Assembling for Equity on the Fourth of July

Photos by Terry Scussel, Pro Bono Photo. Please credit the photographer.

Activist Obai Rambo who gathered friends to organize a Fourth of July event looked back and said, "What a wonderful turnout today for the Assemble for Equity march and rally. The community made it loud and clear: We will not stand by idle while Black Lives are being extinguished. We will fight for justice on the streets and at the polls. The work continues on and when the people make sure that Proposition 16 passes this November, we will reaffirm affirmative action in California."

The loudest voice at the rally for Prop 16, to reinstate affirmative action, was by Kathryn Lybarger, President of AFSCME 3299. If passed, it would overturn 209, a constitutional amendment, voted into law in 1996 outlawing affirmative action at the state level in California. It has impacted the awarding of government contracts and admission to the state's educational institutions.

The state Senate voted on June 22 to place a constitutional amendment, ACA6, on the ballot to restore the voting rights of all felons after they’ve completed their state or federal prison terms. Proponents speaking at the rally said the move would repair a longstanding injustice and it can pass with a simple majority.

On July 5, 1852, Frederick Douglass recited a speech before an abolitionist group, explaining that the "celebration is a sham." Today some express it by saying "Independence Day has not arrived." Douglass' speech in its entirety was used to promote the Assemble for Equity event.

Protesters marched from the Ferry Building to City Hall in San Francisco.