On Tuesday, August 2nd, the Ella Baker Center is hosting Night Out for Safety and Liberation (NOSL) in Oakland where we will build community and share what makes us feel safe in our neighborhoods. NOSL is a national event where people across the country will redefine and reimagine what public safety really means for our communities.

Join us on 8/2 and share what you need to feel safe.

Bring your picnic blanekts to our free event at Lowell Park in West Oakland; we will have music, an art build, healing practitioners, family activities, and dance and spoken word performances. Childcare and food will also be provided.

RSVP on Facebook.
NIGHT OUT FOR SAFETY AND LIBERATION
Turn up with us in West Oakland, home of the Black Panthers, to celebrate their 50th anniversary as we host our 4rd annual Night Out for Safety and Liberation on Tuesday, August 2nd—a national event where we redefine what safety means to us to start a different conversation about public safety beyond policing; focusing on how we can build equity, power, and opportunity in our communities!

There will be an art build, free food, healers, music, games, an open mic, and family activities. All are welcome and all are invited.

Let’s continue to build a narrative that defines safety not in terms of fear, crime, and punishment, but rather as a community that has access to affordable healthcare, housing, food, education, safe and working infrastructure, and more.

Join us for this visually rich documentary, “Over Troubled Waters,” the story of the battle being fought by the people of the Delta to protect the region they love and to encourage saner water policies for the Golden State and all the people of California.
The evening will feature the controversial Delta Tunnels project. Our panel will include representatives from Restore the Delta and Sierra Club and Dr. Patty Oikawa, a UC Berkeley researcher investigating the climate benefits of Delta wetlands restoration. They are working furiously to save the Delta from the Tunnel project, which will seriously undermine this essential treasure.
This event sponsored by: Transition Berkeley, Social Justice Committee (Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian Universalists), and the Water Working Group (Berkeley Climate Action Coalition)

The Soil Not Oil Coalition is pleased to announce the 2nd edition of the historic gathering where the Ecology Center will be a co-sponsor. As you may know, inspired in the book “Soil Not Oil: Environmental Justice in an Age of Climate Crisis” by Dr. Vandana Shiva, in 2015 we organized the first Soil Not Oil International Conference that was a very successful event with over 100 speakers and more than 1,000 attendees.

The Problem & Soil-ution
Deforestation, erosion and industrial agriculture cause the decay of soils and in consequence the release of carbon and other GHGs into the atmosphere. While the fight to stop fossil fuel extraction and consumption is essential, it is only half of the equation required if we are serious about mitigating climate change. Non‐sustainable management of soils through industrial agriculture causes over 30% of planetary carbon emissions, with 1/3 of the total global warming effects of industrialized nations attributed to an unsustainable food production system.

Scientists such Vandana Shiva, Rattan Lal, Richard Heinberg, Miguel Altieri, among others, teach us that we can mitigate climate change by returning carbon back into the soils. The impact of the 2015 Soil Not Oil Conference was tremendous, as we now see that dozens of participating organizations are including in their speech the issue of soil as a main problem and potential solution. Soils have entered in the international conversation about climate change from Richmond, California to the COP 21 in Paris, France – but the implementation of soil-utions must come from the bottom up!

What can you expect?
During the 2016 Soil Not Oil Conference we will host presentations by grassroots organizers, farmers and renowned scientists. There will be plenaries and workshops during the two day conference as well as a gala and a multicultural celebration – Join us! Get the facts and the tools to fix the broken ecosystems – We are expecting a larger gathering because this year we are partnering with national and international organizations.

The Soil Not Oil Coalition is pleased to announce that, this year’s keynote speaker will be attorney, author and renowned activist: Andrew Kimbrell, Founder/Executive Director of Center for Food Safety.

Join scientists, farmers, environmental activists, elected officials, grassroots organizers, food justice advocates and community members from all backgrounds. Join plenaries/workshops/networking sessions on: Agro-Ecology, Biodiversity, Climate Justice, Carbon Farming, Food Sovereignty, Legislation, Life Cycles, Ocean Health, Public Health, Regenerative Agriculture, Rights of Mother Earth, Seed Freedom, Clean Energy, Community Organizing and more.  Watch Promo Video

Before you purchase a ticket please take into consideration that we are doing our best to make this conference as affordable and inclusive as possible. The Soil Not Oil coaltion is a grassroots project supported by dozens of organizations and dedicated volunteers.

