Black History

California ’22 Election: Black Candidates Running for Statewide Office

There are four Black candidates running for state public office: Shirley Weber, Tony Thurmond, Malia Cohen and Angela Underwood Jacobs.

Published

3 years ago

November 4, 2022

Oakland Post

There are four Black candidates running for state public office. The three Democrats are: Shirley Weber, incumbent Secretary of State; Tony Thurmond, incumbent Superintendent of Public Instruction; Malia Cohen is seeking the state controller position. Angela Underwood Jacobs, a Republican, is vying to be the first Black woman to serve as lieutenant governor of California. Photos courtesy of official web sites of the candidates.

By Solomon O. Smith | California Black Media

There are four Black candidates running for statewide office in California. Three are contenders to win as they fight it out with their opponents in the final days of the election.

Dr. Shirley Nash Weber (D), the incumbent Secretary of State (SOS), is the front-runner in her race against Robert Bernosky (R). Weber was appointed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in December 2020. She is California’s first Black Secretary of State and only the fifth African American to serve as a state constitutional officer in California’s 170-year history.

Since her appointment, Weber has led successful public information campaigns resulting in more Californians going to the polls. She conducted a tour of state schools and local communities as part of an ongoing initiative by her office. SOS is the third-highest office in California and is responsible for establishing and implementing voting rules as well as the logistics of bringing the vote to a little over 20 million voters.

In Weber’s race, she has a lengthy list of supporters and endorsements including: Gov. Gavin Newsom, Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, State Treasurer Fiona Ma, Controller Betty Yee, Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, Attorney Gen. Rob Bonta, and Chair of the California State Board of Equalization Malia Cohen. In addition, several newspapers like the Los Angeles Sentinel, the Los Angeles Times and the San Diego Union Tribune have also endorsed her candidacy.

Her opponent has a bit of a different opinion on the vote, as per his platform which lists “cleaning up” California’s voter rolls as No. 3 on his to-do list. Many claimed that illegal immigrants were scattered throughout the voting rolls of Western states, all of which has been debunked by fact checkers like PolitiFact.

Tony Thurmond, a student of the public education system and a graduate of the foster youth system, is running for a second term as Superintendent for Public Instruction (SPI). Thurmond attributes the lag in the performance of Californian students to insufficient funding, an opinion which the teachers’ unions support.

“I’m honored to be supported by teachers. I’m in a race where I am supported by teachers and my opponent is supported by billionaires,” Thurmond said.

Although Thurmond is a favorite to retain his office, he has gotten some criticisms about how he handled public schools during the pandemic. Those angry about the school closures blame Thurmond and some studies show that children may have been held back academically by the shutdowns, particularly children of color.

Thurmond’s opponent, Lance Christensen, works for a California Policy Center, a right-leaning think tank. Christensen’s push for more control for parents and local communities is in line with Republican policies. SPI is a non-partisan elected position.

Christensen has called out teachers for “indoctrinating” children and has endorsed many right-wing views. “I’m a religious person, I’m a conservative, I don’t make any bones about that,” he said. “I don’t try to excuse it. I don’t hide it.”

Thurmond says that he wants to invest more in education, at least an amount that is commensurate with California’s standing as the fifth-wealthiest economy in the world. His opponent is focused on removing bad teachers and giving parents more control.

Although Thurmond is the favorite and garnered a larger share of the vote during the June primary, Christensen appeals to some parents and his right-leaning language about school choice could make Thurmond’s race more difficult in some conservative areas.

The race for state controller is a bit more complicated. The previous occupant of the position, Betty Yee, a Democrat has termed out of her position. Malia Cohen is the Democratic choice to replace Yee. Cohen has dedicated her career in public service focused on making public dollars work for all Californians, her campaign says.

Her opponent Lanhee Chen (R) is a self-described “conservative in the vein of Mitt Romney.”

In the primary, Cohen placed second, behind Republican Yee, 36.9% to 26.8%. However, the electorate favors Cohen in November. In the electorate, 46.8% of voters are registered Democrats while just 23.9 % of voters are registered Republican. The LA Times refers to this as the only open race this year.

Chen has been an aggressive underdog in the race attacking Cohen on several issues. To date, Cohen has yet to directly debate Chen, who taunted her on Twitter with images of herself, alone, on the debate stage.

Angela Underwood Jacobs is vying to be the first Black woman to serve as Lt. Gov of California. She is a Republican.

Underwood’s experience includes service as deputy mayor of Lancaster where she was the first Black woman on the City Council. Jacobs received 19.9% of the vote in the primaries, a distant second to incumbent Eleni Kounalakis’ 52.7%. Her platform includes many of the conventional Republican issues like smaller government and less regulation, but there are also some differences.

Her brother Dave Patrick Underwood, a federal security officer in Oakland, was shot and killed by a member of a far-right extremist group called the Bugaloo Bois — some members of the organization reportedly participated in the January 6 riots at the U.S. Capitol. Jacobs sued Facebook for promoting and facilitating the activities of these types of groups.

Jacobs’ “Make California Gold Again” motto, is emblematic of her mildly Trumpian platform.

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Oakland Post: Week of June 18 – 24, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of June 18 – 24, 2025

Published

4 days ago

June 20, 2025

Oakland Post

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.

