Join us at the Rockridge Bart station in Oakland, rain or shine, to call attention to racial injustice and demonstrate solidarity.
Throughout the East Bay and nationally, folks have been gathering on prominent street corners and freeway overpasses, holding signs and making visible our support for the Movement for Black Lives and communities targeted by Trump. These gatherings – or “human billboards” – have been a simple yet effective way of channeling anger and sadness over injustice into collective action and solidarity.
For those of us who are white, it’s a way to express a unified voice in opposition to Trump and the white nationalist politics he represents, and to commit to ending white silence and visibly supporting racial justice.
For all of us, it’s a concrete way to put our heart and soul into action. It’s being in community with each other, to share with like-minded people a belief that a loving, humane, compassionate world is possible, and to take a small step towards making that happen.
If you’ve been wanting to get more involved, this event is a great way to take action, meet people and gain further connections in the community we’re building.
Bring a sign with the following messaging!:
Will you show up for racial justice?
Black Lives Matter!
No Deportations! No Border Walls!
End Displacement of Black and Brown communities!
Solidarity with Undocumented Migrants!
Solidarity with Queer and Trans People of Color!
We Support Black Womxn!
We Support Our Muslim Neighbors!
Will you fight against Islamophobia?
This event called and organized by SURJ Bay Area.
This workshop offers two basic knowledge skillsets.
The deescalation skillset is intended to:
– identify potentially dangerous situations, particularly those of hateful victimization
– ensure the safety of the person or persons being victimized
– deescalate the rise in aggression and/or potential physical violence
– offer resources for help with no police involvement
The grounding skills workshop is intended to:
– become familiar with what grounding skills are and how can they help
– learn how to identify triggers
– identify bodily measurements of severe discomfort or anxiety once triggered
– learn what grounding skill is best to use based on the level of our discomfort/anxiety
– offer resources for help when all else fails
** Donations will go to Indigenous People Organizing for Change (IPOC). **
There will be snacks people can munch on throughout the workshop.
There will also be a short break between workshops.
Feel free to bring a notepad and pen to take notes; however, the central points of the workshops will be condensed in a zine for folks to take home, review, and pass on the knowledge.
Looking forward to seeing you there!
A documentary about democratic schools in England, Germany and Israel, where students have complete control over their time. No curriculum, no classes, no tests, no grades – unless the students ask for it. Students and staff run the school as a democratic community, with equal voices.
In partnership with AERO http://educationrevolution.org/ and the
Alliance for Self-Directed Education http://self-directed.org/
Homepage of the documentary: https://doingnothingalldayengl.wordpress.com/
Doors open at 6:30pm, film stars at 7pm
A panel of students and staff from local self-directed environments will answer your questions after the film!
Free snacks and popcorn
This Sunday check out the great folksinger David Rovics, a long-time friend of Occupy. He even did a benefit concert for Occupy Oakland, grok some of his videos in the post about that show.
He will be playing in Berkeley at the Backroom at 1984 Bonita Ave. Admire his nifty new electric cello in this video that I sent to all of my tenants:
Words to live by, I hope they take it to heart, but I still check my boots every morning for snakes. Enjoy the rest of his 2016 album Letter To My Landlord here.
Tickets Sunday are $10-$20, sliding scale, but I doubt folks would be turned away at the door if they were too broke to pay. It is a BYOB event, no corkage fee, so bring some grog, if that rings your bell.
David’s music is all creative commons, you can freely download just about all of his stuff and share it with your friends.
Linked are some of his songs about the last election cycle like Lesser Evil, Bernie, Jill Stein, Donald Trump, and this song about The Donald, G-d’s Gift To The Caliphate.
So this Sunday come to General Assembly at 4 PM at the Plaza and maybe get a bite with a comrade, grab a bottle, and folk yourself.
Here is another beautiful song I just heard for the first time while composing this post:
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Check out the great folksinger David Rovics, a long-time friend of Occupy. He even did a benefit concert for Occupy Oakland. Groove on some of his videos in the post announcing that show.
