African Americans
Political Playback: California Capitol News You Might Have Missed
News You Might Have Missed
Stefi Mar September 1, 2026
News You Might Have Missed
More than five decades ago, a tragedy at a Sacramento ice cream parlor exposed a critical gap in the region’s ability to care for people suffering from severe burns. Today, that tragedy remains part of the origin story of the Firefighters Burn Institute (FFBI), a Sacramento-based organization whose work has grown into a statewide network of burn care, recovery, prevention and education.
Unless you have lived through it, it is easy to dismiss as racial paranoia the wariness and discomfort felt by many successful business leaders of color who have reached the elite ranks of the business world.
As a young Black man, this topic is personal to me. When people discuss mental health, they usually don’t picture someone who looks like me. Instead, Black men are often seen as strong, tough, or able to handle anything life throws at us.
Assemblymember Corey A. Jackson is my friend. An outspoken advocate for equity, fairness, public health, and social service resources for our Inland Valley community, I have come to admire and respect Jackson’s grit and his work as a legislator. However, I don’t always agree with his political or policy positions.
Every indicator in New York City’s housing market is pointing in the wrong direction. Rents are at historic highs. Foreclosure notices are climbing in Black and brown neighborhoods that never fully recovered from the last crisis. Deed theft, the predatory stripping of generational wealth from families who built their equity over decades, continues to devastate communities from Brownsville to Jamaica.
Every child deserves a fair chance to learn, grow, and achieve their dreams. In Texas, millions of brilliant, creative, and hard-working Black children want to become doctors, engineers, artists, and leaders. However, facts show that Black youth face tough challenges that make it much harder for them to succeed.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announcement that it would spend $20 million to equip ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) with electric shock gloves is indeed shocking. Equipping ICE with electric shock gloves is tantamount to equipping a wolf with a knife and fork to enter the hen house.
USC jumped out to a fast start as quarterback Jayden Maiava passed for 286 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another score, leading No. 14 Southern California to a 42-26 victory over San Jose State before 51,144 fans at the Coliseum.
It took some time, but Los Angeles Angels owner Arte Moreno has agreed to sell the team to Stan Kroenke, who also presides over the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams.
The Harold and Carole Pump Foundation (HCPF) brought stars, community leaders and major contributors together for a special evening at the Beverly Hills Hilton, raising funds and awareness in the fight against cancer.
California logs more than 60,000 missing-child reports a year, and roughly nineteen of every twenty are classified as runaways — a label that advocates say falls hardest on Black children. The state built the nation’s first Ebony Alert to counter it, but does not publish the racial data that would show whether it works.
After the Supreme Court narrowed the Voting Rights Act this spring, Republican-led legislatures in six states redrew congressional maps that dismantle or dilute Black districts — a shift one analysis calls the largest single-election loss of Black representation since Reconstruction.
A voter-approved half-cent increase for county health care takes effect October 1 across Los Angeles County — and it lands hardest in Lancaster and Palmdale, where shoppers already pay the highest sales tax rate in the nation. Groceries and prescription medicine remain exempt.
California Secretary of State Shirley N. Weber is asking voters to help protect the integrity of the November 2026 election by taking one important step: Vote early.
Gov. Gavin Newsom nominated three Black women — Justice Rashida Adams and Judges Denise Hippach and Juliet Macaulay — to serve on the California Courts of Appeal.
On Aug. 19, a bipartisan coalition of mayors from California’s largest cities gathered at the State Capitol to urge voters to approve Proposition (Prop) 1, an $11.25 billion housing and veterans bond measure on the November ballot.
Rising car insurance rates are forcing households to reconsider how much they drive, what coverage they carry, and which expenses can wait. Drivers can ease the pressure by comparing policies, reviewing deductibles, and removing unnecessary costs without giving up essential financial protection.
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation on Aug. 22 designed to protect immigration service providers and humanitarian volunteers from targeted harassment, doxing and violence.
Berkeley Public Health recommends families catch up on immunizations before the new school year begins