for selling or possessing the same amounts of crack cocaine and powdered cocaine. 

In 1986, the federal government passed the Anti-Drug Abuse Act, which mandated stiffer punishments for people who sold crack cocaine, the rock form of the drug, which more Blacks used. Penalties for possessing or distributing cocaine powder, preferred by Whites, were much lighter. Distributing just five grams of crack triggered a federal mandatory minimum prison sentence of 5 years. But it required 500 grams of cocaine for a distributor to receive a federal prison sentence of the same length of time – a 100:1 disparity. 

Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP) and the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement (NOBLE) agree that the bill has a racist element to it. They say the bill demonstrates clear discrimination and preferential treatment between two tobacco products preferred by two different cultural groups. 

“We will not and cannot stand for more policies that resemble another Black tax yet find a way to make concessions and amendments for certain groups,” Rev. Tulloss said. “Hookah is exempted, yet menthol cigarettes are not. The Speaker can make this bill fair and that’s all we’re asking.” 

Existing law prohibits a person from selling or otherwise furnishing tobacco products to a person under 21 years of age. It also prohibits the use of tobacco products in county offices of education, on charter school or school district property, or near a playground or youth sports event. 

If SB 793 passes, each violation of the law would be punishable by a fine of $250. 

“Using candy, fruit, and other alluring flavors, the tobacco industry weaponized its tactics to beguile a new generation into nicotine addiction while keeping longtime users hooked. SB 793 breaks Big Tobacco’s death grip,” said Hill said after the Senate voted 33-4 to advance the bill to the Assembly last month. 

An estimated seven out of 10 African American youth ages 12 to 17 years smoke menthol cigarettes, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In addition, African American adults make up the largest percentage of menthol cigarette users compared to other racial and ethnic groups, the CDC says. 

The coalition of SB 793 supporters include the Office of Lieutenant Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, the Tobacco-Free Kids Action Fund, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, the American Heart Association, the American Lung Association, and the Common Sense Kids, who are all bill sponsors. 

“SB 793 coauthors, cosponsors, African American thought leaders in government, health, the faith community, science, the arts and among our youth, as well as other supporters, have provided strong counterpoints to the obfuscation,” Hill stated. “We are confident that together we can ensure the strongest tobacco control restrictions in the country become California law.”

Photo by Antonio R. Harvey

Tanu Henry | California Black Media 

On July 25, the federal government’s Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program ended for most states, leaving millions of Californians without the extra cash many of them had been relying on for months to make ends meet. 

The $600 extra in federal stimulus pay was added cushion to the amount states already provide for their residents in unemployment insurance payments. Created for Americans who lost their jobs due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, the program was authorized by the Cornonavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) act, which was signed into federal law in March. 

Then, last week, the California Employment Development Department (EDD) announced that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) approved California’s application to participate in the federal Lost Wages Assistance (LWA) program — funding that President Donald Trump authorized by memorandum Aug. 8. The LWA program provides $4.5 billion to California from which $300 extra in unemployment insurance benefits will be paid to individuals for three weeks. 

“Since the beginning of this pandemic, we have sought to maximize federally funded unemployment benefits to Californians. These benefits are critical for the basic security of families and communities and for our economy, which have been so devastated by the virus and its financial impacts,” said California Labor Secretary Julie A. Su after the EDD’s announcement. 

To qualify, unemployed Californians would have to already be eligible to receive at least $100 each week in unemployment benefits and they would have to provide proof that their job loss resulted from the coronavirus crisis. 

Although the U.S. House of Representatives has approved a fifth stimulus bill, the $3-trillion-dollar ‘‘Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act, the Senate has not brought it up for debate or vote. That bill includes an extension of the $600 federal supplement through Jan. 31, 2021. 

Senate Republicans have countered the $600-a-week proposal in the HEROES act with a $400 weekly payment in UI benefits. Democrats turned down that offer in negotiations. 

Some Republican Senators opposed to the $600 payment approved in the last stimulus package argued that it does not provide an incentive for workers who were laid off to look for work. 

“We cannot encourage people to make more money in unemployment than they do in employment,” Sen. Tim Scott (D-SC) pointed out. 

While the U.S. Congress decides what should be included in the next stimulus package, for now unemployed Californians can apply to get $300 a week extra in unemployment benefits 

dating back to Aug. 1. 

