California Black Media

Opinion: California Ethnic Media Celebrates Its Purpose — And People

Are ethnic media outlets like the Oakland Post simply providing information? Or do they represent a de facto social justice movement in California? Those were the existential questions posed when hundreds of ethnic media journalists and publishers from around the state gathered last week in Sacramento. At the very least, we all need help.

Published

2 years ago

September 11, 2024

Oakland Post

(Left to Right) This column’s author, Emil Guillermo; Sandy Close, founder of Ethnic Media Services; Regina Brown Wilson, Executive Director of California Black Media; and Pamela Anchang, Editor of Chief of Immigrant Magazine at the Ethnic Media Awards in Sacramento. Photo Courtesy of EMS.

By Emil Guillermo

At the very least, we all need help.

To that end, Regina Brown Wilson, Executive Director of California Black Media (CBM), the event’s co-sponsor, closed out the Ethnic Media Expo and Awards with reassurances.

“We’re working and fighting to make sure you have the resources you need,” Brown Wilson said to member organizations including the Oakland Post.

The conference provided access to state leaders like Attorney General Rob Bonta, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, and State Treasurer Fiona Ma.

Still, the conference was about more than access, said co-producer Sandy Close of Ethnic Media News services, who stood next to Brown Wilson. Close’s group brought in attendees from Asian, Latino, LGBTQ, Native American media.

“We will support each other,” Close said. “We may have conflicts, but we’ll never be able to call ourselves a coalition without events like this conference.”

It’s not easy. I’ve known Close since the 1990s’ when she asked me to host the first awards program recognizing the best in California’s ethnic media.

More than 30 years later, even the White ethnic media is having problems staying profitable and relevant. That makes coalition-building among the mom-and-pop ethnic new media outlets more than a strategy, but a matter of survival.

If there’s a way to leverage our audiences into a real “movement” it may be in fighting hate.

One conference session discussed the “StopAAPIHate” campaign, how it was funded with more than $250 million for three years, but how its funding runs out in 2026. After the pandemic, the instances of Asian hate have decreased. From a peak in 2021, case numbers decreased by 43% in 2022.

NO JUSTICE?

In California, home to the largest AAPI population in the nation, 1,970 hate crimes were reported in 2023. Only 5 went to trial, according to data from the California Attorney General’s office. In 2021, at the peak of the crimes against Asian, just one case went to trial, according to a story by Ethnic Media Services.

We can do one thing right: make people aware through ethnic media and community services. But now with no permanent funding even that’s endangered, including the hotline available with care coordinators in 200 languages at 833.8NO.HATE, or 833.866.4283.

Andy Wong of Chinese for Affirmative Action in San Francisco, a leader in organizing and gathering the funding for “StopAAPIHate, mentioned during a panel that Blacks are the No. 1 group victimized by hate. That fact almost stopped everyone cold.

“We know that the African American community is subject to more hate than any other community,” said Wong. “Why are we not animating and mobilizing and bringing folks together to champion that?”

One Black publisher, Wallace J. Allen IV, of the West Side Story newspaper in San Bernadino agreed.

“We need to do it together,” said Allen.

About the Author

Emil Guillermo is a journalist and commentator. See him on YouTube.com/@emilamok1 Contact: www.amok.com

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On the Frontlines of Hate: NAACP Links Victims to Critical Support

The NAACP CA/HI has a long and well-established record of supporting victims of discrimination and hate crimes — providing critical referrals and, when necessary, direct assistance through legal advocacy and other forms of support. Beyond responding to incidents, the organization continues to advocate on broader civil rights issues, including voting rights and legal protections. It has also worked to counter efforts at the state and federal levels that could weaken the voting power of communities of color.

Published

2 weeks ago

May 1, 2026

Oakland Post

NAACP members at a recent advocacy day in Sacramento urging lawmakers to protect voting rights. Photo courtesy of California Black Media.

