"If you can convince
on, and he'll empty his pockets
― Lyndon B. Johnson
Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will.
and
the
amount of injustice and wrong which will be imposed upon them and these will continue till they have resisted either with
By Jennifer Porter Gore Word In Black
Just weeks after daring to hope that Kamala Harris could defeat Donald Trump for the presidency, Black America is still mourning an emotionally devastating outcome.
“I never thought an election could make me this sad, but I’ve been literally feeling like I’m living soulless and out of body since the results…” a user with the X handle @JAPANESEBLACK wrote in a post on Nov. 8. Fellow X user @joedeenikia was down in the dumps with him: “The amount of anxiety this election has caused me is actually insane …just for the end results to be this … yeah, I’m drained,” she wrote. Since she replaced President Joe Biden in July, mental health experts say, the Black community has had to deal with unhealthy, complex levels of stress and anxiety.
Cautious but growing optimism among Black people over Harris’ unprecedented run competed against what was at stake for the nation in the 2024 election, concern that racism would hurt her at the ballot box, and worry about what a second Trump term would mean for them if she failed. Now that Trump is headed back to the White House, the emotions are more complex. There is sadness over Harris’s crushing defeat, frustration and anger about racism in the race, and more anxiety over how Trump will wield nearly-unchecked power.
Stress test
“I’ve had a wide range of people who I’ve spoken to today and a lot of them can’t believe that Donald Trump actually won,” says Kiki Ramsey, a positive psychologist and executive coach in Atlanta.
“One of my clients specifically said she’ll go to her grave believing that Kamala didn’t win because of racism and misogyny,” she says. “These were her exact words.”
Ramsey and others say Black people should pay attention to their mental health, prioritize self-care and take positive steps to cope with the 2024 election results.
“Someone I know was saying they had a spot to get a massage,” says Dr. Damon Tweedy, a psychiatrist and professor at Duke University. “If that’s really going to help your well-being then do it. Don’t just neglect all those things because of what happened.”
The country was stressed about the election long before Election Day.
In October, an American Psychological Association survey found that 77 percent of respondents reported that their concerns over the nation’s future was “a significant source of stress in their lives,” and the most common. The 2024 election came in third, at around 70 percent.
Meanwhile, a 2018 APA report notes that higher stress among minority and lowincome populations “can lead to health disparities and affect life expectancy.” That’s why the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declared racism “a serious public health threat.”
Polls show Harris’s groundbreaking campaign had energized Black voters. Hopes in the Black community grew along with the size of her rallies and polls showing she had pulled even with Trump just days before the vote.
Ramsey said even her 7-yearold daughter, who doesn’t normally pay attention to politics, paid attention to Harris: “She [was] definitely interested, as a black girl, seeing a black woman” run for president, That hope may have made Harris’s defeat that much harder to deal with.
Tweedy, associate professor of psychiatry at Duke University School of Medicine, noted that his students and others he’d spoken with after the election were disappointed because they hoped Harris would win. That’s a significant shift from what he encountered as a Duke medical school student 25 years ago.
Back then, “I saw medical students, and these are my classmates, who would have been very much pleased with what happened on Tuesday,” says Tweedy.
‘You still have to balance’
Although Harris’s loss was a bitter pill to swallow, Ramsey noticed clients, colleagues and friends being more gracious to one another.
“You may not agree with me,
but at the end of the day, I think that if we’re all human beings, we understand that there’s a time and place for everything, and everybody has to process this, this in their own way,” she says. Ramsey and Tweedy are urging people to practice evidence-based approaches to keep the negative effects of stress at bay. These include avoiding hard-to-manage stressors, seeking support from friends or family members, ignoring temptations to binge on junk food, or becoming a couch potato. A nutritious diet can help one’s health and maintain the energy needed to exercise and manage stress.
Keeping up with the news is important, but so is the headspace and time to heal from disappointment. If you’re still feeling blue, angry or dismayed for two weeks or longer, both Ramsey and Tweedy say it’s time to seek professional help.
“You still have to balance,” Tweedy says. “Is doomscrolling on Twitter or Instagram really helping my mental well-being? Is there anything I’m doing that’s going to actually help me take action to actually make something better?”
If you are experiencing a mental health crisis, are thinking about suicide, or worried about someone else who needs emotional support, call or text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988. Help is available 24/7. TTY users can dial 711 then 988 to get help.
With an expansive plan to tackle homelessness across California, Gov. Gavin Newsom has announced an $827 million investment through the Homeless Housing, Assistance, and Prevention (HHAP) program.
The funds will be allocated to 37 regions, benefiting 100 cities and counties statewide, including many communities where Black Californians are disproportionately affected by housing insecurity.
This funding, announced earlier this month, aims to create permanent housing, establish shelter sites, and provide essential support services to uplift thousands of people experiencing homelessness. The announcement, delivered at the Downtown Women’s Center in Los Angeles, highlighted the state’s dedication to implementing long-term, accountable solutions.
Tomiquia Moss, Secretary of the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency, opened the event, emphasizing the proven strategies being implemented at the local level. “I’m often asked, ‘Do we know what to do around solving homelessness?’ The answer is yes because the folks here at the Downtown Women’s Center are doing it every single day,” Moss said. She stressed the critical role of collaboration and the new accountability measures that require cities and counties to achieve tangible outcomes. Moss also acknowledged the
complexity of the challenge in
227 people become newly homeless in the same period. “Unless we find solutions that outpace this cycle, we won’t get where we need to be,” she stressed. Moss highlighted that this funding, paired with other resources like encampment resolution grants and ongoing community collaboration, is key to making a lasting impact.
“No one is naive about the challenges we face, not just here in Los Angeles but throughout California,” Newsom said. “The state has stepped up in ways it never has before. We are seeing progress in some areas and stubborn challenges in others. This crisis requires a crisis mindset, and people are dying on our watch. We need to address this with the urgency it demands.”
Newsom also pointed out the significance of the state’s
Antonio Ray Harvey | California Black Media
Following the non-partisan Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) announcement last week that California faces a $2 Billion deficit next year, legislative leaders are urging restraint and committing to focus on issues important to working families.
“The Assembly Budget Committee looks forward to crafting a budget that protects core programs, prioritizes accountability, safeguards California values, and focuses on the most important issues facing working families,” said Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel (D-Encino), Chair of the Assembly Budget Committee, On Nov. 20, the LAO released its “The 2025-26 Budget: California's Fiscal Outlook” forecasting a budget deficit that pales in comparison to last year’s projection, which was estimated
at more than $50 billion.
This fiscal budget for July 1, 2025, is “roughly balanced” with an estimated $2 billion shortfall, analysts from LAO shared during a virtual news conference that was held the same day the report was released.
LAO analyst Gabe Petek, who led the discussion, said the Legislature has taken steps to put the state on solid financial footing for the next fiscal year by making “proactive decisions.” However, the report warns that spending in the future will be “restrained.”
“We describe the state's budget condition as being in fair shape, Petek said.
The LAO operates as the “eyes and ears” of the Legislature to ensure that the executive branch implements legislative policy in a cost-efficient and effective manner.
State government took several actions to address last year’s budget shortfall, including making spending related resolutions amounting to about
school graduation and careers in dentistry.
(Photo
Steven Moore and provided courtesy of SBCUSD)
SAN BERNARDINO, CA—
San Bernardino City Unified School District’s (SBCUSD)
Cajon High School held a ribbon cutting ceremony on Nov. 6, 2024, for its new Dental Pathway, which will provide students with a path towards both college and a career.
SBCUSD’s career pathways provide participating students with strong, high-quality academic instruction that is aligned with a particular career focus and includes the possibility of students earning both a high school diploma and industry certification. Pathways link academic instruction to realworld career skills so students can see the purpose behind their classwork and graduate both college and career ready.
The Cajon High School Dental Pathway, established through a generous grant, provides students with hands-on experience in dental care, preparing them for careers in the dental field.
“As a former Cajon student myself, it’s particularly exciting to witness the incredible growth and transformation in career and technical education over my 28 years in education,” said Cajon High Principal Dr. Christopher Jackson. “It’s inspiring to see
how our school has evolved to offer pathways that prepare students for real-world success and help them find fulfillment in their future careers.”
