Memories of Donna Shook, my beloved mother-in-law

 It seems appropriate that I first met Donna on Mother’s Day, three weeks after I met Jill at the Palm Sunday Peace Parade in Pasadena fourteen years ago. Donna was for me like a second mother, and this is a role she played for many others. She was one of the most loving, supportive, and fun people I’ve ever met. 

I’ll never forget our first lunch in Costa Mesa. It lasted for several hours. Donna, Jana, Jill and I talked, laughed and had a blast together. It was a foretaste of many fun lunches and dinners I had over the years with Donna and her family. 

Jill and I usually spent our holidays with Donna in her beautiful shell cottage in Shell Beach.  It was only a short walk to the beach, but walking with Donna from her cottage to the beach usually took a long time since she’d stop and talk with neighbors along the way. Like Jill, Donna took to heart Jesus’ command to “love your neighbor.” She loved her neighbors, and they loved her. At Christmas time we would go out and sing carols to her neighbors and had a blast. 

We took Donna on trips to San Francisco, San Diego, Ojai, Hearst Castle and other places, and she was an enthusiastic traveler. I remember once when we were in San Diego, we went inside a Russian submarine and Donna was the only 80-year-old to crawl through its cramped quarters. Donna loved adventure!

She also loved dancing. We had a blast dancing together in her kitchen. Even when she was bed-ridden and unable to speak coherently because of late stage Alzheimer’s, I would take both her hands and we’d dance together to old—time big band music and her feet would tap along to the jazz rhythms. 

We sang her songs like “My Girl” by the Temptations (using Donna’s name), “Donna” by Richie Valens, and her favorite, “Dancing Cheek to Cheek.” She especially loved it when I would press my check against her and we’d laugh together. 

Donna loved to flirt, even when bedridden. When I would visit, I’d often say, “You look beautiful today.” She’d bat her eyes and say, “I do?”

Donna always loved to have fun. I have precious memories of going with her to a bar called Harry’s in Pismo Beach.  She always dressed to the 9’s to go out and young men often came up to her to ask to dance. One even kissed her hand unsolicited and called her a goddess. She was like a guy magnet. On one weekend we went to Charlie Puffer’s Wine Bar as well as to Harry’s and five men kissed her hand and forehead on one night. How often does this happen to women pushing 90 years old?

Donna loved playing pool, as do I, so when we went to Harry’s to place, I would wrap my arms around her and  help her guide the cue stick. When she made a shot in a pocket, everyone in the bar would cheer. 

As you know, Donna loved beauty and art. Her watercolors are full of joy and exuberance.  Like Frida Kahlo, Donna made her whole life a work of art—her clothes, her home, and her artwork all reflected her deep love of beauty. 

Our home is filled not only with her art work but also with antique furniture and some of her shell collection from Shell Cottage. I often feel her presence in these things that meant so much to her. She left behind such a beautiful legacy. She saw beauty not only in nature and everyday things, but also in people. She loved God, went to church and was a strong Christian, but didn’t talk a lot about religion. She didn’t need to. She lived the Gospel of Love. When you were around Donna, she made you feel you were loved and important to her. She will always live in my heart

ICUJP Forum: Naming Suffering Instead of Denying Its Existence: Finding Our Way Through As Faith Communities

 

Please join us online

ICUJP Friday Forum
September 6th, 7:30-9:30 am Pacific  

Naming Suffering Instead of Denying Its Existence: Finding Our Way Through As Faith Communities

CLICK BELOW TO JOIN ZOOM:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85416229154
Call in by phone: +1 669 900 6833* 
Meeting ID: 854 1622 9154
PASSCODE: 453788

*Meeting controls for call-in attendees:
To mute/unmute yourself: *6
To raise hand: *9

Event Description: 

Do you find yourself doing a great deal in a time of urgency and feel like you are not getting very far? Join this program to confront the suffering of others without feeding its growth.

