The Black Small Business Association of California (BSBA) sent a letter to Gov. Gavin Newsom June 12. In it, the group criticized the state’s proposed allocation of $20 million in the 2020-21 budget to enforce AB 5.  

When the controversial labor law took effect in January, AB 5 reclassified millions of workers in California from independent contractors to W-2 employees.  

The letter, signed by the organization’s president Salena Pryor, argues that the state’s costly plan to enforce AB 5 would only exacerbate income inequality. 

“BSBA believes that at this time, when California is facing a massive $54 billion deficit and the state’s unemployment rate is 24 percent, it would be fiscally imprudent to spend $20 million on enforcement of a policy that has been detrimental to the livelihoods of Black small business owners,” the letter reads. 

The fight to amend or, for some, to overturn AB 5 has continued amid the COVID-19 pandemic and, now, the George Floyd protests. In the wake of worldwide efforts to call out systemic racism, Black business organizations are speaking out against the restrictions that AB 5 has placed on African American entrepreneurs in California. 

Many California Democrats, including the bill’s author Assemblymember Lorena Gonzalez (D-San Diego), say they are open to making adjustments in the law as long as its core purpose, fighting against gig worker misclassification, is kept. Republican opponents, on the other hand, have called for suspending AB 5 altogether so independent contractors can work freely during the COVID-19 pandemic.  

Gov. Newsom has not discussed whether or not he is in favor of making updates to AB 5 since he declared his support for it at a press conference in April. 

The California Black Chamber of Commerce (CBCC) and the Los Angeles Urban League both released statements June 9 criticizing the law. They point out that a disproportionate number of Black independent contractors and businesses have been negatively impacted by AB 5. 

The statement signed by Michael Lawson, President of the Los Angeles Urban League, read, “AB 5, the legislation introduced by Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez focuses solely on the employee side of the equation and ignored the impact that this legislation has on Black-owned businesses that have suffered through a history of redlining that allowed banks and other financial institutions to legally discriminate against Black-owned businesses, preventing them from gaining access to capital and credit.” 

Though there has been no official study of the impacts of AB 5 on Black owned business, the Center for Responsible Lending found that 95% of businesses owned by African Americans and other people of color were unlikely to receive aid from the Paycheck Protection Program  because of a lack of commercial banking relationships. That effort was a part of the federal government’s emergency response to the Coronavirus crisis.  

Both organizations’ statements also criticized a recent tweet by Gonzalez defending AB 5. Gonzales wrote, “Can you imagine if folks were arrested for wage theft? Or if police just shot them like they were looters?” 

“How dare you use the shooting of civilians by police as a political weapon to defend your misguided and disastrous law that has robbed thousands of Californians of their right to earn a living with dignity, respect, and independence,” the CBCC press release fired back. It was signed by Edwin Lombard, who is listed on the letterhead as president and CEO.  

The CBCC is currently in a legal dispute over leadership with two factions vying in court to take the helm of the organization.  

On June 11, the California State Assembly voted unanimously to amend AB 5 based on months of negotiations between Gonzalez and different advocacy groups. The bill’s two amendments loosen restrictions for independent contractors in multiple industries, including writers, photographers, musicians, translators and interpreters. 

During the June 11 floor hearing, Assemblymember Kevin Kiley (R-Rocklin) spoke in favor of the amending the bill by reading from the CBCC’s letter, stating plainly the effects of AB 5 on Black businesses. 

Kiley, a staunch opponent of AB 5, has said he would like to see the law overturned.  

“AB5 has already crushed thousands of Black businesses and will keep more form operating in the gig economy,” Kiley read, restating the position of Black business owners. “Nearly a million Californians would lose jobs, opportunities, and independence if the future of AB5 were up to you. 

“We are not asking for your help or misguided protection. Just open the door and let us help ourselves,” the CBCC letter read. 

The San Bernardino City Unified School District’s (SBCUSD) high schools are holding drive-thru graduation ceremonies for the Class of 2020.

District graduates have had their traditional commencement ceremonies postponed due to social distancing restrictions implemented as a response to COVID-19. SBCUSD is committed to holding traditional graduation ceremonies as soon as possible. In the meantime, SBCUSD high schools are holding drive-thru graduations. During the ceremonies, graduates and their families and friends arrive in a single vehicle. Party buses and limos are not permitted. Only the graduate exits, has their name read, and walks across the stage. Spectators must remain within their vehicles at all times, and graduates and staff must wear masks.

