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MLK Jr. Commemoration to Honor Contra Costa County’s Humanitarians of Year

A 1984 John F. Kennedy High School graduate, Brown may be most known for founding the Soulful Softball Sunday organization in 2015. In October 2023, the County Board of Supervisors honored Brown with a Ceremonial Resolution for his lifetime of service, citing his more than four decades as a professional barber, professional baseball scout, community advocate, journalist, award-winning author and Bay Area hip hop pioneer.

Published

4 months ago

January 11, 2025

Oakland Post

Rodney Alamo Brown. Courtesy photo.

The Richmond Standard

Local community advocate Rodney “Alamo” Brown, founder of the Soulful Softball Sunday organization, will be honored as Adult Humanitarian of the Year at the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors’ 47th Annual Commemoration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

The commemoration event will be held on Tuesday, Jan. 21, at 11 a.m. in the Board of Supervisors Chambers at 1025 Escobar St. in Martinez.

At the event, themed “Celebrating Our Shared Humanity,” Brown will be honored alongside Student Humanitarians of the Year Soha and Imran Sohail Guller of San Ramon Valley High School in Danville.

“No work is insignificant, and we are fortunate to honor a Humanitarian and two Student Humanitarians of the Year, who bring to life Dr. King’s vision through their service to our community,” said Board Chair Supervisor Candace Andersen.

The Jan. 21 MLK Jr. Commemoration will feature Mitchell Hopson as keynote speaker, performances from the Dougherty Valley High School Choir, and Stephen Sharpe, Poet Laureate for the City of Richmond. Rev. Dr. Carole McKindley-Alvarez will give an invocation.

The public can watch the ceremony by visiting www.contracostatv.org. The celebration will also be broadcast live on Contra Costa Television (CCTV) channels, Comcast Cable 27, ATT/U-Verse 99, and Astound 32 and 1027.

To learn more about the Dr. King Ceremony and past ceremonies, visit here.

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Newsom Fights Back as AmeriCorps Shutdown Threatens Vital Services in Black Communities

“When wildfires devastated L.A. earlier this year, it was AmeriCorps members out there helping families recover,” Gov. Newsom said when he announced the lawsuit on April 17. “And now the federal government wants to pull the plug? We’re not having it.”

Published

1 hour ago

April 28, 2025

Oakland Post

California for All College Corps.

By Bo Tefu
California Black Media

Gov. Gavin Newsom is suing the federal government over its decision to dismantle AmeriCorps, a move that puts essential frontline services in Black and Brown communities across California at risk, the Governor’s office said.

From tutoring students and mentoring foster youth to disaster recovery and community rebuilding, AmeriCorps has been a backbone of support for many communities across California.

“When wildfires devastated L.A. earlier this year, it was AmeriCorps members out there helping families recover,” Newsom said when he announced the lawsuit on April 17. “And now the federal government wants to pull the plug? We’re not having it.”

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) under the Trump administration is behind the rollback, which Newsom calls “a middle finger to volunteers.”

Meanwhile, Newsom’s office announced that the state is expanding the California Service Corps, the nation’s largest state-run service program.

AmeriCorps has provided pathways for thousands of young people to gain job experience, give back, and uplift underserved neighborhoods. Last year alone, over 6,000 members across the state logged 4.4 million hours, tutoring more than 73,000 students, planting trees, supporting foster youth, and helping fire-impacted families.

The California Service Corps includes four paid branches: the #CaliforniansForAll College Corps, Youth Service Corps, California Climate Action Corps, and AmeriCorps California. Together, they’re larger than the Peace Corps and are working on everything from academic recovery to climate justice.

“DOGE’s actions aren’t about making government work better. They are about making communities weaker,” said GO-Serve Director Josh Fryday.

“These actions will dismantle vital lifelines in communities across California. AmeriCorps members are out in the field teaching children to read, supporting seniors and helping families recover after disasters. AmeriCorps is not bureaucracy; it’s boots on the ground,” he said.

