Calendar

Mayor Ed Lee told the homeless they “have to leave” for the Super Bowl.

Our response: “Hey Mayor Ed Lee, No Penalties for Poverty”
We, the people of San Francisco, demand that Super Bowl City and Ed Lee pay and invest $5 million right now in housing – we could house 500 people immediately with that money.

We also demand the use of publicly-owned assets, such as the empty Pier 29 or 80, or the land under the Freeway at 101/Cesar Chavez, and create monitored programs that support secure sleep, hygienic toileting, and access to transition/healing services.

Come out in your red & gold Niners colors to #TackleHomelessness. Join the Coalition on Homelessness as we protest the mayor’s unjust plan and demand immediate housing for our city’s unhoused residents.

Meet up is at 4:30 in front of Sinbads on Embacadero next to the Ferry Building. We are going to set up a tent city, with plenty of visuals next to the superbowl city. Bring signs and banners and cardboard cut-outs of houses. And bring tents if you don’t mind them getting confiscated.

In the meantime invite EVERYONE you know. Let’s show Mayor Lee how San Francisco stands up for our neighbors.

Homeless Statistics:
– There’s 1 shelter bed for every 6 homeless
– There’s an 8,000 person long wait for housing
– 3,300 Children make up SF’s homeless
– 61% have disabilities
– 11,000 citations were given to homeless for resting in SF last year

Superbowl-Related Statistics:
– 25% of the costs for Superbowl ads would be enough to end homelessness in SF (Each 30-second Superbowl ad costs 5 million.)
– The $5 million cost to SF to host the Superbowl would house 500 homeless people.
– SFPD is responsible for clearing out homeless people for the Super Bowl by giving them citations which are already up 30% from last year.

Citations are on the increase for sleeping on the streets of San Francisco even though there are not currently viable alternatives for the thousands of unhoused residents in that situation. The Department of Justice released a memo in mid and late 2015 stating that it is ‘cruel and unusual punishment’ for cities to criminalize sleeping on the street when no viable alternatives are available. Currently, we have 1 shelter bed for every 6 people on the street.

We are uniting together to demand the end of criminalization of homelessness and increased investment in real housing solutions to “Tackle Homelessness”.

On Tuesday, February 3rd, 2015 Oakland Resident and mother of two, Yuvette Henderson was killed by Emeryville Police Department in West Oakland. She was 38 years old when her life was stolen. Yuvette leaves behind a 15 year old son and an 11 year old daughter.

Please join us as we memorialize Yuvette’s murder. We will first gather at Home Depot at 7pm for a short rally, then move to a silent, candlelit march to the corner across the street from where she was killed, where we will stop to listen to close friends and family members speak and commemorate her life.

#Justice4YuvetteHenderson
#SayHerName

Please bring candles and signs for Justice for Yuvette Henderson

This is going down tonight w/ the homie @alpha1906 …His book on campus racism is a must read.. pic.twitter.com/kg2HPVnpOe

— Davey D (@mrdaveyd) February 3, 2016

Thur Feb. 4 nationwide mobilizations re TPP –
Noon PROTEST outside Feinstein’s office, One Post St., SF near Montgomery St. BART Sta.
STOP the biggest corporate power grab ever! Whether or not the Trans-Pacific Partnership is signed by then, rain or shine, we’ll protest, because Congress will still have to pass enabling legislation so enough public  outcry CAN still stop it!  Pls click “going” or “interested now on our FB page:
https://www.facebook.com/events/461850570682429/

Organizations can leave a message at 510-595-5575 to co-sponsor this protest, which means they help publicize as able and may send a speaker.
co-sponsors thus far: MOVE to AMEND east bay, BFUU Social Justice Committee, Women’s International League for Peace & Freedom, Task Force on the Americas, Bay Area Women’s Peace Action Circle, Occupy SF Action Council, Flush the TPP, Nicaragua Center for Community Action, TRANSCEND USA, Food & Water Watch, CODE PINK, BCA Steering Committee…

http://www.flushthetpp.org/san-francisco-tpp-is-betrayal-rally/

We would like to invite anyone in the Bay Area to a special concert to rally CCHI 2016 supporters called “Free the Tree Concert and Rally for Ganja Legalization” on February 4, 2015 in downtown Santa Cruz, CA, beginning at 8 p.m.

