Equity

Julie Chavez Rodriguez, ‘Visionary’ Berkeley Grad, to Run Biden Campaign

Twenty-five years ago, UC Berkeley Professor Harley Shaiken could not know the future that awaited undergraduate Julie Chavez Rodriguez. But even then, he was struck by her talent, deep commitment to social justice and modesty — and that was before he knew that she was the granddaughter of César Chávez, the iconic American labor organizer and civil rights leader. Now, President Joe Biden has named Chavez Rodriguez to lead his 2024 reelection campaign, and Shaiken sees how a student’s promise has grown into national influence.

Published

2 years ago

May 9, 2023

Oakland Post

Julie Chavez Rodriguez was named to lead President Joe Biden’s campaign for reelection in 2024. She graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, in 2000 with a degree in Latin American studies. (AP photo by Evan Vucci)

By Edward Lempinen

Now, President Joe Biden has named Chavez Rodriguez to lead his 2024 reelection campaign, and Shaiken sees how a student’s promise has grown into national influence.

“Julie understood the realities in which we live — the lack of opportunities for so many people of color and poor white people, and particularly Latinos, particularly Black people and immigrants,” Shaiken said yesterday. “But she saw a better world and was willing to work tirelessly…. She had this moral sensibility and this conviction to see these things happen, that have always been impressive.”

As an undergraduate, Julie Chavez Rodriguez (third from right, in a white sweater) helped to organize a high-level conference at the UC Berkeley Center for Latin American Studies. She distinguished herself through her idealism, her commitment and her hard work, said Harley Shaiken, former chair of the center. (Photo courtesy of the UC Berkeley Center for Latin American Studies)

When Biden formally opened his campaign to win reelection in 2024, Chavez Rodriguez, 45, became the first Latinx woman in U.S. history to run the campaign of an incumbent president. In comments at his announcement on April 25, the president cited her experience and leadership, and the trust she has built across political communities.

“This election is a generational moment for Americans across the country to stand up and fight for our democracy and freedoms,” Biden said. “To win this fight, we need strong leadership that can build and expand our broad, diverse coalition from 2020.”

Chavez Rodriguez graduated from Berkeley in 2000 with a degree in Latin American studies, and the arc of her career since then has been remarkable. She volunteered with the first presidential campaign of Barack Obama in 2008, and then was hired into the administration.

She worked as deputy press secretary to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, and later as special assistant to Obama and as senior deputy director of public engagement in the White House. In that role, she built high-level networks across a range of communities: LGBTQ, Asian American Pacific Islander, Latinx, veterans, youth, and labor.

After Obama left office, Chavez Rodriguez joined the staff of then-U.S. Senator Kamala Harris of California, serving as California state director. When Harris ran for president, Chavez Rodriguez held a leadership post in her campaign, and then joined the Biden-Harris 2020 campaign as deputy campaign manager.

After Biden’s victory, she was one of a number of advisers with Berkeley connections to join the administration. She served as a senior adviser to the president and as director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs.

A lifetime of commitment, starting in childhood

In practical terms, however, Chavez Rodriguez’s career was directly shaped in her childhood.

Her grandfather came from an impoverished family of farmworkers; he would go on to be a labor organizer of historic importance and global impact.

Her father, Arturo S. Rodríguez, worked 45 years with the United Farm Workers of America, including 25 as the union’s president. Her mother, Linda Chavez Rodriguez, also was a major UFW figure before her death in October 2000.

At the age of 9, Julie Chavez Rodriguez and others in her family were arrested while demonstrating at a New Jersey supermarket. When she was 10, her grandfather went on a 36-day hunger strike to protest the use of pesticides on table grapes, and she joined his action for three days.

‘Social justice is not an abstraction to her’

Shaiken met her in 1998, when he was chair of Berkeley’s Center for Latin American Studies (CLAS). As an undergraduate, she had volunteered to help organize a CLAS conference that would explore economic integration, globalization and the future of U.S. and Latin American relations.

The event featured former California Gov. Jerry Brown, then mayor-elect of Oakland, along with a cadre of rising stars: future Mexican President Vicente Fox, future U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Adolfo Aguilar Zínser, who would serve as Mexico’s ambassador to the United Nations, and Sherrod Brown, who would become a U.S. senator from Ohio.

At the time, and for weeks afterward, Shaiken had no clue about her family background — she wanted to stand on her own, he recalled, and while she was deeply proud of her family, she didn’t mention them initially. Instead, he saw her idealism and her hard work.

“All I knew was that she was Julie Chavez Rodriguez,” he said. “She had a deep concern for other people, including the most marginalized and desperate people. But she was understated and open — she stood out not by being flashy, but by her deep social commitment, her courage, and her values…. She was a visionary.”

Shaiken, now a professor emeritus of geography and education, has stayed in touch with Chavez Rodriguez and followed her career, and he believes that her experience and her networks will be critical assets to Biden. Her idealism is now complemented by the pragmatism of experience, he said. Her knowledge of Latinx culture and politics could be essential in what may be a close contest with former President Donald Trump or another Republican nominee.