He is giving a concert Sunday evening in Berkeley. Listen to his words to live by and admire his nifty new electric cello in this video that I sent to all of my tenants:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bz83YEDjykY&t=53s
I hope they take it to heart, but I still check my boots every morning. Enjoy the rest of his 2016 album Letter To My Landlord here.
Tickets are $10-$20, sliding scale, but I doubt folks would be turned away at the door if they were too broke to pay. It is a BYOB event, no corkage fee, so bring some grog, if that rings your bell.
David’s music is all creative commons, you can freely download just about all of his stuff and share it with your friends.
Linked are some of his songs about the last election cycle like Lesser Evil, Bernie, Jill Stein, Donald Trump, and this song about The Donald, G-d’s Gift To The Caliphate.
So this Sunday come to General Assembly at 4 PM at the Plaza and maybe get a bite with a comrade, grab a bottle, and cruise over to Berkeley to folk yourself.
Also, Einstein’s 12th birthday in next Sunday, April 7th. We are throwing him a little party, there will lasagna & Dog only knows what else. Bring a treat and come by, but RSVP, if you please, our apartment is not wildly huge and we want to make sure we have a big enough shoehorn to wedge everyone in.
Big Red Ed
Tax the Rich Rallies every Monday from 5-6 pm on upper Solano in front of the Oaks Theater and the Chase Bank.
All are welcome!
Also We’ll be at SURJ (Stand Up for Racial Justice) event that starts at the Grand Lake Theater on Saturday April 1st from noon-1 :00 PM.
For our calendar of events, songs to download and more: www.occupella.org.
OccupyForum presents…
Information, discussion & community! Monday Night Forum!!
Occupy Forum is an opportunity for open and respectful dialogue
on all sides of these critically important issues!
The Inevitability of Systemic Corruption in our Regulatory Agencies in a Capitalist System
With Steve Zeltzer and George Wright
Our Bay Area Air Quality Under Threat and The Fired Whistleblowers at the
Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD)
The recent revelations from two BAAQMD employees, (Michael Bachmann, who was the manager of records, and Sarah Steele, an employee who protected records and documents), are very serious: they expose the deliberate destruction of critical pollution records, settlements and fines. Destroying pollution records and the history of these polluters is not only inexcusable, but criminal.
These two BAAQMD employees put their careers and jobs on the line to protect the public, and the health and safety of our environment, and top executives of the BAAQD illegally conspired to thwart these employees by firing them from this public agency. Unfortunately workplace bullying and retaliation against whistleblowers is a systemic problem, not just at this agency but at other public agencies as well. There have been continuing ongoing dangerous gas and oil leaks by Chevron, Tesoro, Shell, Philips 66 and other polluters, as well as the deaths of the workers, and serious health problems, in many Bay Area communities where these refineries and toxic plants exist.
The epidemic of illegal retaliation of whistleblowers (like Quality Assurance Manager Michael Madry at Test America, and other whistleblowers at Tetra Tech — which the Navy had hired for tests at Hunters Point and Treasure Island), have all taken place without any accountability by government agencies like OSHA WPP, District Attorneys, or the State Attorney General.
The regional independent agency BAAQMD is responsible to protect the air quality of the over 12 million people in Northern California. This forum will discuss the continuing contamination issues facing people in the Bay Area and the role of the BAAQMD management in the bullying and discharge of workers. It will also address how people can defend these whistleblowers, and force the California Attorney General and District Attorneys to protect public workers criminally retaliated against for doing their job and protecting the interests of the public.
Steve Zeltzer and George Wright will lead discussion on the inevitability of systemic corruption in the Capitalist system.
Time will be allotted for Q&A, discussion and announcements.
