Calendar

Register here

We may not know what is coming next, but we can prepare for it anyway. Direct Action has historically been the most effective way to change the world, and we built a workshop to teach folks how it has worked, and how we can plan and execute strategic, effective, and engaging actions.

Do you want to learn effective techniques to intervene in an unjust world?
Do you want to plan effective and powerful direct actions?

East Bay DSA’s Direct Action Working Group is excited to teach our 3rd Direct Action Training! The training will take place on Zoom from 2 pm-4 pm on Saturday and Sunday. Attending both days is highly recommended. This training will cover the same ground as the previous Direct Action training which was very well received.

As racist violence, unemployment, evictions, and climate chaos keep increasing, we need to expand our capacity to leverage our collective power. This training series will introduce creative ways to escalate ongoing campaigns, participate in mass uprisings, and keep each other safe in our confrontations with capital and the state.

The training is 4 hours spread across two days. Please attend both days.

Direct Action Part 1: Sat Feb 20 10am-noon
•History and examples of Direct Action getting the goods
•Team Roles, Action Design
•De-Escalation
•Basic First Aid
•Affinity Groups & Decision-Making
•Know Your Rights
•Action Planning Breakout Groups

Direct Action Part 2: Sun Feb 21 10am-noon
•Gear/equipment
•Messaging
•Security Culture
•Action Planning Breakout Groups
•How to get involved

PART 1:  Rights of Nature: Indigenous Cosmology & System Change: A Training Webinar from Movement Rights
Discussion facilitated by Jane Perry and Denice Dennis

Please Register in advance for this training:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAscuisrT4qHdBS6-2oiALRCjr4s4mLT6vB 

Join the women of Movement Rights in this training webinar, which opens up with a prayer by respected Ponca elder Casey Camp-Horinek, about the Rights of Nature movement. The women give a brief history on Indigenous people maintaining respectful relationships with the sacred system of life, how harmful corporations obtained the rights to violate the health of life, water, soil and air, and the success of Movement Rights working with the Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma to pass the first tribal rights of nature law with Casey Camp-Horinek, Pennie Opal Plant and Shannon Biggs.   The webinar will be broken up for breakout sessions to reflect more deeply on the impact of this Indigenous wisdom on our understandings as grandmothers committed to speaking out and acting in support of a healthy, clean, safe and restored planet for all beings.

The webinar does not need to be viewed prior to the training date, however our experience is that we get something new or deeper out of each fresh viewing, and you may get more from the training if you do watch in advance.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaUgAI5Dvxg

We are deeply grateful to Movement Rights for offering this webinar in July 2020 during the cocooning enforced by the global pandemic crisis. Most people who are familiar with the work of Movement Rights since 2014 would be shocked to learn that so much has been done by two seasoned and committed women activists working around a kitchen table with very little funding. We are inspired by the work of Movement Rights. As guests on stolen land, we are humble and embrace the gift of their wisdom in this webinar with our deep gratitude. Making a contribution today helps Movement Rights work with tribal communities to stop fracking and pipelines and protect the Rights of Nature.
https://www.movementrights.org/donation-page/

Green Eco-Socialist Network – 3 part series with David Cobb, Meleiza Figueroa, David Bond, Chey Bell!

Join us for a deep dive into Eco-Socialism, and learn how the capitalist status quo deprives us of our human rights and aspirations. The first presentation in this 3-part series is an introduction to Eco-Socialism vs. Capitalism including a discussion of what Eco-Socialism may mean to you.
The world we need and deserve is not only possible, it is an imperative. We and our children will not survive the status quo.

Event is FREE – advance registration required: https://rebrand.ly/GreenEcoSocialism.

Here’s the Facebook event page.

Event opens with Comedian Chey Bell !

The two following presentations in the series will build on the first event and will be held on Feb. 20th and April 10th, 2021. Presentations will focus on Eco-Socialist platforms and programs and institutions being built around the country to shift away from capitalist systems and into a just, sustainable future.

2020 showed us how corporate America tripled their riches while we scrambled to feed our families and keep a roof over our heads. It’s time to break up big corporations! The Green Party platform and our Green New Deal seek to build an alternative economic system based on ecology and decentralization of power. We believe private ownership of production and state ownership of production are not ecologically sound, socially just, or democratic and that both contain built-in structures that advance injustices. We seek democratic decision making in communities and workplaces in balance with nature. This decentralized system is knows as co-ops, communalism, or ecological socialism (eco-socialism).