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Four Bills Focus on Financial Compensation for Descendants of Enslaved People

This week, CBM examines four more bills in the package — each offering ways for Black Californians to receive restitution for past injustices — from housing assistance and reclamation of loss property to fairer pay and the establishment of a state agency charged with determining eligibility for reparations.

Published

2 hours ago

April 28, 2025

Oakland Post

iStock.

Edward Henderson
California Black Media

Last week, California Black Media (CBM) provided an update on four bills in the California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC) 2025 Road to Repair package.

The 16 bills in the Black Caucus’s 2025 “Road to Repair” package focus on “repairing the generational harms caused by the cruel treatment of African American slaves in the United States and decades of systemic deprivation and injustice inflicted upon Black Californians,” said the CLBC in a release.

This week, CBM examines four more bills in the package — each offering ways for Black Californians to receive restitution for past injustices — from housing assistance and reclamation of lost property to fairer pay and the establishment of a state agency charged with determining eligibility for reparations.

Here are summaries of these bills, information about their authors, and updates on how far each one has advanced in the legislative process.

Assembly Bill (AB) 57

AB 57, introduced by Assemblymember Tina McKinnor (D-Inglewood), would require that at least 10% of the monies in the state’s home purchase assistance fund be made available to applicants who meet the requirements for a loan under the home purchase assistance program and are descendants of formerly enslaved people.

The Assembly Judiciary Committee is currently reviewing the legislation.

Assembly Bill (AB) 62

AB 62, also introduced by McKinnor, would require the Office of Legal Affairs to review, investigate, and make specific determinations regarding applications from people who claim they are the dispossessed owners of property seized from them because of racially motivated eminent domain. The bill would define “racially motivated eminent domain” to mean when the state acquires private property for public use and does not provide just compensation to the owner, due in whole or in part, to the owner’s race.

AB 62 is currently under review in the Judiciary Committee.

Senate Bill (SB) 464

SB 464, introduced by Sen. Lola Smallwood-Cuevas (D-Los Angeles), aims to strengthen the existing civil rights laws in California concerning employer pay data reporting. The bill mandates that private employers with 100 or more employees submit annual pay data reports to the Civil Rights Department. These reports must include detailed demographic information — including race, ethnicity, sex, and sexual orientation — pertaining to their workforce distribution and compensation across different job categories. Furthermore, beginning in 2027, public employers will also be required to comply with these reporting requirements.

The Senate Committee on Labor, Public Employment, and Rules is currently reviewing SB 464. A hearing is expected to be held on April 23.

Senate Bill (SB) 518

SB 518, introduced by Sen. Akilah Weber Pierson (D-San Diego), establishes the Bureau for Descendants of American Slavery to address and remedy the lasting harms of slavery and the Jim Crow laws suffered by Black Californians.

SB 518 is under review in the Senate Judiciary Committee. A hearing is expected to be held on April 22.

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Faces Around the Bay: Author Karen Lewis Took the ‘Detour to Straight Street’

“My life has been a roller-coaster with an unlimited ride wristband! I was raised in Berkeley during the time of Ron Dellums, the Black Panthers, and People’s Park. I was a Hippie kid, my Auntie cut off all our hair so we could wear the natural styles like her and Angela Davis.

Published

3 hours ago

April 28, 2025

Oakland Post

Karen Lewis. Courtesy photo.

By Barbara Fluhrer

I met Karen Lewis on a park bench in Berkeley. She wrote her story on the spot.

I got married young, then ended up getting divorced, raising two boys into men. After my divorce, I had a stroke that left me blind and paralyzed. I was homeless, lost in a fog with blurred vision.

Jesus healed me! I now have two beautiful grandkids. At 61, this age and this stage, I am finally free indeed. Our Lord Jesus Christ saved my soul. I now know how to be still. I lay at his feet. I surrender and just rest. My life and every step on my path have already been ordered. So, I have learned in this life…it’s nice to be nice. No stressing, just blessings. Pray for the best and deal with the rest.

Nobody is perfect, so forgive quickly and love easily!”

Lewis’ book “Detour to Straight Street” is available on Amazon.