Antonio‌ ‌Ray‌ ‌Harvey‌

Reparations Task Force to Recommend “Genealogy Branch” to Prove Eligibility

The California Task Force to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans is recommending that the State Legislature fund a governmental department dedicated to assisting reparations applicants prove their ancestry to enslaved people in the United States. The task force’s proposal to establish a “genealogy branch” within the proposed California American Freedmen Affairs Agency (CAFAA) will be included in the task force’s final report, which is scheduled to be submitted to the Legislature by the end of June 2023.

Published

3 years ago

May 9, 2023

Oakland Post

Rev. Tony Pierce CEO of Oakland’s Black Wall Street Project addresses the California Reparations Task Force in Sacramento, Calif., on March 29, 2023. The task force will ask lawmakers to institute a genealogy branch to certify individuals' ancestral claims for reparations. CBM photo by Antonio Ray Harvey.

By Antonio Ray Harvey California Black Media

The task force’s proposal to establish a “genealogy branch” within the proposed California American Freedmen Affairs Agency (CAFAA) will be included in the task force’s final report, which is scheduled to be submitted to the Legislature by the end of June 2023. The branch would provide access to expert genealogical research to confirm reparations eligibility for an estimated 2.5 million Black Americans in California who are likely to seek restitution.

“The legislation that created the California Reparations Task Force requires the body to recommend reparations proposals that provide special consideration for descendants of slaves,” task force chairperson Kamilah V. Moore told California Black Media on April 10. “Thus, eligibility for Californians should they qualify for reparations through the proposed California American Freedmen Affairs Agency is of utmost importance. The agency will be positioned to provide perpetual special consideration to this unique and special group, through direct reparatory justice services and oversight of existing agencies.”

The task force will recommend that the CAFAA be headquartered in Sacramento and have satellite offices all around the state. California is in line to become the first state in the United States to provide Black Americans reparations, or restitution for slavery and other state-sanctioned discrimination or exclusion.

As the determining factor for compensation, the task force narrowly decided in March 2022 that lineage, not race, will determine who will be eligible for reparations to align with Proposition 209, state law prohibiting the consideration of race in public policy decisions or determinations.

During that March 2022 meeting, the task force listened to the perspectives of 11 genealogy experts who offered insights on qualification for reparations before voting 5-4 in favor of eligibility.

One of the experts, Dr. Evelyn McDowell, an Associate Professor and Accounting Department Chair at Rider

University in New Jersey, is a member and president of the Sons and Daughters of the United States Middle Passage (SDUSMP), a society that works to preserve the memory and history of slavery.

The 10-year-old organization, McDowell said, has successfully helped its members trace their lineage through a mix of research and analysis of the U.S Census, birth and death certificates, and state laws that tracked the enslaved.

“My purpose here is to tell the [task force] that it is absolutely possible to trace one’s lineage to individuals who were enslaved in the United States,” McDowell said. “For the vast majority of African Americans, it is relatively easy.”

Dr. Hollis Gentry, a genealogy specialist at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture Library, shared personal experiences of tracing her ancestry to slavery. She used the Freedmen’s Bureau Records, national archives, and records from Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR).

Gentry suggested that an agency should be established to manage the eligibility process. It should be connected to state archives and offices of vital records to facilitate access to records that would assist reparations applicants.

Other genealogists who testified pointed to the lack of access to historical records and the difficulties created when enslaved families were separated after members were sold, traded, and auctioned.

Kellie Farrish, a genealogist with over 15 years of experience in Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) analysis and lineage tracing using DNA, provided instructions for how one might want to do genealogy research to locate “enslaved ancestors using the completely free Familysearch.com website.”

Farrish, the lead genealogist for the non-profit Reparation Generation, noted three criteria for determining potential reparations applicants’ lineage: ancestors born in the Deep South states prior to 1865, ancestors living in the U.S. prior to the 1900s, and ancestors living in the Deep South states prior to the Great Migration of the 1940s.

“First, we must define what it means to be African American. For the sake of this discussion, African Americans are those involuntarily brough to the United States for the purpose of being enslaved,” Farrish told the task force. “Using genealogy to prove descendancy from this group would involve tracing one’s lineage back to either a person enslaved in this system or a time when there was little to no presence of legal voluntary immigration from African or Caribbean countries.”

In August 2022, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill (SB) 189, legislation that would facilitate processing lineage-based reparations claims using state data. SB 189 authorizes the State Controller’s Office and the Department of Human Resources to disaggregate Black employee demographic data in an effort to identify who has immigrant origins and who descends from enslaved people in the United States.

SB 189 was authored by the Coalition for a Just and Equitable California (CJEC) and Assemblymember Chris Holden (D-Pasadena). CJEC is a statewide coalition of organizations, associations and community members united for Reparations for Black U.S Slavery Descendants.

SB 189 “feels like a generational step forward for our people, for the state, and for the country,” Coalition for a Just and Equitable California (CJEC) lead organizer Chris Lodgson said after Newsom signed the bill. “We are a specific group of people, and we need and deserve to be recognized as such, for reparations and for everything else we are owed.

