Assemblywoman Mia Bonta Donates $1.25 Million to Black Panther Museum

Do today’s politicians even represent the people any more? What kind of politician represents you?

What would possess California Assemblywoman Mia Bonta (D-Oakland) to make a $1.25 million contribution to the Huey Newton Foundation and Oakland Black Panther Museum, when people who live in her district are suffering untold levels of violence and crime. Oakland is in visible decline. Its leaders are either simple or in very serious denial about the condition of their city with horrific homicides, robberies, assaults, rampant crime, rampant violent crime, gang violence, failing schools, car break-ins, retail theft… you get the picture.

Running for political office and winning is exciting. It’s wonderful for the winners. And it is a privilege to represent the people of your district. Elected lawmakers can use their office for good, for evil and corruption, or for selfish, self-serving reasons.

How a lawmaker spends campaign funds tracks with how they use their office – for good, evil, or selfish ends. Campaign funds aren’t supposed to be a slush fund for hedonistic pursuits.

The Federal Elections Commission outlines how campaign funds may be used:

Travel: “may be used to pay the costs of travel to an activity that is related to the campaign or to the candidate’s duties as a federal officeholder.”

Meals: “Campaign funds may be used to pay for meals during face-to-face fundraising events. By contrast, a candidate may not use campaign funds to take his or her family out to dinner.”

Mixed funds: “In the event of travel or vehicle expenses that commingle personal and campaign or officeholder activity, the beneficiary of the personal use expenses must reimburse the committee within thirty days for the entire amount associated with the personal activities.”

Gifts: On special occasions, campaign funds may be used to purchase gifts or make donations of nominal value to persons other than the members of the candidate’s family.

So where does this gift fall – a donation of “nominal value?” California Assemblywoman Mia Bonta, the wife of California Attorney General Rob Bonta, donated $1.25 million to the Black Panther Party Museum, at The Happy Birthday Huey! event honoring Huey Newton’s 82^nd birthday, SF Bayview reported. While the article largely glamorized Newton and the Black Panthers, Huey Newton is better remembered as a revolutionary, anarchist, murderer, and the founder of the Black Panthers – “a gang of ruthless killers.”

Who is Huey Newton? He killed “Oakland police officer John Frey in a shoot-out after Frey stopped him in his car early on the morning of 28 October 1967,” the Guardian reported in 2015. However Newton was only found guilty of voluntary manslaughter. “His conviction was overturned and in May 1970 he was released. Two further trials resulted in hung juries and the case was finally dismissed. By then, the party [Black Panthers] was in meltdown.”

Newton fled to Cuba in 1974 “to escape another murder charge. It was alleged that on 6 August 1974 Newton shot a 17-year-old street prostitute called Kathleen Smith in the face, apparently because she referred to him as ‘Baby’. She died after three months in a coma. Newton lived in Cuba for three years and stood trial for Smith’s murder on his return. But the main witness refused to testify, following an attempt to kill her, and Newton again walked free after two deadlocked jury trials.”

How is Assemblywoman Mia Bonta helping or supporting her constituents with this $1.25 million donation to a radical museum in Oakland? Surely she also knows the history of Huey Newton and the Black Panthers. I can think of a few more necessary services for the people of Oakland that $1.25 million would pay for.

Oakland’s crime rates have been higher than the state average, steadily. In August, the San Francisco Chronicle reported on a new study showing that Oakland crime is up in every category compared to crime rates before the pandemic.

But Mia Bonta gave $1.25 million dollars to honor revolutionary thugs in a museum.