Tag: African American women

U.S. Congressman Jim Clyburn publicly urges Gov. Gavin Newsom to appoint a Black woman to fill the Senate seat vacated by Vice-President-elect Kamala Harris, saying a Black woman is essential to the Senate and that Congresswomen Barbara Lee and Karen Bass are excellent choices.

A recent assessment led by San Francisco State University’s Health Equity Institute (HEI) found that stress from racism and poverty is affecting the health of pregnant African American women in unstable housing situations and contributing to pre-term births. The assessment builds on reports by the San Francisco Department of Public Health that found that the city’s African American women were 2.7 times more likely to have a preterm birth than white women and that half of the residents of public housing in San Francisco are African American.

The Concerned Network of Women under the leadership of Dr. Betty McGee and the new president of the board, Regina Coleman, held its annual African American Breast Cancer Conference on Oct. 23, 2016. Recognition from Congresswomen Nancy Pelosi was presented with a letter of commendation denoting the dedication and spirit of volunteerism of the organization. The attendance was overwhelming again this year with 127 women.

According to CalHR, the state’s human resources department, employment and advancement opportunities for women and minorities do not seem to be getting any better. In the most recent State Employee Census, compiled by CalHR and published in January 2015, one of the state’s largest agencies, the Board of Equalization, posted favorable numbers for African Americans and women.

“Healthy Hearts San Francisco” is a federally funded campaign designed to promote fitness opportunities for low income San Francisco residents in the African American and Latino communities. Health workers at the various city clinics offer physical activity prescriptions to people to take advantage of fitness classes, dieting and lifestyle changes, which help to promote healthier lifestyles.

Allensworth is the first town in California founded by an ex-slave and is the only Black historical park in California. The Allensworth Volunteer Community Association, the Friends of Allensworth and the We Can Foundation invite you to attend our Women’s Celebration. It will be held on Saturday, July 11, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., at the Black historical township and park of Allensworth in Delano, California.

Marissa Alexander did not get a chance to see her youngest daughter take her first step, to hear her say her first word or blow out the candles on her first birthday cake. These and many more memories that mothers are excited to photograph or catch on film weren’t possible for Alexander because she was living behind bars – all because she fired a warning shot in the air, harming no one, to ward off Rico Gray.

Dynamic, brilliant and an elite athlete extraordinaire, Raquel “The Rock” Miller believes that boxing is more than boxing – that it is a lifestyle. She is proving this on a daily basis. Through her disciplined work ethic and her commitment to the “sweet science,” through diligence and perseverance, The Rock won several national boxing tournaments and qualified for the world championships in Beijing. She won a silver medal there.

African and African American women face an infant and maternal mortality crisis in America! Infants and maternal mortality rates in these communities are twice as high as the rates for white women in the U.S. The African Women’s Development Fund USA (AWDF USA) has launched an awareness campaign, Saving Our Future, to educate community members and organize the leadership in hopes of changing the pattern.

At the Bayview branch of the San Francisco Public Library a group of about 25 people, mostly African Americans, sat listening attentively to a San Francisco Unified School District human resources recruiter. The recruiter, Amy Chacon, was giving a presentation on what it’s like to work for SFUSD – and hoping to attract substitute teachers for SFUSD “hard to staff” school positions.

Did you know that in his eye-opening investigation, filmmaker Aron Ranen revealed that “Koreans have come to control virtually every aspect of the multi-billion dollar black hair care industry, from manufacturing to distribution to retail sales, while simultaneously employing tactics to put African-American merchants and wholesalers out of business?”

Learning that you have breast cancer can be one of the most shocking and life altering moments of your entire life. The initial diagnosis can bring on feelings of not only worry, but life’s fragility. The idea of time being precious no longer seems like something that you just say in passing when talking to friends. Your time really does become precious and your sense of purpose kicks into overdrive.

Among youth, while only 15 percent of teens (ages 13-19) are African American, they accounted for 73 percent of the new AIDS cases reported in 2004. Comparably shocking, HIV and AIDS is the leading cause of death for African American women between the ages of 25 and 34. Where’s Black leadership on this issue? Where’s the Black church?