Tag: Congresswoman Barbara Lee

Raise your voice and the voices of our people – the voice of truth. Until we get the big mikes, we gotta hit a lot of little mikes. Bring back the doo woppers on street corners and concerned citizens speaking on footstools like Malcolm and Black New Yorkers used to do in the ‘60s – and even today. Support your local poetry, spoken word and open mike scenes where – at least there – we still have a voice.

The Bay Area and beyond paid tribute to Belva Davis Feb. 23 at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, pouring out memories of her struggles as a “first” on many fronts, breaking through racist barriers and bringing Black people, perspectives and issues to the mainstream news. The unforgettable night also marked the 50th wedding anniversary for Belva and Bill Moore, first Black news cameraman in commercial television on the West Coast.

As President Obama and leaders in Congress seek to avoid the so-called “fiscal cliff,” any agreement must address the immense contribution that the Pentagon makes to the debt. Without defense spending reforms on the table to modernize our security budget, there is no pathway back to the budget surplus we enjoyed before the decade of unchecked defense spending took off.

Associated Professionals and Contractors of California (APAC) is celebrating the historic inclusion of small, minority and disadvantaged business enterprise goals by the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) with a Small Business Opportunity Conference to be held Wednesday, Dec. 5 at the Empress of China, 838 Grant Ave., San Francisco, from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

In this country they sing, “God Bless America,” but they mean, “except if you live south of the border or in the hood or if you’re a person of color, a woman, poor or an activist for the common good.” Rock the vote and rock the boat by shopping locally! My Buy Black Wednesday Business of the Month is MG Enhancez Hair Shop.

Brother Richard Aoki demonstrably and sincerely dedicated the vast majority of his life and his every living thought to achieve the overcoming of racism, poverty and inequality, without giving up. Richard was indeed exactly who he claimed to be, who is exactly what people back in the day of the struggle also knew him to be: a dedicated, brilliant revolutionary.

When Tanya Dennis, an Oakland public school teacher and reporter for the Post newspaper, reclaimed her home last year, she eventually received a fair modification from Wells Fargo Bank. However, at that time, Tanya acknowledged that her fight with Wells Fargo was only half over as she turned her attention to saving her 91-year-old mother’s home also.

Washington (Bob) Burnsis a retired pathologist. Unlike most retired doctors, he has spent the past 15 years trying to aid those who have been dealt a hand of poverty and desperation.

At 14th and Broadway, the community was invited to share what was on their hearts. No one was censored and all views were respected. People surrounded the speakers. No one needed to be alone on a day like today. In African traditional healing, the health of an individual is tied to the well-being of community. Oscar Grant’s relatives and friends called for love and respect for life and each other, as they named the enemy: this corrupt judicial system that allows killers to go free. I noticed another rally in front of City Hall. Just a handful of people were there.

A “Celebration of the Remarkable Life and Work of Frank S. Greene Jr., Ph.D.,” will be held Saturday, March 6. The ceremony begins at 1:30 at Santa Clara University Mission Church, 500 El Camino Real, Santa Clara, and will be followed by a reception at 2:30 in the Williman Room of Benson Memorial Center. Greene removed countless barriers for Blacks in technology and business and expanded opportunities in those fields for young people.

There was an emergency service system established in Haiti under the government of President Aristide. We had trained people, trained volunteers everywhere in Haiti. There were buildings with materials and goods stocked there, so in case of an emergency, people would have the means to survive.

The people of Haiti, who won their independence with the world’s only successful slave rebellion, will rise again – with our help and solidarity. Donate to the Haiti Emergency Relief Fund through HaitiAction.net; consult this page for frequent updates; add your recommendations and information in the Comments section.

“I applaud and welcome the passage of H.R. 4173, The Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act,” declared Congresswoman Barbara Lee, chair of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC), several of whose members, led by Congresswoman Maxine Waters, were responsible for the bill’s key provisions. "Nobody has more at stake here than Black America," says Kai Wright, senior writer for The Root.

U.S. Army Specialist Alexis Hutchinson, a single mother, is being threatened with a military court martial if she does not agree to deploy to Afghanistan, despite having been told she would be granted extra time to find someone to care for her 11-month-old son while she is overseas. Hutchinson, of Oakland, California, is currently being confined at Hunter Army Airfield near Savannah, Georgia, after being arrested. Her son was placed into a county foster care system.

California’s phony bleeding heart liberal Democrats have just helped to pass a Republican budget deal that shreds California’s safety net by cutting $15.5 billion from the state’s service sector to partially close a $26.3 billion funding shortfall in state revenues. The Democrats supported a $1.3 billion cut to MediCal, a $2.8 billion cut to the statewide university system, and a $6 billion cut to California’s K-12 schools. The Democratic leadership also supported the Republicans’ push to slash the children’s health insurance program known as Healthy Families, as well as In-Home Supportive Services and the CalWORKs program by cutting $878 million or more in coming months.

The most current BLS fatality data, for 2006, shows risks similar to what was found for 1997: the lethal risk of police work is closer to the risk of the average worker than it is to the high risk work of roofers or farmers. Risk for taxi drivers and construction laborers have now decreased to be closer to that of police, who are still ranked at No. 14. Police fatality risk is well below that of refuse workers.

"Mother Wright's giving spirit transcended the city of Oakland. She traveled across the globe, going as far away as Russia to feed the hungry and nurture the poor. Even with her work abroad, Mother Wright's heart remained in Oakland. And while her work in the community brought her many honors and broad recognition, Mother Mary remained humble and committed to working on the behalf of those most in need.

Most people of color know that the cops, and police departments as institutions, historically represent the street enforcement arm of white American racism. Indeed, the police were born out of the white slave patrols.

The Oakland Police Department suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the foot when it further racialized the March 21 shootings by rescinding Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums' invitation to speak at the public funeral of the four officers who were gunned down.

Kiilu Nyasha, Tarika Matilaba Lewis and Gail Asali Dickson are featured in the exhibit, "Woman Artists of the Black Panther Party," at the West Oakland Branch Library, 1801 Adeline St. The reception is Saturday, March 14, 1-3 p.m.