View agenda here.

Please come to the exhibit of the The Welcome Home Project Opening night.
The panel will feature moving stories by several of the participants in the Welcome Home Project. The photographer, Ruth Morgan, will be present and refreshments will be served.

I know it is a schlepp to Hayward, but the BART stops a block from the city hall gallery. I promise that you will be moved in many ways by hearing these powerful and compelling speakers talk about their many years of experience in the criminal justice system and how they turned their lives around. They all will share deeply personal stories of redemption, restitution, and restoration – true healing.

The exhibit is a powerful and compelling collection of photographs and stories of formerly incarcerated Alameda County residents that have turned their lives around after many years of involvement with the criminal justice system.  Ruth Morgan, is a nationally acclaimed photographer and Executive Director of Community Works West whose work was recently in the The Sentence Unseen show on Alcatraz. The Welcome Home Project humanizes the formerly incarcerated while adding a deeper understanding of the challenges of reentry. These stories are testimony to the power of resilience and determination in the face of the barriers that most formerly incarcerated individuals face.

Micky Duxbury

How do we approach the challenging conversations in our lives, whether its about confederate flags, Donald Trump, cultural appropriation, Palestine/Israel, or even just racism and racial justice in general?

This workshop is an opportunity to dive in much deeper with structured time to practice a range of difficult conversations around highly-charged racial issues. We will be sharing some basic skill-building tools in how to approach conversations, and then explore scenarios relevant to the lives of participants. This will include examination of some of the ways that internalized sexism can impact our courageous speaking capacities.

Small group work, role-plays, and Theater of the Oppressed techniques will support seeing tough communication blocks in a new light. Well try out what feels challenging, in a relatively low-stakes and supportive environment, allowing ourselves time to debrief, reflect, and learn from each other.

Contact basebuilding@surjbayarea.org with ticket requests or questions.

The venue is wheelchair accessible.

Solar is more accessible and affordable than ever. Are you ready to make the leap to get your power from the sun? Should you? Can you? How? Solar expert Doug McKenzie will provide a strong foundation for your decision-making. Presentation followed by Q&A, so bring your questions!
Topics include:
Why: the environmental benefits of solar
What: what a PV system includes & how it works
Solar Economics: Payback/ROI, rate comparisons with/without solar
Solar Financing: owning versus leasing, low-income options
Other Considerations: Contractors, home selling, Tesla tiles, policies
Jobs: The growth of solar in CA, US, the world, and how to get a foot in the door
Join this FREE event at the Ecology Center. More details & RSVP here. There’s also a follow-up event to go deeper on solar topics on Saturday, June 24th – check that out here.

Walk #4 in July

Sunday, July 16th
Rodeo Conoco Phillips 66 Refinery to Richmond Chevron Refinery California

We encourage folks to walk with us the entire day.  It is truly a beautiful, profound and inspiring way to make a difference.

We will begin at Lone Tree Park in Rodeo

8:00 a.m. Water Ceremony – Feel free to bring water from your watershed!
9:00 a.m. Registration
9:30 a.m. Walk Begins
There are several places along the walk where folks can join the walk – please see the details of the route below.

The walk will end at Keller Beach in Richmond 

You can join us at any time during the day of the walks.
Call this number to find out where we are: (510) 619-8279

Make sure to keep the phone number on you if you are joining us on the walk!

Registration for the walk will begin at 8:00 a.m.  Walkers will be asked to agree to the Nonviolent Principles.  For details on what to bring/not bring, please go to “What To Expect” in the tabs above.

This walk is approximately 13 miles from beginning to end.  There will be vehicles available for people who wish to take breaks during the walk.  Medics will also be available.   Water will be provided – Please bring your own refillable water bottle.

Everyone will be taken back to their vehicles at the end of the walk.  If you are coming to the walk with friends and have two vehicles, please consider leaving one vehicle at the end.   Carpool:  Sign up to drive or be a passenger here: CARPOOL

There will be two points where folks can get rides back to the beginning in Rodeo, at the Hilltop stop in Richmond and at the end at Keller Beach.

We will begin at Lone Tree Park in Rodeo within sight of the Conoco Phillips 66 Refinery and walking to Richmond, stopping to pray at several places including the Kinder Morgan facility and the gates of the Chevron refinery.  We will end at Keller Beach in Richmond, the last natural beach left in the San Francisco Bay where we will all enjoy a delicious meal made by Mike Bear and his family and  youth from Urban Tilth in Richmond!

Can’t come but want to support?  Welcome us at Keller Beach in Point Richmond and feel free to bring a dish to share if you would like. 

Join SURJ Bay Area for our sixth homegrown Direct Action training dedicated to teaching you the framework and the hard skills needed to take action for racial justice. This interactive workshop is designed to give you real-time experiences of being in a protest while also building our understanding of direct action from the perspective of white people participating in the movement for racial justice.

