California is addressing the disproportionate representation of Black individuals in missing persons cases by introducing the nation’s first Ebony Alert system.
Each year, hundreds of thousands of people go missing in the United States. Although African Americans represent thirteen percent of the population, people of color make up roughly forty percent of missing persons cases.
On Oct. 8, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed SB 673 into law, creating the new Ebony Alert System for missing Black youth and young women which will be put into place by the California Highway system starting Jan. 1, 2024.
Sky'Kemmia Pate was just 8 years old when she vanished from her family's porch in Unadilla, Ga., — a town roughly 45 miles outside of Macon — on Sept. 4, 1998.
In a groundbreaking move to address the rate at which Black youth and young women go missing in the United States, California has taken a significant step forward.