Please join the Ecosocialist Network for this kick ass kick off with California Greens: Cooperation Humboldt co-founder David Cobb, 2016 press director for Stein/Baraka presidential campaign & UC Berkeley PhD candidate Meleiza Figueroa, and David Bond of Los Angeles who was Kenneth Mejia’s campaign manager.  Cobb is an attorney who was the 2004 Green Party candidate for U.S. President.
This is sure to be a riveting panel, with kick ass comedy, to boot, to kick off the series!

The Green Party of California invites you to join us for a discussion on EcoSocialism cohosted with the Green EcoSocialist Network (GEN).\

Register to attend HERE and share the Facebook event page.

Many people are considering what it means to be an EcoSocialist these days. In this second presentation of our three-part series, we explore how we can build EcoSocialist programs in our own communities. Featuring Hip Hop Artist and Spoken Word Performer Shamako Noble, Guest speakers include Kali Akuno Cooperation Jackson, Misty Cross Moms4Housing, David Cobb Cooperation Humboldt, Mel Figueroa David Bond, and Green Party CA State Delegates – Noura Khouri, Nassim Nouri who will explore a number of issues including indigenous rights, housing, co-ops + solidarity economies and more. Presentations will be followed by breakout sessions focused on non-reformists reforms designed to help move us towards a general strike and ultimately an EcoSocialist future! Register to attend HERE and share the Facebook event page.

The first event in this series, on Jan. 16, was an introduction to EcoSocialism vs. Capitalism and the recording can be viewed HERE. The third and final event in this series on April 10th, 2021, will build on the first two. This event is open to all and free, but advance registration is required at https://rebrand.ly/GreenEcoSocialism

—
When two parties have effectively bought and sold US democracy, it exists to serve their corporate paymasters NOT the people. The Green Party platform represents the majority point of view within the U.S. and is no longer the alternative; the Green Party is the imperative. To build political power and get on the ballot, would take over 20 years for another party–and is very difficult to do unless you have billions of dollars. Unless people stop voting for ‘lesser evil’, then nothing’s going to change and we along with the planet, are doomed. Imagine for a moment however, if we were able to effectively focus our demands on the kind of agenda and electoral infrastructure the Green Party has with a strong and unified message and everyone actually stood for and voted for what they believed in – then everything not only could, but would actually change.

Please join us the Debt Collective at 6pm ET for our first installment of 100 strikers, 100 stories. We’ll hear stories from 6 of our Biden Jubilee 100 student debt strikers, including why they are on strike demanding full student debt cancellation within President Biden’s first 100 days.

The event will also feature Debt Collective co-founder Astra Taylor and special guests the Honorable Nina Turner (candidate for the Ohio 11th Congressional District) and Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-MI).

RSVP here!

Access info 

Rick Sterling will discuss the banning of Russian athletes beginning with the 2016 Rio De Janeiro Summer Olympics and continuing through banning Russian participation in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. He will analyze the “state sponsored doping” accusations that have been made by the World Anti-Doping Agency. What are the accusations and what is their credibility?   Who is Grigory Rodchenkov and what role has he played?

Rick will also discuss the case of Sun Yang, probably the most famous Chinese athlete. Sun Yang has won many international swimming events and holds  the world record in the 1500-meter event.  In 2019, Sun Yang was found to have committed an anti-doping rule violation and was banned from international competition for 8 years.  The case was appealed to the highest court adjudicating international sports. In a ruling that shook the swimming world, the court overturned the decision because of racist tweets by the Italian head judge.  These tweets were revealed in Rick’s article linked below. Sun Yang’s lawyers used this information to successfully challenge the decision.  There will be a new hearing with new judges.

Rick will put these cases in the context of the politicization of athletics and western efforts to attack Russia and China in this international arena.

Rick Sterling is active in Task Force on the Americas (https://taskforceamericas.org/) and Mount Diablo Peace and Justice Center (https://ourpeacecenter.org/). He researches and writes articles on diverse subjects – from the campaign to save the City College of San Francisco, to Syria, to international sports.
He can be reached at rsterling1@gmail.com

RSVP: https://actionnetwork.org/ticketed_events/antidotes-to-white-fragility-5

This workshop will explore the role of the body, community, spirituality, intellectual knowledge and other themes that you bring from your experience. We will cover basic information about how the brain and body responds to perceived threats, and explore how to work with this toward greater resilience in moments of challenge.

This workshop is for all experience levels. Participants will be invited to discuss in small groups, move around, and hold their bodies in different shapes for 1-2 minutes. Content will be presented in both verbal and written formats.

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Members of the White Noise Collective will facilitate this workshop. 40% of the funds raised will be distributed equally to Sogorea Te Land Trust and Community Ready Corp.

No one is turned away for lack of funds.

If payment is a hardship, please contact us at basebuilding@surjbayarea.org.

