Government

Rep. Underwood to Black Nurses: Go into Politics

WASHINGTON INFORMER — Freshman Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-Ill.) told a receptive audience of the nation’s leading African-American nursing association that they should seriously consider entering the political realm.

Published

5 years ago

February 20, 2019

Oakland Post

By James Wright

Freshman Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-Ill.) told a receptive audience of the nation’s leading African-American nursing association that they should seriously consider entering the political realm.

“Please run for office,” Underwood said to the attendees of the 31st National Black Nurses Association Day on Capitol Hill at the Washington Court Hotel in Northwest on Feb. 7. “Our country needs you.”

Underwood, a registered nurse, spoke to the 90 participants of the one-day event during its morning session. The representative spoke strongly about the need for African American nurses voices to be heard in the country’s political dialogue.

“Capitol Hill needs to hear from you,” Underwood said. “We as nurses are impacted by Hill actions and we are not a part of the conversation. Throughout the history of the Congress, there have been less than 10 nurses to serve and we need more. We have to be at the table.”

The National Black Nurses Association (NBNA), founded in 1971, serves as the representative for 200,000 African-American nursing professionals, students and retirees from the U.S., the Caribbean and Africa with 90 chartered chapters in 35 states. Blacks make up 9.9 percent of all nurses, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

Working under the theme “Addressing the Epidemic of Health Inequity: The NBNA Call for Action,” the participants listened to speakers on health and public policy issues in the morning and spent part of the afternoon on Capitol Hill meeting with representatives and senators and their legislative staffs.

During the visits, the participants urged their lawmakers to support their areas of concern: passing the Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2018 sponsored by Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) that would correct deficiencies in data collecting and reporting, pushing for health care worker diversity and support for mental health initiatives; working to eliminate maternal mortality; educating and advocating on climate change and environmental justice; fighting the epidemic of gun violence and combating the opioid crisis.

While most met with staff members, some managed to get face time with their representatives on the Hill. Participants from New York talked with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D) and those from Houston had a dialogue with Rep. Al Green (D-Texas).

Afterward, the participants spoke of their experiences with their lawmakers.

Underwood, the youngest African-American woman elected to the Congress, said that she and Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas) are the only Black nurses on the Hill.

“That’s not enough,” she said.

Underwood encouraged the event participants to know their local public officials and seek appointment to county and state nursing boards. She also said the participants should take a “leap of faith” and intern for a member of Congress.

“I know that will be a sacrifice leaving where you live and coming here to Washington,” Underwood said. “However, you will learn a lot about the legislative process and be able to be an effective advocate for nursing and your community.”

Dr. Greg Margolis, director of health policy fellowships and leadership programs for the National Academy of Medicine in the District, spoke about the Robert W. Johnson Health Policy Fellows program and noted that Dr. Sheldon Fields, a founding president of the greater New York City chapter of the NBNA, made history as the first male registered nurse to participate in the program.

“Resources do not go to the just, but to the organized,” Margolis said. “Advocacy is not an event it is a campaign. If you want things to get done on your behalf, it’s not just a once-a-year event visiting the Hill. … It should be viewed as part of a long-term campaign.”

This article originally appeared in the Washington Informer.

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Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

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5 days ago

April 26, 2024

Oakland Post

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Alameda County

DA Pamela Price Stands by Mom Who Lost Son to Gun Violence in Oakland

Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018.

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1 week ago

April 22, 2024

Oakland Post

District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones

Publisher’s note: Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018. The photo was too small for readers to see where the women were and what they were doing. Here we show Price and Jones as they complete a walk in memory of Scott. For more information and to contribute, please contact Carol Jones at 510-978-5517 at morefoundation.help@gmail.com. Courtesy photo.

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Bay Area

MAYOR BREED ANNOUNCES $53 MILLION FEDERAL GRANT FOR SAN FRANCISCO’S HOMELESS PROGRAMS

San Francisco, CA – Mayor London N. Breed today announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded the city a $53.7 million grant to support efforts to renew and expand critical services and housing for people experiencing homelessness in San Francisco.