By Joe Kocurek
California Black Media

The California/Hawaii State Conference of the NAACP (CA/HI NAACP) has expanded its efforts to respond to rising hate incidents and civil rights complaints across California, supported in part by funding from California’s Stop the Hate Program

Through that grant, NAACP CA/HI has strengthened its ability to connect individuals experiencing hate or discrimination with critical resources. This includes referring those who file complaints to the CA vs Hate hotline, a statewide, non-emergency hate crime and incident reporting hotline and online portal created to help counter a more than 50% increase in reported hate crimes in California between 2020 and 2024. The system helps ensure incidents are documented, and victims are guided toward appropriate support.

LaJuana Bivens says the work of NAACP is as urgent as ever. Photo by Regina Wilson, California Black Media.

LaJuana Bivens, who has served in a number of roles within the NAACP, said California has seen an increase in civil rights violations and hate-related incidents.

“We have 52 branches, and they are constantly receiving complaints,” she said. “So, without the Stop the Hate, we would not be able to refer those cases up to attorneys at the state level. A lot of the people would not have had an opportunity to be heard.”

Carmen-Nicole Cox helps survivors of hate with their legal options. Photo courtesy of Carmen-Nicole Cox.

Carmen-Nicole Cox, an attorney who works with NAACP CA/HI – as a part of California’s Stop the Hate Program – provides legal consultation to victims of hate incidents and discrimination through her legal practice, the Cox Firm for Law and Policy.

She said the complaints she receives span a wide range of issues.

“People are having home builders and landlords refusing to provide repairs, a student was denied promotion in an academic program, and targeted scrutiny at work,” she said. “It’s typically employment; it’s housing; it’s education.

“We’ll meet and they’ll share their experiences,” she said. “And then I make assessments about possible legal claims.”

According to the California Civil Rights Department (CRD), nearly 1,200 reports of hate against minority groups were submitted in 2024 through the CA vs Hate hotline and online portal for non-emergency incidents.

While the California/Hawaii State Conference of the NAACP, which has tens of thousands of members, does not directly investigate hate incidents or crimes, it plays a key role in connecting victims to the state’s reporting systems and support services.

Beyond responding to incidents, the organization continues to advocate on broader civil rights issues, including voting rights and legal protections. It has also worked to counter efforts at the state and federal levels that could weaken the voting power of communities of color.

Bivens recently traveled to Sacramento to speak with state lawmakers about voting rights during an advocacy day event hosted by the organization.

“It’s just so hard for communities of color to be up to date because of all of the confusing information coming from the federal level,” she said. “I love our great state of California because here it is possible to vote by mail and to vote early.

“And I’m seeing that trying to be eroded. So, I’m here to urge continued support for vote by mail and early voting.”

When Texas moved to redraw congressional districts in ways critics said would dilute minority voting strength, NAACP CA/HI supported the passage of Proposition 50 in California. The organization also intervened in United States v. Shirley Weber, where federal officials sought access to unredacted California voter records, including Social Security numbers, raising concerns about misuse and voter intimidation.

Cultivating the advocacy and leaderships of young people is central to NAACP’s mission to fight racism and dismantle inequality. Photo courtesy of California Black Media.

A federal district court dismissed that case in January 2026.

The organization’s current work builds on a long history of civil rights advocacy. Today, Bivens says, the organization’s mission remains as urgent as ever.

“We are the oldest, boldest, most feared Civil Rights organization,” Bivens said. “What we do every day is fight for better housing, education, economic development and political inclusion. We take it on because there are just so many people who need that support.

“You would be amazed that our phones ring every single day.”

Get Support After Hate:

California vs Hate is a non-emergency, multilingual hotline and online portal offering confidential support for hate crimes and incidents. Victims and witnesses can get help anonymously by calling 833-8-NO-HATE (833-866-4283), Monday to Friday, 9 a.m.–6 p.m. PT, or online at any time. Anonymous. Confidential. No Police. No ICE.

This story was produced in partnership with CA vs Hate. Join them for the first-ever CA Civil Rights Summit on May 11. More information at www.cavshate.org/summit.

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