Register here

We may not know what is coming next, but we can prepare for it anyway. Direct Action has historically been the most effective way to change the world, and we built a workshop to teach folks how it has worked, and how we can plan and execute strategic, effective, and engaging actions.

Do you want to learn effective techniques to intervene in an unjust world?
Do you want to plan effective and powerful direct actions?

East Bay DSA’s Direct Action Working Group is excited to teach our 3rd Direct Action Training! The training will take place on Zoom from 2 pm-4 pm on Saturday and Sunday. Attending both days is highly recommended. This training will cover the same ground as the previous Direct Action training which was very well received.

As racist violence, unemployment, evictions, and climate chaos keep increasing, we need to expand our capacity to leverage our collective power. This training series will introduce creative ways to escalate ongoing campaigns, participate in mass uprisings, and keep each other safe in our confrontations with capital and the state.

The training is 4 hours spread across two days. Please attend both days.

Direct Action Part 1: Sat Feb 20 10am-noon
•History and examples of Direct Action getting the goods
•Team Roles, Action Design
•De-Escalation
•Basic First Aid
•Affinity Groups & Decision-Making
•Know Your Rights
•Action Planning Breakout Groups

Direct Action Part 2: Sun Feb 21 10am-noon
•Gear/equipment
•Messaging
•Security Culture
•Action Planning Breakout Groups
•How to get involved

The union-led 2011 occupation of the Wisconsin statehouse previewed Occupy and was a pivotal moment in the rebirth of organized labor in the US. Join us for an online movie night & discussion about it at 6:00 tonight! RSVP for a Zoom link at https://t.co/ixo3jmhpPl pic.twitter.com/TW2zABxAAE

— East Bay DSA 🌹 (@DSAEastBay) February 21, 2021

Tune into Webinar #2 in the Climate Safe California series, hosted by The Climate Center:

PHASING OUT FOSSIL FUELS: A JUST TRANSITION IN THE OIL & GAS DRILLING AND REFINING SECTORS

register here

How do we transition away from fossil fuels while ensuring a just transition for workers and communities? Speakers will discuss the current impacts of fossil fuel production on frontline communities and what needs to be done to address them, a plan for decommissioning California refineries, and the possibility of enacting a fracking ban. What does the clean energy future look like? Register below.

Speakers

Ingrid Brostrom, of theCenter on Race, Poverty & the Environment, has legal and policy expertise in environmental justice: toxics, climate justice, and land-use, with an emphasis on hazardous waste, oil and gas, and Just Transition.

Gustavo Aguirre Jr, a California native whose parents were farm workers and traveled from the coast to the desert following the seasonal crops, is a longtime social justice activist who has represented environmental justice communities on various state panels.

Greg Karras is an independent consultant with over 35 years of experience as a Senior Scientist for Communities for a Better Environment, author of the recent report, Decommissioning California Refineries: Climate and Health Paths in an Oil State.

Steve Garey is a retired refinery worker who has spent 25 years working for both Shell and Tesoro in their refineries in Washington State. He served as President of United Steelworkers Local 12-591 from 2010 until his retirement in 2015. Since then he has served on the executive committee of the Washington State Blue Green Alliance and on the steering committee of the Climate Alliance for Jobs and Clean Energy in Washington.

Join energy policy experts as they unmask the false climate solutions now being promoted by big energy corporations and their enablers.

RSVP to get link

The word is they’ve given up on climate change denial and are now moving to promote false solutions to protect their bottom line. These false solutions are a distraction intended to derail efforts to keep fossil fuels in the ground. Big Ag is trying to get in on the action too.

So they’re promoting things like elaborate pay-to-pollute schemes like cap-and-trade and carbon pricing, as well as unproven technology like carbon capture. “Renewable” biogas would prop up the unsustainable factory farm system without reducing methane emissions.

Learn how these schemes work, how they fall short of the urgent climate action we need, how thy disproportionately impact low income and environmental justice communities — and what we can do to counter this campaign.

Panel:

• Dr. Tamra Gilbertson, the carbon pricing education coordinator and climate change policy advisor of the Indigenous Environmental Network
• June Sekera, a Visiting Scholar at The New School for Social Research and public policy manager with over 30 years of experience at the federal, state and local levels of government
• Jim Walsh, the Senior Energy Policy Analyst for Food & Water Watch, working with state and national organizations to educate decision makers on policies that help facilitate a rapid and just transition off fossil fuels

We have to understand these dirty tricks so we can explain them — and prevent them from being used to stop what we really need to do: Keep It In the Ground!

Sponsored by Food and Water Watch

With the pandemic and its multiple, intersecting crises, and the polling popularity of Medicare for All, our commitment to the movement is more important than ever. Come learn about our committee’s efforts, as well as local, state, and national initiatives around Medicare for All and single-payer healthcare. All are welcome!