“As we modernize and strengthen the state’s unemployment insurance delivery system, we will continue to leverage any additional resources the federal government makes available,” Su said.

By Tanu Henry | California Black Media  

Jonathan Burgess co-owns Burgess Brothers with his twin brother Matthew. It is a popular American bistro-slash-barbecue restaurant and food supply company based in Sacramento. Locals treasure them for their delicious waffles; handcrafted gourmet barbecue sauce; sweet and spicy smoked sausages; among other specialties.   

The African American entrepreneur says small family-owned businesses like his are tempted by what digital food delivery services might offer them: A broader customer base and online advertising on highly trafficked apps.    

But that exposure comes with a crippling cost.   

“There’s only like a very thin 5% profit margin for most small restaurants. It’s simple math. If you give Uber, Doordash or one of the others a nice chunk of that, it just doesn’t work out for you.”   

Burgess says food delivery services should offer special rates for mom and pop shops that are lower than what they charge chain restaurants. Those corporation-owned eateries typically buy their ingredients wholesale at much lower costs and they can make up for losses on delivery fees by what they make in volume.   

Assemblymember Lorena Gonzalez (D-San Diego) has written a bill to address the challenges food delivery apps have posed for small restaurants like Burgess’s across California. When the chair of the Assembly Appropriations Committee and Latino Caucus introduced Assembly Bill 2149, the Fair Food Delivery Act in February, she did not know the COVID-19 pandemic would shutter restaurants across California, and around the world, about a month later.   

Now, more than five months since the World Health Organization declared the international health crisis a global pandemic, more Americans than ever, faced with limited dining-out options, are relying on food delivery apps to purchase meals from restaurants. Grubhub, one app-based food delivery service, reports that it has more than 27 million active users and its orders have increased by over 32% over the last year.  

But Gonzales says those large tech companies like Grubhub and its competitors Uber Eats, DoorDash, Postmates and others — all of them earn billions of dollars each year — take advantage of small struggling restaurants when they deliver those eateries’ food without their consent or an agreement.   

“When food delivery companies take advantage of small mom and pop restaurants by delivering their food without permission, it can damage the customer’s experience and the restaurant’s reputation,” Gonzalez said, adding that food delivery companies have created “significant disruption” in the food service business.   

If passed, AB 2149 would require all food delivery companies in California to get the “express written consent of a food facility before delivering the business’ food,” according to a statement Gonzalez’s office released.    

“This bill will put the power back in the hands of small restaurant owners by ensuring they have agreed to the delivery arrangement beforehand,” Gonzalez continued.   

She says food delivery services sometimes post outdated menus and provide poor service. Both things can harm a restaurants reputation, she argues. She also points out that the app-based companies may out-compete restaurants that have their own delivery service. In California, there are an estimated 76,201 food and drinking establishments, according to the California Restaurant Association (CRA). The CRA supports AB 2149. Hundreds of those California restaurants are Black-owned. In the Los Angeles area alone, for instance, there are nearly 200 African American-owned restaurants, according to Infatuation, an L.A-based website.   

But Courtney Jensen, who serves as the California executive director of? TechNet, a trade group that represents a number of leading tech companies says there are several problems with Gonzalez’s bill. Among them are the potential “flagrant” violation of the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and the possibility that putting restrictions on delivery services could reduce the revenue of the same restaurants that the legislation intends to help.   Under AB 2149, food delivery services would have to turn over lists of the restaurants’ customers to them.   

“Some restaurants or other food facilities that may not be required to comply with CCPA would be provided consumer’s personal information,” Jensen told LA Magazine.

“By providing personal information to these food facilities, which are not required to comply with CCPA, the privacy rights of California consumers are undercut, as they would have no rights to access, delete, or opt out of sales of their personal information from these restaurants that either are not required or lack the resources to extend CCPA rights to consumers.”  

The Electronic Frontier Foundation, a San Francisco based non-profit that defends civil liberties in the digital space, also opposes the bill. That organization argues that the right of food delivery service companies to operate without formal agreements with restaurants is protected by the Copyright Act, a federal law passed in 1976.   

“AB 2149 is a poorly conceived attempt to hamstring food delivery platforms,” Jensen says. But Burgess maintains that promoting a third-party restaurant online without that business’s permission or buy-in is wrong.   

“It’s an intrusion. For the sake of decency and full transparency, these companies should get authorization before they advertise someone’s business,” he said. “This is not in the best interest of the restaurant.” 

