Calendar
Sunday Morning at the Marxist Library
What have things come to when arch racist Jeff Sessions and deep state spooks are canonized as by self-identified liberals and leftists as bulwarks against fascism? When all mainstream “opposition” politics can be summarized in a single word: Trump. And when the midterm elections ignored deepening impoverishment at home, endless wars abroad, and climate catastrophe – let alone the tax cut for the superrich – instead focusing on the “threat” posed by (take your pick) immigrant workers and the Russians.
The majority of eligible voters sat out the midterm spectacle, simply not bothering with politicians awash in ever more obscene tsunamis of corporate cash. Meanwhile, both the economy and the polity have become more concentrated and less democratic with an ever-wealthier elite perched atop of an ever-growing surveillance state, mass incarceration, and censored media on the internet.
Economist Allan Miller, Green Party congressional candidate Laura Wells, and Peace and Freedom Party central committee member Roger Harris will try to inject reason to the rant, followed by robust questions and commentary. ICSS (Institute for the Critical Study of Society) member Raj Sahai will facilitate.
There will be an RPA membership meeting from 2-3:15 pm. Right after that, we will move into party mode and have our winter holiday party & fundraiser from 3:30 – 5:30. As usual, the meeting is for RPA members. But the party is open to all! Please invite friends, family and neighbors and help support the RPA in 2019.
About the party: Desserts and non-alcoholic drinks will be provided free of charge with donations accepted for beer and wine.
Our silent auction will provide an opportunity for you to bid on exciting gifts for others or for yourself, including: art work, art tour, piano tuning, dance lessons, Sushi and Cal-Mediterranean dinners, Cuban Rum and a 3 night stay in Cuba.
This event is open to the public and a great chance to get to know the RPA, build community, contribute to a great cause and pick up some wonderful gifts.
After you register spread the free ticket link here, and spread the word via Facebook here
We’re featuring the best films from FILMS TO THE PEOPLE Short Film Festival. Because of the smoke caused by the fires, a lot of you were bummed that you weren’t able to attend. So we’re hosting a Best of the Fest at our next film night. You won’t want to miss this last chance to watch this slate of films that shows social justice can be touching, hard-hitting, and even funny.
A Pair Of Horns On A Female Homo Sapiens by Saleh Kashefi
Con o Sin Papeles by Aria Zapata
Cycles by Latajh Weaver
Guardian Movie by Nicolas Jara
Snow Mountain by Ed Ntiri
The Salmon Will Run by Survival Media Agency
ZOO by Andrew Schrader
Doors Open @ 4:30pm
$5 NOTAFLOF
A Valve Turner In Person!
Leonard Higgins and four other Valve Turners decided to turn off the valves that regulate the pipeline flow of Canadian crude oil into the US. They were following the honored tradition of civil disobedience – take the bold action, have it documented for all the world to see, then wait to be arrested. At their trials, they sought to use the Necessity Defense to challenge the nation’s energy policy.
Higgins is the only UU in the group of three men and two women. By their actions at the US borders, they demonstrated strong commitment to Environmental Justice.
Sponsored by the BFUU SJC.
SCHEDULE
8:20 Coffee & Bagels
8:30 Gathering & Opening Circle
8:45 Press Conference
9:00 Sgt. Russell’s Courtdate
Recently, it was revealed that Alameda County Sergeant James Russell and Lieutenant Timothy Schellenberg were caught on video admitting to the illegal recording of youth defendants in confidential conversations with their own attorneys.
This is a Constitutional Rights violation and our concern is that it points to a much larger systemic problem.
Recording a defendant and their lawyer is a violation of the 4th, 5th and 6th amendments, as well as CA Penal Code 632, which is a felony offense punishable by up to 3 years in prison.
Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time Alameda County Sheriff’s Office (ACSO) have spied on a defendant as they spoke with their lawyer. It also happened back in 2012.
This is NOT an issue of “one bad apple.” We have a rotten tree that must be dealt with.
THE ENTIRE SHERIFF’S OFFICE SHOULD BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE AS NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW.
Felony charges have been filed against one sergeant, which is a good start but certainly not enough. This is just the tip of the iceberg for a department riddled with problems and constant allegations of the violation of people’s rights.
We call on Alameda County’s District Attorney Nancy O’Malley to conduct a thorough investigation of this matter and pursue the appropriate criminal charges against the Sheriff’s Deputies who have broken the law.
SIGN THE PETITION: bit.ly/NotAboveLaw
We demand that the District Attorney Nancy O’Malley do the following:
1. PROSECUTE Sergeant James Russell on the four counts of felony eavesdropping to the fullest extent of the law. No slap on the wrist.