Join the conversation with our speaker:

Aziza Hasan is the executive director of NewGround, a nonprofit dedicated to bridging divides and convening constructive conversations around challenging social issues. With over 20 years of experience in program management and coalition building, she is a skilled mediator and trainer who has facilitated multiple groups and workshops on interfaith and intercultural issues.

Aziza's work has been featured in the New York Times, the LA Times, NBC, ABC, the Chronicle of Philanthropy, and National Public Radio, among others. She served on President Obama's Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships from 2015-2016 and the Los Angeles Civil and Human Rights Commission from 2020 to 2023. She is also a writer and speaker who has published several articles and curricula on bridging, peacemaking, and women's rights.

Learn More/Here's how YOU can help: NewGround: A Muslim-Jewish Partnership for Change

7:30 - 7:35  Log in and socialize
7:35 - 7:45  Welcome and introductions 
7:45 - 7:50  Reflection (5 min. maximum)
7:50 - 9:15  Program and Q&A
9:15 - 9:20  Announcements
9:20 - 9:30  Closing circle and prayer

Start your morning with us! 

Facilitator: Steve Rohde
Reflector: Rick Banales

** Meetings begin promptly at 7:30 am Pacific. **

ICUJP Reflection: the Deplorable Grants Pass Decision of the Supreme Court and Its Effects in California

 

(This reflection was shared today at Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace.)

The sabbatical that Jill and I have been on since May 1 is coming to an end. On Monday, we’ll be back in the saddle, working on housing justice with our nonprofit, Making Housing and Community Happen.

While we were on sabbatical, the conservative justices on the Supreme Court made a deplorable decision in response to a lawsuit against the city of Grants Pass, Oregon.  Grants Pass fines and arrests unhoused people for being homeless, even though the city doesn’t provide a shelter or any other place where unhoused people can sleep. The conservative justices on the court decided that cities could fine or arrest an unhoused people for sleeping on the street or in their car even though a previous ruling described this as “cruel and unusual punishment.”  I’d like to share with you excerpts from an article that explains the implications of this decision.

Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor issued a scathing dissent on her conservative colleagues’ decisions to essentially criminalize homelessness.

While the conservative majority argued that the high court must not impede local governments from criminalizing homelessness, Sotomayor wrote, “It is possible to acknowledge and balance the issues facing local governments, the humanity and dignity of homeless people, and our constitutional principles.”

“The City of Grants Pass jails and fines those people for sleeping anywhere in public at any time, including in their cars, if they use as little as a blanket to keep warm or a rolled-up shirt as a pillow,” Sotomayor wrote. “For people with no access to shelter, that punishes them for being homeless. That is unconscionable and unconstitutional. Punishing people for their status is ‘cruel and unusual’ under the Eighth Amendment.”

Going on to quote social science experts, Sotomayor explained how punishing people for sleeping outside without providing offers to housing and available beds is simply “a big game of whack-a-mole.”

While the conservative justices trumpeted tropes about unsheltered homeless people being service-resistant, or denying shelter when offered, Sotomayor noted studies have shown that “the vast majority of those who are unsheltered would move inside if safe and affordable options were available.” Shawn Morrissey, who currently works for Union Station Homeless Services here in Pasadena,  experienced homelessness for 11 years and has worked for many years to help find housing for unhoused people. He says that unhoused people sometimes have to be approached many times to build trust, but he has never encountered an unhoused person who didn’t want to be housed.

When people resist being housed, notes Sotomeyer, it’s often because those beds that are available may have “restrictions based on gender, age, income, sexuality, religious practice, curfews that conflict with employment obligations, and time limits on stays.” For example, the only shelter in Grants Pass, which is charity-run, has strict religious and work requirements. I would add that women and the mentally ill sometimes don’t feel safe in congregate shelters because they fear being harassed.

The Supreme Court’s ruling on this case will allow cities and states to avoid the offer of shelter entirely if they so choose and offers one solution to homelessness: punishment.