Today, Sunday, August 23^rd, marks what would have been the 42^nd birthday of NBA legend, humanitarian and father Kobe Bryant, and now there’s a new song ascending into the heavens above Hollywood’s horizon, crowning the many touching tributes paid to late and legendary basketball superstar, who sadly, and tragically transitioned this life on January 26^th, along with his 13-year-old daughter Gianna, and seven other souls.

The new musical track, titled “Mamba, We Love You,” co-composed by Annalea Diamond and Tony “Raheem” Thomas, both of Los Angeles, has been released for airing to radio and digital media nationwide. The song is beautifully crafted, artfully composed and lovingly performed, and everyone involved in bringing it to life view it as more than just their talents on display, but more so a divinely received gift.

Boasting masterful writing and performance touches by the acclaimed Thomas, whose body of work in the industry includes performing alongside such luminaries as Patrice Rushen, Donald Byrd & The Blackbyrds, Bobby Hutcherson and others, the track is beyond well-done and a fitting tribute to Bryant’s longstanding legacy of proud, unapologetic manhood. It also lifts up and celebrates his spirited example of sportsmanship, excellence and fatherhood on and off the court. So well done is it, in fact—and such a lush, beautiful track—that it just simply must be heard to be appreciated.

“Thinking ’bout Kobe Bryant, strong like a mighty lion…

Mamba, we love you. Oh Mamba, we love you.

More than a basketball star, he was a family man.

You’ll always be near in our hearts, always and forever.

We celebrate you, miss you, and we’ll never forget you…”

–lyrics from “Mamba, We Love You,” © 2020 by Annalea Diamond and Tony Thomas

“It came to me like rain,” says Ms. Diamond, recalling what inspired her to sit down and put pen to paper. “That’s the best way I could describe it. We (she and Thomas) actually put it to bed within a couple of days. When the song first came to me, I had to stop and pray because the whole situation with the accident was just so traumatic. I basically had to stop and have a conversation with God in prayer, and that’s when the words really started to culminate.”

Continues Ms. Diamond: “He (Kobe Bryant) has just been a part of us Californians for many years. They call the Staples Center ‘The House that Kobe Built.’ Also, being a parent myself…or anyone who’s a parent and has something so tragic like this happen to you—this just needed to be said. I’m thankful that the song came to, and through me. There are so many people hurting right now because of what happened.”

For his part as not just co-writer, but also arranger and keyboardist, Thomas drew upon a similar, higher source for his inspiration. “The way ‘Mamba, We Love You’ was formulated, I really just believed that it was a divine intervention,” he states. “When she brought to me what she had written, I didn’t have a bridge, and I didn’t know where she was going with it, but everything just started to present itself right before my eyes on the keyboard. To my surprise, the lyrics just matched everything that I put down.”

Ms. Diamond sang all lead vocals, while vocalist Leslie Cole, best-known for her work with the legendary Holland-Dozier-Holland songwriting and production team of Motown Records fame, performed background. The track was recorded and produced by James Shifflett. Shifflett has recorded such artists as Barbara Streisand, Lou Rawls and The Brothers Johnson, contributing to each of their chart-topping success.

Kobe B. Bryant was an American professional basketball player, who played his entire 20-season career with the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers. Bryant nicknamed himself “Black Mamba” in the mid-2000s, and the epithet became widely adopted by Lakers fans, sports writers and enthusiasts and the general public.

About Annalea Diamond
Annalea Diamond is an emerging new singer-songwriter/artist based in Los Angeles.

About Tony Thomas

Tony Thomas (a.k.a. ‘Raheem’) composed the song, “Baby, You Got It,” which was included on the soundtrack of the 2004 Paramount Pictures film, Against the Ropes starring Omar Epps and Meg Ryan. He has also recorded with The Waters Family and The Dramatics among numerous others, and has performed on-stage with such highly respected artists as Patrice Rushen, Donald Byrd and The Blackbyrds, Bobby Hutcherson and many more.

By Joe W. Bowers Jr. | California Black Media    

Governor Newsom signed AB 1460 into law on Monday, August 17.

The new state law requires California State University (CSU), the nation’s largest four-year public university system, to provide courses in Ethnic studies at each of its 23 campuses beginning with the 2021–22 academic year and requires CSU students to take a 3-credit course in Ethnic studies in order to graduate beginning in the 2024-2025 academic year. 

