The Case Against SB357— Black, Vulnerable and Trafficked Part 2: Systems of Economic Oppression Continue Systems of Slavery and Exploitation

By Tanya Dennis and Vanessa Russell

SB357, a bill sponsored by state Senator Scott Wiener (DSan Francisco), the Safer Streets for All Act, repealed provisions of California law that criminalize loitering for the intent to engage in sex work.

Supporters of the bill state that SB357 got rid of a discriminatory “Jim Crow” bill that police used to unfairly target Black, Brown and transgender individuals for loitering when they were just hanging out.

Opponents say the law was not discriminatory and a necessary tool to enable police to approach people making financial transactions for sex, which sometimes included minors and victims of human trafficking.

SB357 legalized loitering for the purpose of prostitution on Jan. 1, 2023, without consideration for the many reasons that Black women are disproportionately represented in the sex industry in the first place.

They need stable housing, sustainable income, food and emotional support, not what can amount to a 21st century auction block where their bodies can be sold to the higher bidder. The historical oppression of Black women persists with SB357. Their voices need to be heard and prioritized.

When signing SB357, Gov. Gavin Newsom said, “Black adults accounted for 56% of the loitering charges between 201719 despite being only 10% of the city’s population.” What Newsom didn’t add is that 60% of victims of human trafficking are Black and Brown women and girls.

Sex trafficking amounts to modern day slavery.

On Jan. 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, which declared that enslaved people in the United States “shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free.”

Despite this declaration, Jim Crow laws were established to continue to control Black people creating a continued system of oppression similar to slavery. Jim Crow promoted segregation until its end in 1948 and prevented Blacks from voting until 1965.

Economic oppression of Black people continued with redlining during President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal launched in the 1930s. Redlining made houses in Black neighborhoods, aka ‘D areas,’ the lowest value. ‘D area’ residents could not qualify for the New Deal home loan program. The inability to own homes kept Black people from building wealth. Redlining was legal until the Fair Housing Act of 1968 was signed into law.

These systems of oppression kept Black people from participating in policy making, land and home ownership, and sustainable employment.

These laws, heavily enforced in the South, caused many to flee to Oakland on the promise of a better life and employment working on the railroad, in shipyards, ports and docks. These jobs were plentiful during World War II, increasing Oakland’s Black population to 35% by 1970. Sustainable employment dwindled after the war, forcing many Black families back into poverty.

Today, Black families continue to be disproportionately impoverished; 24.14% of Black people in Oakland are living in poverty. This is more than double the national average of 11.6% and the city of Oakland average of 13.5%. About 31.67% of Black women and 24.34% of Black men are unemployed.

Research has shown that creating stability and economic self-sufficiency among vulnerable populations makes them less likely to become victims of human trafficking or to experience revictimization if they have already been trafficked.

In its “Preventing Human Trafficking” brief, the American Psychological Association notes that “Traffickers tend to exploit the needs of potential victims, whether they are basic physical needs for housing and food or emotional needs, such as love and belongingness.”

Tanya Dennis serves on the Board of Oakland Frontline Healers (OFH) and series coauthor Vanessa Russell of “Love Never Fails Us” and member of OFH.

By Maxim Elramsisy California Black Media

Civil rights and media icon Xernona Clayton became the first woman to be enshrined with a statue in downtown Atlanta on March 8, 2023, International Women’s Day.

The eight-foot statue with its arms open, high on a pedestal, looks down on Xernona Clayton Plaza, making the petite icon a giant in the cradle city of the modern Civil Rights Movement.

World renowned sculptor Ed Dwight created the bronze statue despite challenges with his vision. With Dwight by her side, Clayton announced that it would be his final commissioned project. “As he was making this statue he lost vision in his good eye,” Clayton said at a private dinner before the unveiling. “But if he could do this without seeing, imagine what he could do if he had vision.” country.

More than 20 speakers, including representatives from the Bahamas and Ghana, praised Clayton at the unveiling ceremony, which was followed by “High Heels in High Places,” an event honoring distinguished women in business and journalism.