This program equips students with essential skills in dental assisting, dental hygiene, oral health and patient care, offering both classroom instruction and real-world practice. The grant has enabled the school to enhance its facilities, provide state-of-the-art equipment and offer students access to professional mentorship and career development opportunities in the healthcare sector.
Cajon offers nine other career pathways, including five pathways certified Silver by the Linked Learning Alliance.
Cajon’s Silver-Certified Pathways include: Automotive Technologies Behavioral Health & Human Services IB Film Theory and Production Sports Medicine Theater Arts
For more information about Cajon High School, visit https:// cajon.sbcusd.com/.
Katie Dukes, Director of Early Childhood Policy, EdNC
When babies are born, their brains contain billions of neurons. But how those neurons interact — and what they can do as babies grow through childhood into adulthood — is largely shaped by their experiences in the first 1,000 days of life. The architecture of the brain is built in those first three years, creating a foundation that enables thinking, learning, and adapting over time. More than 85% of adult brain volume is built during this critical period. Luckily, we know exactly what infants and toddlers need to develop healthy brains that will set them up for a lifetime of well-being.
How to support brain development
Decades of research have identified several building blocks that are essential to constructing strong foundations for the brain in the first 1,000 days. Researchers agree that the cornerstone of healthy brain development is the formation of secure attachments between babies and the trusted and caring adults in their lives. Whether these caregivers are parents, kin (including friends and neighbors), or trained early childhood professionals, they should be “knowledgeable about how to support (babies’) development and learning and responsive to their progress,” says a report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Note the connection between caring and learning. Caring adults are crucial to developing
the capacity for learning in the brains of infants and toddlers. In early childhood, care and learning were inseparable.
To strengthen the brain’s capacity for learning in the first 1,000 days, the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University has identified two key strategies that trusted adults can use — engaging in “serve and return” interactions and minimizing exposure to toxic stress. As researchers at the center explain, serve and return interactions occur when an infant or toddler “babbles, gestures, or cries, and an adult responds appropriately with eye contact, words, or a hug.”
Engaging in service and return with caregivers helps babies and very young children build and strengthen neural connections related to communication and social skills in their developing brains. The absence of consistent serve and return exchanges can release potentially harmful stress hormones into the brains of infants and toddlers. And prolonged exposure to such hormones can result in what is known as “toxic stress.” Minimizing exposure to toxic stress in the first 1,000 days is crucial for healthy brain development.
According to the Center on the Developing Child, typical causes of toxic stress during this period include “physical or emotional abuse, chronic neglect, caregiver substance abuse or mental illness, exposure to violence, and/or the
(TriceEdneyWire.com)Robinhood, the popular financial app, has partnered with Howard University as its first historically Black college and university (HBCU) participant for its Money Drills program, extending comprehensive financial education to student-athletes. The partnership, announced earlier this month at Howard's campus, underscores the critical need to advance financial inclusion and build generational wealth within historically underserved communities.
The initiative comes at a crucial time when college athletes are navigating new opportunities to profit from their name, image, and likeness (NIL) rights. Howard University becomes the ninth Division I institution to join the Money Drills program, which has already demonstrated success at other universities nationwide.
"Technology serves as a
powerful democratizing force in the financial system," said Mary Elizabeth Taylor, VP of Global Government and External Affairs at Robinhood Markets.
"Money Drills is yet another way Robinhood is driving financial education in innovative ways, and we are thrilled to collaborate with our first HBCU." The announcement event featured Howard Athletics Director Kery Davis, Howard School of Business Dean Anthony Wilbon, former NFL player Brandon Copeland, and Washington Wizards alumnus Etan Thomas. Students participated in financial education workshops led by Planned To a T, featuring guest lectures from Copeland.
The program's launch at Howard addresses a critical need in professional sports, where financial difficulties after retirement are common.
Studies show that 16 percent of NFL players file for bankruptcy within 12 years of retiring, while 60 percent of NBA players face financial hardship after their careers end.
"This is long overdue as many students lack adequate education on financial and contract management," said Dr. Mariko Carson, Howard University's Director of the Office of Graduate Affairs.
"The Money Drills collaboration empowers us to jointly promote an inclusive and sustainable approach to economic growth in our communities and beyond."
Howard joins a distinguished list of institutions in the Money Drills program, including Florida State University, Duke University, and UC Berkeley.
The program has proven effective, with 95 percent of participating students reporting
accumulated burdens of family economic hardship.” However, the center also points out that trusting relationships with adult caregivers can act as a buffer against these hardships. That’s why childcare providers — whether they are friends, family, and neighbors, or licensed homebased or center-based caregivers and educators — can be so essential in the lives of families who may be experiencing economic hardships such as food or housing insecurity. As Dr. Dana Suskind, a pediatric specialist and expert in early childhood brain development, writes in her book Parent Nation, “Loving (adults) do not need a PhD or expensive gadgets to do an excellent job at supporting early brain development and building our future citizens. They need easily acquired, basic knowledge
about how to best foster critical neural connections.”
To that end, The Basics is an initiative that uses a public health approach to educate and empower caregivers about their role in healthy brain development. In addition to a wide array of online resources (some available in multiple languages), The Basics offers a printable one-pager that can be posted in homes, classrooms, pediatrician offices, or anywhere else caregivers may find themselves. Adults — including policymakers — who embrace the basic building blocks of healthy brain development for infants and toddlers, are helping build a foundation that will yield benefits well beyond the first 1,000 days.
Facing $2 Billion Deficit, Calif. Leaders Urge Restraint; Commit to Protecting Families... continued from page 1
$11 billion. The state also raised about $15 billion in all other solutions, including $5.5 billion in temporary revenue increases and a $7 billion withdrawal from the state’s rainy-day fund, the report stated.
The current fiscal outlook report provides the Legislature with the LAO’s independent estimates and analysis of the state’s budget condition to assist legislators as they prepare for the 2025-2026 budget process.
“Although revenues are running ahead of budget act assumptions, those improvements are roughly offset by spending increases across the budget. On net, our assessment finds the state has a small deficit of $2 billion,” the report stated.
The LAO insists that while the budget is moderately balanced in the upcoming fiscal year, California still faces annual operating shortfalls starting in 2026-2027 — increasing from about $20 billion to about $30 billion. Lawmakers will likely have to confront the budget problems with a mixture of reduced spending, increased taxes, shifting costs, or using more reserves.
The LAO warned that its Fiscal Outlooks are always “highly uncertain.” Its main concern is projecting revenue, which could be up or down, the report stated.
According to the Fiscal Outlook report, the state faces some key uncertainties in the spending estimates. How Much healthcare minimum wage ultimately increases costs, the rapid growth of the senior Medi-Cal population, and the implementation of reductions among state departments that produce cost-saving measures have yet to be determined by the LAO.
“The extent of those savings is still unknown,” the report stated.
Assembly Republican Minority Leader James Gallagher (R-Yuba City) weighed in on the LAO’s prognosis of the state budget.
“California is the highest-tax state in the country, yet we are still facing multi-billion-dollar deficits well into the future,” Gallagher stated. “Democrats got us into this mess, and I have no confidence in their ability to fix things without inflicting real pain on Californians.”
Senate President pro Tempore Mike McGuire (D-North Coast) issued the following statement about the LAO Fiscal Outlook: “Through last year’s action, we’ve helped stabilize this year’s budget. And it goes without saying, there’s a lot more work to come. We need to continue to buckle down on spending and be incredibly strategic on any future fiscal expansion.”
The Legislature’s Democratic leadership plans to convene Assemblymembers in the new year to discuss the needs of working-class Californians and explore budget priorities.
The meetings will take place immediately after the Governor delivers his budget priorities in early January. Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas (D-Hollister) is also gearing up to prepare for the policies of Donald Trump when he assumes the presidency in January.
“We need to show restraint with this year’s budget, because California must be prepared for any challenges, including ones from Washington,” Rivas stated. “It’s not a moment for expanding programs, but for protecting and preserving services that truly benefit all Californians.”
improved financial management skills over its two-year history.