These drive-thru graduations are not open to the public. The ceremonies are held in multiple shifts during the designated time period. Members of the media who wish to attend should contact the SBCUSD Communications/Community Relations Department.

San Bernardino High School

June 6, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

San Andreas High School

June 9, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Cajon High School

June 11, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Pacific High School

June 11, 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Indian Springs High School

June 12, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Middle College High School

June 13, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Arroyo Valley High School

June 16, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Sierra High School

June 18, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

San Gorgonio High School

June 18, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

SACRAMENTO – Last week, Senator Steven Bradford (D-Gardena) and other California elected representatives gathered at the West Steps of the state’s capitol to pay tribute to the late George Floyd. 

“We knelt in silence, honor and respect for George Floyd’s life. But we also placed a collective knee on police brutality and racism in this country,” said Senator Steven Bradford. “Over the last fifteen days we have witnessed one of the most amazingly diverse peaceful protests across the world. We are sick and tired of being sick and tired of the cycle of the wash, rinse and repeat approach to racism and police brutality. Now is the time to stand up.”

Officials honored George Floyd by kneeling in front of California’s capitol building for eight minutes and forty-six seconds. Attendance at the solemn tribute included Senate pro Tem Atkins, Assembly Speaker Rendon, Lieutenant Governor Kounalakis, and representatives on behalf of the Los Angeles County Delegation, and Black, Latino, Jewish, API, LGBTQ, and Women’s Caucuses.

On May 25, 2020, Mr. Floyd was killed during an arrest where the officer knelt on his neck and back for eight minutes and forty-six seconds, ignoring cries that he could not breathe, while other officers did nothing. Four officers involved in the arrest have been charged with counts of second-degree murder and aiding and abetting second-degree murder.

Mr. Floyd’s death comes only six weeks after police in Louisville, Kentucky, fatally shot Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old black woman, during a midnight “no-knock” raid on her home. It comes ten weeks after the killing of Ahmaud Arbery, a 25-year-old black man, who was chased down by a white father and son in a pickup truck as he jogged in his neighborhood in Glynn County, Georgia.

By Mark T. Harris | Special to California Black Media Partners 

Former comedian and entertainment mogul Byron Allen filed suit against Comcast in 2015 seeking $20 billion in damages. Allen alleged that Comcast refused to offer many of his television programs as part of its cable television offerings because he is African American. 

Earlier this year, Allen’s legal challenge reached the United States Supreme Court to determine whether Allen could proceed with his civil action under Section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866. 

Immediately following the Civil War and the ratification of the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution, Congress enacted the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which provided a wide-ranging ban on race discrimination. Section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866 is one of the statute’s most critical provisions, ensuring that “[a]ll persons within the jurisdiction of the United States shall have the same right … to make and enforce contracts … as is enjoyed by white citizens.” 

The goal of this section was to free the contracting process from the burdens of discrimination and ensure that newly freed slaves were guaranteed the same opportunity to contract as Whites. Passage of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, and its “equal protection” clause, soon followed in June of 1866. 

In response to Allen’s lawsuit, Comcast took the position that Allen must prove that his race was the “but for” basis for Comcast refusing to add his Black-owned television stations. In other words, if there were ANY other credible reason for rejecting Allen’s proposal to carry his television stations on Comcast, Allen would lose. 

In a unanimous opinion, the U.S. Supreme Court sided with Comcast over Byron Allen. All of the justices ruled that to prevail, “(Allen) must initially plead and ultimately prove that, but for race, (he) would not have suffered the loss of a legally protected right.” 

Let’s take a breath here. What Allen placed before our conservative led U.S. Supreme Court, was the potential for raising the evidentiary standard that every subsequent litigant in the United States — that’s any of us filing a discrimination case — would need to prove. 

The Supreme Court met Allen’s challenge and rejected his legal arguments. The result is that the next person seeking to argue that racial discrimination was one element leading to their failure to be awarded a contract, would have their case dismissed from any court in he nation because discrimination was not the “but for” reason for their rejection. 

Many leaders in the Black community attempted to talk Allen out of taking his battle with Comcast all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, but Allen stubbornly persisted with his lawsuit. 

After losing on the procedural interpretation of the application of the “but for” standard, Allen has “folded” and has reached a settlement with Comcast! Allen and Comcast have agreed that three of Allen’s television stations will be offered by Comcast. However, a victory for Allen is an “L” for the Black community. 