“She’ll face countless headwinds and storms — we know that,” Shaiken said. “But she’s a person who’s steady under fire and comes from a background where people did great things under the worst of circumstances.

“Social justice is not an abstraction to her. It is her North Star.”

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Activism

Biden’s Legacy Secured with Record-Setting Black Judicial Appointments

His record surpasses previous efforts by his predecessors. President Jimmy Carter appointed 37 Black judges, including seven Black women. In stark contrast, Donald Trump’s first term resulted in only two Black women appointed out of 234 lifetime judicial nominations. The White House said Biden’s efforts show a broader commitment to racial equity and justice.

Published

5 minutes ago

December 18, 2024

Oakland Post

iStockphoto.

By Stacy M. Brown
WI Senior Writer

President Joe Biden’s commitment to diversifying the federal judiciary has culminated in a historic achievement: appointing 40 Black women to lifetime judgeships, the most of any president in U.S. history.

Biden has appointed 62 Black judges, cementing his presidency as one focused on promoting equity and representation on the federal bench.

The White House said Biden’s efforts show a broader commitment to racial equity and justice.

Meanwhile, Trump has vowed to dismantle key civil rights protections, including the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

“Having the Black woman’s experience on the federal bench is extremely important because there is a different kind of voice that can come from the Black female from the bench,” Delores Jones-Brown, professor emeritus at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, told reporters.

Lena Zwarensteyn of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights told reporters that these district court judges are often the first and sometimes the final arbiters in cases affecting healthcare access, education equity, fair hiring practices, and voting rights.

“Those decisions are often the very final decisions because very few cases actually get heard by the U.S. Supreme Court,” Zwarensteyn explained.

Biden’s nomination of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court further reflects his commitment to judicial diversity. Jackson became the first Black woman to serve on the nation’s highest court.

Patrick McNeil, spokesperson for the Leadership Conference, pointed out that over half of Biden’s Black female judicial appointees have backgrounds as civil rights attorneys and public defenders, experience advocates consider essential for a balanced judiciary.

Meanwhile, Congress remains divided over the expansion of federal judgeships. Legislation to add 66 new judgeships—approved unanimously by the Senate in August—stalled in the GOP-controlled House until after the election. House Republicans proposed distributing the new judgeships over the next decade, giving three administrations a say in appointments. President Biden, however, signaled he would veto the bill if it reached his desk.

Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., argued the delay was a strategic move to benefit Trump’s potential return to office. “Donald Trump has made clear that he intends to expand the power of the presidency and giving him 25 new judges to appoint gives him one more tool at his disposal,” Nadler said.

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A Student-Run Group Provides Critical Support Services to Underserved Residents

Those visiting The Suitcase Clinic can get legal advice, sign up for food assistance, receive housing resources, get medical help, or enjoy a hot, fresh meal. They can also get haircuts and foot washes from the student volunteers. Nilo Golchini, executive director of the clinic, said one of the goals for most of the students working there is helping bridge the gap of trust that exists between many unhoused people and the healthcare and social welfare systems.

Published

59 minutes ago

December 18, 2024

Oakland Post

UC Berkeley Law Students help a clinic visitor with legal advice at their Tuesday night services. The Clinic offers a variety of resources, including medical, to those in the community who have little access to these services. Photo by Magaly Muñoz

Part One

By Magaly Muñoz

Every Tuesday evening, the dining hall of First Presbyterian Church fills up with dozens of people eating, laughing and moving from table to table, receiving much-needed services from UC Berkeley students – just a few blocks away from the university’s campus.

Individuals seeking support services can be found in this multi-stationed room on the south end of the church talking to law students, student case managers, or receiving medical attention in a corner by healthcare professionals.

This weekly event is hosted by Cal students through a volunteer-run program called The Suitcase Clinic.

The clinic, founded in 1989, was intended to offer free resources to underserved communities in Berkeley and surrounding cities. The majority of the clinic’s clientele are unhoused or low-income people looking for extra support.

Those visiting the clinic can get legal advice, sign up for food assistance, receive housing resources, get medical help, or enjoy a hot, fresh meal. They can also get haircuts and foot washes from the student volunteers.

Nilo Golchini, executive director of the clinic, said one of the goals for most of the students working there is helping bridge the gap of trust that exists between many unhoused people and the healthcare and social welfare systems.

During their tenure in the program, many of the students say they become strong advocates for homelessness rights.

Visitors of the Suitcase Clinic can receive haircuts and foot washing by student volunteers every Tuesday evening. Photo by Magaly Muñoz.

“We’re also standing in solidarity with them. So, it’s not saying, ‘I’m going to help you, but I’m also going to stand with you,’” Golchini said.

Student volunteers get extensive training prior to working directly with clients. Those interested have to take a semester-long class to become versed in areas such as outreach, intersectionality, how to interact with unhoused people, how to sign people up for social services. and more.

Volunteers then get to pick from three different clinics: General, Women’s, or Youth and LGBTQ+.

