Ketanji Brown Jackson First Black Woman Supreme Court Justice By Nyah Marshall, Howard University News Service
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson honors Judge Constance Baker Motley as she accepts President Biden’s nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court. Screen shot courtesy of the Howard University News Service.
Americans around the country, including legal scholars and Black women, are praising President Joe Biden’s nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to replace Associate Justice Stephen Breyer on the U.S. Supreme Court. If confirmed, Jackson would make history as the first Black wom-
“Biden Kept His Promise To Black Voters”
an and the first former federal public defender to serve as a Supreme Court justice. “For too long, our government, our courts haven’t looked like America,” Biden said at the White House, flanked by Vice President Kamala Harris and Judge Jackson. “I believe that we should have a court that reflects the full
talents and greatness of our nation with a nominee of extraordinary qualifications and that will inspire all young people to believe that they can one day serve our country at the highest level,” Biden said. Jackson, 51, currently sits on the District of Columbia (D.C.) Court of Appeals and has broad judicial, academic and practical
legal experience. She was three times confirmed by the Senate, twice unanimously, when picked to serve on the U.S. Sentencing Commission and when appointed by former Pres. Barack Obama to be on the D.C. Federal District Court. In her acceptance speech,
Oakland Post
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“Where there is no vision, the people perish...” Proverbs 29:18
58th Year, No. 37
Weekly Edition. Edition. March 2-8, 2022
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Documentary on Rep. Barbara Lee Wins NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Documentary
Chauncey Bailey
Chauncey Bailey Way is the New Name for14th St.in Downtown Oakland
The City of Oakland will commemorate the life and contributions of Chauncey Bailey Jr. Saturday, March 5 at 12 p.m. at the corner of 14th and Alice Streets where he was gunned down on his way to work as editor of the Oakland Post on August 2, 2007. He was 57 years old. Bailey was an internationally renowned journalist, whose death outraged fellow journalists and left an indelible mark on the Oakland community. Born and raised in East Oakland, he was a fixture in Oak-
land news and a prominent leader in the African American Community. Slain because of his investigative reporting on the Your Black Muslim Bakery, his murder remains a symbol of the importance of defending free speech and democratic values. This commemoration continues to build awareness among future generations of Oaklanders of Mr. Bailey’s contributions and passion for the betterment of Oakland.
Abby Ginzberg (left) , co-director of the documentary with Barbara Lee. Photo courtesy of Rep. Lee’s office. By Alex Katz
A film about Congresswoman Barbara Lee won the NAACP Image Award for documentaries in a broadcast on Sunday night. “Barbara Lee: Speaking Truth to Power” is an intimate, inspiring, and timely portrait of Congresswoman Barbara Lee, a true pioneer on behalf of racial and economic justice and the lone voice in opposition to the authorization of military force after the September 11th attacks. “I am very grateful that the NAACP Image Awards Com-
mittee recognized our film and the importance of speaking truth to power,” said Lee. “This is a tribute to my late mother, Mildred Parrish Massey, who, with the support of the NAACP, was one of the first 12 students to integrate University of Texas at El Paso (formerly Texas Western College).” Directed by Abby Ginzberg, the film includes a unique selection of political commentators, activists, politicians, and family members add depth to the story of the highest-ranking African American woman Continued on Page 10
Oakland Faith Leaders Unite in Plea to Oakland Unified School District Regarding School Closures
Twenty-three faith leaders issued a plea to the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) on Monday calling for a pause on the school closures and mergers so that an equity analysis centered on Black and Brown Oakland children can be conducted. The articles of the plea and signing clergy are below: We, Faith Leaders of Oakland, believe that it is our duty to bring a moral voice to the debates before our community. Currently, one of the most urgent debates in our city surrounds the Oakland Unified School District’s decision to close and merge a number of the schools, and these mergers and closures will disproportionately impact Black and Brown children. It is our prayer that the District and community can begin to navigate this issue in a manner which teaches our children right from wrong. This debate has been wrenching. We understand that these decisions and policies are complicated. We believe that the way in which this debate
From left to right: Pastor Michael Wallace, Mt. Zion Baptist, Pastor Jim Hopkins, Lakeshore Baptist, and Bishop Kevin Barnes, Abyssinian Baptist.
