Black History

Erica Loewe Helping to Open Doors for Black Press, Others at White House

In Erika Loewe’s all-too-important job as director of African American media, she has ensured that the Black Press and other media of color have enjoyed unprecedented access to the White House and top administration and cabinet officials. “President Biden and Vice President Harris promised an administration that looks like America, and they have fulfilled that promise,” Loewe said during a recent visit to the National Newspaper Publishers Association’s (NNPA) headquarters at the Thurgood Marshall Center in Northwest, Washington, D.C.

Published

2 years ago

May 22, 2022

Oakland Post

(Pictured left to right): Karine Jean-Pierre, the nation’s first Black press secretary, Erica Loewe, director of African American media and outgoing press secretary Jen Psaki.

By Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia

As Karine Jean-Pierre prepares to make history as the first Black press secretary at the White House, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have continued to ensure that African Americans – particularly Black women, helm crucial posts.

Alongside Jean-Pierre, there’s chief of staff to Kate Bedingfield, Khanya Brann, outgoing press secretary Jen Psaki’s chief of staff, Amanda Finney, and senior regional communications director, Rykia Dorsey.

Then, there’s Erica Loewe.

In Loewe’s all-too-important job as director of African American media, she has ensured that the Black Press and other media of color have enjoyed unprecedented access to the White House and top administration and cabinet officials.

“President Biden and Vice President Harris promised an administration that looks like America, and they have fulfilled that promise,” Loewe said during a recent visit to the National Newspaper Publishers Association’s (NNPA) headquarters at the Thurgood Marshall Center in Northwest, Washington, D.C.

There, Loewe sat for an interview with NNPA President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., for his PBS-TV show, “The Chavis Chronicles.”

“Since day one, the Biden-Harris Administration has valued diversity, empowered Black voices, and taken a whole-of-government approach to advance racial equity,” she told Dr. Chavis during the episode scheduled to air later this year.

Loewe grew up in Miami after her mother gave birth to her in South Carolina.

She attended the University of Florida and later interned at the White House for President Barack Obama.

A prolific volunteer, Loewe has worked as press secretary and deputy communications director for U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) and as deputy communications director for Congressman James Clyburn (D-S.C.).

“Jim Clyburn is one of my favorite bosses, and he’s been very clear that I need to tell people that I’m from Charleston even though I grew up in Miami,” Loewe stated.

“He’s a great man, and I’ve learned a lot from him,” she remarked.

Her early influence came from her parents, particularly her mother and grandparents.

Loewe’s father worked in the nonprofit sector and helped her to gain a focus on economic empowerment and business development.

Her mother worked for a city commissioner, allowing Loewe to spend time at City Hall.

“I have always been around people who lead and serve, to some extent,” she said.

“My parents split up, but I lived with my mom and grandparents in a house full of love and laughter,” she said.

While working in the Obama White House, Loewe lived with her family and worked under the director of African American outreach.

Now, as director of African American media, she said her life had come full circle.

“I’m back at the White House, and my mother lives with me,” she said.

Loewe said her mother battles Alzheimer’s disease, but “somewhere inside, she’s there, proud of me.”

Loewe said she has enjoyed returning to the White House and tries to stay out of the crosshairs of secret service.

“We have fun. They take their jobs very seriously and we do as well,” Loewe said.

The fulfilling part of her job is allowing access to Black media and the American public, Loewe offered.

“There’s nothing like being able to grant access to the White House for the very first time,” Loewe declared. “It’s a building people have seen on television and thought they may never get inside. But, our job is to provide access to people.”

She exclaimed that the Biden-Harris administration had provided access never before experienced by the American public.

The administration also has remained the most inclusive in American history.

“Never has there been an administration that has uplifted and supported Black women as much as President Biden and Vice President Harris,” Loewe asserted.

“It’s just a fact. Numbers don’t lie. The Honorable [Kamala] Harris is a Black woman who has lived experiences… She attended Howard University, and she’s a member of the Divine Nine, the Black Church, and an advocate for Black maternal health and accurate home appraisals for Black people.”

Loewe continued:

“There are more Black people in first time positions in the President’s cabinet. You have the war in Ukraine and Gen. Lloyd Austin, the first Black to head the Department of Defense and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield. Two Black people you see every day making sure that we’re providing aid to Ukraine.”

She noted the Environmental Protection Agency’s Michael Regan as the first Black person to lead there, and HUD Secretary Marcia Fudge, as examples of other Black appointees in the administration.

“These are not symbolic positions,” Loewe concluded.

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Activism

COMMENTARY: DA Price Has Done Nothing Wrong; Oppose Her Recall

The job of the District Attorney’s Office is to do justice, not revenge. Since I was an NAACP leader and then a Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) Field Secretary in my home of Durham, N.C., in the 1960s, I have fought for prosecutorial justice of the kind Price tries to model. She is wrongly accused of not arresting criminals, (not her job), wrongly accused of letting criminal out of jail once arrested (not true) and failing to charge enhancements (part of a state reform movement).

Published

2 days ago

October 15, 2024

Oakland Post

Walter Riley. Courtesy photo.

By Walter Riley
Attorney at Law

It has long been known that the criminal justice system needs to be reformed. Pamela Price campaigned on a promise to reform Alameda County’s criminal justice system. She ran a grassroots campaign, largely funded by small donations.

Despite being outspent nearly 4 to 1, she won decisively with 53% of the vote. She took no money from police unions, freeing her to hold law enforcement accountable, something voters consistently identify as a major issue.