The bill was introduced last year by Assemblymember Shirley Weber (D-San Diego), professor emeritus of?Africana studies at San Diego State, on behalf of the California Faculty Association (CFA) and with support from the legislative ethnic caucuses (Black, Latino, and Asian Pacific Islander). It passed on Aug. 3 after legislators engaged in personal and passionate debates during committee hearings and on the floor of the Assembly and Senate as each expressed their perspectives on the pressing need for our society to deal with its history of racial inequities.? 

Ethnic studies is an interdisciplinary study of race and ethnicity that gained acceptance nationally in universities following the 1960’s Black student uprisings. Research shows that students of color and white students benefit academically and socially from taking Ethnic studies courses. These courses can play an important role in building an inclusive multicultural democracy. 

According to Charles Toombs, CFA president and a professor of Africana Studies at San Diego State, Ethnic studies differs from other disciplines. It is crucial in its own right.  

Because of that, AB1460 specifies that CSU students take a course in one of the

four historically defined racialized core groups: African American studies, Latino studies, Native American studies or Asian American studies.  

The bill states, “It is the intent of the Legislature that students of the California State University acquire the knowledge and skills that will help them comprehend the diversity and social justice history of the United States and of the society in which they live to enable them to contribute to that society as responsible and constructive citizens.” 

AB1460 passed despite opposition from CSU Chancellor Timothy White, the Academic Senate of the California State University, and the leadership at all 23 CSU campuses.  

Chancellor White asked the Executive Senate Committee at each CSU campus to write a letter of opposition when the bill was introduced. Allison Wren from CSU Academic Affairs Division presented CSU’s three main objections to AB 1460 at an Assembly Higher Education Committee Hearing. 

“First, we believe the legislature should not impose curriculum,” Wren said. “A legislative mandate, such as this will set the dangerous precedent of allowing the government to determine curriculum. And this does in fact threaten the academic freedom of our campuses.” 

“Second, the proposed bill is not necessary,” she continued. “We already have cultural diversity requirements on all 23 campuses. Many of these requirements are met by existing courses in Ethnic studies or courses and other departments such as anthropology, history, gender Women’s Studies, among many others.”

“Finally, such a requirement could adversely impact our associate degrees for transfers programs. The bill could potentially also adversely impact CSU graduation.” 

Weeks before AB 1460 passed, CSU trustees approved an “Ethnic studies and Social Justice” studies graduation requirement as an amendment to the school’s general education curriculum. Its critics say the approval was timed to present Newsom with an alternative to AB 1460. 

The 13-5 vote of CSU trustees marks the first significant change to the university’s general education requirements in 40 years. The approved courses include the four core Ethnic studies disciplines AB 1460 requires and adds courses on the history and culture of other oppressed groups, such as Muslims, Jews or LGBTQ people. The requirement goes into effect in the 2023-24 school year. 

The board members acknowledged the need for more Ethnic studies, citing that the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police and the national protests over police violence and systemic racism resonated in their thoughts as they voted.  

However, in a letter to Chancellor White before the trustee vote, legislators, led by Assemblymember Weber, pointed out that the policy, “does not respond to the challenges we currently face, has been rejected by the faculty, and is not supported by students.” 

“The changes proposed by the Chancellor’s office will significantly water down the intent of AB 1460 and will result in something akin to a “diversity” requirement, which was not developed in collaboration with the CSU Council on Ethnic Studies,” she added.  

CFA said, “How the board can look at anyone with a straight face and say that an Ethnic studies requirement can be fulfilled without ever having to take a course in Ethnic studies is beyond believable.”  

Weber followed that up by commenting that though it’s written as an Ethnic studies requirement, the policy approved by the CSU board permits students to meet it without actually taking an Ethnic studies course.  By signing AB 1460, Newsom sided with Weber and her legislative colleagues in deciding that a strict definition of Ethnic studies was needed to supersede the policy that CSU trustees approved.  

AB 1460 is the first time the Legislature dictated a CSU graduation requirement. The Legislature fully debated this departure from precedent and concluded that the CSU system on its own lacked the will to adequately tackle society’s reckoning around race and inclusion. 