As Sotomayor wrote, imposing fines and jailing individuals is not a solution. In her dissent, which she read from the bench, the justice described a story of a homeless man in Nashville who was arrested 198 times and had over 250 citations, making it difficult for an outreach worker to find him housing. The outreach worker was eventually forced to make him a T-shirt that read, “Please do not arrest me, my outreach worker is working on my housing.” Once the man, who experienced homelessness for 20 years, was able to secure stable housing, he “had no further encounters with the police, no citations, and no arrests.”

The Supreme Court has given permission to cities to punish people for being unhoused, but Governor Newsom has gone a step further and requires cities to adopt a punitive approach. He issued a dreadful edict calling on cities to clear encampments or face consequences, such as loss of funding.

Newsom’s edict encourages cities to follow the example of Grants Pass, and puts pressure on cities like Pasadena, Los Angeles and Long Beach who have up to now taken a more reasonable and humane approach.

We know what ends homelessness, and that’s housing. For chronically unhoused people, that means permanent housing, not temporary shelters, with wrap-around services to help them find jobs and deal with issues addiction and mental illness. Over 90% of chronically unhoused people who’ve been housed in our city have remained housed. And because we have a strong coalition of churches, activists, service providers and elected officials, Pasadena has reduced its homeless count by over 50% in the last decade. Because of the Supreme Court’s shameful decision, and Newsom’s edict, the Pasadena City Council has agendized a discussion of the Grants Pass decision on September 9. I plan to be there, along with other housing justice advocates, to say that we must house, not criminalize, our unhoused neighbors. As a person of faith, I feel it’s our responsibility to do what we are told in Proverb 31:9: “Speak up for the people who have no voice, for the rights of all the oppressed. Speak out for justice! Stand up for the poor and destitute!” Can I get an amen?

 

AFSC Warns of Worsening Humanitarian Crisis in Gaza: ICUJP forum this Friday, Aug 20, at 7:30 am

 