Kaiya Creek, a Howard University Women's Basketball Player and Master's of Finance student, emphasized the program's importance: "As a student-athlete, I've come to realize that my name, image, and likeness are powerful assets.
The partnership between Howard and Robinhood provides me the chance to showcase what I have learned from Money Drills and inspire others about the importance of financial literacy."
While Howard marks Robinhood's first HBCU partnership, company officials expressed their commitment to expanding the Money Drills program to additional HBCUs nationwide, furthering their mission of democratizing financial education across diverse academic communities.
County/Government News
SACRAMENTO (November 21, 2024) – The Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) today approved the release of over $108 million in grant funding through the Cohort 4 Adult Reentry Grant (ARG). The ARG supports communitybased organizations (CBO) to provide warm handoff, reentry, and rental assistance programs that support individuals released from state prison. The amount of funding available through this Request for Proposals (RFP) is $108.3 million, with $54.15 million available for the warm handoff and reentry of offenders transitioning from state prison and $54.15 million available specifically for rental assistance. Eligible applicants may apply for a maximum of $4.5 million total over the 42-month grant period, which includes an audit and final evaluation report.
Providing supportive services and housing assistance to recently released individuals positively impacts their transition back into the community. A recent BSCC evaluation of grant-funded programs, which included a variety of supportive services for system involved individuals, indicated recidivism rates were more than 50% lower for individuals who received ongoing supportive services and reduced the rate of homelessness, of which formerly incarcerated people are nearly ten times more likely to experience. Supportive services have also shown to positively impact recidivism rates in analyses conducted by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
“I am very pleased the BSCC is able to offer valuable grant opportunities that reflect the priorities of our state and the
Commentary: Black entrepreneurs are often shut out from capital, but here’s how some are removing barriers
By SherRhonda Gibbs Morehouse College
(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)
SherRhonda Gibbs, Morehouse College; Eric Liguori, Florida State University; Michael H. Morris, University of Notre Dame, and Susana C. Santos, Florida State University
(THE CONVERSATION) It’s never easy to create a successful business, but it’s a lot harder if you’re Black.
Research shows that Black startup founders face significant, racially specific hurdles, including limited access to entrepreneurship training programs and challenges accessing predominantly white networking and mentorship opportunities.
It’s harder for Black founders to raise money, too. Recent TechCrunch data shows Black business founders received less than half of 1% of total startup capital in 2023. And, to date in 2024, there’s only continued stagnation.
Tope Awotona, founder of Calendly, a free online appointment-scheduling platform, experienced this struggle.
“Everyone said no,” he told NPR in 2020. “Meanwhile, I watched other people who fit a different profile get money thrown at them. Those VCs were ignorant and short-sighted … the only thing I could attribute it to
was that I was Black.”
Yet there are high-profile Black entrepreneurship success stories. They include Black Entertainment Television founder Robert Johnson, Daymond John, an investor on the reality TV series Shark Tank, and the thousands of Black startup founders running innovative businesses across the United States right now.
To better understand the intersection of race and entrepreneurship, we studied the experiences of successful Black entrepreneurs in the U.S., as shared on NPR’s “How I Built This” podcast. The challenges Black entrepreneurs face are well documented, so we focused our research on a different question: How does someone’s identity as an entrepreneur intersect with their racial identity?
Two key insights emerged.
A step toward equality
We found that while race can be a liability in some respects, some successful entrepreneurs have found ways to capitalize on race in their startups.
Most Black entrepreneurs, for example, understand their communities much better than outsiders typically do. This understanding lets them better and more quickly see opportunities in their respective communities.
That’s the competitive advantage John leveraged in 1992 when he founded the clothing company FUBU, which stands for, “For Us, By Us.” As he said on “How I Built This” in 2019, “I wanted to create a brand that loved and respected the people who love and respect hip-hop.”
John knew the market he
Administration,” stated BSCC
Chair Linda Penner. “Providing critical support to those recently released positively impacts recidivism and, in turn, creates safer communities.”
Prospective applicants are encouraged to attend virtual informational sessions on applying for grant funding under the ARG program. The Grant Information Session is scheduled for December 17, 2024. More information for the session and the ARG program, including details on prior cohort grantee services, can be found on the BSCC ARG webpage BSCC Adult Reentry Grant Program. . The BSCC has awarded more than $221 million in ARG funding to support 217 programs since the grant was established in 2018. This release represents the fourth cohort, bringing the total funding to over $329 million.
The BSCC provides services to county adult and juvenile systems through inspections of county jails and juvenile detention facilities, technical assistance on local issues, promulgation of regulations, training standards for local correctional staff, and the administration of a wide range of public safety, reentry, violence reduction, and rehabilitative grants to state and local governments and communitybased organizations. The BSCC uses Executive Steering Committees (ESCs) made up of a variety of stakeholders to inform decision making related to programs, including distribution of grant funds.
More information on the BSCC can be found by visiting www. bscc.ca.gov or by contacting Communications Director Jana Sanford-Miller, at Jana.SanfordMiller@bscc.ca.gov.
Ranking Member Waters Applauds CFPB’s New Rule Targeting Fraud and Scams in Big Tech Payment Apps
County/Government News
WASHINGTON, D.C.
- Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, released this statement following the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s latest action to supervise widely used payment apps provided by Big Tech and other nonbank companies and ensure they are held accountable for protecting personal data, responding to fraud, and stopping illegal “debanking,” which is when consumers lose access to their app without notice or when their ability to make or receive payments is disrupted.
“I applaud the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, under the leadership of Director Rohit Chopra, for taking the steps necessary to finally oversee Big Tech and other companies that offer popular payment apps. People across America are increasingly sending money on these apps to friends to pay for services, but they are also experiencing fraud, scams, violations of privacy, and other harms. Now, the CFPB will be able to look under the hood at these apps and press Big Tech to do more to protect their customers.
“Congress needs to build on CFPB’s action by passing my bill, the ‘Protecting Consumers from Payment Scams Act.’ My legislation modernizes our laws to protect older Americans, servicemembers, and other consumers from getting ripped off using these new payment apps.”
Background:
On May 9, 2019, then Chairwoman Waters announced the creation of the Committee’s Task Forces on Financial Technology and Artificial Intelligence. April 21, 2021, the Committee reauthorized the Task
Ranking Member Waters Applauds CFPB’s New Rule Targeting Fraud and Scams in Big Tech Payment Apps...continued
and the potential for increased financial inclusion.
On June 16, 2021, then Chairwoman Waters announced the establishment of the Digital Assets Working Group (DAWG) of Democratic Members to examine digital assets-related policy and legal issues in a comprehensive manner.
On June 16, 2021, the Subcommittee on National Security, International Development and Monetary Policy, chaired by Representative Himes, held a hearing entitled, “Schemes and Subversion: How Bad Actors and Foreign Governments Undermine and Evade Sanctions Regimes,” which investigated how cryptocurrencies, CBDCs, and other digital assets may offer new avenues for sanctions evasion and other financial crimes.
On June 30, 2021, the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, chaired by Representative Green, held a hearing entitled, “America on ‘FIRE’: Will the Crypto Frenzy Lead to Financial Independence and Early Retirement or Financial Ruin?” which focused on investor protection concerns with cryptocurrency market exchange activities.
On July 21, 2021, the Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Financial Institutions, chaired by Representative Perlmutter, held a hearing entitled, “Banking the
Unbanked: Exploring Private and Public Efforts to Expand Access to the Financial System,” which explored proposals like FedAccounts, which could require the Fed to establish digital transaction accounts, based on a CBDC, that could be provided to consumers through depository institutions and the U.S. Postal Service, or directly to consumers.
On July 27, 2021, the Subcommittee on National Security, International Development and Monetary Policy held a hearing entitled, “The Promises and Perils of Central Bank Digital Currencies,” which explored the risks of CBDCs from a national security and monetary policy perspective.
On December 8, 2021, the full Committee held a hearing entitled, “Digital Assets and the Future of Finance: Understanding the Challenges and Benefits of Financial Innovation in the United States,” featuring testimony from CEOs of the largest digital assets companies, including Circle, FTX, Paxos, and Coinbase Inc.