We talk about the importance of direct action, centering Black and POC voices, our perspective on relating to police, our legal rights, and more. We teach direct action skills through the use of scenarios, discussion and role plays. Space is limited to 60 people per workshop and you must pre-register through the SURJ website to attend.

Cost: The workshop has a suggested donation of $10-$35 to cover event expenses, and support future organizing within SURJ Bay Area and our partner organizations. No one turned away for lack of funds- please contact mobilization@surjbayarea.org for accommodation. Lunch will be provided.

Materials: Please take a moment if you have not already done so to familiarize yourself with the SURJ Mission, Vision and Values. Also, another document that guides a lot of our work is the BASAT Protocol and Principles for White People Working to Support the Black Liberation Movement.

Accessibility: The venue is wheelchair accessible. The entrance is a ground floor, street entrance. Bathrooms are ADA compliant. Please refrain from wearing perfume or heavily scented products our of respect for people with chemical sensitivities. There will *not* be sign language interpretation during the workshop, however, HOH folks will be accommodated with prioritized seating during group discussions and participatory activities. Inform people from our SURJ team, and we’ll do our best to accommodate you.

Contact: mobilization@surjbayarea.org with any questions or concerns.

http://www.surjbayarea.org/direct_action_training_20170611

——————
SURJ Mission

SURJ is a national network of groups and individuals organizing White people for racial justice. Through community organizing, mobilizing, and education, SURJ moves White people to act as part of a multi-racial majority for justice with passion and accountability. We work to connect people across the country while supporting and collaborating with local and national racial justice organizing efforts. SURJ provides a space to build relationships, skills and political analysis to act for change.

SURJ Vision

We envision a society where we struggle together with love, for justice, human dignity and a sustainable world.

The Occupy Oakland General Assembly meets every Sunday at 3 PM at Oscar Grant Plaza amphitheater at 14th Street & Broadway near the steps of City Hall.  If for some reason the amphitheater is being used otherwise and/or OGP itself is inaccessible, we will meet at Kaiser Park, right next to the statues, on 19th St. between San Pablo and Telegraph.  If it is raining (as in RAINING, not just misting) at 3:00 PM we meet in the basement of the Omni Collective, 4799 Shattuck Ave., Oakland.  (Note: we meet at 3:00 PM during the cooler months,  once Daylight Savings Time springs forward we tend to assemble at 4 PM).

On every ‘last Sunday’ we meet a little earlier at 2 PM to have a community potluck to which all are welcome.

OO General Assembly has met on a continuous basis for over five years! Our General Assembly is a participatory gathering of Oakland community members and beyond, where everyone who shows up is treated equally. Our Assembly and the process we have collectively cultivated strives to reach agreement while building community.

At the GA committees, caucuses, and loosely associated groups whose representatives come voluntarily report on past and future actions, with discussion. We encourage everyone participating in the Occupy Oakland GA to be part of at least one associated group, but it is by no means a requirement. If you like, just come and hear all the organizing being done! Occupy Oakland encourages political activity that is decentralized and welcomes diverse voices and actions into the movement.

General Assembly Standard Agenda

1. Welcome & Introductions
2. Reports from Committees, Caucuses, & Independent Organizations
3. Announcements
4. (Optional) Discussion Topic

Occupy Oakland activities and contact info for some Bay Area Groups with past or present Occupy Oakland members.

Occupy Oakland Web Committee: (web@occupyoakland.org)
Strike Debt Bay Area : strikedebtbayarea.tumblr.com
Berkeley Post Office Defenders:http://berkeleypostofficedefenders.wordpress.com/
Alan Blueford Center 4 Justice:https://www.facebook.com/ABC4JUSTICE
Oakland Privacy Working Group:https://oaklandprivacy.wordpress.com
Prisoner Hunger Strike Solidarity: prisonerhungerstrikesolidarity.wordpress.com/
Bay Area AntiRepression: antirepression@occupyoakland.org
Biblioteca Popular: http://tinyurl.com/mdlzshy
Interfaith Tent: www.facebook.com/InterfaithTent
Port Truckers Solidarity: oaklandporttruckers.wordpress.com
Bay Area Intifada: bayareaintifada.wordpress.com
Transport Workers Solidarity: www.transportworkers.org
Fresh Juice Party (aka Chalkupy) freshjuiceparty.com/chalkupy-gallery
Sudo Room: https://sudoroom.org
Omni Collective: https://omnicommons.org/
First They Came for the Homeless: https://www.facebook.com/pages/First-they-came-for-the-homeless/253882908111999
Sunflower Alliance: http://www.sunflower-alliance.org/
Bay Area Public School: http://thepublicschool.org/bay-area

San Francisco based groups:
Occupy Bay Area United: www.obau.org
Occupy Forum: (see OBAU above)
San Francisco Projection Department: http://tinyurl.com/kpvb3rv

In the last few months, articles, conversations, and proposed legislation about public banking have been cropping up all over. It seems sudden – if you aren’t one of the people who have been working for well over five years to plant the seeds.