Please join us online ICUJP Friday Forum August 30th, 7:30-9:30 am Pacific   AFSC Warns of Worsening Humanitarian Crisis in Gaza CLICK BELOW TO JOIN ZOOM: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84897111028 Call in by phone: +1 669 900 6833*  Meeting ID: 848 9711 1028 PASSCODE: 806647 *Meeting controls for call-in attendees: To mute/unmute yourself: *6 To raise hand: *9 Event Description:  The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) has a long history in Gaza, starting refugee camps in 1948 for about two years, before the UN created UNRWA. Today, 76 years down the road, the AFSC continues to work in Gaza, and the question of Palestinian refugees has not been resolved yet. The webinar will highlight the work of the AFSC in Gaza over history including today and how life in Gaza has changed after October 7. Join the conversation with our speaker: Yousef Aljamal is the Gaza coordinator at the Palestine Activism Program at the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC). Aljamal is a refugee from Al-Nusierat refugee camp in the Gaza Strip. He recently received his PhD at the Middle East Institute at Sakarya University in Turkey. He can be contacted at yaljamal@afsc.org Learn More/Here's how YOU can help: U.S. Palestine Activism Program - American Friends Service Committee Yousef Aljamal: The daily battles to survive the Gaza genocide 7:30 - 7:35  Log in and socialize 7:35 - 7:45  Welcome and introductions  7:45 - 7:50  Reflection (5 min. maximum) 7:50 - 9:15  Program and Q&A 9:15 - 9:20  Announcements 9:20 - 9:30  Closing circle and prayer Start your morning with us!  Facilitator: Rebecca Arvizu Reflector: Anthony Manousos ** Meetings begin promptly at 7:30 am Pacific. ** ----- Here's how to join the online meeting: To join by video conference, you'll need to download the Zoom app on your computer or mobile device. Click on the link to join the meeting and then enter the Meeting ID number and passcode. You'll be able to see slides and video, as well as speakers and other attendees. If you prefer to join by phone, you'll be prompted to enter the Meeting ID number and passcode. You won't be able to see the visuals or attendees, but you can view them on the meeting video recording afterward.  If you're new to Zoom and would like to use the video option, we recommend you download the app well ahead of time. ICUJP Friday Forum 08/30/24 Time: 07:30 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada) Option 1: Join video conference  https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84897111028 Meeting ID: 848 9711 1028 PASSCODE: 806647 Option 2: Dial in by phone only: +1 669 900 6833 US (California) Meeting ID: 848 9711 1028 PASSCODE: 806647 *Meeting controls for call-in attendees: To mute/unmute yourself: *6 To raise hand: *9 (To find a dial-in number closer to you, go here.) ----- Please note: Our Friday Forums and other events are open to the public. By attending, you consent to having your voice and likeness recorded, photographed, posted on ICUJP's website and social media, and included in ICUJP materials and publications for noncommercial purposes. If you don't want to be photographed or recorded, please let the facilitator know. DONATE HERE TO SUPPORT ICUJP'S ONGOING WORK!! DONATE BY PAYPAL, GOOGLE OR APPLE WALLET HERE! Interfaith Communities United for Justice and Peace recognizes the Gabrieliño Tongva as the past, present, and future caretakers of the land, water, and cultural resources in the unceded territory of Los Angeles. JOIN US!  Pursuing Justice and Peace ICUJP 2024 Rev. George F. Regas Courageous Peacemaker Awards Passing the Torch: Working for Justice and Peace from City Hall to Palestine Sunday, September 8, 2024 • 3:00-5:00 pm Holman United Methodist Church, 3320 W Adams Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90018 RSVP HERE We will be recognizing the icons of social justice that were integral in founding ICUJP 23 years ago: Reverend James Lawson, Dr. Maher Hathout, Rabbi Leonard Beerman, and Rev. George Regas. We will also be honoring the current generation of leaders calling for justice and peace, including Hedab Tarifi and Tahil Sharma. Stay tuned for more details on this great event! Co-sponsors:

Pacific Yearly Meeting takes a public stand on Israel/Palestine conflict

 

Vigil in downtown Whittier during PacYM annual session

Do Minutes of Concern Matter?

I left Pacific Yearly Meeting’s annual session this summer with a feeling of joy that I haven’t felt for many years. What made my heart leap for joy was that we approved a minute of concern on Israel/Palestine calling for:

1.      A permanent ceasefire.

2.      End[ing] complicity in human rights violations and war crimes by the United States and other countries, and impos[ing] a universal arms embargo.

3.      Release of Israeli hostages and Palestinian political prisoners.

4.      Expedited humanitarian aid and protection of aid workers, including American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) staff.

5.      A lasting peace that guarantees safety and justice for Israelis and Palestinians.

It wasn’t just approving a minute of concern that made me joyful, it was also connecting with Friends who feel as outraged and upset as I am about the genocidal acts taking place in Gaza and the West Bank. My concern for the plight of Palestinians goes back many years and is personal. In 2014 I was arrested and spent a night in jail protesting Israel’s attack on Gaza that killed over 2,300 people. Ever since October 7, I have taken part in a faith-rooted vigil on Mondays from 5:00-7:00 pm in front of the office of Representative Judy Chu in Pasadena calling on her to support a permanent ceasefire.

During these interfaith vigils, which were started by the Mennonites and Episcopalians,  I befriended Gazans who have lost numerous loved ones and stood in solidarity with Muslims, Jews and other people of conscience. We successfully convinced the Pasadena City Council to support a ceasefire resolution and our Congress member Chu not to sign on to more military aid to Israel. I proudly carried the AFSC banner calling for a ceasefire even though my monthly meeting didn’t support a ceasefire until April. How I yearned for the support of my meeting during these terrible months when women and children were being massacred on an unimaginable scale! I can’t describe the relief and joy I felt when my meeting finally came to unity to support a ceasefire and also donated $10,000 to the AFSC for humanitarian aid to Gaza. (It is my fervent hope that other meetings will follow this example and give as generously as they can.)