The task force will hold its next meeting May 6 in Oakland at Lisser Hall, which is located at 500 MacArthur Boulevard, Mills College at Northeastern University. It will begin at 9 a.m. PT.

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Black Caucus Members Join Legislative Democrats to Condemn Fatal Shootings by Federal Agents

Lawmakers expressed concern and outrage over the killings of Alex Pretti, a Veterans Affairs ICU nurse, and Renee Nicole Good, a poet, writer, and mother of three. Sen. Laura Richardson (D–San Pedro) spoke on behalf of the CLBC, criticizing federal immigration enforcement practices and calling for accountability.

Published

3 months ago

February 10, 2026

Oakland Post

Sen. Laura Richardson (D San Pedro) spoke on behalf of the California Legislative Black Caucus at a Jan. 26 news conference condemning the fatal shooting of Minneapolis nurse Alex Pretti and other civilians by federal immigration agents, including U.S. Customs and Border Protection and ICE, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Screenshot)

By Antonio Ray Harvey, California Black Media

Led by Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas (D–Salinas) and Senate President Pro Tem Monique Limón (D–Santa Barbara), California Democratic lawmakers, including members of the California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC), held a news conference in Sacramento on Jan. 26 to address recent fatal shootings of civilians by federal immigration agents in Minnesota and California.

Lawmakers expressed concern and outrage over the killings of Alex Pretti, a Veterans Affairs ICU nurse, and Renee Nicole Good, a poet, writer, and mother of three.

Sen. Laura Richardson (D–San Pedro) spoke on behalf of the CLBC, criticizing federal immigration enforcement practices and calling for accountability.

Richardson, who said she was previously married to a police officer, argued that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Border Patrol agents are not “making sure lawful activity is occurring.” She invoked the words of civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to condemn what she described as public silence in the face of injustice.

“We are Californians. We are Americans, and we will not be silent. We will be here every time, every day, until this stops,” Richardson said.

Assemblymember Mark González (D–Los Angeles) recalled the names of people who were allegedly shot in January during enforcement operations involving ICE or U.S. Border Patrol agents.

On New Year’s Eve, Keith Porter Jr., 43, was allegedly shot and killed by an off-duty ICE agent in Northridge, Los Angeles. Authorities said the confrontation occurred outside an apartment complex after the agent alleged Porter fired celebratory gunshots into the air.

“What’s been happening there is not isolated. It’s part of a dangerous pattern of federal power turning inward on the people it claims to serve,” González said.

Following the news conference, Democratic lawmakers announced a slate of legislative proposals to increase oversight and limit state law enforcement’s involvement in federal immigration enforcement.

During the briefing, Rivas described the fatal incidents as an “assault on the American right to life” and characterized federal agents’ actions as a form of “out-of-control violence.”

On Jan. 6, Assemblymember Isaac Bryan (D–Ladera Heights) introduced Assembly Bill 1537, titled “Peace Officers: Secondary Employment.” The bill would prohibit California peace officers from taking secondary employment, contract work, or volunteer roles with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), its contractors, or any entity involved in immigration enforcement.

“Right now, California’s law enforcement officers can take second jobs with ICE,” Bryan, a member of the CLBC, wrote in a Jan. 27 Instagram post. “AB 1537

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At Sac Summit, California African American Chamber of Commerce Shows Growing Clout; Lays Out Top Goals

With the theme “Driving Equity Through Economic Innovation,” discussions at the CAACC summit focused on the intersection of policy and commerce, aiming to widen access to California’s economic landscape for historically underfunded communities.

Published

3 months ago

February 9, 2026

Oakland Post

The AI and Business moderator and panelists at CAACC's 2026 Economy Summit. Shown left to right: Vic Baker, Equitify; Cathy Adams, President and CEO of the Oakland African American Chamber of Commerce; Kevin Harbour, BizFed Institute; Ahmad Holmes, CAACC President and CEO; Sarah Harris, Black Business Association; Angela Shell, California Department of General Services; Edwin Lombard, ELM Strategies; Christine Shelby, Digital Strategist, Sacramento Observer; and Patricia Watts, CAACC Chairperson. CBM photo by Antonio Ray Harvey.

By Antonio‌ ‌Ray‌ ‌Harvey‌, California‌ ‌Black‌ ‌Media‌

In step with its commitment to drive economic growth, equity, and wealth creation for African American businesses in the Golden State, the California African American Chamber of Commerce (CAACC) held its third annual California American Economy Summit at the Kimpton Sawyer Hotel in Sacramento on Jan. 28.

Organized by CAACC President and CEO Ahmad Holmes, along with CB Communications, members and the board of directors of the statewide organization shared the group’s current priorities and talked about its growing influence across California.

“This is about all of the information we are gathering for our CAACC membership that trickles down to all the chambers across the state,” said Chairperson Patricia Watts, who is also the proprietor of Cerritos-based FCI Management, an energy and water consulting firm.

“The idea is that we are one voice — especially when it comes to policy issues and information sharing. We’re only stronger if we work together,” Watts said, speaking about the CAACC’s growing influence.