Weber in explaining why it was necessary for the legislature to act said, “I know the Ivory Tower seldom opens its door unless the door’s kicked down. And that’s the reality of the Ivory Tower.” AB 1460 is inspired by the legacy of Ethnic studies that arose out of the protests and activism of CSU students demanding course offerings that covered the experiences of oppressed racial American communities.

Newsom by acknowledging that legacy is advancing the proposition that radical change on race in our public higher education system has to be fostered and is directing that policy be instituted that assures CSU students are introduced to perspectives critically needed to solve society’s most pressing problems as a requirement for graduation.

By Yera Nanan

On July 23, Greater Zion Church Family head pastor, Michael Fisher, hosted a Facebook Live conversation via Zoom which discussed the topic of criminalizing menthol.

This Zoom call featured a distinguished panel of guests that had interest and knowledge in discussing Senate Bill 793, which directly affects the flavor menthol.

SB 793 is a bill that would prohibit the sale of flavored tobacco products and/or having the product with the intention of selling it. This bill stems from the Stop Tobacco Access to Kids Enforcement (STAKE) Act, which was made effective Jan. 1, 1995 to stop the selling of tobacco products to persons under 21 years of age.

As the Zoom call commenced, a theme that became recurring throughout the conversation was no one is in support of any using tobacco products but there is an argument as to whether legislation can create harm for the Black community.  Senior pastor at Weller Street Missionary Baptist Church, K.W. Tulloss, started off the argument by being opposed to the bill since he believes it will increase the criminalization of Black people.  “A bill that is prohibiting and possibly criminalizing our community is a bill that we cannot support”, said Tulloss.

Tulloss acknowledges that smoking has been a problem in the community for long time but efforts should be poised toward educating people instead of unwanted attention by authorities.

The American Lung Association reports that nearly 17 percent of smokers in this country come from the African-American community, making them the second largest ethnic population of smokers.  Out of this ethnic population, roughly 3 in 4 smokers use menthol cigarettes which can make the smoking process easier yet harder to quit.  Carson Councilmember, Jawane Hilton, expressed how this ban is targeting menthol and people within the community will be negatively affected by this.

“I think it has a few consequences in it that we need to rethink…we have a broad brush and we need to paint the brush back just a little bit to make sure out community is healthy”, said Hilton.

Pastor William D. Smart Jr. of Christ Liberation Ministries, also added to the argument by making this a civil rights issue.  “You cannot deny us a cigarette but not deny it to White people and their predominant choice…to me that’s racism and discrimination”, said Smart.

He argued that White people predominately smoke Newport cigarettes which have no flavor and hookah tobacco retailers are exempt from this bill which took the Mediterranean population into consideration.   Others in this discussion felt that this is not a matter of race but instead this bill help save Black lives in the long run.

ES Advisors Group President, Edward Sanders, supports the bill getting passed since he believes it will help not only the Black community but all communities.  “If there is one thing you can do to save Black lives, it is moving menthol off the market…it’s not a question of racism and special treatment”, said Sanders.

The CDC reports that tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of death in the United States with more that 480,000 deaths annually.  Sanders argues that 45,000 of those deaths are African-Americans with tobacco being a major contributor to heart disease, cancer, stroke and diabetes.   Co-Chairperson of the African American Tobacco Control Leadership Council, Carol McGruder, also supports SB 793 and argues that racism doesn’t play a role in this specific bill.

“The FDA in two different reports said it would be in the best interest of the public to take menthol off the market…we want to take off a product that kills 45,000 Black people every year in this country”, said McGruder.

The African American Tobacco Control Leadership council is suing the FDA since they believe they have not protected Black people and racism can be found on their end.  Councilwoman Michelle Chambers of District 1 in the City of Compton, also gave her input on where resources and attention should be directed which is healthcare.

“Give us some money for cessation…help us with cancer research and help us with mental therapy”, said Chambers.   As someone who is against the bill, she argues that if this bill passes another George Floyd or Eric Garner incident could ensue and the criminal justice will be affected.   As this bill continues to make its way through the legislature, the debate still remains if this will help reduce tobacco use across the board or marginalize the Black community even more.

The California Senate has already passed the bill and it will make its way to the Assembly for consideration.

By Dr. G.S. Potter | Contributing Editor, B | e Note

Perhaps it’s a way for Biden to somehow make amends for helping pass the destructive law and actively repair decades of damage

Reparations isn’t just about slavery. It isn’t just about broken promises following the Civil War. It might be rooted in the need to repair the damages done by these atrocities – but that’s not where it ends. The damage done to Black Americans has been continuous and ongoing for centuries. And not only must this damage be ended, but it must be repaired.