I was hoping and praying that Pacific Yearly Meeting would similarly rise to the occasion and take a stand. For this reason, I was thrilled (and deeply grateful to God) that on the first day of annual session twenty Friends gathered for a lunch meeting to discuss Gaza and this minute, and over a dozen showed up for an evening meeting to craft it. I was not alone! I was among Friends who cared!

For the past eight years or so, Pacific Yearly Meeting has not taken a public stand on issues of peace and justice, not even when George Floyd was killed by a police officer, sparking world-wide protests, while Quaker organizations like FCLCA, FCNL and AFSC made public statements in support of Black Lives Matter. This silence has deeply grieved me since I know that Friends at our Yearly Meeting care deeply about justice and peace as I do. We have approved minutes of concern each year since I moved to California and started attending annual sessions in 1989. During this recent period of quietism I have not felt supported by Yearly Meeting in my efforts to be a Quaker activist and have had to turn elsewhere to find the emotional and spiritual support I need to do the work that I feel Spirt calling me to do. This year was so different I feel incredibly grateful.

I know that many Friends have what they feel are good reasons not to consider minutes of concern. Here are some reasons why I feel that minutes of concern are important.

1)     Considering minutes of concern is time-consuming and often leads to “wordsmithing,” but it’s worth the effort. Approving a minute of concern can be messy and takes time. It is easier to remain silent. But is that what Spirit is calling us to do as a religious society? Since its inception, Quakerism has been a prophetic religion, and Quakers are known for having taken a collective stand on controversial issues like slavery and women’s rights before other religious groups.  “Wordsmithing” is often used in a pejorative sense to describe what may seem like nitpicking, but I feel it is healthy for a body to struggle to find the right words to express its commitment to justice and peace.

2)     Some feel that minutes of concerns don’t matter since they don’t lead to action. I agree that simply approving a statement doesn’t in and of itself change the world. A genuine minute of concern should reflect action already taken by Friends and lead to further action. And there are many examples. Ten monthly meetings in Pacific YM approved minutes of concern on Israel/Palestine and many individual Friends have been active in protests, letter writing and meeting with elected officials. Our minute validated these actions and encouraged other meetings to do likewise. We also invited monthly meetings and individual Friends to read and take to heart the recommendations in a statement called “A Different Future is Possible: Quaker Organizations Share a Vision for Peace in Israel and Palestine.” This statement, published in April 2024, was crafted by eight prominent Quaker organizations: American Friends Service Committee, Canadian Friends Service Committee, Friends Committee on National Legislation, Friends World Committee for Consultation, Quakers in Britain, Quaker Council on European Affairs, Quaker Peace and Social Witness, and the United Nations Office. It has also been endorsed by over 100 Quaker bodies and reflects serious Quaker thinking about how to resolve the conflict in Israel/Palestine.

3)     Minutes of concern matter because they proclaim to the world where we stand as a religious body. When the AFSC or FCNL or any religious body takes a public stand, they can lobby public officials more effectively. The larger and more prestigious the body, the more significant its influence on decision makers. That’s why a minute by a yearly  meeting has more clout than a minute by a monthly meeting. And that’s why Joyce, Ajlouny, General Secretary of the AFSC, asked us to support the statement “Towards a Different Future.”

4)     Minutes of concern can deepen our connection with the Divine. If our minutes of concern are truly Spirit-led, and that should always be our intention, then coming to unity about issues that matter brings us in harmony with the Divine. Coming to unity with the Divine empowers to speak and act more boldly because we are acting not as isolated individuals, but as a community seeking to do the will of God.

While I feel that minutes of concern are important, they should not become a routine. They should always arise from a deeply felt need and a leading of the Spirit. When we seek to do the will of the Divine and unite as a religious body, we can become instruments of Divine justice and peace. For me, this is a source of joy and solace in a broken world urgently in need of healing. I believe that being a prophetic voice, and taking action to embody our faith, is our calling as the Religious Society of Friends.

