This is the story of how Berkeley took on Big Soda – and won.
In 2014, Measure D passed in a landslide, making Berkeley the first city in the country to successfully levy a tax on sugary drinks. The Ecology Center was central to this grassroots campaign. Our youth interns led door-to-door outreach in Berkeley neighborhoods.
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Panel Guest for SPUR
Exciting news! Our Executive Director Wilhelmenia Wilson joined community activists for the SPUR and Partnership for the Bay’s Future in an eye-opening panel discussion on how a race-conscious approach to policy-making can help solve the housing crisis.
Achievement gap in Berkeley schools has long been among the nation’s very worst
BUSD has spent decades striving to close the gap between Black and Latino students and their white and Asian peers but has yielded only limited success.
California’s Case for Reparations Documentary is Here!
California’s Case for Reparations explores the history-making work of the country's first state reparations task force.
Berkeley has lost thousands of Black residents. A new housing policy aims to help some return
The policy makes current or former residents of redlined areas, and those displaced by BART, a higher priority for affordable housing.
US Maternal Mortality Is Unacceptably High, Unequal, and Getting Worse—What Can Be Done About It?
A recent report by the National Center for Health Statistics revealed alarming rates of maternal deaths in the US. In 2021, the US had a maternal death rate of 32.9 per 100,000 live births, over 10 times higher than other high-income countries like Australia, Israel, and Spain, which range from 2 to 3 deaths per 100,000 live births.
American Black women face disproportionately high rates of maternal mortality
The sudden death of Olympic sprinter Tori Bowie at age 32 sent shockwaves around the world. The idea that a young, elite athlete could go into labor and die stunned many. But this problem is more common than many realize, and it’s particularly bad for Black women. William Brangham discussed more with Amanda Williams of the California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative.
BART Board Censures Member for Racist Comment
The BART Board of Directors voted to censure member John McPartland for using a racist expression during a meeting earlier this month.
Courage over Comfort: Advocating for Racial Solutions in a White Fragility Dominated World
At the heart of America’s political discourse and policy-making, the specter of race continues to cast its long, gilded shadow. Black Americans' historical plight, ongoing struggle, and tireless fight for equality have been insidiously and systematically undermined by a complex web of sociopolitical structures. The issue of race, often polarizing and always potent, has been wielded like a double-edged sword, cutting through the fabric of our democracy and unity.
Amos Brown, Medgar Evers and the 2,000-mile drive to meet MLK in SF
Amos Brown and Medgar Evers embarked on a historic journey from Mississippi to San Francisco in 1956, igniting a lifelong commitment to civil rights. Brown, now a prominent activist and pastor, reflects on their journey, his mentor Evers, and his ongoing fight for reparations and equality in San Francisco.
17 years and counting
A financial plan for our daughter's future. From savings to insurance to investments, we share our progress and strategies for a head start.
How BART Plans To Discipline Director Who Made Racist Comment
The BART Board of Directors will soon decide how to discipline a member who apologized for using racist language in a board meeting—a first for the transit governing body.
Why Reparations Matter Now
As funders and as a nation, we must examine the debt owed to the enslaved Africans and their descendants whose forced labor fueled the global economy for centuries and generated the wealth that built this country. The call for economic reparations for Black Americans has gone unanswered for centuries. Today, California can answer the call and atone for the unjust enrichment of this state from slavery together with the systematic and multi-generational exclusion of Black Americans from economic and social opportunities.
How community-centered reporting on hygiene stations for LA’s unhoused led to change
When the pandemic first hit, Lexis-Olivier Ray began seeing handwashing stations pop up around Los Angeles neighborhoods. It didn’t take long for him to notice that the stations, advertised by city leaders as a means of halting the spread of COVID-19 among the unhoused community, were not being maintained
White Supremacy Culture
The Sum of Us is a brilliant analysis of how we arrived here: divided and self-destructing, materially rich but spiritually starved and vastly unequal. McGhee marshals economic and sociological research to paint an irrefutable story of racism’s costs, but at the heart of the book are the humble stories of people yearning to be part of a better America, including white supremacy’s collateral victims: white people themselves. With startling empathy, this heartfelt message from a Black woman to a multiracial America leaves us with a new vision for a future in which we finally realize that life can be more than zero-sum.
Personal Experiences of U.S. Racial/Ethnic Groups in Today’s Difficult Times
Households across America are facing barriers to affordable housing, delayed healthcare, and problems affording food—with these trends being acutely felt among Black, Latino, and Native American families.
COVID-19 Relief Funds And Resources For Families In Need
Please note that the California Apartment Association has issued guidelines urging landlords to freeze rents and halt evictions for tenants affected by the corona-virus and waive late fees through May 31.
Travel To Cuba To Study Public Health System November 2 – 17, 2019
Our tailored immersion program was led by experts in the field, who helped us develop this specific curriculum.
Supporting Families During COVID-19
View Healthy Black Families’ article on COVID-19 resources.
Some of the questions that are answered:
What is HBF doing to support staff and the community? How can you support now? How can you support beyond COVID-19?
White Supremacy Culture – Still Here
This article is an update of the original White Supremacy Culture article published in 1999. While I wrote the words on the pages that became the White Supremacy Culture article all those years ago, I want to make it clear that I do not consider the original article or the website that is an extension of the article, my work. I feel a sense of stewardship rather than of ownership.
Why Grassroots Action Is the Most Likely Path to Systemic Change
This article is the first article of Community Strategies for Systemic Change, a series that is being co-produced by the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) and NPQ. In the series, urban and rural grassroots leaders from across the United States share how their communities are developing and implementing strategies—grounded in local places, cultures, and histories—to shift power and achieve systemic change.
Voices From The Community: Participant Perspectives On The Impacts And Promise Of The Thirsty For Change Campaign
Healthy Black Families, Inc. , Mesu Strategies, LLC, and The Center for Food, Faith and Justice combined efforts in addressing the dangers of sugary sweetened beverages.
Happy New Years From Healthy Black Families Inc.
We are wishing everyone a wonderful prosperous new year! This year, 2020, will be a great year for all of us. A HUGE thank you to all of our supporters, community partners, community members, STEP leaders, water ambassadors, staff, and Board for a great 2019.