Hollywood weighed in on the legislation Tuesday, as more than 120 actors and producers — including “Star Wars” director JJ Abrams, “Moonlight” actor Mahershala Ali and “Grey’s Anatomy” creator Shonda Rhimes — signed a letter asking Newsom to sign the bill into law. One of California’s most prominent unions, SAG-AFTRA, as well as influential feminist groups including the National Organization for Women, have sent similar letters to the governor.
It’s been said that when it began, Head Start was not simply an “innovation” but also an “invention,” and a radical one at that. President Lyndon Johnson, a former teacher in a one-room schoolhouse, believed strongly that education was the key to breaking the cycle of poverty, and Head Start was one of the earliest elements of the “War on Poverty” launched by his administration.
The Supreme Court decision in Trump v. United States poses a significant threat to our democracy by effectively providing the president with sweeping legal immunity for criminal acts. The idea that a president should be granted constitutional protection from prosecution for otherwise criminal “official acts” is an affront to the fundamental principle of American democracy that no one is above the law.
Head Start has served nearly 40 million children (about twice the population of New York), birth to age five, and their families. In 2023, that included more than 833,000 children and pregnant people in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Head Start protects the healthy development of children living in poverty and it frees parents to pursue their education or employment, opening doors to middle-class security.
Signers on the letter include the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, NAACP, American Association of People with Disabilities, Asian Americans Advancing Justice – AAJC, UnidosUS, National Women’s Law Center, National Urban League, the National Organization for Women, and other major civil rights organizations.