By purchasing a full price ticket you will help us to provide scholarships for low income people. 

“Being aware is not enough, you must be part of the movement and become the change”

The Communist Party USA (Oakland/Berkeley) invites you to a discussion:

The Empire Strikes Back: Attack on BRICS
(Brazil, Russia, India, China, S. Africa)

Suggested Readings:
Conn Hallinan, ‘A Very Brazilian Coup’

A Very Brazilian Coup

Norman Markowitz, ‘The Asian “Pivot” in Historical Context’
http://www.academia.edu/25555123/The_Asian_Pivot_in_Historical_Context
‘Current Developments in India’
http://mltoday.com/article/2483-current-developments-in-india/90-frontpage-stories

The Peace and Freedom Party presents:

The recent vote for Great Britian to leave the European Union has many folks confused. Even leftists find themselves on different sides. We are inviting speakers to debate different positions.

Please buy food and drink at the pub.

The Take Back Oakland Coalition (which APTP has initiated) is challenging the tri-county DA’s to prosecute the cops involved in the Bay Area-wide predatory policing scandal of statutory rape, commercial sexual exploitation, conspiracy and obstruction of justice. Letters were delivered yesterday to DA’s Nancy O’Malley (Alameda), Mark Peterson (Contra Costa), and George Gascon (San Francisco). The letters demanded a signed agreement by Tuesday am to a specific list of demands around investigating and prosecuting these cops.

We are planning simultaneous actions at 10:30 am to pick up these signed agreements from the DA’s offices. We could use a lot of people, as we need coverage of the three locations.

Here’s the list:
Nancy O’Malley 1225 Fallon St, Oakland
George Gascon 850 Bryant St, SF
Mark Peterson 100 37th St, Richmond

Come out and support the work of Critical Resistance Oakland!

We are excited to talk with you about the work we are doing around the SF and Alameda Jail Fights, Stop Urban Shield, and the Oakland Power Projects, as well as:

-Building alternatives to the cops in Oakland.
-Abolishing solitary confinement in California.
-Helping people on the inside organize for self-determination.
-And slowly chipping away at the prison-industrial complex.

Have a drink with us and learn more about what we do and how you can help us build our vision of abolition.

The space is on the ground floor with no stairs and no steps to the restrooms. We recommend that folks come scent-free to allow accessibility to people with chemical sensitivities, though this is a public bar so we can’t guarantee a scent-free zone. Please call us at 510-444-0484 if you have other accessibility concerns!

Please note that all tabs must be closed by 8pm in order to qualify for the benefit. And be sure to check out upcoming events:

End Police Militarization: Stop Urban Shield Webinar
Thursday, August 4th, 12-1pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/1077578638990092/

Oakland Power Projects Workshop: Know Your Options in Chronic Health
Thursday, August 25th, 6:30-9pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/121405968291882/

Story of the homeless recyclers in Dogtown, an Oakland neighborhood decimated by unemployment and gentrification. A Journey through a landscape of love and loss, devotion and addition, prejudice and poverty within the threat of a recycling center slated for closure.

Free snacks and popcorn.

This is Michael Moore’s latest and most hilarious film yet.

Prepare to be liberated and laugh as well at this special free screening of this provocative and subversive comedy/documentary which confronts the most pressing issues facing America today and finds the solutions. Just when we need it most the Academy Award-winning director comes up with his best ever film-so rich we encourage folks to see it again! A truly enjoyable, patriotic and thoughtful film that is not to be missed.

Sponsored by the BFUU Social Justice Cmte as part of our Conscientious Projector series.

Free to the public. No one turned away.
Wheelchair accessible.

The SF Unitarian-Universalist Center will show films on the environment every Friday this month. .

The next film, Aug 12, “Unacceptable Levels” tells the story of the inadequate federal measures to keep toxics out of our environment. A speaker from the EPA will help make sense of the situation and the new law recently passed.

In “Evolution of Organic,” showing Aug. 19, the story of the organic agriculture movement is told by those who built it – and looks ahead to the next generation of growers.

In “Bill Nye’s Global Meltdown” showing Aug 26, Nye goes to a psychoanalyst’s couch to struggle with his emotions about global warming and what to do about it.

Can we destroy nukes before they destroy us?