This special event continues the effort to mobilize and inform the public about qualifying the CCHI 2016 for the Nov. 8, 2016 California ballot and is generously supported by Waverider Nursery Monterey Bay. The cost is $10.00 at the door. This event is not a benefit for CCHI 2016. Donations will be accepted at the CCHI 2016 information booth at the event.

Speakers Include:
Jake Retz candidate for Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors District 2.
Palmer Kain candidate for Sate Senate District 17.
Mickey Martin Cannabis Advocate and Author of medical Marijuana 101

For Information on the event and for vending opportunities, contact:

Marc Baylen
513-403-7234
m_baylen@yahoo.com

CCHI 2016 Contacts:
    Michael Jolson
Initiative Proponent
(831) 252-4367
michaeljolson111@icloud.com

Buddy Duzy
CCHI 2016 State Coordinator
(805) 252-4367
bduzy@CCHI 2016.org

Press Contact:
Daryl Wise
StreetWise PR
dsw@streetwisepr.com

This Friday, February 5th, Janet Napolitano (UC President) has invited Black Student Union leadership from all of the UC campuses to have a discussion with her about campus climate. This meeting was called to downplay the severity of anti-Blackness on UC campuses and to silence Black leaders on campus. Janet and her staff have designed this meeting to crowd out any substantive discussion about anti-Blackness and how the University of California engages in a wide range of policies and practices that are unethical and anti-Black.

The students have asked the community to come out and make their presence felt… We need as many black people as poossible and support from the broader community to show the UC that they are supported and we are ready to hold them accountable. Please wear black!! This is about anti-black violence and hostility specifically on UC campuses

Hear:

Special guest Glen Ford, Executive Editor, Black Agenda Report (Coming from NYC)

For Bernie Sanders: Tom Gallagher, Chair SF Progressive Democrats of America; former member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives; author, “The Primary Route: How the 99 Percent Take On the Military Industrial Complex”

Peter Olney, Retired Organizing Director, ILWU; Labor organizer in Massachusetts and California for over 40 years. Activist, Labor for Bernie national network. (for Saturday only)

 

For Peace & Freedom Party candidate: Marsha Feinland, Vice Chair, Peace & Freedom Party, four-time P&F candidate for U.S. Senate

 

For Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein: Laura Wells, Green Party/Alameda County; former Green Party candidate for California governor

For Party for Socialism and Liberation, Gloria La Riva, PSL candidate for president; Organizer ANSWER Coalition

For Socialist Action, Jeff Mackler, former Socialist Action candidate for U.S. Senate/CA; National Secretary, Socialist Action; Administrative Committee, United National Antiwar Coalition

Sponsor: Socialist Action Party Initial co-sponsors: Green Party of Alameda County; SF Green Party; SF Peace and Freedom Party; Bay Area Solidarity; SF Progressive Democrats of America

For information, tables at $20, Contact: 510-268-9429 socialistaction@lmi.net

The Peace and Freedom Party presents
Honor Black History

In celebration of Black History Month and the struggles of Black students and
activists which created it, we are inviting two scholar/activists James Garrett, and
Ray Tompkins, to join former Black Panther Gerald Smith, to discuss these
historic struggles including the 5-month student strike at San Francisco State
University in 1968-69 which led to the first Black Studies Program in the country.
CELEBRATE BLACK HISTORY MONTH

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 as long as you like.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
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

We ask that all of our coalition members join us this monday on the steps of City Hall as we let the Mayor know that we will not be silenced by the bread crumbs he, the chief and the DOJ have thrown us.
We have a duty to fight for our freedom and we wont stop until we get justice.

OccupyForum presents…

Information, discussion & community! Monday Night Forum!!

OccupyForum is an opportunity for open and respectful dialogue on all sides of these critically important issues!

The Stolen Election in Ukraine 2004,

and What Was Done About It :

Orange Revolution

(Documentary film and discussion)

Presidential elections, Ukraine, 2004. One candidate is backed by the post-Soviet regime. Eight weeks before the election the opposition candidate is seriously poisoned. He survives, but with a severely disfigured face.

In the final voting, blatant vote fraud hands the election to the regime. Instantly, Ukranians pour into the streets by the hundreds of thousands. Fed up with censored media, corruption, and rule by wealthy oligarchs, they take over the capital, Kyiv, to enforce their will. Through snow and freezing temperatures they stand their ground, blockading government buildings, demanding a new election.