Because the topic is so new to most people, reactions range from blank looks to confusion and misapprehension about what a public bank is, what it isn’t, and what it could be.

The three speakers will cover many aspects of public banking, both potential and existing. To whet your interest, let’s just say that the Bank of North Dakota (the only currently-operating public bank in the country) has had fourteen consecutive years of profit, and that money is being reinvested in North Dakota, not funneled off to profiteers. For comparison, one reasonable estimate based on the relative sizes of North Dakota and Oakland is that an Oakland public bank could save the city $200,000 A DAY.

Come and learn more!

Craig Brandt is an attorney in the Bay Area who is deeply committed to the public bank movement. Recently featured in a public banking article in The Nation, Craig became a banking activist following the LIBOR scandal of 2015, which crystallized his opposition to Wall Street banking.

Christine McClintock has long been involved in the Green movement, from her time as an Environmental Extension Agent in the Peace Corps, stationed in Togo, West Africa, to her years as the Treasurer for the San Francisco Green Party, to her current role as a Financial and Compliance Analyst with the Sierra Club. She has been a part of the effort for the Public Bank of Oakland as well as Strike Debt Bay Area.

Debbie Notkin is a lifelong activist who veered away from public policy to feminist and body image issues in the 1980s and was pulled back by the energy of Occupy Wall Street in 2011. Since then, she has worked with Occupy Oakland Foreclosure Defense and Strike Debt Bay Area, as well as Friends of the Public Bank of Oakland, and is also working on bystander intervention projects.

SPONSOR: Green Sundays are a series of free programs & discussions sponsored by the Green Party of Alameda County and are held on the 2nd Sunday of each month. The monthly business meeting of the County Council of the Green Party of Alameda County follows at 7 pm; council meetings are always open to anyone who is interested. Please visit our website: https://acgreens.wordpress.com/

Director Natasha Florentino will be in attendance!

Abundant Land is a one-hour documentary about a Hawaiian community on Moloka’i opposing the biotech industry’s use of the island to test genetically engineered seeds. Agrochemical biotech corporations, including Monsanto and Mycogen Seeds, are depleting Moloka’i’s topsoil and fresh water while contributing to dust storms that spread pesticides into the ocean and surrounding communities. Abundant Land also offers a historical look at the intrusion and political underpinnings of chemical-intensive farming in Hawaii while portraying the rich legacy of traditional Hawaiian land management and farming self-sufficiency.

2017 Homeless Workforce Conference

COME OUT AND SUPPORT THE J20 RESISTERS!

Why is San Francisco criminalizing dissent? Show up for the J20 resisters at the courthouse, and call DA George Gascon and tell him to drop the charges!

January 20th, the day Donald Trump was inaugurated, was marked by widespread resistance across the U.S. Five months later San Francisco District Attorney George Gascon continues to use our city’s resources to prosecute a group of 11 protesters.

We believe the City should be dedicating its resources to protecting those most vulnerable under the new administration. Instead, Gascon is squandering City resources and becoming part of the troubling national trend toward increased repression of protestors.
Call George at (415) 553-1751 or email him at districtattorney@sfgov.org. Tell George to drop the charges against the J20 Resisters! Stop the war on dissent!
#Resist #J20 #Hellnawguration #EndPoliceTerror

The Coalition to end violence and Councilmember McElhaney invite you to tell your story.

What will it take to get @Oakland to make holistic public safety a real priority? We need #DVP to get same attention as OPD. pic.twitter.com/3HoJAKv9KN

— L.Gibson McElhaney (@LynetteGM) June 9, 2017

Boom: The Sound of Eviction

OTU’s Mission

The Oakland Tenants Union is an organization of housing activists dedicated to protecting tenant rights and interests. OTU does this by working directly with tenants in their struggle with landlords, impacting legislation and public policy about housing, community education, and working with other organizations committed to furthering renters’ rights. The Oakland Tenants Union is open to anyone who shares our core values and who believes that tenants themselves have the primary responsibility to work on their own behalf.

Monthly Meetings

The Oakland Tenants Union meets regularly at 7:00 pm on the second Monday evening of each month. Our monthly meetings are held in the Community Room of the Madison Park Apartments, 100 – 9th Street (at Oak Street, across from the Lake Merritt BART Station). To enter, gently knock on the window of the room to the right of the main entrance to the building. At the meetings, first we focus on general issues affecting renters city-wide and then second we offer advice to renters regarding their individual concerns.

If you have an issue, a question, or need advice about a tenant/landlord issue, please call us at (510) 704-5276. Leave a message with your name and phone number and someone will get back to you.

