July 26, 2012

California’s political leaders have lined up behind longtime political activist Bobbie Jean Anderson in support of her run for the 2012 Democratic National Committee (DNC).  Taking place July 28, the Executive Board of the Democratic State Central Committee of California (DSCC) will elect 19 members to the DNC for the 2012-2016 term.  Members of the DNC are directly responsible for articulating and promoting the Democratic platform, coordinating party organizational activity, supervising the national convention and, both independently and in coordination with the presidential candidate; raising funds, commissioning polls, and coordinating campaign strategy.  If elected to serve, Anderson will complete a four-year term beginning September 7 at the DNC meeting in Charlotte, North Carolina through the completion of the National Convention in 2016.

 

A list of Anderson’s endorsements include congresswomen Maxine Waters and Laura Richardson, Los Angeles County Democratic Party vice-chairs Eric Bauman and Alex Gallardo Rooker, assemblymembers Mike Davis and Isadore Hall III, Senator Rod Wright, Board of Equalization Chair Jerome Horton and Kerman Maddox. A Shreveport, LA native,  Anderson graduated from Fremont High School and after completing a course of study at the Downey Court Reporting School, was certified by the National Shorthand Reporters Association as Certified Shorthand Reporter.

 

She is a retiree of the Los Angeles County Court System after 40 years of service, including 25 years with the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office.  She later served as Field Representative for Assemblymember Mike Davis from 2006 through 2009.

 

Known as a strong community and political activist, in 1989, Anderson and several homeowners became victims of eminent domain due to the expansion of the I-110 freeway.  Believing that Caltrans was dealing in bad faith with the homeowners, Anderson, with the help of then-Assemblymember Maxine Waters, led 150 homeowners to fight for fair market values of their homes and appropriate relocation benefits for tenants.  This effort catapulted her into the political activist that she is today.

 

Anderson became a member of Black Women’s Forum where she chaired the Criminal Justice Taskforce and was appointed to the LAPD Commission in 1993 by Mayor Tom Bradley and reappointed by Mayor Richard Riordan.  In 2001, Mayor James Hahn appointed her to the Commission on the Status of Women.

 

She is active with the Democratic Party nationally and locally having attended President Bill Clinton’s White House Crime Briefing leading to her being appointed to his Criminal Justice Taskforce in 1995.

 

Since 1992, she has been elected Delegate to the Democratic National Conventions, including 2008 as a Delegate for President hopeful Barack Obama.

 

Anderson is a long-time labor activist with SEIU 660/721.  She currently serves as Vice-Chair of the Los Angeles County Democratic Party and Commissioner (8th CD) for the L.A. Redistricting Commission.

 

She has always been passionate about the plight of victims of domestic violence and currently serves on the board of Jenesse Domestic Violence Center where she has been a volunteer for over 20 years.

 

Category: Community