On February 8, 2022, the full Committee held a hearing entitled, “Digital Assets and the Future of Finance: The President’s Working Group on Financial Markets’ Report on Stablecoins,” with Nellie Liang,
continued on page 7
Gov. Newsom’s New $827.5M Homelessness Plan Directs Funding to Counties and Cities... continued from page 1 involvement in homelessness, noting that until a few years ago, the state had not been heavily invested in addressing the issue.
The impact of this funding will be significant in Los Angeles, which will receive $164.3 million for the city’s ongoing efforts to combat homelessness.
Forces on Financial Technology and Artificial Intelligence for the 117th Congress.
On July 17, 2019, then Chairwoman Waters held a hearing entitled, “Examining Facebook’s Proposed Cryptocurrency and Its Impact on Consumers, Investors, and the American Financial System,” which explored Facebook’s proposed cryptocurrency and its effects on consumers, investors and the United States.
On September 26, 2019, the Task Force on Financial Technology held a hearing entitled, “The Future of RealTime Payments.”
On October 23, 2019, then Chairwoman Waters held a hearing entitled, “An Examination of Facebook and Its Impact on the Financial Services and Housing Sectors,” where Committee members questioned CEO Mark Zuckerberg about Facebook’s proposed stablecoin product and digital wallet.
On January 30, 2020, the Task Force on Financial Technology held a hearing entitled, “Is Cash Still King? Reviewing the Rise of Mobile Payments.”
On September 29, 2020, the Task Force on Financial Technology held a hearing entitled, “License to Bank: Examining the Legal Framework Governing Who Can Lend and Process Payments in the Fintech Age.”
On June 15, 2021, the Task Force on Financial Technology held a hearing entitled, “Digitizing the Dollar: Investigating the Technological Infrastructure, Privacy, and Financial Inclusion Implications of Central Bank Digital Currencies,” which discussed potential design trade-offs for a U.S. Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), and examined consumer privacy implications
Mayor Karen Bass, who joined Newsom at the event, highlighted the collaboration between city, county, and state officials, as well as the progress her administration has made.
“The only way we can show results is through a comprehensive approach,” Bass said. “Groups like The Downtown Women’s Center work to rapidly rehouse Angelenos and provide comprehensive services. This morning, I was in the PicoUnion area for an Inside Safe operation, where we moved people from tents and RVs off the streets and into housing.
We housed over 30 Angelenos today.” Bass emphasized the need for unified efforts, adding, “We know that there are areas of dysfunction, and part of our work has been to bring every level of government together. We have to move beyond finger-pointing to real partnership.”
Newsom highlighted the need for regional collaboration:
“This crisis doesn’t stop at city or county lines. It demands a coordinated, statewide effort to create real, lasting change.”
San Francisco is set to receive $43.32 million, which will be used for housing-first initiatives and comprehensive support services for the unhoused population.
Alameda County, with its $55.9 million allocation, will also focus on permanent housing solutions and strategies to address systemic causes of homelessness.
Sacramento will receive $53.21 million, which will be dedicated to developing permanent housing solutions and integrated support services to address the city's growing homelessness crisis
The San Diego region, awarded $58.84 million, aims to expand shelter capacity and ensure longterm housing stability.
The Inland Empire,
encompassing Riverside and San Bernardino counties, will receive $33.17 million to implement regional solutions, including shelter expansion and supportive services Gustavo Velasquez, Director of the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) emphasized that the funding comes with strict accountability requirements.
“Our HCD team is honored to take on this expanded role in identifying and supporting effective regional solutions for Californians struggling with unsheltered homelessness,” Velasquez said. “Not only will this funding provide additional resources, but with the leadership of the Legislature and the administration, this program also ensures that every dollar spent delivers meaningful outcomes, with a clear focus on reducing homelessness to create lasting change. HCD will continue to apply our strong focus on accountability to maximize this critical investment for our state.”
The HHAP grants are a crucial part of California’s $40 billion investment in tackling homelessness, complementing initiatives like Project Homekey, which has successfully created thousands of permanent housing units, and the Encampment Resolution Fund, aimed at clearing dangerous encampments while providing support services. Earlier this month, Newsom allocated $131 million specifically for encampment resolutions across the state. Newsom and other speakers emphasized that this funding is part of a comprehensive and unified effort to make meaningful and lasting changes across the state.
Additionally, Newsom recently announced $91 million to support Native American communities through the Tribal Homekey and Tribal HHAP programs. This funding includes $71 million for 172 permanent housing units in rural areas and $20 million for culturally responsive homelessness interventions, addressing the unique challenges faced by 37 federally recognized tribes.
4 Thursday, November 28,
Biased home appraisals steal $150 billion from Black home wealth
Pilot training and education program brings potential to transform industry
By Charlene Crowell
For most consumers, buying a home is the single-largest investment of their lifetimes. But for Black America, home equity – the increase in market value from the time of purchaseis often the dominant, if not sole source of wealth-building. Home equity represents 65 percent of all Black wealth, according to the nation’s oldest minority professional trade association, National Association of Real Estate Brokers (NAREB).
Yet the unfortunate reality for Black homeowners, according to NAREB is that systemic discrimination used in appraisals that determine home fair market values all too often perpetuate -- instead of narrow -- racial wealth gaps, for homeowners and buyers alike. These mandatory reports are a key factor used by lenders to reach decisions on loan applications to purchase, sell or improve homes.
Home Appraisals in Black and White, a new NAREB research report, examines disparities in the estimated value of homes by racial neighborhood composition. Analyzing housing data from 2021 and 2023, its two authors James H. Carr and his colleague, Michela Zonta, both housing finance and urban policy experts, reached a startling finding: Blacks have lost $150 billion in home equity due to biased home appraisals.
According to Courtney Johnson Rose, NAREB president, “For decades, the undervaluing of property in African American neighborhoods has contributed to the expansive Black-White wealth gap in America, a spread so expansive that the 400 wealthiest Americans control the same wealth as all 48 million
Blacks.”
In Black neighborhoods with large shares of homeowners, homes were undervalued by 47 percent, compared to similar homes in White neighborhoods with no Black borrowers. These lower property values prevent Black families from building and earning comparable wealth via home equity than similarlysituated white neighborhood homeowners, and additionally suppresses the ability of Black homeowners to develop intergenerational wealth.
The report also pinpoints where these disparities are widest.
“The percentage difference or median Black appraisal undervaluation price gap (relative to homes in White communities) ranges from 10 percent in Houston to 48 percent in Los Angeles,” states the report.
“In Los Angeles, the median appraised value of homes in Black neighborhoods is $618,532 compared to $1,179,640 in white neighborhoods, after controlling for home and neighborhood characteristics. This translates into an appraisal value underestimation gap of $561,108 for homes in Black neighborhoods.”
Other metro areas where median appraised home undervaluation gaps are larger than the national average include Baltimore, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Memphis, Miami, Orlando, Richmond, St. Louis, and Tampa.
In theory home appraisals are supposed to be an objective
continued in next 2 columns
How Babies’ Brains Develop...continued from page 2
Why support brain development
Many people, especially educators who work with children in kindergarten through third grade, can point to early learning as crucial for “school readiness,” but that term can be easily misunderstood. In EdNC’s many conversations with elementary educators, the vast majority say school readiness means young children are being prepared to participate in group learning. This includes having skills such as developing relationships with trusted adults outside their homes, sitting in a circle or standing in a line with other children, communicating about their wants and needs, sharing objects with others, fine motor control and knowing a little bit about how to regulate emotions. While school readiness may also include some basic academic skills, elementary educators assure EdNC that teaching children how to count, write, and spell is only possible when young learners arrive at school with the social and emotional skills that make them ready to learn. And it’s the brain development that occurs in the first 1,000 days that makes this possible. In addition to helping
Biased home appraisals steal $150 billion from Black home wealth
Pilot training and education program brings potential to transform industry...continued
assessment of a variety of factors like the number and size of rooms, quality of construction, types, and conditions of major home systems, presence of renovations or upgrades, property location, and community amenities and services.
