A bill that hopes to address the lack of attention and resources given to Black youth who go missing in California has advanced in the state legislature.Senate Bill 673 would create an "Ebony Alert" notification system, similar to that of an Amber Alert, but it would be specifically for Black children and young Black women between the ages of 12 to 25. The bill would authorize law enforcement to request that an Ebony Alert be activated if that agency determines the alert would be an effective tool. Democratic State Sen. Steven Bradford, D-Gardena, introduced the bill.The bill passed the Senate Public Safety Committee Tuesday on a unanimous vote. “Today’s bipartisan vote is a powerful endorsement that we must do more to locate missing Black children and Black women who are disproportionately represented on the lists of missing persons in California,” Bradford said in a statement. According to the Black and Missing Foundation, 38% of people reported missing in the United States are Black. But due to certain classifications that are disproportionately given to Black youth who go missing, Amber Alerts are often not sent out, and those Black children and young women fall down the priority list for police."Young African American girls are listed more likely as runaways versus missing, and even those who are being exploited sexually are listed as juvenile prostitutes. And as we all know, someone under the age of 18 cannot consent to selling sex, so just the labels that they put on them just makes law enforcement far less inclined to look for them," Bradford previously told KCRA 3.SB 673 would also encourage news organizations to share the information that is part of the Ebony Alert. Community activist and Voice of the Youth founder Berry Accius has told KCRA 3 that because of the lack of attention given to missing Black children, families often come to him for help in getting their message out. He said he hopes an Ebony Alert prevents dangerous outcomes for missing Black youth. Accius said an Ebony Alert notification system is a great opportunity to create change in the community and make Black families in California feel like they can be confident in going to law enforcement to find their missing loved ones. SB 673 is sponsored by the NAACP California Hawaii State Conference. The bill now heads to the Senate Appropriations Committee.