Thanks to Allen, from this day forward, any African American or ethnic minority, when attempting to enforce Section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866, will be required to prove that the “but for” reason for their denial of a contract was their ethnicity no matter how egregious the otherwise discriminatory conduct they suffered may have been. In other words, thanks to Allen’s case, in order to receive enforcement under the Civil Rights Act of 1866, the racial discrimination suffered by plaintiff must rise to the level of being virtually the only cause for the denial of a contract or contractual rights, as opposed to one of the causes for the denial. 

Many in the civil rights community, too, attempted to convince Allen not to pursue his litigation to the point of the U.S. Supreme Court fearing the very outcome that has now transpired . 

American jurisprudence operates under the principle of “stare decisis,” which is a Latin term meaning “respect for precedent.” What the Allen case represents is the creation of a new, almost insurmountable, barrier to bringing subsequent cases for litigants who have nowhere near the financial resources that Allen has at his disposal. 

Before we rejoice Allen’s victory over Comcast, we should be mindful of the loss for our community it represents. 

Kirsten Adair, recent Crafton Hills College graduate and resident of Yucaipa, was awarded a $5,000 scholarship from the Southern California Gas Company. 

This scholarship will provide Adair with the opportunity to pursue her academic and career goals. “I am extremely grateful to have received this generous scholarship,” said Adair. “I plan on continuing my education at California State University of San Bernardino as a biology major. In my future career, I hope to focus on my passion for the environment and the protection of our natural resources.

Each spring SoCalGas, a Sempra Utility Company, awards Scholarships to community college students who are planning to transfer to a four-year university in the fall. The SoCalGas scholarship program is just a small portion of how the local community supports Crafton Hills College and the College’s Foundation.

“I am honored to represent SoCalGas, as they know the value of giving back to the communities we serve,” said Robert Visconti, SoCalGas Regional Affairs Manager and Director of the CHC Foundation Board. “I have been a Crafton Hills College Foundation Director for several years and have awarded an annual $5,000 Scholarship to a worthy student.”

“As a proud resident of Yucaipa, I am absolutely honored to award the 2020 SoCalGas’ Scholarship to a local student that absolutely excelled at Crafton Hills College,” said Visconti. “We anticipate she will have a stellar career at CSUSB studying Environmental Science. SoCalGas has been providing clean, efficient and affordable energy for 150 years and we embrace the Environmental Sciences, as we strive to achieve greater sustainability and clean air goals.”

“The Crafton Hills College Foundation supports the college by raising money and building relationships and partnerships to support the success of our students,” said Michelle Riggs, Director of Institutional Advancement. “Scholarships are made possible by more than 15 organizations, such as SoCalGas, and 100 individual donors. During these difficult times, financial support from our donors is not only appreciated, but vital for our students to stay on course to achieve their educational and career goals.”

This year, the Crafton Hills College Foundation awarded $161,950 in scholarships to more than 170 students. For information about the Crafton Hills College Foundation, establishing a scholarship, or supplementing existing scholarships, please contact Michelle Riggs, at (909) 389-3391.

San Bernardino City Unified School District (SBCUSD) will continue to provide free grab and go meals to students at 11 locations from June 8 to July 29, 2020.

All SBCUSD students are eligible for free grab and go meals. The to-go meals are available for pick up Mondays and Wednesdays only from 9 to 11 a.m. Distribution ends at 11 a.m. to protect families from heat-related health issues and to prevent food from spoiling in high temperatures. However, students will be provided with multiple meals at a time. Families are encouraged to refrigerate those meals to maintain food safely.

Families can walk, bike, or drive to any of the meal distribution locations. Students must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.

The Summer Grab and Go Meal distribution sites are at the following San Bernardino locations:

Cajon High School, 1200 West Hill Drive

Chavez Middle School, 6650 North Magnolia Avenue

Del Vallejo Leadership & STEAM Academy, 1885 East Lynwood Drive

Golden Valley Middle School, 3800 North Waterman Avenue

Indian Springs High School, 650 North Del Rosa Drive

Martin Luther King Jr. Middle School, 1250 Medical Center Drive

Muscoy Elementary School, 2119 West Blake Street

Pacific High School, 1020 Pacific Street

Richardson PREP HI Middle School, 455 South K Street

San Bernardino High School, 1850 North E Street

San Gorgonio High School, 2299 Pacific Street

For more information, call (909) 381-1224.