But in reality, these reports are more likely to be developed by someone who lives in another area and is likely a different race or ethnicity. Today, the home appraisal sector in real estate remains nearly all white, despite long-standing federal laws like the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act.
“Appraisal bias is an issue that has economic implications on the generational wealth of minorities at all spectrums of the socioeconomic scale,” notes Brian Cox, president of the National Society of Real Estate Appraisers (NSREA), a NAREB affiliate.
“In addition, the disproportionate minority participation in the appraisal profession is estimated at 3% of a total population of approximately 70,000 appraisers and valuation professionals.”
In direct response to these disturbing findings, a pilot program focused on transforming the appraisal market and its professionals was launched in July at Fayetteville State University, a North Carolina HBCU. Drawing upon students,
faculty, staff, active military, veterans and local community members the program’s goal is to develop “a pipeline of residential and commercial appraisers.”
“We are thrilled to offer this opportunity providing a pathway for FSU students, faculty and staff, active-duty military and veterans and our local community to join a lucrative industry,” said Marcus Cox, Ph.D., dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. “This partnership doesn’t only bode well for FSU, it also enhances Fayetteville’s local community and potentially our entire region.”
NAREB’s report also endorses the effort and its potential growth.
“The Black Appraisers program aims to increase the representation of Black professionals in the appraisal industry, advocate for fair appraisal practices, and enhance awareness of appraisal bias,” states the report. “The initiative will form partnerships with and seek to attract participants from the military veterans’ community and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Appraisal mentorships and apprenticeships will be a core aspect of recruitment and training for this initiative.”
New
it is risky. We discerned that this was an opportunity to take our unapologetic and rightful place within the institutional church and to also take our rightful place as trusted leaders and ministers of this particular congregation, in this particular church.
At the inaugural service last Sunday, our friend, colleague, and co-accomplice in the founding of the Harm Reduction Family Love Feast, Terrell, asked to be baptized by our minister, in our congregation, in our church.
Everyone gathered welcomed Terrell into beloved community, committing to support him in this new life in Christ, followed by a Harm Reduction communion, at which Terrell presided. In our shared meal, in our reunion as a worshipping community, through the sacrament of baptism, and in the ritual of communion, all gathered had the opportunity to partake in the celebration of
new life—Terrell’s, ours as a congregation, and Judson’s. If your congregation is interested in breathing new life into your community and introducing harm reduction and overdose prevention ministries, please access our Spirit of Harm Reduction Toolkit here, our Harm Reduction Worship Planning Guide here, visit the Multifaith Alliance for Harm Reduction site for pathways to become an alliance member congregation, or reach out to the Minister of Harm Reduction and Overdose Prevention Ministries at poellote@ucc.org.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR The Rev. Erica Poellot serves as the Minister for Harm Reduction and Overdose Prevention Ministries in the national setting of the United Church of Christ.
“The Eternal Consequence of a Delayed Decision.”
By: Lou K Coleman
You will be punished with eternal destruction, forever separated from the Lord and from His glorious power. The most severe consequence of delaying salvation. Eternal Separation from God. [2 Thessalonians 1:5-10].
You will be thrown into the Lake of Fire. Eternal Torment Forever and Ever [Revelation 14:9-11].
You will forever regret your decision to reject God's offer of salvation. Eternal Lament Forever and ever. [Luke 16:1931].
Erica Poellot
young students be school-ready, numerous studies have shown that early learning leads to better performance in third-grade math and reading tests. But the benefits of early learning don’t stop there — they last a lifetime. Decades of studies have consistently shown that children who receive high-quality early learning have better health, education, and earnings outcomes, and are less likely to be incarcerated or use government assistance programs throughout their lives. Nobel prize-winning economist James Heckman found that the highest rate of economic returns comes from the earliest investments in children. More specifically, investment in early care and learning yields a 13% annual return to society. As Suskind puts it, “What happens in the first three years of a child’s life has lifelong consequences, for better or for worse. Those years represent an opportunity that won’t come again.” Babies born today are expected to live for almost eight decades, meaning they’ll likely see the 22nd century. But it’s the care and learning they receive in the next 1,000 days that provide the foundation for what they’ll build for themselves and our society
Last Sunday, the Harm Reduction Family Love Feast formally re-launched our monthly worship service and community meal for the first time since COVID shut down New York City in March of 2020. In the assembly hall of Judson Memorial Church, we gather to co-create sacred community, celebrate our shared call to be love and build justice with our most endangered neighbors, and craft liturgies and rituals that honor the wholeness of who we are as individuals and as part of the beloved community. We proudly proclaim that we are a congregation formed and led by people with lived and living experience of substance use, sex work, and criminal legal system involvement, ministers, community organizers, and Harm Reductionists. We recognize that for many of us these are overlapping and evolving identities.
We begin the evening by gathering around a table for a shared meal that is open to all, including our many members who live in Washington Square Park across the street from the church. We have connected with these newer members as part of our drug checking and overdose prevention ministry, which we host in partnership with the city and state health departments. We are building relationships with people who sell drugs who are accessing our drug checking services to better understand what adulterants might be in their products so
they can make decisions about what they sell to the people they know and care for, New York University students and staff who are interested in safer-use education and access to harm reduction supplies such as safer smoking kits and emergency contraception, as well as an increasing number of people who love people who use drugs and who are looking for spiritual care and community of their own.
The growth of our congregation as an integrated part of the larger Judson community, as well as a gathering space for people who have struggled to find a spiritual community that embraces them where and as they are, is a powerful testament to the gospel of Harm Reduction. When the Harm Reduction Family Love Feast first began gathering in 2017, organizers were in deep discussion about where we wanted to grow our congregation, recognizing that for many of us, places of worship—and Christian churches in particular—had been sites of deep harm and wounding. After exploring a range of possible sites, a majority of those of us gathered voted to root our congregation at Judson, specifically because it was a church, and specifically because it was Judson. Judson has a robust legacy as a community of faith seeped in transformative justice, rooted in relationship with our most endangered neighbors, and committed to standing on the right side of history, even if
Knowing that truth, tell me, if you ignore God’s provision for your soul’s salvation, how will you escape the consequences of such neglect? How will you escape His wrath? [John 3:36]; His condemnation? [John 3:18]; His word of banishment? [Matthew 26:41]. You will not! Listen, do not confuse God’s patience with His tolerance. Yes, God is loving, He is kind, He is patient, but there comes a time when God will say, “Enough.” The story of Sodom and Gomorrah reminds us of such. God said “Enough.” Afterwards, He passed judgment, issued a verdict and carried out the sentence. [Genesis 19:2325]. Don’t take God’s grace for granted. His patience is not a license to delay salvation, but an opportunity for you to repent and be saved [2 Peter 3:9].
Understand we are living in a time of judgment just as the people of Jesus time were. For us though, the grace of God is being extended as never before. Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means [Romans 6]. Understand the urgency of salvation because of the reality of life’s brevity. Our life on earth is limited. Our days are numbered, and we do not know when our time will come. The offer of Salvation is NOW! Don’t wait until it’s too late! [2 Corinthians 6:2; Isaiah 55:6; 2 Peter 3:9; Isaiah 55:6; James 4:14]. God has given us a limited amount of time on Earth, and we must use it wisely [Luke 12:20] Delaying decisions or actions can lead to missed opportunities. [Proverbs 27; Hebrews 3:15]. Don’t wait until its too late because one day God Mercy is going to expire and when it does, His judgment and wrath will be unleashed. [Romans 2: 1-6]. For He says in [Isaiah 48:9] know that for My own name sake, I will delay My wrath; for the sake of My
praise, I will restrain it, so as not to kill you. You know there is an old imaginary/fictitious story of a convocation of demons who met in Hell to discuss how best to damn and destroy the lives of men. One demon stood and said, “I know how to damn the lives of men. Let us tell them there is “No God.” Satan replied, “A fine suggestion.” We’ll tell them there is no God and some of them will believe it. But the fool has said in his heart there is no God and not all men are fools. We need another suggestion.