It's Time to Take Action as Quakers to Address the Israel/Palestine Conflict

 

Protesting in front of Rep. Judy Chu's office in Pasadena: Anthony Manousos, Hedab Tarifi (a Muslim leader of our vigil who lost 150+ family members in Gaza since Oct. 8) and Bert Newton, Mennonite pastor and organizer of this vigil.

If you are troubled, heart-broken and/or outraged by the genocidal acts taking place in Gaza and the West Bank and you want to take action at our Pacific Yearly Meeting annual session, please contact me at interfaithquaker@aol.com. I’d like to meet with you for lunch on Saturday, July 20, at Whittier College to discuss what we can do, such as having an affinity group, organizing a vigil, and crafting a minute of concern.

Since October 2023 I have been involved in weekly vigils in Pasadena that have been successful in addressing the unfolding tragedy in Israel/Palestine. In March 600 people gathered for a special meeting of the Pasadena City Council at the Pasadena Convention Center, and 200 people spoke out. During this historic four-hour meeting we convinced the Council to unanimously adopt a resolution calling for a ceasefire, return of hostages, and expedited humanitarian aid.  This historic event was covered by NBC news:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z799jq-Uf58 We also convinced our Representative Judy Chu to join 58 other Congress members to oppose sending further military aid to Israel.

The Mennonites and Episcopalians here in Pasadena have organized fund-raising events that have raise tens of thousands of dollars for humanitarian aid to Gaza. Orange Grove Meeting also approved a ceasefire minute and contributed $1,500 to humanitarian aid to the AFSC for Gaza relief efforts. At least nine other meetings in Pac YM have approved minutes of concern about Gaza: Apple Seed, Berkley, Claremont, Santa Barbara, Santa Monica, San Diego, Strawberry Creek, Honolulu, and Orange Grove. 

I thank God that these meetings and our beloved activist community care deeply enough to speak out and take a stand. I am feeling led by Spirit to work with Quakers at Pac YM to take action and organize a vigil in Whittier calling for a ceasefire, return of hostages and political prisoners, expedited humanitarian aid, and a lasting and just solution to the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians.

Will you join us?

I am also urging Pacific Yearly Meeting to take a public stand and endorse the statement of Quakers world-wide regarding Israel/Palestine: “A Different Future Is Possible.”  See https://afsc.org/newsroom/different-future-possible-quaker-organizations-share-vision-peace-palestine-and-israel.

Do you agree that we as a Yearly Meeting need to follow the example of Quakers world-wide and take a public stand? Or would you prefer for us to remain silent? I would like Pacific YM Friends to have an opportunity to decide whether to be silent or to speak out? 

I hope that Friends will choose to speak out. During the Vietnam era, Dr. King famously said: “There comes a time when silence is betrayal.” When Quakers do not speak out about genocidal acts being perpetrated with our tax dollars, are we not betraying our core values?

In the past Quakers have shown the world that we are serious peacemakers. But we cannot and should not sit on our laurels. That's why I am urging Pacific Yearly Meeting to live up to our highest ideals by speaking and acting prophetically.  

 

 

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It's time to end slavery in California! Support ACA 8!

 

What you can do to support ACA 8, the measure that would end involuntary servitude (slavery) for prison inmates in California. ACA 8 has the strong support of the Quaker lobby in Sacramento, Friends Committee on Legislation of California.

History of Slavery in California 

The legacy of slavery and forced labor runs deep in  California’s history, from the exploitation of Indigenous  people in Spanish missions to Black people who were  enslaved and forced to mine for gold. This legacy goes as  far back as the first iteration of the California State  Constitution, introduced in 1849, that stated: “Neither  slavery, nor involuntary servitude, unless for the  punishment of crimes, shall ever be tolerated in this State” (Article I, Sec. 18). The following year, the racist Indian  Indenture Act criminalized everyday behavior in CA, allowing any white man who “found” an “Indian”  loitering, unemployed, frequenting public places where  liquor was sold, begging, or leading an “immoral” life to  take that charge before a judge. The judge would then  order the Indian seized and sold at public auctions  (Provision 20). 

