Push For Reparations For Black Californians Continues Despite Setbacks

Here are the morning’s top stories on Monday, January 19, 2026

• As we celebrate and honor the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. today, we wanted to take a closer look at some of the issues that are facing Black Californians. In particular, the state’s reparations efforts. While lawmakers approved a handful of measures meant to ensure reparative justice for Black Californians, others have been tabled or vetoed by Governor Gavin Newsom. So where does it all stand?
• A special election is happening in Northern California this year that could further chip away at Republicans’ slim majority in the House of Representatives.
• For the second time in four months, a group of Kaiser workers are going out on an open-ended strike at hospitals and clinics across California and Hawaii.

Reparation Efforts To Continue In 2026

Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed a handful of bills advancing the cause of reparations for Black Californians last year, dealing the latest blow to a first-of-its-kind movement to atone for state-inflicted harms from slavery to the present day. Newsom rejected bills that would have allowed the descendants of enslaved people to receive preference in university admissions, business licenses and loans for first-time homebuyers.

The measures were among several reparations-related bills advanced last year by the California Legislative Black Caucus, following a shift in strategy to focus on descendants of enslaved people rather than race-based programs — an approach designed to withstand mounting legal challenges.

Lisa Holder is a civil rights attorney and was a member of the state’s Reparations Task Force. She’s also president of the non-profit Equal Justice Society. She said this is going to be a long process. “You can’t legislate yourself out of 400 years of inequality and injustice. You have to do an entire body of laws to change the systems that have been disparately affecting black folks for decades.” she said. “You now have to put many, many laws in place to change practically every system, whether you’re talking about systems of finance, housing.  Laws that require equitable treatment, laws that require affirmative hiring sometimes in industries where Black people were affirmatively not hired,” she said.

Governor Sets Special Election To Fill Congressman LaMalfa’s Seat

Governor Gavin Newsom has set a date for the special election to replace Republican Congressman Doug LaMalfa, who passed away suddenly on January 6.

The election will take place on August 4. That’s later than the June date many observers expected, which would have coincided with the state’s already scheduled primary election. And it leaves a currently safe Republican House seat vacant for at least the next six months.

The winner of the special election would serve for only a few months, before having to run in a newly redrawn congressional district.

Union Of 31,000 Kaiser Workers To Go On Indefinite Strike

The union representing 31,000 nurses, rehab therapists, pharmacists and other specialty health care professionals at Kaiser Permanente plans to go on an open-ended strike at hospitals and clinics across California and Hawaii.

After both sides hit a wall in their months-long contract talks, the walkout is set to begin Jan. 26 at nearly 20 Kaiser hospitals and 200 clinics, with no end in sight. “We will be on strike until we reach an agreement,” said Brian Mason, a negotiator for the United Nurses Associations of California/Union of Health Care Professionals. He warned that the strike will likely cause delayed or canceled surgeries and appointments.

UNAC/UHCP is part of an alliance of health care unions negotiating with Kaiser for a new set of national and local contracts. In October, about 61,000 members of the alliance staged a five-day, multi-state strike to demand wage and staffing increases. Talks resumed after the walkout, but they broke down in mid-December when Kaiser negotiators accused UNAC/UHCP leaders of not bargaining in good faith.

In a statement issued on YouTube, chief human resources officer Greg Holmes said a union official threatened to release “evidence of illegal, unethical and reputationally damaging information about Kaiser Permanente” unless both sides reached an acceptable agreement.