Another demon stood and said, “I know what we can do. Let us tell them that the Bible is not inspired, that it isn’t the Word of God.” And Satan smiled and said, very good. We’ll tell them that the Bible isn’t the infallible, inerrant Word of God. But the Bible remains the best seller of all books on earth. We need another suggestion. Another demon stood and said, “I know what we can do. Let us tell them that Jesus is not the Son of God. He didn’t rise from the grave. That Jesus was merely a mortal man.” Satan said, that’s a good suggestion. We’ll tell them that Jesus was not the Son of God, and many will believe us. But the more we talk about Jesus, the more He draw men to Himself. We need something else.
Finally, another demon stood and said, “I know - Let’s admit it all. Let’s admit that there is a God. Let’s admit that the Bible is the inspired Word of God. Let’s admit that Jesus is all that He said He was. Then let’s whisper in their hearts, “But do nothing about it. Some other day. Some other time. At a more convenient season.” And Satan says, “That’s it. There was Hellish applause. The demons said, “That is the best plan of all.” That will work.” And it does. Almost persuaded” now to believe; Almost persuaded” Christ to receive; Seems now some soul to say, “Go, Spirit, go thy way, some more convenient day on thee I’ll call.”
“Almost persuaded,” come, come today; Almost persuaded,” turn not away; Jesus invites you here, angels are lingering near, prayers rise from hearts so dear; O wanderer, come!
“Almost persuaded,” harvest is past! Almost persuaded,” doom comes at last; “Almost” cannot avail; “Almost” is but to fail! Sad, sad that bitter wail— “Almost—but lost!” [Author: Philip Bliss] Jesus Weep! [John 11:35]. You neglected the Rock who begot you and forgot the God who gave you birth. [Deuteronomy 32:18]. They would not, and now they cannot.” [Isaiah 6]. The Eternal Consequence of a Delayed Decision!
Thursday, November 28, 2024
By Selen Ozturk
Dr. Sam Jamier, executive director of the New York Asian Film Festival, is having a trailblazing directorial debut with “Huntress on the Plains.”
Dr. Sam Jamier, executive director of the New York Asian Film Festival, is having a trailblazing directorial debut with “Huntress on the Plains.”
The film, currently in preproduction, is set in World War II-era Leyte, an island in the central Philippines. It follows a young Filipina woman as she forms an alliance with a Korean sniper conscripted by the Imperial Japanese army; the two unlikely friends attempt to liberate “comfort women” from occupied Asian countries forced into sexual slavery by the Imperial Japanese Army.
Directed and written by Jamier under Philippines-based production studio Fire and Ice Media, the movie is expected to finish production by fall 2025.
“I’m telling the story of what made these women 80 years ago — and in contemporary echoes, in Kurdistan, in Ukraine — take up arms in organized resistance,” said Jamier in a November 13 video interview with Ethnic Media Services from Manila, where he was location scouting.
“That’s the challenge: I can’t claim their voices for myself, or just be a cultural tourist, but as a foreigner, I need to make their stories live for audiences across cultural lines.”
As documentation was destroyed en masse by Japanese officials after WWII, historians’ estimates of the number of comfort women range between 20,000 and 410,000 — largely Korean and many Chinese — in as many as 400 brothels across
Asia.
In 1993, the UN estimated that by the end of WWII, over 90% of these women had died.
Jamier said that when he first began researching this story 10 years ago, “People kept telling me Korea, particularly, wasn’t ready for it … In Korean and Chinese films, it’s a story that’s been told many times: Japanese armies as a brutal, colonizing force. But the twist here is that the antagonist conscripted by the Imperial Army is ethnically Korean, as many imperial subjects were.”
“With the film, I’m trying to raise the question: What is a nation? What is a resistance fighter? You’re fighting for an idea of what your people are, and this sniper questions the idea that this means your enemies are non-people — which you see particularly in American media,” continued Jamier. “In Vietnam or Middle Eastern war movies, for example, they often don’t even translate the enemy’s dialogue. But why would the story of one American be worth that of 1,000 on the other side?”
“It’s an acrobatic line to walk. You need to show people what they want, in the sense that you need an audience, but there’s a major difference between what Korean films people like in Korea, versus in the Philippines or U.S.,” he explained.
For example, the Korean show “Squid Game” quickly became the most-watched series on Netflix after its September 2021 release, “but many
Unveiling Vitiligo: Exploring its Impact on Patients
people in Korea didn’t love it, partly because it was a heavily Japanese, Battle Royale-type survival narrative,” he added.
Jamier has walked this cultural line in his own life since growing up in Brittany, France as a Korean adoptee; becoming the first AAPI graduate of the École Normale Supérieure; studying further in Paris, London and Tokyo; becoming an English professor at the Sorbonne; and moving to New York City 20 years ago, where he has worked as executive director of the New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF) since 2019.
“In northwestern France, I was basically the only non-white kid there,” he said. “One defining moment was when I was around 12, and one of my teachers said something completely absurd to me about samurai culture, and I didn’t know enough to really correct it … I’ve been learning extensively about East Asia since.”
Jamier left academia in his late 20s because he felt he was too young to teach, having pursued previous BA, MA and doctoral degrees in literature and medieval philosophy largely due to the autonomy afforded by getting paid to study.
“Now that I’m much older, I’d feel more prepared to teach — and the operation I run now, of mentoring people and curating these films, is similar to being an educator — but at the time, I was really glad to escape,” he said. “There was a massive global film culture in Paris and London that I loved. They don’t really have the categories of foreign versus American film that are so separate in the U.S.”
After moving to New York, Jamier worked in cultural programming as a diplomat for the French Embassy, and as a film curator for the Korea Society and the Japan Society.
He first worked for NYAFF, now in its 22nd year, in 2012 as a curator through a nonprofit partnership with the Japan Society.
After this, he stayed and grew the festival from a small operation
life.1
focused mainly on kung fu genre films to an international event bringing film leaders — like actor Jackie Chan and director Bong Joon-Ho — from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Korea and throughout Southeast Asia.
When Jamier first joined NYAFF, genre films were on the decline.
“I think kung fu’s last consistently great years were in the ‘90s. We had to look both backward and forward when it came to telling new stories — beyond prestige Chinese, Japanese, Korean productions,” said Jamier. “One of the first things I did was add a Philippine film section. It was a disaster. We couldn’t bring an audience at all.”
That 2013 lineup included the international premieres of “Aberya” — an occult superhero movie about a time traveling drug dealer, a nationalistic boxer, a holy prostitute and an ex-nanny social climber — and “The Animals,” a teen party movie set in a gated community, exploring and indicting the Philippines class divide.
“Over the years, we kept trying for engagement. We really broke through when we started bringing Filipino filmmakers and actors themselves. They all spoke good English, so they could talk about their work directly, with no interpreters. The best spokespeople of Philippine film are Filipinos themselves,” he continued. “Plus, they can all sing.”
Jamier said he feels no conflict between his work developing “Huntress on the Plains” and his work with NYAFF, even when things get busy.
“If you have a story to tell, you have to make the time. It doesn’t matter if you’re working at a bank or running a festival,” he added. “I believe you need a sense of internal necessity, like you can’t live without making that film or writing that book. But ultimately, you don’t need to do it. That’s the beauty of it. You have to feel emotionally or morally obligated to tell the story, to make it work.”
Unveiling Vitiligo: Exploring its Impact on Patients... continued /Health News
Sponsored by Merck
A common misconception about vitiligo is that it’s a “cosmetic” issue. In reality, vitiligo is an autoimmune disease that causes a loss of color in some areas of skin that is visible as white patches.1 A life-long disease that doesn’t go away, new patches of color loss can form suddenly and randomly.1
Prevalence of vitiligo
About 2-3 million people in the U.S. have vitiligo.2 While vitiligo affects people of all skin colors, it can be more noticeable in people with darker skin.3 Studies have shown that vitiligo diagnoses can be more common in older patients and patients from certain racial and ethnic groups, such as Hispanic/Latino patients and
Asian American patients.4 Approximately 40% of adults in the U.S. with vitiligo may go undiagnosed, which can delay their access to proper care.2
REGINA vitiligo study: Clinical trial for people with a common type of vitiligo
There are clinical studies underway that are testing whether an investigational medicine is safe and whether it may work for people with a type of vitiligo called non-segmental vitiligo. People with non-segmental vitiligo might notice white patches appearing on both sides of their body, like on both knees or hands.1 These patches may come and go throughout their
“It’s important that our clinical studies accurately reflect the people who are living with the condition we’re studying,” said LaShanda Gordon, Clinical Trial Diversity Program Lead at Merck.