Published

2 weeks ago

April 20, 2024

Oakland Post

Mayor London Breed

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Wednesday, January 31, 2024

Contact: Mayor’s Office of Communications, mayorspressoffice@sfgov.org

***PRESS RELEASE***

MAYOR BREED ANNOUNCES $53 MILLION FEDERAL GRANT FOR SAN FRANCISCO’S HOMELESS PROGRAMS

HUD’s Continuum of Care grant will support the City’s range of critical services and programs, including permanent supportive housing, rapid re-housing, and improved access to housing for survivors of domestic violence

San Francisco, CA – Mayor London N. Breed today announced that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded the city a $53.7 million grant to support efforts to renew and expand critical services and housing for people experiencing homelessness in San Francisco.

HUD’s Continuum of Care (CoC) program is designed to support local programs with the goal of ending homelessness for individuals, families, and Transitional Age Youth.

This funding supports the city’s ongoing efforts that have helped more than 15,000 people exit homelessness since 2018 through City programs including direct housing placements and relocation assistance. During that time San Francisco has also increased housing slots by 50%. San Francisco has the most permanent supportive housing of any county in the Bay Area, and the second most slots per capita than any city in the country.

“In San Francisco, we have worked aggressively to increase housing, shelter, and services for people experiencing homelessness, and we are building on these efforts every day,” said Mayor London Breed. “Every day our encampment outreach workers are going out to bring people indoors and our City workers are connecting people to housing and shelter. This support from the federal government is critical and will allow us to serve people in need and address encampments in our neighborhoods.”

The funding towards supporting the renewal projects in San Francisco include financial support for a mix of permanent supportive housing, rapid re-housing, and transitional housing projects. In addition, the CoC award will support Coordinated Entry projects to centralize the City’s various efforts to address homelessness. This includes $2.1 million in funding for the Coordinated Entry system to improve access to housing for youth and survivors of domestic violence.

“This is a good day for San Francisco,” said Shireen McSpadden, executive director of the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing. “HUD’s Continuum of Care funding provides vital resources to a diversity of programs and projects that have helped people to stabilize in our community. This funding is a testament to our work and the work of our nonprofit partners.”

The 2024 Continuum of Care Renewal Awards Include:

$42.2 million for 29 renewal PSH projects that serve chronically homeless, veterans, and youth
$318,000 for one new PSH project, which will provide 98 affordable homes for low-income seniors in the Richmond District
$445,00 for one Transitional Housing (TH) project serving youth
$6.4 million dedicated to four Rapid Rehousing (RRH) projects that serve families, youth, and survivors of domestic violence
$750,00 for two Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) projects
$2.1 million for three Coordinated Entry projects that serve families, youth, chronically homeless, and survivors of domestic violence

In addition, the 2023 CoC Planning Grant, now increased to $1,500,000 from $1,250,000, was also approved. Planning grants are submitted non-competitively and may be used to carry out the duties of operating a CoC, such as system evaluation and planning, monitoring, project and system performance improvement, providing trainings, partner collaborations, and conducting the PIT Count.

“We are very appreciative of HUD’s support in fulfilling our funding request for these critically important projects for San Francisco that help so many people trying to exit homelessness,” said Del Seymour, co-chair of the Local Homeless Coordinating Board. “This funding will make a real difference to people seeking services and support in their journey out of homelessness.”

In comparison to last year’s competition, this represents a $770,000 increase in funding, due to a new PSH project that was funded, an increase in some unit type Fair Market Rents (FMRs) and the larger CoC Planning Grant. In a year where more projects had to compete nationally against other communities, this represents a significant increase.

Nationally, HUD awarded nearly $3.16 billion for over 7,000 local homeless housing and service programs including new projects and renewals across the United States.