News
Five-alarm fire in SOMA-Mission District Impacts Businesses, Artists and Residents
![](https://www.postnewsgroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/05-SF-Firefighter-.jpeg)
Master stream set up. #5thalarm this morning. Original dispatch came in as a “small outside fire” with 1 engine, 1 truck and a Chief. As crews got on scene they quickly realized they were dealing with a large #fire with access issues and a heavy fire load. pic.twitter.com/A8Gtbu1ATL
— San Francisco Firefighters 798 (@SFFFLocal798) July 28, 2020
A five-alarm fire broke out Tuesday, July 27 at 6:30 a.m. at Folsom Street, impacting six commercial buildings and displacing 100 workers.
Lt. Jonathan Baxter, Media Affairs for San Francisco Fire Department (SFFD) said the area bordered the SOMA and Mission districts. SFFD remained on fire watch placing water on “hot spots” so there would be no flare ups. One firefighter was injured, taken to SF General and released.
The Red Cross and City of San Francisco are providing assistance to three displaced residents for housing and more.
Additionally, there was a mattress fire at 140 14th Street Monday, July 26, within a homeless encampment at approximately 11:30 p.m. Fire investigation task force is conducting investigations of both fires.
SFFD will be on the scene for two to three more days. The 100 th block of 14th street remains closed to pedestrian and vehicle traffic throughout the week.
SFFD is working with GlassAll, a glass company, in another location to rearrange for their deliveries.
Six buildings were involved, two completely destroyed including artists and coalition housing. Four buildings were severely damaged and one-to-two of those might have to be demolished.
A pet cat is also missing and no remains have been located.
The cause and origin of the fires are unknown.
We work closely with @SFPD @sfdbi @PGE4Me @SFWater @SF_emergency @SheriffSF @CHPSanFrancisco @RedCrossNorCal and @sfmta_muni in large incidents like this. Coordinating efforts to keep hazards to a minimum. #investinyoursafetynow #yoursffd pic.twitter.com/cr3p8zmHKg
— San Francisco Firefighters 798 (@SFFFLocal798) July 28, 2020
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of June 12-18, 2024
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of June 12-18, 2024
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Antonio Ray Harvey
Sen. Steve Glazer Vows Redo After Journalism Tax Bill Placed on Hold
Sen. Steve Glazer (D-Contra Costa County) shared his thoughts expressed his views about Senate Bill (SB) 1327 at Capitol Weekly’s “Covering California: The Future of Journalism in the Golden State” conference, which was held in Sacramento on May 30.
![Sen. Steve Glazer (D-Contra Costa) was the keynote speaker at Capitol Weekly's Covering California: The Future of Journalism In the Golden State event held in Sacramento on May 30. CBM photo by Antonio Ray Harvey.](https://www.postnewsgroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/sen-steve-glazer-featured-web.jpg)
By Antonio Ray Harvey, California Black Media
Sen. Steve Glazer (D-Contra Costa County) shared his thoughts expressed his views about Senate Bill (SB) 1327 at Capitol Weekly’s “Covering California: The Future of Journalism in the Golden State” conference, which was held in Sacramento on May 30.
During his keynote speech message at the one-day event, Glazer said admitted he couldn’t get the votes he needed to pass the bill SB 1327 that proposes imposing a “mitigation fee” on major digital technology companies to fund journalism jobs.
Despite the challenges, the Senator vows to keep the Legislation alive.
“We have had setbacks, and we have a lot of work to do to fix this, but I certainly am not giving up,” Glazer said at the event near the State Capitol. Glazer is chairperson of the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee.
In addition to Glazer’s address, Capitol Weekly organized a probing conference that examined three of the most pressing issues facing California reporters.
Media experts, publishers, communications specialists, and political reporters assembled to discuss the preservation of fair, balanced, and accurate journalism. The need for media outlets to deliver high-quality news coverage that bolsters government, the assessment of new business models; and coverage of the State Capitol dominated the 5-hour event.
“It is nothing short of tragic I would say to see what is happening to the journalism industry,” said Tim Foster, Capitol Weekly’s Executive Director. “I’ve been in and around journalism since 1995 and what we are seeing today with the closing of the journalism industry is unprecedented in my lifetime.”
Glazer spoke for 45 minutes about the future of democracy and the role journalism plays in it. However, the Legislature’s failure to advance SB 1327 and why he pulled the bill was the main subject.
If SB 1327 should reemerge and be passed as law, fees collected would provide $500 million in employment tax credits to news organizations across California. The Senate Appropriations Committee voted to pass the bill with a 4-2 vote on May 16, but Glazer still needed a pathway for two-thirds of the votes required to make it off the Senate floor.