“We’re committed to increasing
the diversity of participants in our vitiligo clinical study, which includes people from historically marginalized racial and ethnic groups. For more information, visit www.merckclinicaltrials.com/ reginatrials.
Ranking Member Waters Applauds CFPB’s New Rule Targeting Fraud and Scams in Big Tech Payment Apps...continued from page 3
Under Secretary of Domestic Finance at the U.S. Department of Treasury, who testified about the rapid growth of stablecoins and the findings from the “Report on Stablecoins” by the President’s Working Group on Financial Markets (PWG).
On April 28, 2022, the Task Force on Financial Technology held a hearing entitled, “What’s in Your Digital Wallet? A Review of Recent Trends in Mobile Banking and Payments,” which explored the legal and regulatory framework governing digital wallets holding various types of digital assets in custody and on behalf of consumers, as well as relevant consumer protections implications.
On July 27 2023, during a full Committee markup considering, Ranking Member Waters blasted Republicans for putting for a rushed and problematic stablecoins bill.
On August 9, 2023, Ranking Member Waters released a statement following PayPal’s launch of its U.S. dollardenominated stablecoin.
On November 9, 2023, Ranking Member Waters issued a statement in support of CFPB’s proposed rule to supervise digital wallet and payment apps.
On August 2, 2024, Ranking Member Waters introduced H.R. 9303, the “Protecting Consumers From Payment Scams Act.” Senators Blumenthal and Elizabeth Warren.
On May 26, 2022, the Committee held a hearing entitled, “Digital Assets and the Future of Finance: Examining the Benefits and Risks of a U.S. Central Bank Digital Currency,” with Vice Chair of the Federal Reserve, Governor Lael Brainard, testifying on the Federal Reserve’s recent research and development efforts on a U.S. CBDC.
Commentary: Black entrepreneurs are often shut out from capital, but here’s how some are removing barriers...continued from page 3
wanted to serve better than most because he was a part of it. He recognized the opportunity when outsiders could not.
Other business founders echo John’s sentiment.
Tristan Walker, founder of Walker & Company, a personal grooming products company focused on Black men, said his purpose is “to create a health and beauty products company for people who look like me.”
And the McBride sisters, in naming their flagship wine Black Girl Magic, told “How I Built This”: “If there’s like a moment for Black women in which they can celebrate … whatever it is … we just wanted to be able to be there to celebrate with her with just like beautiful, high-quality wines.”
In this sense, some Black entrepreneurs find themselves uniquely positioned to create products others would never think of. And, our research found, they are better positioned to sell to a community eager to support them.
A recent study from Pew Research Center found the majority of Black adults believe that purchasing from Black businesses is a step toward racial equality.
Our study also found that many Black entrepreneurs care about creating a company with meaning. That’s especially true when it can help lift up others in their race. For them, giving back to – and inspiring – their communities matters.
In other words, Black startup founders frequently build businesses that reflect their racial identity. It’s part of their purpose in becoming an entrepreneur.
“I’ve always felt that my company’s mission had to be of service to my community,” Cathy Hughes, founder of Radio One, a station focused on Black culture, told “How I Built This” in 2017. “Being the first African American woman (in charge) of a publicly traded corporation … my whole purpose for being in business was to be a voice, and an assistant to my community,” she said.
Many other people in our study mirrored this sentiment, identifying role modeling, racial pride and the empowerment of future generations as a deliberate part of their mission as Black business owners.
Role models matter
Communities benefit from homegrown entrepreneurs. These are people who demonstrate the power of entrepreneurship and show that a career as an entrepreneur is possible.
Yet many minority communities lack such success stories. Just 3% of U.S. businesses were Black-owned in 2021, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. That’s one reason we wanted to document Black success stories in the first place. We believe they have the potential to be transformational. Each new success shows others in those communities that it’s possible, and that entrepreneurship can provide a pathway to a more prosperous future.
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here: https://theconversation.com/ black-entrepreneurs-are-oftenshut-out-from-capital-butheres-how-some-are-removingbarriers-224899.
Thursday, November 28,
By Laura Onyeneho Houston Defender
Living paycheck to paycheck is a financial situation where an individual or family’s income barely covers essential living expenses such as housing, utilities, groceries and transportation. If one paycheck were to be missed, it would lead to significant financial strain and difficulty in meeting basic needs. This precarious financial situation leaves little room for saving or investing, making individuals vulnerable to unexpected emergencies or income loss.
According to a survey conducted by Payroll.org, a staggering 78 percent of Americans find themselves living paycheck to paycheck, marking a 6 percent increase from the previous year. This means more than three-quarters of the population struggles to save or invest after covering their monthly expenses.
Chawn Payton, a Northwestern Mutual financial advisor, says that living paycheck to paycheck often means “spending the money before it even hits the bank account” and being unable to “level up financially.” This can make it difficult to save for the future or enjoy life in the present.
How did we get here?
The root causes can be attributed to increased spending, which is outpacing income growth. High inflation and rising interest rates are contributing factors. According to the Federal
Reserve’s report, 40 percent of adults experienced a rise in their family’s monthly spending compared to the previous year.
In Houston, individuals need to earn $75,088 annually (or $36.10 hourly) to live comfortably and avoid living paycheck to paycheck.
Payton adds that much of the difficulty arises from deeper issues, such as one’s relationship with money. “If you come from a household where you saw your parents live paycheck to paycheck, you may emulate those behaviors,” Payton says. “To address the challenges of living paycheck to paycheck, individuals must adopt proactive measures to improve their financial well-being.”
Budgeting basics
One key strategy is creating a comprehensive budget that accurately reflects income and expenses. Payton suggests starting with a spending plan rather than a budget, as the term “budget” can often feel restrictive. “Go back through two or three months of your bank statements—normal months, not months where you had major travel or expenses—and print them out,” he advises. From there, categorize your spending into “needs” and “wants” to identify areas for reduction.
By analyzing these spending habits, you can make small but significant adjustments. “You may have 12 subscriptions you
forgot about, or you’re spending unnecessarily on luxuries like monthly cosmetic boxes or extra streaming services,” Payton explains. “Reducing discretionary spending can create breathing room in your finances.”
Building an emergency fund is crucial for financial resilience.
Setting aside a portion of each paycheck into a dedicated savings account can provide a financial safety net during unexpected hardship, such as medical emergencies or job loss.
Payton suggests automating savings to help people stay consistent: “When saving is automatic, you don’t think about it, and the money grows without
extra effort.”
Another effective strategy is seeking additional income through side gigs or part-time work. Payton acknowledges that “not all avenues for extra income are for everybody,” but encourages individuals to explore the growing options available, whether that’s a side hustle or career advancement.
“The internet has exposed many different ways to bring in extra income, and you just have to figure out which one is right for you,” he adds.
To help people manage discretionary spending, Payton recommends a more hands-on approach using the cash envelope method. “You allocate literal cash for discretionary expenses, and when the envelope is empty, that’s it,” he says. “Using cash rather than credit or debit cards forces you to think twice before making unnecessary purchases.”
Imagine heading to Best Buy to buy a $1,500 TV on Black Friday. “If you swipe your card, it’s easy to ignore the impact, but if you’re laying down $1,500 in $20 bills, you feel that sting,” Payton says.
Financial guidance from experts can be invaluable.
Many organizations offer free or low-cost financial literacy programs, and connecting with a financial advisor like Payton can provide personalized strategies to help you break the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle.
As Payton advises, it starts with “acknowledging your financial habits and being mentally ready to make a change.”