West Oakland Fire Victim Families, Elders and Children Have Nowhere to go
“All fire victims will have to leave the “temporary shelter” with or without any money or housing on April 6th,” reported Audrey Candy Corn, POOR Magazine reporter, single mama of 3 and founder of TAZ clothing company who has been on the ground from Day 1 standing , advocating and caring for all the low-income families who lost everything they had in the West Oakland Fire of last week that displaced over 150 people and killed four.
Since the first day following the fire the low-income, disabled children and adults, all Black and Brown, who were already poor before the fire, have been neglected, forgotten, criminalized, poverty Gansta-Pimped and/ or lied to by a stream of Old- School Big Non-profit poverty industries. Some people have made the connection between the Ghost Ship fire and this fire, and the glaringly obvious ways that poor folks of color and disabled folks are consistently criminalized, predated on and lied to because of the very things we had going on before crisis hits us. In ghost ship there were vigils, investigations and endless media attention. In this fire, confusion, case-manglement, empty promises, lost money and jail-like conditions at the temporary shelter are the norm.
Folks are about to displaced on Thursday, april 6th with no real money or support or housing, just a lot of pamphlets and case-manglement.
Please come through to this press conference to hear the voices of the individual impacted families who have lost their lives and their actual need for housing and/or financial support
If folks want to help, victims are asking not for food or clothes or toiletries but for a direct donation of cash money or gift cards that can be distributed directly to the families.
YOU’RE INVITED!
TOWN HALL @THE CORNERS: OPPOSE GORSUCH!!!!!
CLICK HERE FOR DETAILS
With reports out that the FBI has evidence Trump associates coordinated directly with Russian officials to interfere in the 2016 presidential election, there can be no excuse for the Senate to hand the administration a lifetime seat on the Supreme Court. As of today, there are at least 41 Democrats opposed to Trump’s pick, the extreme right-wing judge Neil Gorsuch–enough to stop him from getting the 60 votes needed to confirm a Supreme Court justice – and we need to demand they stand strong. And we need to demand at least a handful of Republicans not to change the rules of the Senate to rush through Trump’s Supreme Court power grab.
Will you join the event as a part of #ResistTrumpTuesdays?
YES, I’LL BE THERE!
EFF is pleased to announce a series of community security trainings in partnership with the San Francisco Public Library. High-profile data breaches and hard-fought battles against unlawful mass surveillance programs underscore that the public needs practical information about online security. We know more about potential threats each day, but we also know that encryption works and can help thwart digital spying. Lack of knowledge about best practices puts individuals at risk, so EFF will bring lessons from its comprehensive Surveillance Self-Defense guide to the SFPL.
EFF has tailored this series for technology beginners who may be unaware of potential privacy dangers, but already use smart phones or computers. Library patrons are invited to bring their devices to EFF’s introductory classes which include discussions of basic online security concepts and privacy tools. Lisa Wright and Willie Theaker, members of EFF’s TechOps Team, will facilitate Digital Privacy and Security: A Beginner-to-Intermediate Workshop followed by Encryption Apps for your Phone: An Intermediate Workshop. There will be two opportunities to attend each class.
Event details are included in each link to the EFF calendar above. Space is limited and attendance is on a first-come, first-served basis so attendees should prepare to arrive early. We encourage all EFF supporters to help people in their circles learn more about online rights issues and how to keep themselves—and each other— safer.
At the end of April, EFF’s spring Bay Area Members’ Speakeasy will feature a more advanced workshop on email encryption and key generation open to EFF members and their guests—we encourage you to bring a friend! Following the workshop, all EFF members will be invited to join our PGP keysigning party to help bring the community together and further expand the web of trust. If you are a current Bay Area member accepting email, you will receive a personal invitation including event details. Not a member yet? Join today!
With the Surveillance Self-Defense project and these local events, EFF strives to help make information about online security accessible to beginners as well as seasoned techno-activists and journalists. We hope you will consider our tips on how to protect your digital privacy, but we also hope you will encourage those around you to learn more and make better choices with technology. After all, privacy is a team sport and everyone wins.