Recall organizing began before she even took office, showing that the recall is not about her performance.

She is wrongly accused of not arresting criminals, (not her job), wrongly accused of letting criminals out of jail once arrested (not true) and failing to charge enhancements (part of a state reform movement).

Oaklandside reported. “In April 2020, a growing number of COVID-19 cases pushed the state court system to lower bail to $0 for most misdemeanor and lower-level felony offenses. The emergency bail schedule, the list setting bail at nothing for most types of crimes, was intended to help reduce the number of people being booked into county jail” during COVID.

It was the Judicial Council Order that released arrestees, not Price!

Sentencing reform makes all our communities safer. Price referred all her attorneys to guidance from the California Commission on Revision of the Penal Code, where charging and enhancements were addressed for reform at the state level.

California state law limits prosecution of youth as adults. Diversion typically yields better outcomes than arrest and prosecution in juvenile courts, including far lower likelihood of subsequent arrests.

Price’s directive to limit sentencing enhancements is a step toward creating a more just and fair system. Enhancements have disproportionately targeted marginalized communities, leading to excessive sentences without addressing the root causes of crime.

By limiting enhancements, Price is creating more balanced sentencing, focusing on rehabilitation over harsh punishment.

Her broader actions in office have shown a commitment to making Alameda County safer. According to California Gov. Gavin Newsom, crime in Oakland has dropped by 33% since DA Price took office, underscoring the effectiveness of her approach.

Her administration also expanded mental health courts, ensuring individuals with mental health challenges receive appropriate treatment, reducing recidivism.

In addition, she increased victim advocacy by 38%, providing support to over 22,500 victims.

The recall effort is premature and unjustified. DA Price has been in office for just over a year and a half, and despite significant opposition from the start, she has made transformative changes.

Some key achievements include:

Holding corporations accountable has been a central pillar of her work, bringing in over $20 million in settlements and judgments, five times as much as previous administrations.
Securing a $4 million settlement holding Safeway, Vons, and Albertsons accountable for overcharging customers,
Filing 12 felony charges against a man accused of multiple armed robberies.
Investigating and prosecuting police misconduct.

Her approach is focused on long-term reform, and residents deserve the chance to see these policies take full effect before casting judgment.

Media coverage has largely focused on sensational stories about crime, often overlooking the broader reforms and successes achieved by Price. Fear-driven narratives about crime spikes—many of which are linked to the pandemic—have often obscured her efforts to make the justice system fairer and more effective.

DA Price’s 40 years of experience as a civil rights attorney, including a win before the U.S. Supreme Court, has been foundational to her efforts to reform the criminal justice system.

Her deep understanding of justice, fairness, and accountability is precisely why she’s the right person to lead Alameda County’s justice system into the future. We can’t go back.

Oakland Post

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Art

Augusta Savage: A Sculptor, Activist and Renaissance Woman

Augusta Savage was a prominent sculptor and activist of the Harlem Renaissance, known for her artistic talent and dedication to encouraging and supporting African American artists.

Published

2 days ago

October 15, 2024

Oakland Post

Augusta Savage with her sculpture Realization, ca. 1938. Photo by Andrew Herman, Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution (2371)

By Tamara Shiloh

Augusta Savage was a prominent sculptor and activist of the Harlem Renaissance, known for her artistic talent and dedication to encouraging and supporting African American artists.

Augusta Christine Fells was born on Feb. 29, 1892, in Green Cove Springs, Fla. She later took the name of her second husband as her

Savage began sculpting as a child using natural clay found near her home. Her father, a Methodist minister, didn’t approve of her sculpting and did whatever he could to stop her. She once said that her father “almost whipped all the art out of me.” Despite her father’s objections, she continued to make sculptures.

When the family moved to West Palm Beach, Fla., in 1915, she encountered a new challenge: a lack of clay. She eventually got some materials from a local potter and created a group of figures that she entered in a local county fair. Her work was well received, winning a prize and along the way the support of the fair’s superintendent, George Graham Currie. He encouraged her to study art despite the racism she encountered.

In the 1920s, Savage moved to New York City, where she attended Cooper Union, a prestigious art school that provided free tuition. She excelled there, completing her studies ahead of time and receiving scholarships for living expenses. Despite being rejected for a summer program in France because of her race, she persevered, using the incident to highlight discrimination. She gained recognition during the Harlem Renaissance, creating sculptures of prominent African Americans, including W. E. B. Du Bois and Marcus Garvey.

In 1929, Savage received a Julius Rosenwald fellowship, which enabled her to study in Paris, where she exhibited her work at the Grand Palais, a famous exhibition hall and museum in the French capital.

When she returned to the U.S. during the Great Depression, Savage turned to teaching and founded the Savage Studio of Arts and Crafts, mentoring young artists like Jacob Lawrence and Norman Lewis. She played an active role in the Harlem Artists’ Guild and worked with the Works Projects Administration (WPA) to support struggling artists.

One of Savage’s most celebrated works was The Harp, created for the 1939 New York World’s Fair. Inspired by James Weldon Johnson’s poem “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” the monumental sculpture depicted twelve African American youth as the strings of a harp. Although it was highly acclaimed, The Harp was destroyed after the fair ended.

In her later years, Savage retreated to a quieter life in Saugerties, New York, teaching children and creating art as a hobby. She was married three times and had one child, Irene.

Savage passed away on March 26, 1962, in New York City after battling cancer. Although she was nearly forgotten at the time of her death, today Savage is recognized as a pioneering artist, educator, and advocate for African American art and artists.