African Americans
Political Playback: California Capitol News You Might Have Missed
News You Might Have Missed
Stefi Mar August 4, 2026
News You Might Have Missed
California voters will decide this November whether to make it more difficult to approve local special taxes proposed through the citizen initiative process.
Kris Benz, a disabled Black veteran, is no stranger to cancer. In 2012, he was diagnosed with salivary duct carcinoma, a cancer so rare it strikes only about 1 in a million people each year.” But he beat it after six weeks of radiation and removal of his right salivary gland.
Questions about election security, voter access and public confidence in elections have become some of the most closely watched issues in American politics.
Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed new legislation aimed at expanding affordable housing, reducing construction costs and speeding up housing development across California as part of the state’s 2026-27 budget.
With less than three months until the general election, Darius Kemp, executive director of California Common Cause, says California must protect both election security and voter access for the state’s approximately 23 million eligible voters.
Rev. Dr. Amos C. Brown, one of America’s most distinguished civil rights leaders, pastors, and advocates for justice, was awarded the 111th NAACP Spingarn Medal, the organization’s highest honor, during the 117th NAACP National Convention in Chicago on July 22.
The next foodborne illness outbreak could be much worse. That’s the concern of food safety leaders across the U.S. who are raising alarms over federal cuts they say have made it harder to detect and stop the spread of foodborne illnesses, such as the recent outbreaks of cyclospora, which has sickened thousands in dozens of states. And they’re especially worried the next pathogen will be much more deadly.
Some shows you watch. Others shape you. A Different World did both. It gave us one of our first real glimpses into life at an HBCU, where Black excellence, growth, struggle, and purpose all coexisted. It wasn’t just entertainment; it was a vision. It showed us that college wasn’t just possible; it was ours.
About 400 students attended Delta Community Credit Union’s Cool Cash Money Camps throughout June in metro Atlanta, including in Decatur.
Hours before Grammy-nominated singer and actor Tyrese Gibson took the stage, thousands of concertgoers filled Burton Chace Park for the Marina del Rey Summer Concert Series, a free annual program presented by the Los Angeles County Department of Beaches and Harbors.
Assemblymember Tina McKinnor (D-Inglewood) is advancing legislation that would prohibit unauthorized drones from operating within 400 feet of large outdoor ticketed entertainment events.
The Los Angeles Rams unveiled two new alternate uniforms Thursday, introducing the “Classic Sol” and “Fearsome White” designs that pay tribute to some of the franchise’s most memorable eras.
California Secretary of State Shirley Weber and top election officials in three other states have until July 31 to tell the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) whether they will cooperate with a federal effort to identify and remove alleged noncitizens from state voter rolls.
As Earl Williams drove through a historic Black neighborhood known as Dewey City in his hometown, he hardly recognized what he saw.
With just over three months before the midterm elections, the NAACP at its 117th annual convention in Chicago announced an unprecedented $20 million voter registration campaign ahead of the midterm elections.
Not everyone at Lloyd Gilmore’s funeral knew him well. One woman, who had ironed her clothes two days in advance, said she just wanted to be there for his family. School-age children, guided by their parents, approached his open casket in the sanctuary of Cornerstone Baptist Church and peeked inside. Other people looked away.
Congressman John Garamendi (CA-08) joined 85 House Democrats this week calling on the Department of Education to immediately abandon its plan to transfer the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) to the Department of Justice (DOJ).
Health care providers such as Planned Parenthood and similar clinics are once again eligible to receive Medicaid reimbursements, allowing low-income patients to resume receiving routine care at those facilities in states that permit the payments.
On July 22, 2026 three federal judges in the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta – Chief Judge William Pryor, Judge Jill Pryor and Judge Andrew Brasher – heard oral arguments in the appeal of the 2024 unconstitutional conspiracy conviction of the Uhuru 3.