Through the eyes and in the voices of the Ukranian people, Orange Revolution tells the story of a people united, not by one leader or one party, but by one idea: to defend their vote and the future of their country.

Discussion and Announcements will follow. Donations to OccupyForum to cover our costs are encouraged; no one turned away!

Valero CBR proposal poses major risks. Public comment, Feb 8

Every member of the City Council says they want to stop the displacement of Black, Brown and poor people from Oakland. But there’s no better way to displace a population than to take away their access to work. Yet again, our elected leaders have failed to live up to their rhetoric or prioritize the interests of the people they represent.

The behind-closed-doors deals that are made by Oakland city officials must end. Pushing an RFP that cuts services to Oakland’s unemployed (primarily Black and Latino males) must be illuminated just as our allies have done with the mayor’s illegal protest curfew, the corrupt E. 12th St development process, and the domain awareness center.

Join us on Tuesday, February 9 at 1:30 pm at Oakland’s City Council Chambers to let the Council President and CED members know WE ARE PAYING ATTENTION AND WE DEMAND TRANSPARENCY. This illegal RFP designed to circumvent the mandated process must be stopped. Come make your voices heard.

From Broke-Ass Stuart:

Remember last week how we got thousands of people out in the streets to for our Tackle Homelessness Super Bowl Protest? And remember how we made #TackleHomelessness trend on twitter. And remember when nearly every major publication in America wrote about it and showed the world the fuckery perpetrated by Mayor Ed Lee?

Yeah, that was rad.

This Tuesday, February 9th, it’s time for the next step. I just received this from the Coalition on Homelessness:

#TackleHomelessness Superbowl Protest Next Step
Please come to speak during public comment at SF Board of Supervisors Feb 9 Tuesday at around 4:00.

The Mayor is scheduled to speak at 2:00, we are going to have a silent vigil that will be homeless people led/convened. We have about 30 shirts for folks to wear for silent vigil inside chambers. We are NOT planning on disrupting, just putting pressure on the Mayor with our very powerful presence.

We would appreciate support from the broader community to speak in public comment, which should take place no earlier then 4:00, but likely much later.

The Mayor will not be there for public comment, but it is OK to direct comments towards him.

We are demanding:
$5 million to go immediately to house homeless people
Moratorium on criminalization of homeless people
Sustained commitment from the city to end homelessness, which includes identifying progressive revenue source.

FB invite is here.

Stop (racist) displacement of 139 Fillmore Families
Action/Rally Wednesday, February 10th 4 – 5pm

Come stand with us to protect SF’s remaining (3%) Black population and to bring the Black Community back to our city.

#blackhomesmatter
#savemidtown

Critical San Francisco Police Commission meeting on tasers. 

Please come and stop this escalation of force by SFPD.

Police Chief Greg Suhr will be formally recommending that the SFPD be given tasers at the next Police Commission meeting,
Please come and speak loudly and vociferously against the escalation in the use of force by the already unaccountable SFPD.  SFPD should never be given lethal instruments of torture, such as tasers.

Chinatown Community & Workers Hold Lunar New Year Rally Against New Project by Lawbreaking Employer

Balaji Enterprises, owner/operator of the Holiday Inn Express Oakland Airport, violated the Oakland minimum wage ordinance, manipulated time-card records, and withheld evidence from City investigators, according to a new report from the City of Oakland.

Meanwhile, the City is poised to give Balaji Enterprises a permit to build a new Hampton Inn on a valuable downtown Oakland parcel – with no public process or community input. On Thursday, Chinatown high school students and hotel workers will hold a Lunar New Year rally at the site of the proposed hotel, calling on the City to deny the permit and ensure transparency and community involvement in planning for the site.

“The City of Oakland is on the verge of making a back-room deal with a hotel company that breaks the law and exploits workers – according to the City’s own report. We should have a voice in deciding what gets built in our community, so we can make sure this project benefits our families and our future.” said Joshua Fisher Lee, Executive Director of AYPAL, a Chinatown-based community organization comprised of students from Asian Pacific Islander immigrant and refugee families living in Oakland.

The City’s report details several violations of Oakland’s minimum wage ordinance affecting 37 workers. Investigators found that Balaji rounded off time-clock records to avoid paying workers for all hours worked; imposed unreasonable rules to prevent workers from using sick leave; reduced workers’ hours, blaming the passage of the minimum wage ordinance; and withheld a notebook tracking employee work hours from investigators.