The agenda included plenary sessions with topics covering building economic power through artificial intelligence (AI), strengthening Black businesses, increasing state contracting opportunities and cross-sector collaboration to drive business growth.

“We’re grateful for all the entrepreneurs that were here, all the corporate leaders, the policymakers, investors, and community champions all in one single room,” Holmes said.

Gov. Gavin Newsom delivered a video message opening the summit.

State officials like California State Controller Malia Cohen and State Treasurer Fiona Ma also attended.

Ma participated in a fireside chat with Regina Brown Wilson, the Executive Director of California Black Media (CBM).

Their conversation focused on economic development, infrastructure investment, and fiscal stewardship aimed at driving long-term growth in California. In addition, Ma shared insights into state-level initiatives to expand access to capital and support the growth of small businesses for underserved entrepreneurs.

Closing out the event, Toks Omishakin, California secretary of the State Transportation Agency; Danetta Jackson of the Department of General Services; and former Major League Baseball player and 2022 World Series–winning manager Dusty Baker were honored with community recognition awards.

Derek Smith, a CAACC board member who chairs both the Audit Committee and the Political Action Committee, said the organization continues to expand its membership, raise its profile, and execute a strategic plan to reach every region of the state.

“This summit is the best one I’ve ever been a part of. We are becoming a force, and I think the state has been waiting for someone to step up,” Smith says. We had a few chambers out there, but we’re finally stepping in and taking control. We’re going to lead for as long as we can.”

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Antonio‌ ‌Ray‌ ‌Harvey‌

$96 Million Allocated So Far to Black-Owned Firms as High-Speed Rail Project Expands Jobs, Boost Local Economies

Sen. Lola Smallwood-Cuevas (D-Los Angeles), a member of the California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC) and Chair of the Senate Committee on Labor, Public Employment and Retirement, says the rail project “is exactly the kind of investment” California needs.

Published

8 months ago

September 14, 2025

Oakland Post

San Joaquin River Viaduct, completed in February 2021, is a 4,700-foot structure in north Fresno spanning the San Joaquin River and Union Pacific tracks along SR 99. Featuring arches as Fresno’s northern gateway and a pergola that carries high-speed trains over the rail line, it stretches from the river to near Herndon Avenue.

By Antonio‌ ‌Ray‌ ‌Harvey‌, California‌ ‌Black‌ ‌Media‌

As of May 31, the most recent data from the California High-Speed Rail Authority shows that 47 African American-owned firms are participating in the project as Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBEs).

A total of 936 Certified Small businesses are working on the high-speed rail program statewide, representatives of the high-speed rail project say.

The number of Black-owned DBE firms (5.2%) accounts for $96 million of the $1.136 billion allocated to minority firms thus far.

Smallwood-Cuevas, speaking in Aug. 25 at the State Capitol Swing Space Annex — along with a coalition of Democratic state legislators and union leaders — provided an update on the California High-Speed Rail project and its efforts to employ people from the Black community and businesses.

“It builds a cleaner, more connected California while creating thousands of union jobs,” said Smallwood-Cuevas. “And we must ensure workforce equity, with pathways that open doors for workers who too often have been left out of good-paying careers.”

The remaining DBE minority-owned firms received the following amounts:

Asian Subcontinent: 24 firms received approximately $65 million
Asian-Pacific Islander: 52 firms received approximately $86 million
Native American: 6 firms received approximately $39 million
Hispanic/Latino: an unspecified number of DBE businesses received approximately $848 million

There are currently 328 certified DBEs participating in the project, according to the California High Speed Authority. The multi-billion-dollar project is billed to be committed to small, disabled, disadvantaged, and diverse businesses playing a major role in building the statewide high-speed rail project.

“As a Central Valley native, I know firsthand how transformative high-speed rail will be for our communities,” stated Assemblymember Lori D. Wilson (D-Suisun City) a member of the CLBC and Chair of the Assembly Transportation Committee.

“Stable and sustained funding is essential to delivering this project and fulfilling the promise made to voters.”

The news conference was hosted by Senate Transportation Chair, Sen. Dave Cortese (D-San Jose), who was promoting Senate Bill (SB) 545. He and the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) urged the Legislature to commit to a steady, annual investment from a cap-and-trade program to fund the high-speed rail project.

Dr. Melanie Okoro, the Principal and Chief Executive Officer of Eco-Alpha, attended the briefing. Eco-Alpha is a Sacramento-headquartered small, women-owned, minority-certified firm.

The company, not classified as a DBE, earned its status as a certified small business and a certified women-minority small business through the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and the Department of General Services (DGS). The certification allowed Eco-Alpha to be featured by CHSRA as a small business working on the project.

The Black-owned firm provides engineering and environmental services to the California High-Speed Rail project, primarily focused on facilities operation and Maintenance.

Okoro said laborers are not the only workers benefiting from the project. Professionals of color in engineering, with specialized knowledge and problem-solving skills to design, build, and maintain a wide array of structures, systems, and products, are looking forward to these “great opportunities.”