Join Zoom Meeting – Feb 24th

RSVP

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81235048894?pwd=RDZHcnRDQ0FpV3ZndzdUenVJZ3JaZz09

Meeting ID: 812 3504 8894

Passcode: M4A

One tap mobile

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Join Zoom Meeting – March 24th

RSVP

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81235048894?pwd=RDZHcnRDQ0FpV3ZndzdUenVJZ3JaZz09

Meeting ID: 812 3504 8894

Passcode: M4A

One tap mobile

+16699006833,,81235048894#,,,,,,0#,,956134# US (San Jose)

+12532158782,,81235048894#,,,,,,0#,,956134# US (Tacoma)

Zoom Meeting April 28th

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81235048894?pwd=RDZHcnRDQ0FpV3ZndzdUenVJZ3JaZz09

Meeting ID: 812 3504 8894

Passcode: M4A

One tap mobile

+16699006833,,81235048894#,,,,,,0#,,956134# US (San Jose)

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Celebrating the Music and Art of Oakland four “must see events” on Thursdays, February 4, 11, 18, 25 2021 from 11-12pm. Presentations and performances by Street Spirit, Youth Spirit Art Work and others. Hosted by St. Mary’s Center Senior Advocates for Hope and Justice.

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85704068720?pwd=QXJ3T05sUURtL0JIYzk5eEpnSDJDUT09

Zoom Meeting ID 857 0496 8720
Passcode 472245

RSVP to jcastillo@stmaryscenter.org

Agenda and connection information here

The Future of People’s Park

UC Berkeley’s plan to build a 17-story high rise on People’s Park, which would destroy the historic and cultural legacy and an irreplaceable natural environment, has brought together writers, historians, students and park activists to oppose this ill-considered project.

This Zoom event, hosted by the People’s Park Historic District Advocacy Group, will present the historic background of the park, give details on the effort to recognize its national landmark status, and share plans for revitalizing this invaluable public open space.

The goal of this meeting is to develop strategies for taking our message to the broader Berkeley community, as well as the mayor, city council, UC Berkeley, state legislature and regents.

Presenters to include:

Tom Dalzell- author of The Battle for People’s Park, Berkeley 1969

Steve Wasserman � Participant and Activist during 19969

Max Ventura � People’s Park Committee

Aidan Hill � Former Berkeley Mayoral Candidate/UCB Student

Length of event: hour and a half

Introductory remarks and moderator – Harvey Smith

Each presentation 8 minutes with 4 minutes of submitted questions

Group discussion following and additional questions from viewers

Closing remarks – Harvey Smith

Join Zoom Meeting
https://sfsu.zoom.us/j/82773453022?pwd=UVEySUcvc0NUZlZwQ3ZvcS9YUC8zZz09

Meeting ID: 827 7345 3022
Passcode: 680198
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The anti-war movements in the US and across the globe were at their peaks through the first years of the post-9/11 wars.  They were broad, diverse, international, and powerful.  They did not succeed in preventing the 2003 US/UK invasion of Iraq, but they set the stage for future movements and future victories, including stopping US bombing campaigns in Syria and escalation in Iran, parts of the Arab Spring uprisings,  and more.  By the time the Obama administration came into office in 2008, the movement in the US was already facing new challenges.  And over the next several years its power, size, breadth, and influence  had all diminished.  Many blamed it on “oh the peace movement was just too enthralled with Obama” and they stopped working.  But that claim, while holding a grain of truth among a few sectors of the movement, does not explain the changes.  Phyllis will discuss that history, and look forward to today’s legacy and new anti-war organizations, and the rise of anti-war/anti-militarism components in a broad range of intersectional organizations.

About the speaker: Phyllis Bennis is a fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, D.C., where she directs the New Internationalism Project, focusing on Middle East, U.S. wars and UN issues. For many years she has been a role model for those who would change US foreign policy by combining activism with crucial research and analysis.  In 2001 Phyllis helped found the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights, and now serves on the national board of Jewish Voice for Peace. She works with many anti-war and Palestinian rights organizations, writing and speaking widely across the U.S. and around the world. She has served as an informal adviser to several top UN officials on Middle East issues and was twice short-listed to become the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

Phyllis has written and edited eleven books. Among her latest is the just-published 7th updated edition of her popular Understanding the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict. Other important works include Before & After: US Foreign Policy and the War on Terror and Challenging Empire: How People, Governments and the UN Defy U.S. Power.

Phyllis Bennis is an American writer, activist, and political commentator. Focusing mainly on issues related to the Middle East and the United Nations, she is a strong critic of Israel and the United States and a leading advocate of Palestinian rights.