YUCAIPA, CA—- The Crafton Hills College Emergency Medical Technician Program has completed final testing, with 76 students graduating the program during one of the most stressful semesters in recent memory.

The class endured extensive changes to the program due to COVID-19. During the first portion of the stay-at-home order, lectures were conducted online. “The transition was taxing for both students and faculty since this program is heavily based in personal contact and teamwork,” said Laurie Green, EMT Program Director.

Later, the students were able to meet on campus with social distancing guidelines in place to complete skills practice and testing. “This had its own challenges,” Green said, “since the students had formed a bond and we now required them to space out every 6 feet.”

After Spring Break, students were not allowed to perform ride outs with community partners. This greatly limited the options students had to gain traditional hands-on experience; however, 10 students were able to get field contacts and the rest were able to conduct patient contact in the simulation lab. “This worked out because of the awesome equipment we have been provided in the lab, though nothing replaces the learning experience of a live patient,” Green said.

Accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs, students who complete this certificate program are prepared to take the National Registry examination and obtain entry-level employment as an Emergency Medical Technician or an Emergency Department Technician.

For more information about the EMT program, visit https://www.craftonhills.edu/academic-and-career-programs/divs-and-depts/career-ed-and-human-dev/public-safety-and-services/.

Due to current national and international crises, including the COVID-19 social distancing recommendations, in-person commencement ceremonies for all San Bernardino City Unified School District (SBCUSD) graduates have been postponed until officials lift restrictions. In-person graduations have not been cancelled.

Interim Superintendent Dr. Harold Vollkommer said, “I want to assure you that we remain fully committed to having traditional, in-person graduation ceremonies as soon as we can do so safely.”

In an effort to honor the Class of 2020 during the normal graduation season, SBCUSD will be holding virtual graduation ceremonies and drive-thru graduation ceremonies. Dates, times and links for virtual graduation ceremonies appear below. All virtual ceremonies will premiere on Facebook and YouTube and will be available at the links provided below. Videos and links will not be active until the date of the virtual ceremony. Information about drive-thru graduations will be made available as soon as dates and times have been set.

Anderson School

Highlighted Graduates: Priscilla Contreras, Marcos Gallegos, Ashley Santoyo, Danielle Wayman, Joshua Gresham, Michelle Shreve Watson, and Angelo Macatangay

Graduates: 7^

Arroyo Valley High School

Virtual Graduation: Tuesday, June 9, 5 p.m., https://arroyovalley.sbcusd.com/class2020

Valedictorians: Veronica Banuelos, Edward Dominic Castaneda, and Jesus Giselle Pantoja

Salutatorian: Natalie Luna

Graduates: 580*

Cajon High School

Virtual Graduation: Wednesday, June 10, 5 p.m., https://cajon.sbcusd.com/class2020

Valedictorians: Tomas Ascencion Flores, Randy Gerond Medley, Elysia Rios, Brad Joseph Bolluyt, Serenity Ngoc Chavez, Thu Anh Nguyen, Ryan Daniel Chapin, Trevor Allen Chapin, and Yulissa Guadalupe Sanchez

Salutatorians: Raziel Plata Serrato, Moremi Elize Olora, Saul Mercado, and Abigail Grace Willis

Graduates: 652*

Indian Springs High School

Virtual Graduation: Friday, June 5, 5 p.m., https://indiansprings.sbcusd.com/class2020

Valedictorian: Kyla Duhart

Salutatorian: Kacey Lam

Graduates: 376*

Inland Career Education Center (formerly San Bernardino Adult School)

Graduates: 125*

Middle College High School

Virtual Graduation: Thursday, June 4, 5 p.m., https://middlecollege.sbcusd.com/class2020

Valedictorians: Naeli Marie Mills and Adriana Toledo Calvillo

Salutatorians: Lester Cedeno, Antonia Lopez-Vega, and Samuel Rojo-Aguayo

Graduates: 62*

Pacific High School

Virtual Graduation: Monday, June 8, 5 p.m., https://pacific.sbcusd.com/class2020

Valedictorian: Valerie Gonzalez-Caloca

Salutatorian: Vanessa Gonzalez-Caloca

Graduates: 224*

San Andreas High School

Virtual Graduation: Monday, June 8, 6 p.m., https://sanandreas.sbcusd.com/class2020

Graduates: 220*

San Bernardino High School

Virtual Graduation: Saturday, June 6, 5 p.m., https://sanbernardino.sbcusd.com/class2020