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Juneteenth: Celebrating Our History, Honoring Our Shared Spaces

It’s been empowering to watch Juneteenth blossom into a widely celebrated holiday, filled with vibrant outdoor events like cookouts, festivals, parades, and more. It’s inspiring to see the community embrace our history—showing up in droves to celebrate freedom, a freedom delayed for some enslaved Americans more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed.

Published

5 days ago

June 18, 2025

Oakland Post

Wayne Wilson, Public Affairs Campaign Manager, Caltrans

By Wayne Wilson, Public Affairs Campaign Manager, Caltrans

Juneteenth marks an important moment in our shared history—a time to reflect on the legacy of our ancestors who, even in the face of injustice, chose freedom, unity, and community over fear, anger, and hopelessness. We honor their resilience and the paths they paved so future generations can continue to walk with pride.

As we head into the weekend full of festivities and summer celebrations, I want to offer a friendly reminder about who is not invited to the cookout: litter.

At Clean California, we believe the places where we gather—parks, parade routes, street corners, and church lots—should reflect the pride and beauty of the people who fill them. Our mission is to restore and beautify public spaces, transforming areas impacted by trash and neglect into spaces that reflect the strength and spirit of the communities who use them.

Too often, after the music fades and the grills cool, our public spaces are left littered with trash. Just as our ancestors took pride in their communities, we honor their legacy when we clean up after ourselves, teach our children to do the same, and care for our shared spaces.

Small acts can inspire big change. Since 2021, Clean California and its partners have collected and removed over 2.9 million cubic yards of litter. We did this by partnering with local nonprofits and community organizations to organize grassroots cleanup events and beautification projects across California.

Now, we invite all California communities to continue the incredible momentum and take the pledge toward building a cleaner community through our Clean California Community Designation Program. This recognizes cities and neighborhoods committed to long-term cleanliness and civic pride.

This Juneteenth, let’s not only celebrate our history—but also contribute to its legacy. By picking up after ourselves and by leaving no litter behind after celebrations, we have an opportunity to honor our past and shape a cleaner, safer, more vibrant future.

Visit CleanCA.com to learn more about Clean California.

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IN MEMORIAM: Legendary Funk Pioneer Sly Stone Dies at 82

Sly Stone’s musical approach radically reshaped popular music. He transcended genre boundaries and empowered a new generation of artists. The band’s socially conscious message and infectious rhythms sparked a wave of influence, reaching artists as diverse as Miles Davis, George Clinton, Prince, Dr. Dre, and the Roots.

Published

7 days ago

June 17, 2025

Oakland Post

Sly and the Family Stone play the Opera House in Bournemouth. Mojo review. Photo by Simon Fernandez.

By Stacy M. Brown
BlackPressUSA.com Newswire

Sylvester “Sly” Stewart—known to the world as Sly Stone, frontman of the groundbreaking band Sly and the Family Stone—has died at the age of 82.

His family confirmed that he passed away peacefully at his Los Angeles home surrounded by loved ones, after battling chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and other health complications.

Born March 15, 1943, in Denton, Texas, Stone moved with his family to Vallejo, California, as a child. He began recording gospel music at age 8 with his siblings in a group called the Stewart Four. By his teenage years, he had mastered multiple instruments and was already pioneering racial integration in music—an ethos that would define his career.

In 1966, Sly and his brother Freddie merged their bands to form Sly and the Family Stone, complete with a revolutionary interracial, mixed-gender lineup.

The band quickly became a commercial and cultural force with hits such as “Dance to the Music,” “Everyday People,” and “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)”—all penned by Stone himself.

Their album “Stand!” (1969) and live performances—most notably at Woodstock—cemented their reputation, blending soul, funk, rock, gospel, and psychedelia to reflect the optimism and turmoil of their era.

As the 1970s progressed, Stone confronted personal demons. His desire to use music as a response to war, racism, and societal change culminated in the intense album “There’s a Riot Goin’ On” (1971). But drug dependency began to undermine both his health and professional life, leading to erratic behavior and band decline through the early 1980s.

Withdrawn from the public eye for much of the 1990s and early 2000s, Stone staged occasional comebacks. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1993, received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Grammys in 2017, and captured public attention following the 2023 release of his memoir “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)”—published under Questlove’s imprint. He also completed a biographical screenplay and was featured in Questlove’s documentary “Sly Lives!” earlier this year.

His influence endured across generations. Critics and historians repeatedly credit him with perfecting funk and creating a “progressive soul,” shaping a path for racial integration both onstage and in the broader culture.

“Rest in beats Sly Stone,” legendary Public Enemy frontman Chuck D posted on social media with an illustrative drawing of the artist. “We should thank Questlove of the Roots for keeping his fire blazing in this century.”

Emmy-winning entertainment publicist Danny Deraney also paid homage. “Rest easy Sly Stone,” Deraney posted. “You changed music (and me) forever. The time he won over Ed Sullivan’s audience in 1968. Simply magical. Freelance music publicist and Sirius XM host Eric Alper also offered a tribute.

“The funk pioneer who made the world dance, think, and get higher,” Alper wrote of Sly Stone. “His music changed everything—and it still does.”

Sly Stone is survived by three children.