The Opportunity for All Coalition is moving rapidly into campaign mode to support the passage of Proposition 16, which will ask California voters in November to allow equal opportunity policies to be used by state and local governments to promote good jobs, good wages, and quality schools for everyone.
After the passage by the California State Senate of ACA 5 in June, the Secretary of State qualified the ballot measure as Proposition 16 on July 1. The Assembly passed ACA 5 on a bipartisan 60-14 vote. The Senate passed the bill on a bipartisan 30-10 vote.
The Opportunity for All Coalition ballot measure committee is led by co-chair Eva Paterson, President of the Equal Justice Society; co-chair Vincent Pan, Co-Executive Director of Chinese for Affirmative Action; co-chair Thomas A. Saenz, President and General Counsel, MALDEF (Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund); board member Quinn Delaney, philanthropist; board member Walter Wilson, Silicon Valley Minority Business Consortium; and interim campaign manager Andy Wong, Director of External Relations at The Education Trust-West. The coalition will also rely on a steering committee of diverse leaders from around California that was responsible for getting the initiative placed on the ballot.
The coalition website is at voteyesonprop16.org, on Twitter @YesProp16, on Facebook @YesOnProp16, and on Instagram @YesOnProp16.
Our shared values and our diverse communities are under attack in America today. White supremacists are on the march, Black people are being shot, Latino immigrants are demonized on a daily basis, COVID-19 is ravaging Native communities, hate crimes against Asian Americans are on the rise, and many of us fear for our safety because of who we are.
There is something we can do. By supporting Proposition 16, we can push back against Trump and the racism he promotes and build a better future in California. There has never been a more critical time to reinstate equal opportunity in California – as we chart a path forward to a stronger economic future for women and communities of color, and to a California where Black lives matter and our systems are just.
Visit voteyesonprop16.org/donate to contribute to the Opportunity for All Coalition ballot measure committee and be a part of history in California!
ACA 5, the legislation that authorized Proposition 16, was endorsed by over 500 organizations and leaders, including California Senators Kamala Harris and Dianne Feinstein, California Governor Gavin Newsom, California Lt. Governor Eleni Kounalakis, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, U.S. Representative Karen Bass (CA-37), Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, San Francisco Mayor London Breed, San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo, Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf, Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia, San Francisco Board of Supervisors President Norman Yee, California State Board of Equalization Member Malia Cohen, California Secretary of State Alex Padilla, California State Controller Betty Yee, former California Senate President pro Tempore Kevin de Leon, Insurance Commissioner of California Ricardo Lara, and Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs.
ACA 5 was also endorsed by MALDEF, SEIU California, ACLU of California, United Farm Workers (UFW), AFSCME Local 3299, San Diego Building & Construction Trades Council, Cesar Chavez Foundation, Dolores Huerta Foundation, California Black Chamber of Commerce, California Climate Change & Agriculture Network, California Federation of Teachers, California Labor Federation, California Teachers Association, League of Women Voters California, California National Organization for Women, California/Hawaii State Conference NAACP, Chinese for Affirmative Action, Equal Justice Society, The Education Trust – West, and the University of California Student Association.
ACA 5 was authored by Assemblymembers Weber, Gipson, and Santiago, and co-authored by Assemblymembers Burke, Cooper, Gonzalez, Holden, Jones-Sawyer, Kamlager, Kalra, McCarty, Stone, Wicks, and Senators Bradford, Mitchell, Hueso, and Skinner.
The bill was supported by leading civil rights organizations, labor groups and business leaders across California including Equal Justice Society, the California Black Chamber of Commerce, Chinese for Affirmative Action, ACLUs of California, and scores of other community advocates.