Valedictorian: Remijia Plascencia

Salutatorians: Anthony Craddock and Jose Rosales-Torres

Graduates: 311*

San Gorgonio High School

Virtual Graduation: Thursday, June 4, 6 p.m., https://sangorgonio.sbcusd.com/class2020

Valedictorians: Matthew Jackson, Henry Luu, and Jeffry Umana

Salutatorians: Maia Garcia and Dennis Phan

Graduates: 400*

Sierra High School

Virtual Graduation: Tuesday, June 9, 6 p.m., https://sierra.sbcusd.com/class2020

Graduates: 200*

Approximately 3,150 San Bernardino City Unified School District students will receive their high school diplomas or GED certification this year. This does not include those graduating from vocational programs.

^Note: Anderson serves students ages 12 to 22 with a variety of physical and intellectual challenges. Graduates receive a certificate of completion, not a high school diploma.

*Note: Graduate counts are approximate at this time.

We are sharing an opportunity for hire from the Riverside Justice Table. See their message below:

Hello, 
The Justice Table, a criminal justice focused civic engagement association based in Riverside County is seeking applicants for the “youth organizer” position.  There are two Youth Organizer positions open at this time. 20 hours a week at $16 to $17 an hour commensurate with work experience and skills. 

The Justice Table focuses on Public Safety and Increasing District Attorney Accountability to the communities that have been impacted by the historic race and class disparities of the Criminal (In)Justice System.  

To learn more about the position and/or apply please see the attached job description and job application. Please send all completed applications to 
Jordanna Wong-Omshehe at justicetable951@gmail.com.   

Click here to view the Job Description and here to download the Application 

Washington (AFP) – Democratic lawmakers knelt in silent tribute to George Floyd in the US Congress on Monday before unveiling a package of sweeping police reforms in response to the killing of African Americans by law enforcement.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer were joined by some two dozen lawmakers in Emancipation Hall — named in honor of the slaves who helped erect the US Capitol in the 18th century.

They knelt for eight minutes and 46 seconds to mark the length of time a white police officer pinned his knee on the neck of the 46-year-old Floyd, whose May 25 death in Minneapolis unleashed protests against racial injustice across America.

The Democrats said their bill aimed to create “meaningful, structural change that safeguards every Americans’ right to safety and equal justice.”

The legislation seeks to “end police brutality, hold police accountable (and) improve transparency in policing,” a statement said.

Pelosi, who like other kneeling lawmakers was draped in a colorful Kente cloth scarf that pays homage to black Americans’ African heritage, spoke afterward of the “martyrdom of George Floyd” and the grief over black men and women killed at the hands of police.

“This movement of national anguish is being transformed into a movement of national action,” she said.

The Justice and Policing Act, introduced in both chambers of Congress, would make it easier to prosecute officers for abuse and rethink how they are recruited and trained.

Its chance of passage in the Senate, where Republicans hold the majority, is highly uncertain.

Donald Trump, who is running for re-election in November, has cast himself as the law-and-order president and accuses Joe Biden, his Democratic rival for the White House, of seeking to defund police forces.

“The Radical Left Democrats want to Defund and Abandon our Police. Sorry, I want LAW & ORDER!” he tweeted on Monday.

The former vice president has not made any public statements supporting the defunding of law enforcement.

His campaign spokesman Andrew Bates said in a statement that Biden “supports the urgent need for reform” including funding community policing programs that improve relationships between officers and residents and help avert unjustifiable deaths.

Biden, who has said he believes the nation is at “an inflection point” given the magnitude of the protests, was traveling Monday to Houston to meet Floyd’s family. – ‘We hear you’ –

The policing legislation, introduced by Congressional Black Caucus Chair Karen Bass and two black senators, Cory Booker and Kamala Harris, would ban the use of choke holds and mandate the use of dashboard cameras and body cameras for federal officers.

It mandates broad training reforms and would establish a misconduct registry to prevent fired officers moving to another jurisdiction without any accountability.

“A profession where you have the power to kill should be a profession that requires highly trained officers who are accountable to the public,” Bass told reporters.

Lawmakers expressed solidarity with the countless Americans who have taken to the streets in protest against police brutality and racial injustice.

“Black lives matter. The protests we’ve seen in recent days are an expression of rage and one of despair,” House Democrat Steny Hoyer said.

“Today Democrats in the House and Senate are saying: ‘We see you, we hear you, we are acting.”