The Howler’s Editorial Board consists of Sohum Sarwate, Jihoo Yoon, Aishwarya Ramasubramanian, Luna Bouhairi and Courtney Lee.
Proposition 2: YES
This measure aims to fix school facilities that do not meet state requirements. It would provide $8.5 billion for renovating, repairing and building new facilities through matching grants to local districts, improving safety and health conditions. Districts in greater need receive more funding.
Funding California public schools should be a priority for the state government. Schools in disrepair can be unsafe. According to the Public Policy Institute of California, 38% of students attend schools that don’t meet public facility standards. Proposition 2 would go a long way to address these unacceptable conditions.
Proposition 3: YES
This measure would remove outdated language in the California constitution that defined marriage as a union between one man and one woman. In its place would go language that grants all Californians the right to marry regardless of sex or race.
Proposition 3 would not change the current situation; Proposition 8’s restriction of marriage to heterosexual couples is no longer operable due to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decisions in Hollingsworth v. Perry in 2013 and Obergefell v. Hodges in 2015. This measure ensures that regardless of future actions by the courts, California will protect marriage equality for all.
Proposition 4: YES
This measure would provide $10 billion in state bonds (debt) to combat climate change, including in areas such as wildfire prevention, water quality and land protection.
Every year, the United States faces more natural disasters, and scientists agree that climate change is a significant cause. California is especially vulnerable. This measure would ensure that California has the resources to respond to climate change.
Proposition 32: YES
This measure would raise the minimum wage to $18 for all workers statewide by Jan. 1, 2026, depending on a company’s size.
This board believes that the minimum wage should be a living wage. According to the MIT Living Wage Calculator, a single person in California working full-time requires a minimum wage of $27.32 to support themselves, let alone a family. The current $16 minimum wage is not enough. Proposition 32 would help reduce income inequality, improve living standards and increase purchasing power for California consumers.
Proposition 36: NO
This measure would partially roll back Proposition 47, passed in 2014, which changed certain low-level, nonviolent crimes from felonies to misdemeanors. Specifically, Proposition 36 would make certain theft and drug possession crimes felonies again and create “treatment-mandated felonies” for drug possession. Instead of just a prison sentence, those convicted of drug possession would have to get treatment at a state-approved facility.
Californians need evidence-based approaches to criminal justice. Supporters argue that it would make California communities safer, but harsher sentences have not been proven to reduce crime or meaningfully improve public safety. It could restart the failed War on Drugs and put California out of step with other states’ criminal justice laws.
Proposition 47 has also saved California taxpayers $800 million since it was enacted, reduced our overcrowded prison populations by 28% and decreased racial disparities. Instead of passing “tough-on-crime” policies, state leaders and community members should collaborate to address the real issues of homelessness, drug overdoses and theft in California. They should focus on expanding treatment options for those in need of assistance with addiction, such as beds, treatment slots and facilities.
These recommendations reflect those of the Northwood Howler Editorial Board, which comprises student journalists from across the paper. The board came to these recommendations independently after careful study and debate. The board does not speak for the newsroom or The Howler as a whole, but rather, it determines the editorial position of The Howler as an institution.