On April 4, 2017, over 180 art house movie theatres across the country in 165 cities and in 43 states, plus five locations in Canada, one in England, and one in Swedenftower will be participating collectively in a NATIONAL EVENT DAY screening of the 80’s movie 1984 starring John Hurt, who sadly died last month. This date was chosen because it’s the day George Orwell’s protagonist Winston Smith begins rebelling against his oppressive government by keeping a forbidden diary. These theaters owners also strongly believe in supporting the National Endowment for the Arts and see any attempt to scuttle that program as an attack on free speech and creative expression through entertainment. This event provides a chance for communities around the country to show their unity and have their voices heard.
Orwell’s novel begins with the sentence, “It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.” Less than one month into the new presidential administration, theater owners collectively believe the clock is already striking thirteen. Orwell’s portrait of a government that manufactures their own facts, demands total obedience, and demonizes foreign enemies, has never been timelier. The endeavor encourages theaters to take a stand for our most basic values: freedom of speech, respect for our fellow human beings, and the simple truth that there are no such things as ‘alternative facts.’ By doing what they do best – showing a movie – the goal is that cinemas can initiate a much-needed community conversation at a time when the existence of facts, and basic human rights are under attack. Through nationwide participation and strength in numbers, these screenings are intended to galvanize people at the crossroads of cinema and community, and bring us together to foster communication and resistance against current efforts to undermine the most basic tenets of our society.”
Join the family of Elena “Ebbie” Mondragon at the next Hayward City Council meeting to demand both the truth and real accountability for her recent killing by Fremont police. (Hayward PD is “investigating” since it happened there.)
Unidentified Fremont detectives – driving an unmarked car in Hayward – shot 16 year-old Ebbie on March 14th in the middle of an apartment complex and concocted a very suspicious story to justify killing an innocent girl.
Ebbie’s family misses her deeply and remembers her as a kind young woman who was a big SF 49ers fan.
The family demands are as follows:
-Any video footage leading up to, during and after the shooting
-Full autopsy report plus any and all medical records
-Any and all information about what happened to the car the police were following
-Questions answered: Did Fremont police have permission to be conducting surveillance and following a car in Hayward? Was Hayward PD at all aware of this operation?
Training session for how to advocate for #SB562 and speak to organizations about it this Tues evening in Oakland at CNA Headquarters. RSVP 👇 https://t.co/bIFUqyzdvM
— Healthy CA (@4HealthyCA) April 3, 2017
You are invited to a training on SB 562 in Oakland, which will be geared toward teaching people the details of the bill, how to speak to others about the bill, and how to answer the hard questions. Food will be provided. Please RSVP to this event so that we can order the right amount of food.
If there are particular questions you have or topics you want to learn in this training, please email Sue Bergman, Chair of the Alameda County chapter of Health Care for All – California with this information, so that it can be incorporated into the training. Her email is: sfbergman100@gmail.com
half-intro-2sides-surveil-4-1-17
Support needed for the J20 Resisters! Tell DA George
Gascon to drop the charges!
District Attorney George Gascon has filled unjust charges against a group of Bay
Area activists for civil disobedience taken in opposition to tech complicity with the
Trump administration on Inauguration Day 2017.
The group of activists, the “J20 Resisters”, are being arraigned this Wednesday
April 5th at 9am at 850 Bryant, in San Francisco. Friends of j20 Resisters will be
holding a press conference beforehand at 8am and we are asking anyone who can
to come out in support.
And before Wednesdays arraignment, we are asking our supporters to call and
email District Attorney George Gascon’s office and tell him to drop the charges.
Why is DA Gascon expending energy on criminalizing dissent rather than taking the
multiple officers to task who have murdered civilians in cold blood on his watch?
Gascon is failing to protect the public from police terror.
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! Tell him, do your job and go after guilty cops instead!