2. INVESTIGATE the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office to determine the extent of this egregious violation of the United States Constitution, make public the results of the investigation, and file felony charges against Lt. Tim Schellenberg for his complicity, as well as all other officers involved in the recording of these constitutionally protected conversations.
Three antifascist activists are facing serious charges for defending our city against neo-Nazis two and a half years ago. We’re calling on our community to come out to their 2nd pretrial hearing and show support for these brave individuals. It’s up to us to make it clear that we stand with them!
We will be meeting at the courthouse and attending their court appearance. Come in casual, formal, or semi-formal attire and be prepared to go through a metal detector. Avoid arriving or leaving alone, and leave the area as soon as the court appearance is over. The court date will begin at 9 am and continue until 5 pm or until the hearing has concluded, whichever comes first. This is a critical way to show your solidarity and be a presence for activists being unfairly targeted by the state.
About the court case:
On June 26th, 2016, members of the neo-Nazi gang the Golden State Skinheads attempted to rally at the State Capitol here in Sacramento. Hundreds of counter-protesters mobilized and successfully shut down the Nazi rally. After the rally was canceled, the neo-Nazis attacked demonstrators with knives and clubs, stabbing and critically injuring several. Since then, one neo-Nazi has been arrested and three anti-racist activists are facing charges. After several cancellations and continuations, this is the final court date before our comrades are put on trial. So far, our community has come out to each court date to support them. This is their most important court appearance until the trial, so it’s urgent that we show up in numbers and make our support known!
Celebrating the publication of Human Rights and Wrongs and Plan Colombia
Authors Adrianne Aron and John Lindsay-Poland discuss their new books, Human Rights and Wrongs (Sunshot Press) and Plan Colombia: U.S. Ally Atrocities and Community Activism (Duke University Press), respectively. Both books recount stories of individuals and communities – especially in Latin America – resisting U.S. and state violence, often at great cost, and the power of human solidarity. Aron’s vignettes in the style of Eduardo Galeano draw from her experience as a psychologist and work with Central American refugees.
Lindsay-Poland narrates a Colombian peace community and a massacre, as well as the policy of training and equipping Colombian forces that serves as a template for U.S. intervention globally.
Books will be available for sale and signing.
www.sunshots.org/human-rights-and-wrongs
www.dukeupress.edu/plan-colombia (Preface and Introduction free online)
Sponsored by the BFUU SJC.
JOINT WALK‐IN CLINICS with Public Defender and EBCLC
*Please bring your statewide CA DOJ RAP sheet
if you have it or we can give information at clinic*
We may be able to help with:
Dismissal of Conviction – PC 1203.4
Felony Reduction / Prop 47 and 64 Relief
Early Termination of Probation
Certificate of Rehabilitation
Sealing Arrest Record – Factual Innocence
Juvenile Record Sealing
Post-Conviction Relief for Immigrants and
Survivors of Human Trafficking
Employment denials due to criminal background
reports
Occupational Licensing Denials(DSS, Security
Guard)
Voting Rights, Jury Service Rights
Tomorrow @ 12 pm, the Landless People’s Alliance is holding a press conference @ Alameda County Admin Building 1221 Oak St. to speak out against the mistreatment of unhoused folks in the Bay Area. Please show up to support their demands for justice&dignity https://t.co/oOZsFJl7U0
— The Village, Oakland (@VillageOakland) December 20, 2018
A presentation, The True Cost of Healthcare, by David Belk, MD
Have you ever wanted to build a socialist utopia out of gingerbread houses? Want to learn more about what East Bay DSA is doing around housing? Wondering what exactly is “social housing?” Join the East Bay DSA Housing Committee for a fun evening of making gingerbread houses and socializing with comrades. This is open to the general public. Bring your friends! Hot chocolate included.
Mycologist Alan Rockefeller will give a lecture on the identification of psilocybin mushrooms. It will include an overview of all North American species, focusing on the species which occur in the San Francisco Bay area. The audience will learn important characteristics for accurate identification and how to spot poisonous lookalikes. Participants are invited to bring legal mushrooms for a hands-on discussion of how to identify mushrooms you encounter.
Alan Rockefeller is a mycologist living in Oakland. He spends half the year hunting mushrooms in Mexico where he documents a wide variety of fungal species. His experience in the field has focuses on mushroom identification, DNA analysis, microscopy and photography.
In the lab Alan sequences the DNA of mushrooms from all over the world, gaining new insights into existing species, discovering new ones and eliminating duplicates in the taxonomic record.
