A surprising thing happened last November. The racist and divisive Proposition 16 failed miserably at the ballot box despite President Joe Biden winning the state by 29 percentage points and record spending by the “yes on 16” camp to the tune of $17 million, outspending the “no” side, which raised just over $1 million.
© Provided by Washington Examiner Proposition 16 sought to institute race-based preferences (affirmative action) into public education and public sector jobs and contracting, but it was shot down 57-43. Californians were tired of race-baiting by the Left and actually wanted nuance on the affirmative action issue, which the “no” campaign (which I worked on) aptly redefined as “race-based preferences.”
That was just the beginning. This year, as a community organizer, I have engaged and befriended so many from the other side of the aisle, especially in the black, Hispanic, and Asian communities, who are grappling with issues such as law and order, public safety, vaccinations, school choice, sex education in public schools, and many more. What I have seen is a community even more engaged than ever, seeking to understand and find solutions.
This was proven in the ballot box in states such as Florida and Texas, where previously Hispanic-dominated locales flipped from blue to red. In addition, Californian inner-city districts saw improved numbers for Republicans.
One of my community partners, Carmel Foster, comes from the same camp — a camp that previously supported Democratic candidates such as former President Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, but soon saw the failure of their policies and the shallowness of their rhetoric. Foster was actually a volunteer for the Hillary Clinton 2016 presidential campaign.
After the election, Foster got sucked into the dark underbelly of state politics as California Democrats continued to grow in popularity in the state. Foster became the citizen testimony to usher in A.B. 5, which sought to diminish the power of companies such as Uber and Lyft by requiring independent contractors to be reclassified as W-2 workers.
After she was used as a mouthpiece, she has since expressed regret.
When Foster saw that the A.B. 5 bill was actually hurting part-time workers, women who had young children, people taking care of elderly parents, specialized workers such as translators, and a whole world of good people affected by bad legislation, she saw how much the politicians had lied to her. And she started uncovering selfish intentions disguised as empathy. They claimed the bill was designed to help illegal immigrants and farm workers who were exploited.
In the end, she saw A.B. 5 did none of that.
“I had to come out with my story to show exactly how corrupt these politicians were on both sides of the aisle,” Foster told me. “This bill hurt me and all the people and causes I was fighting for, like the plight of domestic workers and those who were undocumented. I became the scapegoat. It was the ultimate betrayal.”
When journalist Jennifer O’Connell exposed how Foster was “exploited” by Assemblyman Phil Ting and other supporters of A.B. 5, California State Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon instantly dismissed the news story as right-wing smears. This was a double attack on Foster and Jennifer O’Connell, two black people who dared to speak out and give a different perspective.
For them to be dismissed instantly could be construed as racist “whitesplaining” from the Left.
Democratic policies that claim to be for the good of the underprivileged and minorities can do just the opposite. Foster figured this out, and it looks like she’s not alone. Most of California is waking up, and we are welcoming a new era of leadership focused on solutions.
Marc Ang (marc@aib2b.org) is the president of the Chinese American Citizens Alliance in Orange County, was the director of outreach for the “No on 16” campaign, and is the founder of AsianIndustryB2B. His book, Minority Retort, will be released in late 2021.
Tags: Opinion, Beltway Confidential, Blog Contributors, California, Race and Diversity, Democratic Party, Republican Party, Labor, Affirmative Action
Original Author: Marc Ang
Original Location: California minorities failed by the Left are seeking solutions from the Right
Peoples understand the marxist DPST permanent plantation mentality - and are rebelling against the Soviet DPST masters.
kalifornia will become a cesspool of poverty v welathy - made so by the soviet DPST policies.
It is a situation for revolution - but it will be against the Soviet SPST so-called Masters!