The General Clinic is the most popular among visiting residents, while Women’s and Youth/LQBTQ+ have more specialized services for attendees.

The Women’s Clinic has many of the similar services to General, but also includes nail painting, childcare, and massages.

The Youth and LGBTQ+ Clinic offers a safe space for young people navigating living on the streets, with services that include housing referrals, wellness and recreation classes and employment resources.

Golchini explained that it’s important for them to keep these clinics separate because the different demographics experience poverty and homelessness differently than those who visit the General Clinic.

Suitcase Clinic student workers posing for a photo with a frequent clinic attendee. The Clinic is open to Berkeley unhoused and low-income residents who need medical or legal service, or a hot meal. Photo by Magaly Muñoz.

“We’re able to provide spaces where people can come in and feel safe and not feel like they’re constantly worried that something’s going to happen to them,” she said.

An outreach team also visits encampments every other Saturday in the Berkeley area to provide hygiene kits and encourage people to visit the in-person clinic, if possible.

However, Golchini said engagement has been low for some time now due to a recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court that allows cities to ban and cite people for sleeping on the streets.

She said a lot of their clientele got displaced to other cities over time, making it difficult to stay in contact with the services the Clinic was providing for them.

But that hasn’t slowed down the students at the Clinic, if anything, it has pushed them to do more for the community they serve.

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BWOPA Honors Black Leadership and Legacy at 2024 Ella Hill Hutch Awards Dinner

On Dec. 5, BWOPA held its Annual Ella Hill Hutch Awards Ceremony, at the Fairmont Claremont Hotel in the Oakland/Berkeley Hills. At the event, the group comprised of Black women from various professional backgrounds, honored distinguished local and state leaders whose contributions have shaped civic engagement and advanced critical social issues impacting Black communities.

Published

1 hour ago

December 18, 2024

Oakland Post

L-R: BWOPA State Executive Director LaNiece Jones; State Asm. Mia Bonta; BWOPA 2024 Man of The Year/Urban League SFBA CEO Ken Maxey; BWOPA State President Hon. Dezie Woods-Jones; State Senator Lola Smallwood-Cuevas; Rowena Brown, Oakland Councilmember At-Large, Elect; BWOPA State Regional Director Vashone Huff. Courtesy photo.

By Oakland Post Staff

Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA) is a statewide non-profit advocacy and membership organization committed to solving problems affecting Black Californians.

On Dec. 5, BWOPA held its Annual Ella Hill Hutch Awards Ceremony, at the Fairmont Claremont Hotel in the Oakland/Berkeley Hills.

At the event, the group comprised of Black women from various professional backgrounds, honored distinguished local and state leaders whose contributions have shaped civic engagement and advanced critical social issues impacting Black communities.

The evening was hosted by Dr. Shawna Charles, founder of The Charles Communications Group (CCG) headquartered in Los Angeles. Charles served as mistress of ceremonies.

With a track record of elevating voices and empowering communities, Charles’ leadership and insight brought a certain dynamism to the celebration.

“Each year, this event not only celebrates the enduring legacy of our beloved BWOPA founding member, Ella Hill Hutch, but also reaffirms and amplifies our unwavering commitment to building and sustaining Black political power across California,” said Dezie Woods-Jones, BWOPA founding member and State president.

“Ella Hill Hutch’s trailblazing leadership continues to inspire us as we forge ahead, empowering Black women to lead, advocate, and shape a more equitable future for all,” added Woods-Jones.

This year’s event introduced the DWJ Rising Star Award, honoring young leaders like Solano County Board Supervisors-elect Cassandra James, Danielle Motley-Lewis, Naomi Waters and newly elected State Assemblymember elect Rhodesia Ransom (D-Stockton).

According to organizers, the awardees all exemplify “the next generation of changemakers.”

Other awardees included:

Lifetime Achievement Awardees: Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA-12) and Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson
Man of the Year: Kenneth Maxey, CEO of the Greater SF Bay Area Urban League
President’s Corporate Award: Yvette Radford, Kaiser Permanente
In the Spirit of Ella State and Chapter Awards: Dr. Carolyn Greene, Dr. Marcella K. Smith, Dr. Carolyn Drake, Tinisch Hollins, Jackie Jones, Gloria Burgess Johnson, Tamika L’Ecluse, Ellen Nash, Betty Reid Soskin, and Ay’Anna Moody.

BWOPA also celebrated local champions across its chapters, including leaders in voter education, healthcare, criminal justice reform, and community advocacy.

In a statement, BWOPA said, “Honoring Ella Hill Hutch’s legacy, BWOPA recognizes her pioneering efforts as the first Black woman elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. Her tireless work amplifying underrepresented voices continues to inspire BWOPA’s mission to build Black political power across California.”

“We extend our heartfelt thanks to our members, partners and allies who believe in BWOPA’s vision to invest in building power for Black women’s leadership,” said LaNiece Jones, BWOPA State executive director. “Your support ensures that Black women have a voice at decision-making tables locally, regionally, statewide, and nationally, advancing diversity and equity in leadership spaces.”