$10 Suggested Donation – RSVP Below
http://psychedelicsocietysf.org/event/alan-rockefeller-psychedelic-mushrooms-of-california-talk-and-presentation/
By donating to this event you will help Alan do his work in the field as an independent mycologist, the SF Psychedelic Society, and The Omni Commons, a trifecta of open source, community-centered people and organizations. Thank you for your support this Holiday Season.
2019 is shaping up for an upswing of direct action, movement building and new thought against ecological collapse, wealth inequality, and for social justice.
This film has worthwhile history and some inspiration for folks just plugging in. Interviews plus archival footage. (1990 Documentary Directed by Mark Kitchell -117 minutes)
The 10th Annual Oscar Grant Vigil will be held on Tuesday, January 1, 2019 from Noon till 4pm at the Fruitvale BART station. You are invited to join the Justice4Pedie and Justice4Terry Amons Jr. march, which will meet at 12:30 outside the Guadalajara restaurant (1001 Fruitvale Ave., Oakland) and march to join the vigil at 1pm.
Hope to see you there!
JOINT WALK‐IN CLINICS with Public Defender and EBCLC
*Please bring your statewide CA DOJ RAP sheet
if you have it or we can give information at clinic*
We may be able to help with:
Dismissal of Conviction – PC 1203.4
Felony Reduction / Prop 47 and 64 Relief
Early Termination of Probation
Certificate of Rehabilitation
Sealing Arrest Record – Factual Innocence
Juvenile Record Sealing
Post-Conviction Relief for Immigrants and
Survivors of Human Trafficking
Employment denials due to criminal background
reports
Occupational Licensing Denials(DSS, Security
Guard)
Voting Rights, Jury Service Rights
The Peace and Freedom Party presents
The Crisis in Public Education and How to Solve It!
As teacher unions in Oakland (OEA) and Los Angeles (UTLA) are
preparing major strikes this winter, a coalition of educators, parents,
unions, community, and students are fighting for increased state funding
for public schools, currently among the lowest in the nation. To discuss
how we can build California public schools into the educational system
that people deserve, we will be joined by Keith Brown, President of the
Oakland Education Association (OEA); Michael Shane, Teacher (OEA.
member), and member of Classroom Struggle; Bob Mandel, active in
1996 strike, later elected to exec-board of the O.E.A.; and Jack Gerson,
OEA executive board and bargaining team member from 2007 to 2011.
This is part of our on-going Socialist Forum Series on the first Saturday of every month.
Doors open at 2 pm and the program will start promptly at 2:30 pm. The forum will end by
4:30 pm, but folks can stay and talk afterwards. The opinions expressed are those of the
speakers and do not reflect official views of the Peace and Freedom Party.
For information, contact Gene: 510-332-3865 email: cuyleruyle@mac.com
————————————————————————————————————
The Peace and Freedom Party, born from the civil rights and
anti-war movements of the 1960s, is committed to socialism,
democracy, ecology, feminism, racial equality, and internationalism.
www.peaceandfreedom.org
A screening by Liberated Lens of a film from Germany, “Deckname Jenny” (“Codename Jenny” in German)
Subversive. Feminist. Anarchistic. Cross-generational.
Discussion with the filmmakers after the film.
2017, 108min, German with English subtitles
A shift to the right in Europe. The borders are closed. Sea rescue ships like the Sea-Watch are prevented from leaving. Drowned refugees in the Mediterranean. Jenny’s group decides to act. But when her father finds out about their militant ambitions, he has to face his own past as a member of a guerilla group. The pseudonym “Jenny” and its clear classification blurs all the more, the more dangerous it becomes for everyone involved.
Trailer: https://vimeo.com/251190328
Lots is happening! Join us!
The CA Attorney General’s office is holding public meetings around the state in January to talk about how to implement CA’s new privacy law. On the agenda will be things like how much you will pay for your privacy, whether the law applies to loyalty programs like HHhonors or grocery and drug store discount programs, opt-out procedures, what needs to be disclosed about how your data is sold, and how to verify whether an information request is really from a customer or not. This is the only Bay Area forum with others to be held in San Diego (1/14) , Riverside (1/24) , LA (1/25), Sacramento (2/5) and Fresno (2/13).
We know industry and business will be out in force – and consumers and customers won’t be – so we’re trying to spread the word and even things out a bit.
Can’t stress enough that even though the legalese will be flying, the issues at stake are down to earth and practical and will affect all of us everyday. You don’t need to be an expert. You just need to be a person who worries about where all their personal data ends up and doesn’t feel like they can do enough about it. The voices of real people is always what is missing at these forums, but it doesn’t have to be.
We’ll post some background material in the discussion session on the Faceook Event Page.