Karen Bass

Cynthia E. Griffin-  |   OW Managing Editor
Apr 14 2011

Current cuts impact local programs

The budget deal hammered out at the eleventh hour by House Republicans, Senate Democrats and White House officials last week and approved yesterday will keep the government operating until Sept. 30, but according to Rep. Karen Bass (D-Los Angeles), House Democrats had no input into the plan which slices $38 billion from federal programs.

Karen Bass  |   OW Guest Columnist
Mar 31 2011

Unrest in Libya

The Arab spring that awoke in lands throughout North Africa and the Middle East was a sight to behold. The spigot of unrest was too powerful, the energy too spontaneous, the movement too organic for any government to turn off.

Seasons of discontent were reversed by the keyboard clicking and smart phone tapping of a youthful generation expressing their exuberance in 140 characters on Twitter, and organizing movements of shared struggle on Facebook fan pages.

Mar 23 2011

Tim Robbins, James Cromwell and Mimi Kennedy are among the speakers

LOS ANGELES, Calif.—Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is among the scheduled speakers at a downtown rally today to protest proposed federal budget cuts, which organizers claim would hurt the city and county governments and attempts by small businesses to avoid layoffs.

Reps. Maxine Waters, Lucille Roybal-Allard, Karen Bass, Laura Richardson and Judy Chu, Councilman Richard Alarcon, actors Tim Robbins and James Cromwell and actress Mimi Kennedy are among the other scheduled speakers for the rally at the Edward Roybal Federal Building, set to begin at 2:30 p.m.

Congresswoman Karen Bass  |   OW Guest Contributor
Mar 10 2011

As Congress proposes cuts in aid

Twenty-one years ago, I was active in the movement to end apartheid and free Nelson Mandela.

While the apartheid regime was crumbling, the crack epidemic was beginning in South Los Angeles and inner city communities around the nation. I made a conscious decision to turn my activism away from Southern Africa and dedicate my time to addressing the devastation taking place at home. The Community Coalition, which plays such a vital role in our neighborhoods today, was born out of that crisis.

Feb 3 2011

All smiles at L.A. ceremony

Karen Bass is sworn-in during a special Los Angeles ceremony by former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. Bass, Pelosi and Diane Watson—whose congressional seat the newly installed lawmaker won, enjoy a moment together.

Across Black America

Here’s a look at African American people and issues making headlines throughout the country.
 

Alabama
Freeman A. Hrabowski, president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, will address the annual African American Business Council luncheon on June 28. Hrabowski, who is chairman of President Barack Obama’s Advisory Commission on Education Excellence for African Americans, has a national reputation for his work studying the performance of minority students in math and science. Hrabowski, named one of the 10 best college presidents in the country by Time magazine, was a child leader in the Civil Rights Movement in Birmingham in the 1960s.
 

Arkansas
The Liberty Counsel filed a motion and a brief in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas seeking to intervene on behalf of a Concepts of Life crisis pregnancy center to defend against a suit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Center for Reproductive Rights. The groups seek to impose a permanent injunction before the Human Heartbeat Protection Act goes into effect July 18. Liberty Counsel also filed a brief opposing the ACLU’s request for an injunction. The “Heartbeat” bill states that when a woman seeks an abortion at or after the 12th week, doctors must test for a fetal heartbeat before an abortion is performed and inform the pregnant mother that the child in her womb has a heartbeat. If a heartbeat is detected, a woman cannot have an abortion, except in cases of rape, incest, and if a mother’s life is in danger. “As we promised when the legislation was introduced, Liberty Counsel will defend this law without reservation for the people of Arkansas, born and pre-born,” said Matt Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel. “No right is more foundational than the right to life. Without life, all other rights are irrelevant,” concluded Staver.