SUPPORT THE
#ENDPOLICETERROR
Almost 100 days into Trump’s presidency, how are we feeling the impacts of the new administration in urban, state, and federal politics? From ACA reform threatening gains in insurance coverage for Californians to concerns about ICE raids across both Southern and Northern California to the current jeopardy around Caltrain electrification, how are local politicians responding? How is this affecting historical political dynamics, alliances, and tensions at each level of government?
We’ll hear from longtime investigative and political reporters in Oakland and San Francisco Darwin Bond Graham and Joe Eskenazi; along with Liam Dillon, who covers the state Capitol for the Los Angeles Times; and Lee Fang, who first wrote about Steve Bannon more than five years ago and now covers money in politics for The Intercept.
After the program, continue the conversation at the DADA BAR with friends. MI members have 10% discount on drinks!
Transition Berkeley Presents…
How can we shift our economic structure to be more equitable and humane?
Please join Transition Berkeley for a short film: “How Class Works”, an animated overview by Richard Wolff.
The film will be followed by a talk and discussion led by local author and distinguished Marxist scholar Richard Lichtman, who has taught at UC Berkeley, SF State, and the Wright Institute. His topic will be Marxism 101: Capitalism and Democracy – Can They Co-exist?
Is capitalism the root cause of the climate crisis? How can we shift our economic structure to be more equitable and humane? If capitalism is the problem, what alternatives do we have? We’ll discuss these issues and more.
Meet and greet at 6:30 pm before the film. Bring healthy vegetarian snack or a refreshment to share if you can. The program begins at 7:00 pm.
http://www.booksinc.net/event/lisa-servon-books-inc-alameda
Lisa Servon discusses her new book, The Unbanking of America: How the New Middle Class Survives.
With pieces featured on consumer financial services featured in the Wall Street Journal, the Atlantic online, and The New Yorker online, among many others, professor Lisa Servon discusses her new book, The Unbanking of America: How the New Middle Class Survives.
An urgent, absorbing expose–why Americans are fleeing our broken banking system in growing numbers, and how alternatives are rushing in to do what banks once did.
What do an undocumented immigrant in the South Bronx, a high-net-worth entrepreneur, and a twenty-something graduate student have in common? All three are victims of our dysfunctional mainstream bank and credit system. Today nearly half of all Americans live from paycheck to paycheck, and income volatility has doubled over the past thirty years. Banks, with their high monthly fees and overdraft charges, are gouging their low- and middle-income customers, while serving only the wealthiest Americans.
Lisa Servon delivers a stunning indictment of America’s banks, together with eye-opening dispatches from inside a range of banking alternatives that have sprung up to fill the void. She works as a teller at RiteCheck, a check-cashing business in the South Bronx, and as a payday lender in Oakland. She looks closely at the workings of a tanda, an informal lending club. And she delivers fascinating, hopeful portraits of the entrepreneurs reacting to the unbanking of America by designing systems to creatively serve many of us. Banks were once essential pillars of our lives; now we can no longer count on them to do right by us.
“Required reading for fans of muckraking authors like Barbara Ehrenreich, this fascinating look at the future of money management insists that the ‘unbanked’ are a sector deserving of respect and solid options.” — Publishers Weekly, starred review
Guest presenter Pierre Delforge of the Natural Resources Defense Council will discuss how to slash emissions from natural gas appliances like furnaces and water heaters, and why it matters.
This is the first in a series of public-interest events on issues related to renewable energy and a sustainable future hosted by Local Clean Energy Alliance. The Alliance is a non-profit membership organization working for equitable, sustainable communities through local renewable resource development.
Guest presenter Pierre Delforge of the Natural Resources Defense Council will discuss how to slash emissions from natural gas appliances like furnaces and water heaters, and why it matters.
This is the first in a series of public-interest events on issues related to renewable energy and a sustainable future hosted by Local Clean Energy Alliance. The Alliance is a non-profit membership organization working for equitable, sustainable communities through local renewable resource development.