In 1850, the federal Fugitive Slave Act required  governments and any white person to recapture people  who escaped from slave-holding jurisdictions – meaning  any person brought to California before statehood as a  slave would legally remain a slave. California  additionally passed its own Fugitive Labor Act in 1852,  essentially suspending the state constitution’s anti slavery clause, allowing free Blacks to be re-enslaved.  

In 1855, the Greaser Act legalized the arrest of  individuals with "Spanish and Indian blood" who were  perceived as violating California’s anti-vagrancy statute.  Although CA joined the Union as a “free state,” a slave  market flourished here from 1850 to 1870. While slave  trafficking faded out in the 1870s, it was tragically in  large part due to the genocide of Native Americans. 

In 1865, Congress passed the 13th Amendment, which  ended chattel slavery nationwide but allowed slavery to  exist in other forms. This slavery “exception clause”  remains in both the U.S. Constitution and our State  Constitution. 

Modern-Day Slavery in California 

Slavery did not end after the Civil War. Continuing  through the early 1940s, African Americans were  “leased out” to plantation owners and manufacturers as  cheap labor. This leasing system was replaced by “chain  gangs” – a dehumanizing practice of chaining together  incarcerated people to perform manual labor – that many  states including California profited from.  

The practice of forced prison labor and remnants of  slavery are embedded throughout California’s system of  incarceration today. Although no courts explicitly order  forced labor at criminal sentencing, finding authority in  the constitution, it is standard practice to force  incarcerated people to perform labor, often in dangerous  conditions, against their will.  

More than 95,000 Californians are currently incarcerated  in our state prison system with significant racial  disparities. African Americans account for 28% of the  prison population but are less than 6% of California’s  overall population. In addition, the lifetime chances of a  person going to prison are higher for Blacks (16.2%) and  Latinos (9.4%) than for whites (2.5%).  

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020,  the State leaned on incarcerated workers to produce  hand sanitizer, soaps, and masks. Incarcerated people  were not allowed to use the products they made to keep  themselves safe. Any concerns raised about endangering  their own health and their lives were met with threats of  harsh punishment. In fact, incarcerated people have long  faced cruel treatment for any work absences: physical  violence, solitary confinement, denial of phone calls and  family visits, and limiting participation in self-help  groups, and disciplinary write-ups that result in longer  prison terms. Such punishments, or threats of such  punishments, are often issued even when absences are  due to illness or injuries sustained through the work. 

Furthermore, research illustrates the well-documented psychological and emotional trauma laid by the hands of  modern-day slavery and forced labor. Survivors of  modern slavery experience post-traumatic stress  disorder, lack of autonomy, and diminished sense of  self. 

Dissolving the remnants of slavery and racial inequity is  more important now than ever before. California is only  1 of 16 states that still allows legalized constitutional  slavery – and it lags behind other states in removing  slavery from its state constitution. In 2022, Alabama,  Oregon, Tennessee, and Vermont joined other states that  had recently passed state constitutional amendments  prohibiting both slavery and involuntary servitude  (Nebraska and Utah in 2020; Colorado in 2018). In  2020, U.S. Senator Merkley (OR) introduced a  resolution to remove involuntary servitude as a  punishment for crime from the U.S. Constitution.  

Solution 

The End Slavery in CA Act (ACA 8) would allow Californians the  opportunity to vote to amend Article 1, Section 6 of the  State Constitution to prohibit slavery and involuntary  servitude without exception. 