The current debate over the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, or the 1994 Crime Bill as it is commonly referred to, might offer the opportunity for us to do this.

This bill has always been a point of contention in communities working on criminal justice reform, but it has been currently highlighted in the mainstream media because of Joe Biden’s role in passing it and his refusal to outright condemn it — much to the dismay of many in the Black voting bloc he needs to win the election.

Currently, the debate surrounding the 1994 Crime Bill hasn’t amounted to much more than a wedge issue for the Democratic Party. What it can and should evolve into is a point of leverage for the Black community.

Biden needs the Black vote to win the 2020 election. The Black community needs meaningful criminal justice reform and reparations. Instead of threatening to tap out of the election because of his defense of the Act, the Black community can apply the massive amount of leverage they have accumulated to flip the script. In other words, instead of canceling themselves out of the 2020 election, Black voters can offer support for the Biden campaign in exchange for revisions … and reparations.

Even if Biden did acknowledge that the Act had a severely detrimental effect on the Black community, that would do little to repair the damages done. On the other hand, if the Black community presented a piece of legislation that undid that damage to the greatest extent possible, then we can transmute one of the most damaging pieces of legislation in criminal justice reform history into a point of power and repair.

Undoing the Damage

To be fair, there are pieces of the crime bill that were beneficial. Those should be acknowledged.

For example, the Act banned 19 different types of assault weapons and created stricter licensing standards for gun dealers, for example. Those pieces should stay in place. The overwhelming majority of the Act, though, served to increase the harassment, brutalization, and imprisonment of Black (and Brown) people. These pieces of the 1994 Crime Bill should be identified, acknowledged, and remedied. The people that suffered from these pieces of legislation should also be directly compensated for the damage done to them and their communities.

There is already a legislative effort to undo some of the damage caused by the Act. It comes in the form of the Reverse Mass Incarceration Act. According to the Brennan Center for Justice this bill – which was reintroduced to Congress by Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), along with Rep. Tony Cárdenas (D-CA) in 2019 – would include:

– A new federal grant program of $20 billion over 10 years in incentive funds to states.

– A requirement that states that reduce their prison population by 7 percent over a three-year period without an increase in crime will receive funds.

– A clear methodology based on population size and other factors to determine how much money states receive.

– A requirement that states invest these funds in evidence-based programs proven to reduce crime and incarceration.

It’s a start, but the Reverse Mass Incarceration Act clearly does not go far enough to remove the structuralized racism implemented as a result of the 1994 crime bill or repair the communities and families destroyed by it.

For example, according to the Brennan Center …

… through the Violent Offender Incarceration and Truth-in-Sentencing Incentive Grants Program. This provided $12.5 billion in grants to fund incarceration, with nearly 50 percent earmarked for states that adopted tough “truth-in-sentencing” laws that scaled back parole. Under this grant program, eligible states received money to expand their prison capacity to incarcerate people convicted of violent crimes.”

The $20 million grant programs included in the Reverse Mass Incarceration Act are designed to acknowledge the $12.5 billion in grants supplied by the 1994 Crime bill, adjust the amount for inflation, and attach federal funding to a decrease in the rate of incarceration by 7 percent. This is a small step in the direction away from mass incarceration, but it does not do enough to undo the damage done by the 1994 Crime Bill, nor does it repair that damage.

The Brennan Center goes on to explain that ….

…. the most significant and long-lasting impacts of the legislation was the authorization of incentive grants to build or expand correctional facilities through the Violent Offender Incarceration and Truth-in-Sentencing Incentive Grants Program. This provided $12.5 billion in grants to fund incarceration, with nearly 50 percent earmarked for states that adopted tough “truth-in-sentencing” laws that scaled back parole. Under this grant program, eligible states received money to expand their prison capacity to incarcerate people convicted of violent crimes.

In addition to Truth in Sentencing Laws and an overwhelming increase in prisons, the 1994 Crime Bill also promoted the use of Three Strikes Laws. As the ACLU reports …

The crime bill implemented a rash of new three-strikes laws — laws that impose automatic life sentences for people convicted of certain felony offenses if they already have two convictions on their record. Dozens of states followed suit and enacted three-strikes laws, resulting in a ballooning of the incarceration rate in certain states, especially for black and Latinx Americans.