Among the “sheroes: honored at the dinner were California Black Media Executive Director Regina Brown Wilson and LA Focus Publisher Lisa Collins. Clayton also acknowledged the mothers of several local celebrities, including Silvia Dickens, mother of Atlanta mayor Andre Dickens, Trice Morgan, mother of rapper T.I., and Mary Tucker, mother of comedian Chris Tucker.

Martin Luther King III reflected on his memories of Clayton growing up. “There is no greater honor than what is being done here today,” said King III.

At the unveiling, Clayton recalled arranging logistics for a

Romero partnered with philanthropist and Bank of AmericaMerrill executive Rick Baker to spearhead the campaign that made Clayton’s monument a reality.

Clayton became involved in the civil rights movement working for the National Urban League in Chicago. She went undercover to investigate employment discrimination against African Americans at Marshall Fields, a major Chicago department store.

She moved to Atlanta at the behest of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, where she organized events for SCLC and grew close with Dr. King and his wife, Coretta Scott King.

Clayton was instrumental in the desegregation of Atlanta’s hospitals by organizing the city’s Black doctors. In 1967, Clayton became the first Black female in the southern U.S. to host a weekly prime time talk show. The show eventually came to be known as “The Xernona Clayton Show.”

In 1968, Clayton’s impact in

By Daisha Williams Post News Group Intern

When Oakland School of the Arts students get a break from class, they frequently stop at their favorite hangouts for food and drinks in downtown Oakland, including three Black-owned spots, Dusk Coffee, Mama T’s, and Rare Blend Coffee.

Black-owned businesses tend to be hard to find because they are hard to keep around. However students at Oakland School for the Arts (OSA) help keep these busi- nesses around by visiting so frequently.

A high schooler’s day is long, with eight hours of school, and for many, extracurricular activities after school. Caffeine is a muchneeded energy boost for many students, and coffee is an easy, delicious, way to get it.

Both Dusk Coffee and Rare Blend Coffee get a significant amount of business from OSA students.

Rare Blend is a small cafe that

A few of the speakers at the event claimed to be Clayton’s boyfriends, including Mayor Andre Dickens, who began working on the project as a city councilman, and Clayton’s close friend and fellow civil rights icon, Ambassador Andrew Young. Former CNN President, Tom Johnson spoke on behalf of Ted Turner, who was ill, lauding Clayton’s outstanding achievements and attesting to her contributions to broadcast media.

Clayton was also a consistent supporter of the Black press across the meeting between Dr. King and supporters of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in the heart of Atlanta. “I pride myself in getting everything right before I start out, and I knew I had all my details in order for this special luncheon hosted by Dr. King, but everything went wrong,” Clayton said.

The motel which supposedly had an “open door policy,” expressly told Dr. King to leave. “I, Xernona Clayton was thrown out of a hotel. Now, you are standing backed by a street named Xernona Clayton Way.”

“The idea for a monument to Xernona Clayton was born from a 4 a.m. meeting with her in 2020. Our kids didn’t know who she was, and we felt that such an inspiring figure deserved recognition,” said Project Co-Founder Mariela Romero, a Latina journalist, originally from Venezuela, who co-presented the idea for the statue and has been one of the forces helping to make the monument a reality.

Romero said when she learned about Clayton’s contributions to the Civil Rights Movement and all the fight against bigotry became clear when Calvin Craig, a Grand Dragon of the Ku Klux Klan, denounced the Klan, crediting Clayton’s influence in the decision.

In 1988, Clayton was named Corporate Vice President for Urban Affairs with Turner Broadcasting System. In her role she served as liaison between Turner Broadcasting and civil rights groups, both in Atlanta and across the country.

As a broadcast executive, Clayton founded the Trumpet Foundation and, with Turner Broadcasting, established the prestigious Trumpet Awards in 1993 to highlight the achievements and contributions of African Americans.

With the unveiling of the Xernona Clayton statue, an influential Black woman is finally immortalized in Atlanta, a city that still holds several confederate monuments and countless stories and memories of its history in the segregated south.

This California Black Media article was supported in whole or in part by funding provided by the State of California, administered by the California State