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This is a revisiting of an ongoing conversation beginning in 2015 about taking down symbols of oppression, especially Confederate flags, but also statues, murals and all public signs, symbols and celebrations of our domination, deprivation and degradation as a people and other people of color. My argument here, as then, is that these acts are necessary, but not sufficient, an important start, but not the end of the long, difficult and dangerous journey to a radical reconception and reconstruction of the source of these racist symbols, signs and celebrations, i.e., society itself.   ... read more »

“Here we are. We are getting ready to hand out some food. Now everybody that’s not working, get back,” says Congresswoman Maxine Waters. Wondalunch just held their second event in Watts giving away contact free, prepackaged meals that includes fresh fruit, vegetables, and poultry. There are hungry people all over the country, but particularly in the Los Angeles community. Community leaders have graciously contributed their time to ensure the people have food on the table. ... read more »

A June 29 U.S. Supreme Court split decision represents a major setback to both the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the consumers who have come to rely upon the agency. Since 2010, more than 25 million consumers were helped by the agency’s efforts that returned over $11 billion.    Although the case known as Seila Law v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, was argued on March 3 of this year, its origins date back to 2017 when Seila Law, a California-based debt relief firm, asked the CFPB to set aside a civil investigative demand (CID) that sought information to determine whether it was engaged in illegal debt relief practices.   ... read more »

If we are to honor and rightfully appreciate our history and struggle to liberate ourselves and expand the realm of freedom and justice in this country, we must stand with Frederick Douglass at Rochester, New York in 1852, at every Fourth of July celebration. To stand with Douglass on this day is not only to read, discuss and study his July 4th speech, but to join him then and now and afterward in questioning and critical judgment of society. Indeed, this calls for questioning and rejecting celebration of a myth of an inclusive freedom that doesn’t exist, a society still deformed and ruined by racism and the practice of an infantile, mindless and immoral patriotism which requires forgetting one’s own oppression and that of others to be a part of this madness.  ... read more »

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The gruesome murder of George Floyd at the hands of the Minneapolis Police Department has sparked a necessary public uprising against the systematic racism that has plagued the U.S. since even prior to its inception. Century-long questions of race and color have been brought to the forefront of social and news media. Globally, people have started to reflect on the cause and effect of racism within their own communities. One of the many effects of racism has been the development of colorism. Colorism is defined as prejudice or discrimination against individuals with a dark skin tone, typically among people of the same ethnic or racial group. Colorism has significant roots in Asian, Latino, and South Asian societies. ... read more »

“I feel lucky and blessed that I’m serving in the Congress… But there is a force that is trying to take us back to another time and another dark period,” warns congressman John Lewis. And he’d know.    Since age 17, this brave crusader has been at the forefront of the civil rights movement. Now at age 80, he’s an elder statesmen. Following his path lets audiences retrace the steps of an activism that has led to social change, even in the midst of great oppression. For that alone, former trial lawyer turned documentarian Dawn Porter’s (Trapped, Gideon’s Army) homage to one of our greatest heroes is a blessing and an inspiring lesson in American history.   ... read more »

The bill, known as the Free the Vote Act, will  seek  voters'  approval  in the 2020 November election to restore voting rights to former inmates  who are  free from incarceration  but still on parole.     Currently, in California, a person’s right to vote is suspended when they are  imprisoned  or on parole for a felony conviction,  although they can vote while on probation, county post-release community supervision and federal supervised release.     Only two states, Maine and Vermont, allow people to vote while still  incarcerated.    ACA 6 passed out the Senate with a 28-9 vote.    ... read more »

OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network enthusiastically stands behind D. Channsin Berry and his newest documentary “Dark Girls 2” which is currently playing on the OWN network.    “Dark Girls 2” is the follow up to Berry's first documentary “Dark Girls,” which explored the prejudices that darker-skinned women face around the world.   Diving in and taking a first-hand approach D. Channsin Berry directed, wrote and executive produced the second installment. In this deep dive into the lives of these darker-hued women, he discovered that they were still dealing with the trauma associated with the color of their skin.    ... read more »

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In a significant legal victory for Bill Cosby, the state Supreme Court has agreed to hear the appeal of his 2018 conviction on charges of indecent aggravated assault.   In a stunning ruling handed down on Tuesday, June 23, 2020, the court noted it's allowing the appeal on two specific issues.   The first is regarding the so-called prior bad acts witnesses. Cosby's attorneys argued that six additional women were unlawfully allowed to testify against him based on unproven and uncharged allegations from decades earlier. The women claimed Cosby had provided them Quaaludes, which prosecutors claimed to fit a specific pattern of behavior exhibited by the comedian. District Attorney Kevin Steele claimed that Cosby had a habit of drugging and assaulting women.    ... read more »

For instance, Amazon fired Black and brown workers who have organized to demand more substantial health and safety protections. Thousands of Instacart workers, many of whom are women of color, are reportedly waiting for face masks and hand sanitizer promised months ago.  Three out of every four Black workers who took the survey said they showed up to work during the pandemic even though they believed they might have been seriously risking their health or the health of family members. Less than half of white workers said they had done the same. ... read more »

West Basin, a provider of drinking and recycled water supplies for nearly 1 million people in coastal Los Angeles County, nominated Dominguez Technology Center for the Recycled Water Customer of the Year Award. The award recognizes innovative organizations who have advanced the use and acceptance of recycled water. The annual award is given out by WateReuse California. West Basin Board Vice President, Harold C. Williams, accepted this year’s award on behalf of all the project partners. ... read more »

PASADENA, Calif.— June 24, 2020—This Saturday, June 27, we observe Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Awareness Day, and June is also PTSD Awareness Month. According to the American Psychiatric Association, PTSD affects approximately 3.5-percent of U.S. adults, and an estimated one in 11 people will be diagnosed with it in their lifetime. Women are twice as likely as men to have PTSD. While many believe the mental health disorder only affects military veterans, many Americans who are not veterans of war also experience nightmares or flashbacks caused by PTSD. Those people often relive traumatic events – such as major accidents, sexual assault or witnessing trauma – which become seared in their memories and can negatively affect their mental health. ... read more »