is carried out should represent our values as it instructs our children how they should act. We understand that violence takes place when our children are miseducated; when decisions are made without transparency or a fair and just process; when a community is disregarded and disrespected, when systemic racism is allowed to persist. All of these things are unjust and unacceptable. They must cease. We understand that, in recent days, members of the OUSD Board have experienced van-
dalism to their properties and threats of violence to their persons. This is unjust and unacceptable. It must cease. We, hereby, issue an urgent call on the OUSD administrators and Board to show respect to the students, parents, guardians, families, community groups/organizations and faith communities. We believe that OUSD can shift this debate and help set a moral tone. To that end we call for the following: 1. An independent equity analysis, centered on Black
and Brown children, of any/ all school mergers, consolidations, and/or closures; 2. An equity analysis of all budgeting decisions, centered on Black and Brown children, to include results-based recommendation to achieve equitable outcomes; 3. A pause on the mergers, consolidations, or closures until the equity analysis referenced in 1 and 2 above have been completed. We ask that everyone refrain from personal and physical attacks, threats and/or any form of intimidation. This is unjust and unacceptable. It must cease. The highest values of our faith traditions call for the respect of all persons, the creation of structures that are just and equitable, collaboration instead of coercion, healing where wounds have been inflicted. We trust that our proposals, as well as our prayers, reflect these values. Respectfully, Rev. Dr. Jim Hopkins, PasContinued on Page 10
Rev. Dr. Martha C Taylor
Womanist Theology
Recognizing Black Women’s Leadership, Contributions to the Black Church Part One By Rev. Dr. Martha C. Taylor
During this Women’s History Month as we review the history of the Black Church we are reminded of the development of Womanist Theology that recognizes the lived experiences and contributions of Black Women. The white, middle class Feminist Movement did not perceive Black women as their “sisters.” The focus was on their equality to white men in the workplace. They were not concerned with racism and class that impacted Black women. James Cone, the “father” of Black Theology and renowned professor, critiqued the teachings of theology in seminaries that overlooked the lived experiences of Black people and the Black church. Drs. Jacquelyn Grant, Katie Cannon and Delores Williams, Ph.D. students of Cone, told him that Black Theology excluded the lived experiences of Black women. Cone later said, “When I read my book today, I am embarrassed by its sexist language and patriarchal perspective. There is not even one reference to a woman in the whole book!” These women scholars began to develop a theology that considered the lived experiences of Black Women using the oppressors of racism, classism and sexism. Womanist Theology affirms the previously ignored historical contributions of Black women who have been silenced and ignored in other theologies. “To do womanist theology, we must read and hear the Bible and engage it within the context of our own experience,” Dr. Jacquelyn Grant said. “This is the only way that it can make sense to people who are oppressed.
Black women of the past did not hesitate in doing this and we must do no less…” In the Fall of 2011, when I was serving as an adjunct professor in the Doctor of Ministry and the Master of Divinity Programs at the San Francisco Theological Seminary, I approached the late Rev. James Noel, PhD, the only African American to head a department, namely Black Church/Africana Religious Studies Certificate Program. With his support, I gathered a group of Bay Area Black women scholars, professors, and pastors. To our authenticity as Black mothers, grandmothers, other mothers, sisters, and aunties, who lived in the Black Community, we brought our theological education and lived experiences as Black women to the “kitchen table” and brainstormed about how we could bridge the divide between the seminary and our beloved Black community. We were not naïve that sexism was alive and well in the majority of Black churches. However, not all male pastors practice sexism. We linked theology, anthropology and sociology in terms that could be understood by nonseminarians. We used the words of Jesus who posed a question to his disciples: “But who do they say I am?” [Matthew 16:15] to brand our symposiums.’ Workshops did not focus on pain and sorrow only. We emphasized the strides of Black women across the board. Congresswoman Barbara Lee was the guest speaker at our first conference. The Womanist Project was an anchor in the community that shed light on understanding the Continued on Page 10