California Black Media

Opinion: Checkmate! In High Stakes Political Game, Maxine Waters Is Master Queen

In a few weeks at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, the world will be watching history unfold as Kamala Harris steps into her own as Standard Bearer of the Party. Somewhere amid all of the blowing horns, balloons and wacky outfits will be California’s own political powerbroker and “Master Queen” Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA-43), arguably the most powerful Black elected official in America right now. For more than 40 years — 33 of them serving in the United States House of Representatives — “Auntie Maxine” has proved her might and mettle.

Published

2 months ago

August 8, 2024

Oakland Post

U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA-43). File photo.

By Kenneth Miller

Special to California Black Media Partners

In a few weeks at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, the world will be watching history unfold as Kamala Harris steps into her own as Standard Bearer of the Party.

Somewhere amid all of the blowing horns, balloons and wacky outfits will be California’s own political powerbroker and “Master Queen” Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA-43), arguably the most powerful Black elected official in America right now.

For more than 40 years — 33 of them serving in the United States House of Representatives — “Auntie Maxine” has proved her might and mettle.

She has successfully advocated for $10 billion in funding for Section 8 housing and secured $50 million in funding for Youth Fair Chance, $400 million for Minority HIV/AIDS Funding and $6 billion for Neighborhood Stabilization.

She is always at the forefront fighting for what is best for the communities she serves.

In our divided political universe today, many of us are constantly presented with the argument that our system of governance is fixed and failing us, and our elected officials are out of touch and, therefore, there is no reason to vote. Buying into this notion plays into the hands of powerful political interests, some of whom are the philosophical heirs of those who denied Blacks voting rights to begin with.

That is why leadership is paramount – real leadership, trusted, courageous and reliable, that is demonstrated by the actions and deeds of those we elect to serve.

Such was the case when Waters learned California Gov. Gavin Newsom released his state budget without any funding for the Martin Luther King Community Hospital (MLKCH) in South Los Angeles which was on the brink of closing yet again.

Fuming, Waters confronted Newsom at an event about the MLKCH dilemma. In a letter sent to Newsom, Waters appealed; “I call on you as the Governor of the Great State of California to reverse your decision of 2022 and immediately support legislation that will adjust MLKCH’s supplemental funding methodology to include outpatient services, including the approximately 125,000 ED services provided by the hospital every year. This will cost an estimated $25 million per year. More importantly, it will save countless lives.”

Newsom had previously vetoed legislation authored by Assemblymember Mike Gipson (D-Carson), Assembly Bill (AB) 2426, which aimed to expand MLKCH’s supplemental funding in order to cover hospital-based outpatient services provided in the emergency department.

The bill provided MLKCH approximately $25-$30 million in additional funds annually.

Not long after Waters sent a letter to Newsom on June 14, Newsom reversed course and signed off the legislation to fund MLKCH.

It was a ‘gangsta’ move as we say in the ’hood, and copied on the letter was a list of critical community stakeholders which included pastors, elected officials and civil rights leaders.

“This unique hospital serves some of the poorest and sickest people in the State of California and perhaps the entire country. Our community depends on MLKCH, and we cannot allow it to close,” Waters wrote.

We can always count on Waters to be in the middle of the fight. She’s like Mike Tyson in his heyday, always menacing and moving towards the opponent intent on securing victory by any means necessary.

About the Author

Ken Miller is publisher of the South Bay Black Journal.

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California Black Media

Study: UC 4-Year Grad Rate Doubles That of CSU

Graduation rates at the University of California have increased by 10 points over the last ten years putting the college system on track to achieve its 2030 graduation goals, according to a report on college completion in the state released by the Public Policy Institute of California. Recent data indicated that the UC system has a graduation rate of 73% for four-year students and a six-year graduation rate of 86%, according to the institution’s data. The system will increase the four-year graduation rate to 76% and the six-year rate to 90% by 2030. However, students at California State University are lagging behind with a graduation rate of 36% for four-year students and a 62% for six-year graduation rate. The graduation rates for students in the UC system are more than double that of students at CSU. Consequently, it is unlikely that CSU will meet its graduation goal of graduating 40% of four-year students and 70% of six-year students by 2025.

Published

1 week ago

October 1, 2024

Oakland Post

iStock Photo

By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

Recent data indicated that the UC system has a graduation rate of 73% for four-year students and a six-year graduation rate of 86%, according to the institution’s data. The system will increase the four-year graduation rate to 76% and the six-year rate to 90% by 2030.