Glazer cited several reasons for why SB 1327 is facing opposition from digital tech giants like Google, Meta, Amazon, and publishers. These include concerns about increased advertising, the perceived threat of government influence, discrimination against larger publishers, a fear that the mitigation fee could trickle down to smaller news outlets as they expand, and nonprofit newsrooms that don’t pay taxes getting a share.
“Opponents will always sell the ghost in the closet,” Glazers said of entities that oppose the bill. “The news business is facing an existential threat, and they are fighting with each other over who will be the last passenger on the Death Star.”
California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC) vice chair Steven Bradford (D-Inglewood) said on May 16 at the State Capitol that his biggest concern about SB 1327 was whether it would benefit Ethnic Media, including Black media platforms. “They’re usually left and still need more assistance,” Bradford said.
Activism
U.S. Rep. Kamlager-Dove Leads Discussion on Improving Black Student Learning, Test Scores
Kamlager-Dove, who represents a district that covers parts of Los Angeles County, hopes that ideas shared at the event can be incorporated into models that can impact other regions across California, where Black students continue to fall behind their peers of other races and ethnicities.
![Congresswoman Kamlager-Dove (CA-37) moderates a panel including Dr. Kortne Edogun-Ticey, Senior Advisor, U.S. Department of Education during Roundtable on Equity in Education for Los Angeles Unified School District (R to L) beside Kamlager-Dove Dr. Robert Whitman, Educational Transformation Officer, Los Angeles USD; Dr. Kortne Edogun-Ticey, Senior Advisor, U.S. Department of Education; Keith Linton, Founder, Boys to Gentlemen, Dr. Pedro Noguera, Distinguished Professor and Dean, University of Southern California Rossier School of Education and LAUSD student Jonathan McGee. Photo by Lila Brown (CBM).](https://www.postnewsgroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/black-student-learning-featured-web-1.jpg)
By Lila Brown, California Black Media
On April 8, U.S. Congressmember Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-CA-37) moderated a roundtable focused on Los Angeles Unified School District’s (LAUSD) strategies to improve Black student performance in classrooms.
Kamlager-Dove, who represents a district that covers parts of Los Angeles County, hopes that ideas shared at the event can be incorporated into models that can impact other regions across California, where Black students continue to fall behind their peers of other races and ethnicities.
Discussions at the event centered on LAUSD’s Black Student Achievement Plan (BSAP) and other educational initiatives aimed at enhancing learning and boosting test scores.
“The Black Student Achievement Plan is unique in that it takes a community-centered approach to uplifting Black students,” said Kamlager-Dove during the event held at John Muir Middle School in Los Angeles.
“We must implement culturally responsive education in the classroom to challenge our students academically while giving them a sense of purpose,” she continued.
In 2023, nearly 70% of Black children in California fell below a passing mark on the state standardized English Language Arts exam, and only about 20% of those students were performing at grade level based on their scores on the math assessment test.
A variety of public education experts joined Kamlager on the panel, including Dr. Kortne Edogun-Ticey, Senior Advisor, U.S. Department of Education; Dr. Robert Whitman, Educational Transformation Officer at LAUSD; Dr. Pedro Noguera, Professor and Dean at the University of Southern California Rossier School of Education; and Keith Linton, founder of the non-profit Boys to Gentlemen.
Jonathan McGee, a student who sits on the BSAP Student Advisory Council, also spoke during the panel.
The BSAP was approved by the LAUSD Board of Education in February of the 2020-21 school year. Funds have been earmarked to address the longstanding disparities in educational outcomes between Black students and their non-Black peers. Dating back to the landmark case, Brown v. the Board of Education of Topeka, Kan., in which the U.S. Supreme Court declared that segregated schools were unconstitutional, positive outcomes for Black students continue to lag behind district and national averages for their non-Black counterparts.
Edogun-Ticey spoke about broader investments the federal government is making in education that directly impact Black students through The White House Initiative on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence, and Economic Opportunity for Black Americans.
‘This administration did not shy away from the idea that we need resources for support which means billions of dollars in investment for HBCUs,” she explained.
BSAP strategies include partnering with Black families and local community; supporting the implementation of culturally and linguistically responsive and anti-racist practices; offering wrap-around support structures; and highlighting experiences that uplift the contributions of the Black community as motivation and models to develop positive Black student identity. Additionally, the BSAP provides increased staffing to support Black students’ academic and social-emotional needs.
“School districts across the country must push back against attacks on marginalized students by implementing programs like the BSAP, which should serve as a model for future initiatives,” Kamlager said.
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