For more information contact: Aldo Garcia, Assembly  Fellow, Aldo.Garcia@asm.ca.gov or (916) 319-2011 

Co-Sponsors 

The 10P Program  

A New Way of Life  

Abolish Slavery National Network 

ACLU California Action  

Aging People in Prison Human Rights Campaign All of Us or None 

Anti-Recidivism Coalition  

Anti-Violence Safety and Accountability Project  ASCRIBE  

Asian Prisoner Support Committee  

California Lawyers for the Arts 

Coalition for a Just and Equitable California Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice EDIFYE  

Freedom United 

GLIDE Foundation 

Homies Unidos  

Impact Justice  

Just Cities  

Legal Aid at Work  

Legal Services for Prisoners with Children 

March On  

Norcal Resist  

Pride In Truth  

Prison from the Inside Out 

Represent Justice 

Sister Warriors Freedom Coalition 

Starting Over Inc.  

The Love We Don’t See 

TimeDone 

Village Advocates  

Youth Leadership Institute

Thank you to those of you who were able to make it to our meeting earlier today. We shared some positive updates as we are pleased to report that ACA 8 FINALLY got referred out of the Senate Rules committee and will be moving through the Senate Public Safety, Senate Elections and Constitutional Amendments committee, Appropriations, and then the Senate floor for our final vote. We are aiming to get through all of this by June 27th in order to qualify ACA 8 for the upcoming November ballot. 

Let's keep the pressure on! Please reach out to your Senate representatives and make sure that they are in support of ACA 8. Let's continue to outreach to the Governor's office as well!

• Office of Governor Newsom

• Call (916) 445-2841

• Email 

Utilize this action link from our fellow ACA 8 cosponsors ACLU Cal Action. Also, here is our ACA 8 social media toolkit.

Other Senate targets include:

• Chair of Senate Public Safety: Senator Wahab

• Capitol Office: 1021 O Street, Suite 733 Sacramento, CA 95814

• Phone: (916) 651-4410

• District Office (Fremont):

• Phone: (510) 794-3900

• Chair of Senate Elections and Constitutional Amendments: Senator Blakespear

• Capitol Office:1021 O Street, Suite 7340 Sacramento, CA 95814

• (916) 651-4038

• Laguna Hills District office: Phone: (949) 598-5850

• Encinitas District office: Phone: (760) 642-0809

• Chair of Senate Appropriations: Senator Caballero  

• Capitol Office: 1021 O Street, Suite 7620 Sacramento, CA 95814

• Phone: (916) 651-4014

• Fresno District Office: 2550 Mariposa Mall, Suite 2016 Fresno, CA 93721

• Phone: (559) 264-3070

• Senate Protem: Senator McGuire

• Capitol Office: 1021 O St., Suite 8518 Sacramento, CA 95814

• (916) 651-4002

• Santa Rosa District Office: (707) 576-2771

• San Rafael District Office: (415) 479-6612

• Senate Majority Leader: Senator Lena Gonzalez 

• Capitol Office: 1021 O Street, Suite 7720 Sacramento, CA 95814

• Phone: (916) 651-4033

• Long Beach District Office: 3939 Atlantic Ave., Suite 107 Long Beach, CA 90807

• Phone: (562) 256-7921

Lastly, we are still looking to mobilize an action in June to help get us over the finish line! We want to organize with our Faith community so please reach out if you are connected to any networks that include faith leaders and organizations that may be willing to get loud about ACA 8! More updates are coming soon. 

In pursuit of liberation,

Jeronimo Cuauhtemoc Aguilar

--

Policy Analyst

Legal Services for Prisoners with Children-All of Us or None 

4400 Market Street 

Oakland, CA 94608

cell:530.405.6178

www.abolishbondagecollectively.org

www.prisonerswithchildren.org

jeronimo@prisonerswithchildren.org 

"We urge you to speak out, don't be afraid to lose false friends. One action is worth a thousand meaningless, compromised bills. Because one work, one courageous stand based on principle, will set the example for all of our people". - Rodolfo "Corky" Gonzales