However, students at California State University are lagging behind with a graduation rate of 36% for four-year students and a 62% for six-year graduation rate. The graduation rates for students in the UC system are more than double that of students at CSU. Consequently, it is unlikely that CSU will meet its graduation goal of graduating 40% of four-year students and 70% of six-year students by 2025.

The report revealed that nonprofit institutions have relatively high completion rates compared to a high number of for-profit and private colleges that have lower graduation rates.

Researchers stated that longstanding equity gaps in college completion persist indicating that Black and Latino students graduate at lower rates of 52% and 64% The data is varied in comparison to White and Asian students who graduate at higher rates of 75% and 83%, respectively.

Nonetheless, the report showed that Black students in the UC system graduated at a rate of 78% in four years, nearly double the graduation number of Black students in the CSU system with a rate of 47 percent.

“Campus and regional disparities are stark,” the report stated regarding the varying graduation rates at the different college locations.

“Despite progress, equity gaps at UC remain nearly as large as they were in 2018. At CSU, gaps have widened over time; however, many campuses have made progress in closing them,” the report stated about the equity gaps in the college systems.

The state has set a goal to achieve a graduation rate of 70% by 2030.

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Bay Area

State of Black California: Oakland Tour Stop Rescheduled

The 2024 State of Black California Tour stop in Oakland has been rescheduled from Sept. 28 to Dec. 13, at the Oakland Museum of California. Registration for the event is closed after reaching maximum capacity, according to CBBF’s website.   Registration for the Oct. 5 tour stop in Moreno Valley is closed as well. Al Sharpton will be a guest speaker at that event.

Published

1 week ago

October 1, 2024

Oakland Post

At the State of Black California event in Sacramento on Sept. 14. From left to right: Asm. Corey Jackson (D-Moreno Valley), Asm. Chris Holden (D-Sacramento) and Asm. Mia Bonta (Oakland).

By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

The 2024 State of Black California Tour stop in Oakland has been rescheduled from Sept. 28 to Dec. 13, at the Oakland Museum of California. Registration for the event is closed after reaching maximum capacity, according to CBBF’s website.

Registration for the Oct. 5 tour stop in Moreno Valley is closed as well. Al Sharpton will be a guest speaker at that event.

The series, co-hosted by the California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC), has made stops in San Diego, Santa Barbara, Fresno, and Sacramento.

The State of Black California series creates space for Black Californians to engage the public and policymakers on the issues that impact the Black community. It will also provide conversations about the status of reparations legislation.

The CBFF is a five-year, $100 million measure to ensure that Black power-building and movement-based organizations have the sustainable investments and effective resources needed to remove systemic and institutional racism. CBFF was the benefactor of $3.5 million in state funds last year, distributed to various Black networks in the state.

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California Black Media

Sen. Laphonza Butler Helps Secure Nomination of Central California Federal Judge Michelle Williams Court

Last week, U.S. Sen. Laphonza Butler (D-Calif.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, helped to secure the nomination of Judge Michelle Williams Court as Judge for the Central District of California with a vote of 49-44. In her new role, Court became the third Black woman and fifth in the court’s history to serve as an Article III Judge in the state’s Central District. Since 2012, Court worked for the Superior Court of California in Los Angeles County.

Published

1 week ago

October 1, 2024

Oakland Post

Judge Michelle Williams Court. File photo.

By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

In her new role, Court became the third Black woman and fifth in the court’s history to serve as an Article III Judge in the state’s Central District.

Since 2012, Court worked for the Superior Court of California in Los Angeles County.

In 2023, she was a supervising judge in the court’s civil division. Before being a judge, she worked as an attorney, then later became the vice president and general counsel at Bet Tzedek Legal Services, a nonprofit law firm specializing in human rights and poverty justice.

Court dedicated her career as a lawyer to civil rights and social development. She led and contributed to several projects at the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development and the American Civil Liberties Union in Southern California. The judge earned her Juris Doctor in 1993 from the Loyola Law School at the Loyola Marymount University, and she received her bachelor’s in 1988 from Pomona College.

“The Central District of California serves roughly seventeen million people, making it the largest federal district by population in the entire United States. The judges who serve these Californians are currently facing an unprecedented number of filings, making the need to fill the court’s vacancies all that more urgent. It is commonly said that ‘justice delayed is justice denied,’ and at this moment the people of California’s Central District are indeed being denied justice as a direct result of these judicial vacancies,” said Butler in her statement on the Senate Floor urging her colleagues to approve Court’s nomination.

Butler also praised Court’s commitment to justice and track record of serving the state of California.

“Her nomination is an important step towards building trust in our legal system by ensuring that our federal courts reflect and represent the diversity of the people it serves,” he said regarding Judge Court’s career serving in the state’s justice system.