Civil Rights

Governor Brown Issues Proclamation Declaring Harvey Milk Day
PROCLAMATIONBY THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA As one of the first openly gay politicians to hold office in the United States, San Francisco Supervisor Harvey Milk is remembered as a hero in the movement for acceptance of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender...
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Governor Brown Issues Proclamation Declaring Asian Pacific Islander Heritage Month
PROCLAMATIONBY THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA The 4.8 million Californians of Asian or Pacific Islander descent constitute the fastest-growing ethnic group in our state. California’s social and economic ties to the Pacific Rim are strengthened every day...
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Governor Brown Issues Statement on President Obama’s Support of Same-Sex Marriage
SACRAMENTO - Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today issued the following statement regarding President Obama's support of same-sex marriage: "Equality before the law is a pillar of American democracy. I applaud President Obama's support for the right of same-sex couples...
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Governor Brown Issues Proclamation Declaring Cesar Chavez Day
PROCLAMATIONBY THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA Eighty-five years ago today, César Chávez was born near his family farm in Yuma, Arizona. While he was still young, his family lost their farm in the Great Depression and became migrants following agricultural...
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Governor Brown Issues Proclamation Declaring Women’s Military History Week
PROCLAMATIONBY THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA The first known woman soldier in the United States armed forces was Deborah Sampson of Massachusetts who, disguised as a man, served in the Revolutionary War. Throughout the history of our armed forces, women have...
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Governor Brown Issues Proclamation Declaring a Day of Remembrance: Japanese American Evacuation
PROCLAMATIONBY THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA Seventy years ago, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, an act that set in motion the forced evacuation and internment of many thousands of United States citizens and legal immigrants...
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Governor Brown Issues Statement on Proposition 8 Ruling
SACRAMENTO - Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today issued the following statement in response to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeal’s decision on Proposition 8. “The court has rendered a powerful affirmation of the right of same-sex couples to marry. I applaud the wisdom...
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Governor Brown Issues Proclamation Declaring Black History Month
PROCLAMATIONBY THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA African-Americans have played a central role in our nation’s history, but for too long historians ignored or glossed over their contributions and the injustices they have suffered. The origins of Black History...
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Governor Brown Issues Proclamation Declaring Fred Korematsu Day
PROCLAMATIONBY THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA When Fred T. Korematsu received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1998, President Clinton said that "in the long history of our country's constant search for justice, some names of ordinary citizens stand for...
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State of the State 2012: “California on the Mend”
SACRAMENTO - In his 2012 State of the State speech, Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. said California is “on the mend” and laid out an ambitious agenda for economic growth in the year ahead. The full text of the speech is below: (Remarks as prepared)A video of the...
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