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Vol. 63 No. 6
@VoiceViewpoint
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Thursday, February 9, 2023
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Serving San Diego County’s African & African American Communities 63 Years
The Attack On Black History And What We Must Do
WHAT AFRICAN AMERICANS WANT MOST FROM CONGRESS IN 2023 By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire Sr. Nt’l Correspondent
As 2022 closed, Black Americans saw gains with historic candidates and timely legislation. President Joe Biden signed the Emmett Till Antilynching Act and later, the Respect for Marriage Act, which protected interracial marriages. A slim majority in Congress prevented other significant bills from reaching the president’s desk. As Black History Month begins, there remains key issues that African Americans want to see happen. A December poll of Black voters revealed that African Americans want the government to do more to fight white supremacy. The FBI helped underscore that need when it issued a report noting that hate crimes disproportionately target African Americans. With mass shootings continuing at a record pace, gun control remains a
hot-button issue for Black America.
Further, many Black voters have suggested strong desires for a comprehensive voting rights package, whether that’s in the form of the Freedom to Vote Act, or the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. The former would expand mail-in, early voting, and automatic voter registration, while the latter would restore the Voting Rights Act of 1965. And, following the brutal murder of Tyre Nichols at the hands of five Tennessee police officers, African Americans have continued to voice outrage over the failure of lawmakers to pass the George Floyd Justice in Police Act. While the bill has twice passed the House, the measure has stalled in the Senate despite a Democrat majority there. The legislation would end qualified immunity, which many believe would greatly curtail the type of police behavior that led to the deaths of Nichols, Floyd, and so many other African Americans.
PUBLISHER’S EDITORIAL SEE PAGE 3
SEE PAGE 12
Covid-19 Updates SEE PG. 12 Covid-19 cases in southeast 14,524
22,039
20,658
24,911
18,262
12,321
92102
92105
92113
92114
92115
92139
SOURCE: County of San Diego a/o 2/2/23
VOTERS WILL DETERMINE FATE OF FAST FOOD WORKERS’ PAY RAISE By Edward Henderson California Black Media Last September, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill (AB) 257 into law. Supporters of the legislation, authored by Assemblymember Chris Holden (D-Pasadena), hailed it for its promise to provide a minimum wage and improve working conditions for fast food workers. But late last month, the future of AB 257 -- also known as “the Fast Act” or “the Fast Food Recovery Act” -- came into question. California Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber’s See VOTERS page 5
PHOTO: CBM
CALIF. ADVOCATES SHINE LIGHT ON PREGNANCY-RELATED DEATHS AMONG BLACK WOMEN By Charlene Muhammad California Black Media April Valentine, 31, planned to celebrate her new birth with family and friends, but instead, her loved ones found themselves in front of Centinela Hospital in Inglewood on Jan. 28, protesting her death. Valentine’s family alleges that she complained about leg pain for hours during the birth of her child on Jan.10, but was ignored and neglected by her caretakers at the medical center that spe-
Birthing Justice film screening with community partners and advocates (l-r) Pastor Thembekila Smart (SCLC), Adjoa Jones (Outreach & Engagement African American Infant/ Maternal Mortality Prevention Initiative, Debbie Allen (Tribe Midwifery), Leigh Purry (Blue Shield), Khefri Riley (Frontline Doulas), Dr. LaTanya Hines (Association of Black Women’s Physicians), Gloria Davis (Girls Club of Los Angeles), Denise Pines (Executive Producer), Gabrielle Brown (Black Women for Wellness). PHOTO: Courtesy of Black Women for Wellness
cializes in maternal care. Valentine, pregnant with her first child, died that day. Her plight is only one episode, advocates say, in what is an escalating crisis affecting Black women during pregnancy throughout California and across the country Recently, a group of advocates collaborated to bring awareness to the Black maternal and infant See ADVOCATES page 5
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