Imposing life sentences simply because an individual has a criminal record disproportionately targets people of color, who are more likely to have a record in the first place because of unequal contact with police and the justice system. Harsh collateral consequences limit employment opportunities for returning people, especially people of color, and increase the likelihood of recidivism. The crime bill’s three-strikes provision sent thousands of Americans to prison for life based on previous offenses for minor crimes such as stealing loose change from a parked car. In 2016, 78.5 percent of Americans serving life sentences in federal prison were people of color.

The Reverse Mass Incarceration Act does little to nothing to help the individuals and families targeted by these provisions.

Reparations for Time Served

A reform bill should be presented to Biden that not only reverses these provisions, but that also identifies individuals that were incarcerated for minor offenses under three strikes laws as well as those whose sentences were extended because of Truth and sentencing laws. Their cases should be revisited, and the charges should be commuted and expunged. Individuals and families should be compensated for time served as well as the financial losses associated with loss of income, economic opportunity, and personal trauma.

In other words, reparations should be from the government and made directly to individuals for the damages that have resulted from the 1994 Crime Bill.

In addition to repairing the damages done to individuals and removing the pieces of the Crime Bill and subsequent legislation that was built off of it, there are a number of other provisions that have bolstered the mass incarceration of Black Americans that should be removed and remedied.

For example, decreasing incarceration rates by 7 percent is an important step attempted by the Reverse Mass Incarceration Act. However, this incentive does not go far enough. Not only should there be a higher rate of decrease of incarceration to receive funds, but the act should specifically outline who should be released. For example, as already mentioned, people being held for nonviolent crimes, people being held because of three strikes laws and people being held because of Truth in Sentencing laws should all receive case reviews for commutation. Individuals imprisoned for drug use and possession, mental health issues, and crimes of poverty should also qualify for commuted sentences and expunged records under any act designed to end mass incarceration.

Additionally, states should be expected to reduce the number of prisons in order to receive funding.

Undoing the “Drug War”

The Brennan Center continues that …

The number of state and federal adult correctional facilities rose 43 percent from 1990 to 2005.” Provisions can and should be put in place to incentivize the elimination of these prisons in exchange for federal funding. They additionally report that the Act “provided funding for 100,000 new police officers and $14 billion in grants for community-oriented policing, for example. From 1990 to 1999, the number of police officers rose 28 percent, from 699,000 to 899,000, partly funded by the crime bill.

This $14 billion should be adjusted for inflation and used as an incentive to deconstruct or repurpose prisons and eliminate police officers. Again, a specific process should be used in order to do this.

For example, a newly re-envisioned legislative response to the 1994 Crime Bill can be used to incentivize the elimination of police officers involved in cases of brutality and harassment. It can be used to eliminate police officers that have posted racist and racially biased posts on social media accounts. The Act can also be used to eliminate the use of police officers from schools. In this way, we can reduce the asymmetrical contact between Black communities and law enforcement while also removing racist officers and those that have specifically done direct damage to Black people.

By using the 1994 Crime Bill as a source of reversal and reparations, a model can also be created to use other pieces of legislation to undo the structural injustice that has targeted Black Americans for generations.

For example, The Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986 was a federal cornerstone of the War on Drugs. This Act established mandatory minimums for drug possession, increased funding for drug enforcement, and blocked funding for drug prevention programs. Just as a true reversal of the 1994 Crime Bill could establish pathways for legislative reforms and reparations, a similar act could end the so-called War On Drugs, eliminate the use of incarceration for drug use and possession, commute sentences for those that were incarcerated under this law and derivative legislation, and give reparations to individuals and families whose lives and livelihoods were stolen as a result of the Act and the war on Black communities it encodified.

Similar legislation can be also presented at the state and local levels to remedy and repair damages caused by legislation such as cash bail practices, gang injunctions, predatory lending practices, redlining, housing injustice and a number of policies that have directly harmed the Black community.

In this way, we can not only reform the policies that have targeted and traumatized Black Americans, but we can formalize a reparation process that directly repairs the people and communities most damaged by structural racism. But it all starts with the 1994 Crime Bill.