Chinatown worker and community groups expressed dismay the report’s findings – and at the possibility of the same employer opening a new hotel in their neighborhood.

At Thursday’s rally, youth groups will adorn the fenced-off lot with Lunar New Year decorations and play interactive games to celebrate the Chinatown community and create a positive vision for a project on the site that would benefit youth and low-wage workers.

Participants will include youth leaders from AYPAL; Marriott and Marriott Courtyard Hotel workers and members of UNITE HERE Local 2850; and community allies from East Bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy (EBASE), Asian Pacific Environmental Network, and Asians 4 Black Lives.

“I’ve watched classmates and even members of my family get pushed out of Oakland – because of rising rents and cost of living, my cousins who also grew up here had to move out of state. Youth in our community are dealing with a lot of problems, like gang violence. This land is empty – we have the chance to create something that would create safe spaces for youth to learn and have access to more opportunities, instead of a hotel that treats its workers poorly,” said Jason Le, a junior at Oakland High School and AYPAL youth leader.

BACKGROUND: For several months, the Oakland Planning Department has been considering approving Balaji Enterprises new Hampton Inn in downtown Oakland with no public hearing process. The decision on whether or not to approve the hotel is delegated solely to Planning Director Rachel Flynn, who came under criticism last fall for asserting that there is no affordable housing crisis in Oakland. Balaji already operates two local hotels, the Hampton Inn Alameda and Holiday Inn Express, where workers have reported low pay, no health benefits, shorting of workers’ pay, and humiliation from managers. The site of the new hotel is only blocks away from the Marriott Courtyard and Marriott Hotels, where union workers worry that the opening of a poverty-wage hotel nearby will make it difficult to maintain the standards and benefits they have fought to win and maintain over the years. Community activists believe the project will exacerbate the East Bay’s crises of inequality and displacement, and that workers at the new hotel will not be able to afford to live in Oakland. Last November, hundreds of hotel workers and community members marched from the lot of the proposed hotel into City Hall, where former workers of the Hampton Inn owners have testified to City Council about not being allowed lunch breaks, earning poverty wages with no benefits, and being fired for getting hurt on the job. The community protest of the proposed Hampton Inn comes on the heels of broad community opposition to the proposed development of market-rate housing at the nearby East 12th Street parcel.
###

A film by Ron Blatman and KQED Public Television. We will also be honoring Sylvia McLaughlin who died recently at 99 years of age. She was always a most gracious friend of our BFUU and her daughter and granddaughter were treasured and active members for some years in the 90’s. So we are honoring her showing these two episodes which show how she was literally one of the miracle workers who in the 1960’s who saved this beautiful and magical bay that every human inhabitant (the Miwoks and Ohlone) of the Bay has depended on. From the earliest inhabitants 5,000 years ago through the Gold Rush, the Mexican period, the Gold Rush, the Earthquake and Fire of 1906, to Silicon Valley, we all have needed this bay which drains a third of California. Now the Bay is one of the world’s leading economic, academic, recreational and cultural regions. Narrated by Robert Redford, don’t miss two of the four episodes of “Saving the Bay” which highlights an unforgettable journey around the waters of the Bay.

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

Free to the public.
Wheelchair accessible.

Ph:510-275-4272

For occasional email notices of peace/eco/social justice alerts and related events at BFUU, send any email to:
bfuusjev-subscribe [at] lists.riseup.net

Sponsored by the Coalition for Police Accountability.

We were asked by the Federal Monitor team to convene a community event in which folks who had had encounters with OP

D in the last two or three years would give testimony about their experiences. The Monitor are interested in hearing directly from those who had negative experiences. They want to know what happened — when, where – and whether or not a complaint was filed, and, if so, what was the outcome, so they can do follow up.

We promised to convene such a meeting. This is an opportunity we should not miss to counter the Schaaf cheerleading about how much progress OPD has made, despite the fact that there were 7 killings of African-American males in the last year! The City is anxious to get out from under Federal oversight and the Monitor wants an ‘on the ground’ assessment of whether OPD behaves differently than they did in the ‘Riders’ era, or whether things are basically still the same.

Please share this widely — especially with those who are likely to have been impacted directly, or even indirectly, as observers, and we hope youth will be encouraged to attend, along with their parents.

No City officials (including police) have been invited to attend — only the Federal Monitor team.

There will be no panel discussion — the whole evening will be devoted to hearing testimony from the community!!!