Blacks Feel Erased by Santa Barbara's Changing Demographics; -- Latinos Express Similar Fears...continued
with 75% meeting requirements for UC and CSU in 2021-2022.
Latino high school graduation rates rose from 88% in 20202021 to 93.8% in 2021-2022
with 47.5% meeting UC and CSU requirements in 2021-2022.
“There have been a lot of issues around racism in the schools. It's not new,” Gaona-Macedo said.
“You know, I went to the school where the White kids would pick on the Latino kids.”
Gaona-Macedo said he was offering context, not excuses, for the tensions between Latino and Black students. “So, there's a lot of hate, and it stems from a long history in Santa Barbara between the haves and the have -nots,” he added.
The Santa Barbara Latino population, which has always been many times larger than the Black cohort, is also shrinking due to skyrocketing housing costs. Both groups are struggling to hang on in the city.
“There's countless [Latino] families in Santa Barbara where they share a household between multiple families just to make ends meet,” Gaona-Macedo said, adding, “And then you also have the undocumented factor.”
Hoover, Shalhoob and Duran blame the demographic changes wrought by gentrification for eroding cross-cultural camaraderie. In their 30’s and 40’s now, they recalled when Blacks and Mexican Americans used to hang out together. But many of those residents have sold their houses or have been priced out of rentals.
Duran said her children are amazed when she tells them how well Blacks and Mexicans used to get along.
“That's how it was. That is why there are so many mixed kids
now. We were all together and having fun,” she said.
Sims-Moten noted that children today know little of the city’s history or even America’s history of anti-Black racism.
“It’s important to maintain that history of how we become because when community spreads out or it’s disconnected, then our children that are coming up don’t really understand and they may be called words that go back in slavery,” Sims-Moten said.
“They don’t really understand it because the history of that has been erased because that’s not a comfortable conversation. I think erasure is a huge thing here. We don’t have to have those hard conversations.”
Gaona-Macedo believes families have a critical role to play, too.
“I think that's going to take building a strong allyship between both communities. And I think we've started –Connie's [Alexander] amazing to work with. So is Audrey and the Healing Justice organization among others,” he said. “We do need to look at how racism is rooted in some of our culture…. And as a community, we need to find ways to fight that culture.” Pilar Marrero contributed reporting to this story.
This resource is supported in whole or in part by funding provided by the State of California, administered by the California State Library in partnership with the California Department of Social Services and the California Commission on Asian and Pacific Islander American Affairs as part of the Stop the Hate program. To report a hate incident or hate crime and get support, go to CA vs Hate.
Political Playback: California Capitol News You Might Have Missed
California's 2025-26 Budget: School Funding Expected to Increase by an Estimated $1.5 Billion
By Ethnic Media Services Staff
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. –
In Santa Barbara, a coastal city of about 89,000 residents, the Black population has dwindled from a peak of 3.27% in 1970 to about 1.37% in 2024.
In 2022, Healing Justice Santa Barbara, a nonprofit, and Page & Turnbull, an architecture firm, produced “Santa Barbara African American and Black Historic Context Statement,” a survey of how and where Black people have lived in Santa Barbara from the Spanish colonies to recent times. The report, commissioned by the city, is meant to aid in preserving Santa Barbara’s Black history.
According to the report, “the slow progress toward greater racial equality and continuing lack of job and housing opportunities led many young Black people to leave Santa Barbara in the late 1960s and 1970s.
“While Santa Barbara’s overall population increased in the 1970s, the city’s African
American and Black population decreased by 20% from 2,294 in 1970 to 1,833 in 1980, the first time the community’s numbers had dropped since the 1890s,” the report continues.
In several interviews, longtime Santa Barbarans bemoaned the impacts of gentrification and the gradual “erasure” of a Black presence in the city.
Wendy Sims-Moten’s fatherin-law was born in Santa Barbara in 1914 and once owned a refuse business. “But time and money and bigger resources pushed them to the side,” she said. “A lot of things that were here -- small businesses that were owned by African Americans, even Latinos -- they are gone.
Sims-Moten, the president of the Santa Barbara Unified School District, is only the second Black person elected to that board in 53 years. Black children make up .07% of SBUSD students.
Parents upset by anti-Black racism in the school district say that some White kids subject their
kids to racist bullying. However, recently, more recent incidents seem to involve racism coming from Latino kids. Ironically, they explain, many of these “Black” kids being bullied are mixed race: Black and Mexican.
Bianca Duran’s two oldest children, a son, 14, and daughter, 13, look like their Black father. “Kids just coming out and saying the N-word and calling my daughter a monkey and saying you look like an ape,” said Duran. “Why is your hair like that and why are you dark?” Duran, who is Mexican American, tells her children they are beautiful and to not engage with the cruelty, but it’s hard, she says.
Leeandra Shalhoob and Shevon Hoover are among other SBUSD parents of mixed Black and Mexican American children. Whether the SBUSD counts these students as mixed race (2.5% of school population) or Black/African American (0.7%), they are micro minorities in a “majority minority” (61% Hispanic/Latino), school district. About 31% of district students are White.
These parents, as well as Latino and Black community leaders, acknowledge anti-Black racism in Latino culture.
“I won’t speak for everyone’s family or upbringing, but I know that where I grew up, there was
a lot of anti-Blackness in the Latino community,” said Gabe Escobedo, vice president of the SBUSD School Board.
Connie Alexander works with schoolchildren of all races at Gateway Educational Services, the academic support nonprofit she and Audrey Gamble cofounded 15 years ago. “Way too much of the N-word is being used by Latino youth,” said Alexander, who is also president of the Santa Barbara NAACP. “Why are they using the N-word?... I really don’t know. And why it’s so painful: their perception is that the Black children are on the bottom.”
Eder Goana-Macedo, executive director of the Santa Barbara Fund, immigrated to Santa Barbara with his mother and brother from Mexico when he was four. Now 35, he came up in the public schools and knows the Santa Barbara Mexican and Mexican American communities from many perspectives.
“If you look at graduation rates, if you look at college attainment, if you take it a step further and look at who's going where, Latinos are still at the bottom,” said Gaona-Macedo.
According to SBUSD’s 2023 "Student Outcomes Report," high school graduation rates for Black students were 81.8% in 20202021 and 100% in 2021-2022,
The California Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) recently published its fiscal outlook for the 2025-26 budget, forecasting a $1.5 billion increase in the minimum guarantee for funding public schools and community colleges.
This raises the total budget to $116.8 billion, a 1.3% increase over last year’s budget. While the additional funding offers opportunities to address educational inequities, challenges such as declining enrollment and the expiration of pandemicera funding create uncertainty for schools, particularly those serving Black and other underserved communities.
The projected budget includes a 2.46% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA), totaling $2.4 billion, to help schools manage operational costs.
The Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), which prioritizes resources for schools with high populations of lowincome and English learner students, will benefit from these adjustments. Funding also supports the expansion of transitional kindergarten, a program designed to increase access to early education for all four-year-olds. This initiative receives an $800 million adjustment as part of the state’s ongoing investment.
Despite these funding increases, systemic challenges remain. Enrollment has declined due to lower birth rates and
increased migration out of the state, directly affecting funding levels. While the transitional kindergarten expansion may offer a short-term enrollment boost, the long-term trend of declining student populations threatens financial stability for many districts. Additionally, the expiration of $4.1 billion in one-time pandemic funding after 2025-26 could further strain resources. For Black students, who are disproportionately represented in low-income school districts, the fiscal outlook provides potential for targeted improvements. Programs like the Learning Recovery Emergency Block Grant, aimed at mitigating pandemic-related learning losses, remain critical in addressing achievement gaps. However, recent assessments highlight the urgency of these efforts. Only 17.8% of Black students met or exceeded state math standards, compared to a statewide average of 35.5%. Similarly, just 30.3% of Black students achieved proficiency in English, compared to 47% overall.
The report identifies $2.8 billion available for new commitments, presenting options such as strengthening reserves, eliminating deferrals, or funding programs to address inequities. The LAO emphasizes the importance of fiscal planning and the strategic use of funds to ensure that these efforts will be impactful.