You’re invited to hear
HELEN CALDICOTT
ADMISSION FREE

Dr. Helen Caldicott, M.D., the world’s foremost anti-nuclear activist, will lecture in the Main SF Public Library’s Koret Auditorium She will also answer questions. The event is free of charge.

Among critical issues to be discussed are Russian and-American preparations for nuclear war on each other. “Thousands of nuclear weapons remain continuously on hair-trigger alert” and any international disturbance could set off a “conflagration and nuclear winter,” ending most human life. That is the climax of “The New Nuclear Danger” (one of three Caldicott books that may be available before and after the talk).

Her appearance is co-sponsored by the library’s Business, Science and Technology Department and a new Coalition for Nuclear Disarmament. The latter allies 13 pro-peace groups, including AFSC and the War and Law League, which initiated the event as its biennial meeting and organized the coalition.

The listing so far is Le fomo, Slave Unit, Future Twin, Old Pal, Diagonal Mints, and Josh The Navigator.

Location: Clark Kerr Campus, Berkeley, CA.

Maria Moore, sister to Kayla, will speak on a panel at the Veterans For Peace National Convention: “Standing at the Intersection: Wars Abroad and Struggles for Justice Here At Home.”

Usually when people think of violence and economic and social justice struggles in the United States they do not think about about wars abroad. However, racism, militarization and patriarchal domination are some of the forces responsible for the violence and victimization we see both at home and abroad. Join our panel as we discuss the militarization of the police, military sexual trauma and domestic rape culture and the intersection of the movement for Black lives and the struggle for Palestinian rights.

This panel will be moderated by Michael McPhearson, Executive Director of Veterans For Peace. Panelists include Suhad Khatib, Maria Moore and Monique Salhab.

For more information visit: http://www.vfpnationalconvention.org/

We wanted to invite you to a BBQ this Sunday 8/14 from 1 to 4pm to honor the life and legacy of Uncle Ernest Thorton, former homeowner of 835 Page Street in Berkeley, and show our support for the countless other families who are experiencing the loss of their homes. We’ll be at Uncle Ernest’s house at 835 Page Street in Berkeley. There will be free food and music as well as children’s activities, so bring the family!

You can RSVP for this event here. Please invite your friends and family!

We do this to hold space and bring attention to the legal sanction of Black displacement and the plunder of Black homes in the Bay Area and across the country. In this case, and many others, probate court is used as a means to seize the assets, property, and basic inheritance of Black families. The redlining, institutional housing discrimination, and predatory lending practices that have made it so hard for Black families to preserve wealth and stability are being systematically reinforced by the court system. But we continue to resist.

We need your support in stopping the sale of this home and preserving it for Uncle Ernest’s family, and on Sunday, we’ll do it together in a spirit of fun and community. “An injustice anywhere is a threat to injustice everywhere.” We hope to see you this Sunday.

Berners, Greens, Leftists, Progressives, and Socialists, Let’s grow & unify the political revolution! What should we do now? THE GREEN PARTY of Alameda County invites you to come TALK ABOUT IT on Sunday 8/14, 5 pm (sharp) to 7 pm, in North Oakland. Speakers include Laura Wells, David Cobb, Tom Gallagher, Wyatt Ratliff, Pat DeTemple and Isra Allison
See full description: https://acgreens.wordpress.com/green-sundays/

Veterans For Peace is hosting a concert and public awareness event in honor of the innocent victims of gun violence. From the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, Florida to the countless young black men and women lost at the hands of police, our communities are at war. This concert is a vital step forward in our mission to educate people about the true costs of war and bring about peace at home and abroad.

Confirmed performers are:
Jeff Turner
Mike Rufo & No Exit
Emily Yates
Miles Megaciph
Pat Scanlon
Jim Toler
Peter Tracy
and the
VFP Chorus.

Outraged and healing political music from multiple artists, spanning genres and regions of our country coming together to raise awareness and spread peace. VFP brings Hip-hop to the famous Freight and Salvage stage for the first time!

General Admission is $20. Buy your tickets in advance for this sure to sell out event at vfp8-14.brownpapertickets.com or any of three Bay area Pegasus Bookstores. Freight and Salvage has a 440 person capacity. All Ages Welcomed.

Register For the convention online:
http://www.vfpnationalconvention.org/register.htm