The Black community has an unprecedented amount of leverage right now. Instead of asking Biden to apologize for his part in supporting the crime bill, legislation that truly reverses and repairs the damages done by the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 should be presented to him and the Democratic Party for his approval. Let our anger translate into reform and reparations, and let his apology be encodified in legislation. And then let’s move on to the next Act, and then the next. Until we tear down every last piece of structural racism and repair the damages done to every last Black American.

SACRAMENTO – The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) is urging residents in fire-stricken regions and surrounding areas to be aware of poor air quality and the effect it can have on their health. Air quality in many parts of the state may be unhealthy due to the increasing number of wildfires.

“Smoke doesn’t know borders or boundaries, and regions that are miles away from fires can have poor air quality,” said Acting CDPH Director Sandra Shewry. “We urge Californians to stay indoors as much as possible when air quality is poor. This is especially critical for children, women who are pregnant, older adults, and people with existing lung and heart conditions who may be particularly sensitive to changes in air quality.”

While cloth face coverings offer protection against COVID-19 virus spread, they do not provide protection against smoke particles. People who must be outdoors for long periods, in areas with heavy smoke, or where ash is disturbed, may want to wear an N95 respirator mask. Those with existing respiratory, lung or heart conditions should limit their exposure by staying indoors. Since wearing a respirator can make it harder to breathe, those with lung or heart conditions should check with their doctor before using one.

The best way to protect against the potentially harmful effects of wildfire smoke is to reduce wildfire smoke exposure, for example, by seeking cleaner air spaces and shelters. Californians can find current air quality conditions by visiting www.airnow.gov and entering their zip code.

Residents should monitor children and check in on others who may be more susceptible to the health impacts of wildfire smoke. Seek immediate medical care if someone is experiencing chest pain, chest tightness, or shortness of breath.

The following tips can help Californians reduce smoke inhalation during wildfires:

Stay Indoors: Stay inside with the doors and windows closed to reduce exposure to smoky air. If you have power, run an air conditioner if you have one. If the air conditioner has a recirculate option, use it. Smoke levels can change throughout the day, so try to stay indoors during smokier times.

Remember that gathering with others indoors increases the risk of COVID-19 transmission. To reduce the risk of transmission when indoors, physically distance yourself 6 feet from individuals outside your immediate family, wash your hands frequently and wear a cloth face covering.

Reduce Activity: Reduce physical activity to reduce inhalation of smoky air. During exercise, people can increase their air intake as much as 20 times from their resting level.

Be Prepared: Monitor wildfire activity in your area and be prepared to evacuate if advised. Make sure you have all prescribed medications, including inhalers.

For information on air quality in your area and how to protect your health during wildfires, please visit the CDPH website.

By Tanu Henry | California Black Media  

Family members, friends, former colleagues and other loved ones across California were shocked to learn about the passing of former California Assemblymember Gwen Moore on August 19. Her family has not yet announced the cause of her death.  

Moore was first elected to the state legislature in 1978 and served for 16 years until 1994, representing California’s 49^th district (redistricted and renumbered in 1990 as the 47^th district), which currently includes Long Beach, Catalina Island and parts of Los Angeles and Orange counties.  

While serving in the Assembly, Moore, introduced over 400 bills that were signed into law. She also served as Majority Whip and was a member of a number of influential committees, including the Assembly Utilities and Commerce Committee.  

Moore was the architect and political force behind California General Order 156. It is a state supplier diversity program that has, over the years, strengthened and stabilized a number of California Black-owned, Women-owned and other minority-owned small businesses by helping them secure lucrative state contracts.  

In 1994, Moore resigned from the Assembly to run for Secretary of State. Although she didn’t win that race, Moore began to pursue other opportunities outside of elected office that influenced state policy and impacted the lives of people.  

The founder and Chief Executive Officer of Los Angeles-based GeM Communications Group, Moore was a sought-after consultant and worked with several prominent clients across the state.  Her family, relatives, former colleagues and friends across California and the United States reached out to each other as the shocking news of her unexpected death was shared across her political, business and social circles.  

Moore served on numerous boards. Among them were the California State Bar Board of Trustees, the California Small Business Association board and the national board of the NAACP. She was also First Vice President of the California State Conference of the NAACP, Vice Chair of the California Utility Diversity Council and Chairwoman of the California Black Business Association. For her work in California and across the United States, Moore won numerous national and local awards, including honors from the U.S. Department of Commerce and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund.  

California Black media will continue to follow Hon. Moore’s death with updates, tributes from loved ones and news about her final arrangements.