2017 Homeless Workforce Conference

Tomorrow! 9am! Finance Committee will vote on funding the feasibility study for the Public Bank of Oakland. #oakmtg #ourmoneyourbank

— Oakland Public Bank (@OaklandBank) June 12, 2017

Item #4

Subject: Feasibility And Economic Impact Of Establishing A Public Bank
From: Finance Department
Recommendation: Adopt A Resolution (1) Amending The City Of Oakland’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2016-17 Midcycle Budget (Which Was Adopted Pursuant To Resolution No. 86250 C.M.S. On June 21,2016) To Appropriate One Hundred Thousand Dollars ($100,000), From The Fiscal Year 2016-17 General Purpose Fund (1010) Balance For A Contract To Complete A Feasibility Study On Public Banking In Oakland, And (2) Authorizing The City Administrator Or Her Designee To Negotiate A Scope Of Work, Terms And Execute A Contract With Global Investment Company In An Amount Not To Exceed One Hundred Thousand Dollars ($100,000)

The Finance Committee will be deciding on whether or not to fund our feasibility study. This is an important meeting; please come and wear your t-shirt if you have one. (Let us know if you want one.)

If you can join us on June 13,

1. Go online to https://solar.oaklandnet.com/Speaker/form and fill out a card. Choose item 4. Be sure to click Next and Register. Even if you don’t want to speak, get a card, so you can cede your time to someone who wants to speak longer.
2. Show up at 9:oo a.m.! We are early on the agenda for once.

Read the Friends of the Public Bank of Oakland mission statement.

The Public Bank of Oakland will:

• Get Oakland out from under the control of nonlocal big banks
• Reduce the cost of lending and borrowing for the City of Oakland and nearby communities that make use of the Bank
• Solve the problem of millions of dollars in cash that the cannabis industry cannot legally deposit in private banks
• Bring jobs, affordable housing, new small businesses and worker cooperatives, infrastructure, credit, and independence to our city

Sign up to speak on Item # 8
Speaker’s Card

We need a large turnout of the community to advocate for the changes that are needed to the enabling legislation proposed by Dan Kalb. Noel Gallo stands with us but we need to show strong community support to back him up, since he is representing us!

Will you stand with us? The changes we seek are important to our conviction that the Police Commission function effectively, transparently and independently and can be found on our website: http://coalitionforpoliceaccountability.com

When Kris Perry and Sandy Stier agreed to become two of the plaintiffs in the legal challenge to overturn California’s Proposition 8, which specified marriage as only between a man and a woman, they saw themselves as just ordinary people.

The couple had a great life, except they couldn’t officially marry. That bothered them, according to a new joint memoir, Love on Trial: Our Supreme Court Fight for the Right to Marry.

Perry and Stier will be talking about their story and signing books. he event is free and open to the public.

Join Oakland Privacy to organize against the surveillance state,  against Urban Shield, and to advocate for privacy and surveillance regulation ordinances to be passed around the Bay Area, including the Alameda and San Francisco County Boards of Supervisors, the BART Board of Directors, and by the Oakland, Berkeley, Richmond and Davis City Councils.

We are also engaged in the fight against Predictive Policing and other “pre-crime” and “thought-crime” abominations, drones, improper use of police body cameras, ALPRs, requirements for “backdoors” to your cellphone and against other invasions of privacy by our benighted City, County, State and Federal Governments.

Oakland Privacy (nee Oakland Privacy Working Group) originally came together in 2013 to fight against the Domain Awareness Center (DAC), Oakland’s citywide networked mass surveillance hub. OPWG was instrumental in stopping the DAC from becoming a city-wide spying network; its members helped draft the Privacy Policy that puts further restrictions on the now Port-restricted DAC, and made Oakland’s new Privacy Advisory Commission to the City Council happen.  We were also the lead in having Alameda County pass the most comprehensive privacy and usage policy in the country for deployment of “Stingray” technology (cell phone interceptors).  Oakland and Fremont have followed suit. In conjunction with other groups we fight against Urban Shield and other killer-cop trainings.

We have presented our work at RightsCon in San Francisco and at Left Forum and HOPE in New York City.

If you would like to attend our meeting and would like a quick introduction to what we’re doing before we dive right into the thick of our agenda, send email to  contact@oaklandprivacy.org and one of us will arange to meet you before the meeting.

Stop by and learn how you can help guard our right not to be spied on by the government. Look on the whiteboard inside near the entrance to the OMNI for our exact location within the OMNI.

If you are interested in joining the Oakland Privacy Working Group email listserv, send an email to:

oaklandprivacyworkinggroup-subscribe AT lists.riseup.net

or send a request to contact@oaklandprivacy.org

Check out our website.

For more information on the DAC check out

• DAC FAQ
• Oakland Wiki Domain Awareness Page
• Oakland Privacy WordPress