California Black Media Political Playback: News You Might Have Missed
By California Black Media l October 24, 2023
By Tanu Henry, Antonio Ray Harvey and Joe W. Bowers Jr. | California Black Media
IRS: You Now Have Until Nov. 16 to Pay Your 2022 Income Tax
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and California Franchise Tax Board (FTB) verified that Californians who had postponed filing their taxes until the October 16, 2023, deadline — now have until Nov. 16, 2023, to file and pay their 2022 taxes to avoid penalties.
FTB generally conforms to the IRS’s deferred schedules for events declared as disasters by the U.S. President.
In addition, taxpayers in 55 California counties, excluding Lassen, Modoc and Shasta counties — who were impacted by winter natural disasters — are eligible for an extension to file and pay their 2022 federal income taxes until Nov. 16, 2023.
Taxpayers impacted by a presidentially declared disaster may claim a deduction for the disaster loss. More details and guidelines are available in FTB Publication 1034, titled “2022 Disaster Loss: How to Claim a State Tax Deduction.”
Taxpayers can claim a disaster loss either on their 2023 return next spring, or on this year’s return against 2022 income. An amended return may be filed by those who have already filed this year. Claiming the loss on a 2022 return allows for a quicker refund.
California Schools to Teach Media Literacy in Every Grade
Assembly Bill (AB) 873, authored by Assemblymember Marc Berman (D-Menlo Park), was signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom on Oct. 14. The legislation establishes safeguards as young people grow more reliant on the internet and social media as a source for news and information.
AB 873 integrates media literacy instruction into the four core subjects that all students learn from kindergarten through 12th grade in California. AB 873 will bring California in line with a small but growing number of states teaching media literacy in grade school.
“As we’ve seen too often in the last decade, what happens online can have the most terrifying of real-world impacts. From climate denial to vaccine conspiracy theories to the January 6 attack on our nation’s Capital, the spread of online misinformation has had global and deadly consequences,” Berman stated. “We have a responsibility to teach the next generation to be more critical consumers of online content and more guarded against misinformation, propaganda, and conspiracy theories.”
According to the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC), full digital access remains lower among Latino (63%), Black (71%), and low-income households with school children (59%).
AB 873 directs the Instructional Quality Commission (IQC) to incorporate media literacy content into the English language arts/English language development, science, mathematics, and history-social science curriculum frameworks when they are next revised.
Generation Up (GenUp), a student-led nonprofit that sponsored AB 873, praised Newsom for his decision.
“We want to again thank our community partners for their support and look forward to continuing to advocate for California’s students alongside them,” stated Nicholas Harvey, K-12 Policy Director at GenUp.
Min. Louis Farrakhan and the Nation of Islam File $4.8 Billion Defamation Lawsuit Against Anti-Defamation League, Simon Wiesenthal Center
Last week, the Nation of Islam (NOI) and its leader, Minister Louis Farrakhan, filed a lawsuit against the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), its CEO, Johnathan Greenblatt, the Simon Wiesenthal Center (SWC), and Rabbi Abraham Cooper of the SWC.
The suit, charging the plaintiffs with first amendment violations and defamation, was filed on Oct. 16 in the Federal Court of the Southern District of New York.
“For over 40 years, the Defendants have falsely labeled Minister Farrakhan and the NOI as ‘anti-Semites,’ and as ‘anti-Semitic’ because of a difference in theological viewpoints, and for his pointing out misbehavior of some members of the Jewish community, among other things,” reads a statement the NOI released.
“This false labeling has hindered Minister Farrakhan in his Mission, which is to deliver the Truth taught by the Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad that will correct the condition of spiritual, mental and moral death of the Black man and woman of America that came as a result of the 310 years of chattel slavery and over 150 years of oppression and suppression thereafter,” the statement continued.
The suit names several other renowned “victims” who have been “mischaracterized” as “antisemitic,” including “the late Nelson Mandela, President Jimmy Carter, Reverend Jesse Jackson, Bishop Desmon Tutu, and many more.”
The suit is asking for $4.8 Billion in damages.
Report: “Struggle for Power” in Higher Ed Is Stalling Advances in Online Education
Despite the rising demand and rapid adaptation to online education, a recent report raises troubling concerns about how the state’s higher education system is negatively impacting the mode of learning in California.
California Competes: Higher Education for a Strong Economy identified specific issues hindering the advancement of online learning, explored why they exist and provided guidance to public postsecondary decision makers on how to address them.
According to the report, released by California Competes, an educational advocacy organization focused on underserved communities, the five main categories of concern are: quality, data, organizational, finance, and culture and value issues.
“Reluctance to embrace online education is rooted in a struggle for power among stakeholders in California’s public higher education system: California Community Colleges (CCC), California State University (CSU), and University of California (UC),” the report asserts. “The resulting tensions are exacerbated by questions about online education’s quality, a dearth of robust data, siloed institutional administrative controls, a lack of understanding of funding models, and a culture that values tradition over change.”
California Competes says the study serves as a roadmap outlining steps to “strategically leverage online learning” based on the following facts:
- 3.9 million Californians who intend to enroll in college are interested in exclusively online courses.
- Access to online courses is the top motivator for enrollment in California’s Community Colleges.
- The University of California and the California State University have goals to at least double online education enrollment.
