Calendar
Park Garden is under the threat of development. A recent notice posted in the area indicates an intent to build a 6-story building on the lot we garden in.
There is a Design Review hearing at City Hall this coming Wednesday, May 28th, at 4:30pm. We need as many friends, neighbors, and allies to show up and speak out on such issues as:
– The already dangerous traffic situation along the entire length of Park.
– Parking, which is already an issue.
– Pedestrian access, or lack of. We have a birth center across the street.
– Impact of construction on local area.
– Protection of open space and wildlife.
This Design Review hearing will be a great chance for gardeners, neighbors, and allies to make their voices heard. In addition to protecting our hard-earned community space, there are other issues this development will have a negative effect upon, including traffic, pedestrians, parking, and more.
A smaller project was stopped back in 2005, and we may be able to do so again, but we need bodies and voices at this hearing.
Anyone interested in offering logistical support in getting the word out, flyering, going door to door, it would be more than appreciated at this time. We will continue to plant and maintain Park Garden throughout the season, and more than likely through winter, which is always plenty of work. Thanks for your enthused involvement!
The strategy meeting for how to keep tasers out of Berkeley. We’ll talk about how to run this campaign and what’s our strategy. Sponsored by Berkeley Copwatch.
The Postal Service has put the Berkeley Post Office up for sale!!
The Postal Service has started to outsource Post Office services to Staples, replacing union jobs with low-paying, low benefit work.
And we’re fighting against both!
Come help us plan our next steps.
We’ve started a “Don’t Shop at Staples” campaign with some awesome… what else? … postcards to send to Staples management! Here’s the front of the postcard.
All four Postal Unions have joined together to support maintaining full service, public Post Offices in every community, with expansion to include postal banking, and to oppose subcontracting and privatization of services. The California Federation of Teachers passed a resolution in support of opposition to Staples. We need to continue the pressure on Staples and encourage other unions to pass resolutions denouncing the Post Office’s agreement with Staples.
And we need to be prepared if the Post Office announces a sale! The Advisory Commission on Historical Preservation came out with its report, recommending that sales of Historic Post offices be halted until the USPS conforms with historical preservation law. Here is our response. Also the Office of Inspector General’s report on the sale of Historic Post Offices came out recently – anything could happen now since Congress’ “request” that no historic Post Offices be sold until it had come out has been honored and no further Congressional request or mandate has come down. Come help us plan our response.
We have joined with other activists in Berkeley to put a ballot initiative on the ballot to rezone the Berkeley Post Office and other areas in the Historic District to prevent privatization, and also to insure a better Downtown Berkeley. We succeeded in getting the necessary signatures; it may be voted on in November.
Encouraging articles have come out recently about using Post Offices as banking facilities for the unbanked. We held a forum on postal and public banking on March 29th on the Post Office steps.
THINGS ARE HAPPENING!
What does activism look like in Haiti & how can you be apart of it? How can it shape your work here?
Join HAC as we explore Haiti’s history, current political situation, and the connections to parallel struggles throughout the U.S. and around the world.
Come to our first meeting!
Resistance & the Lavalas Movement:
What is Lavalas? Do people in Haiti support the current government? Who is involved in Haiti’s fight for democracy? Why do the world’s superpowers fear the people’s movement? Who is really in power in Haiti? What does activism look like in Haiti?
New to Strike Debt?? Don’t walk cold turkey into a bunch of radicals talking about debt! Show up a half hour early — at 2:30 PM — for an informal pre-meeting intro session. If you’d like to attend this pre-get-together please email strike.debt.bay.area@
Join Strike Debt Bay Area in working on some exciting projects locally and nationally to fight unjust debt.
– The latest on our coalition efforts to Save the Berkeley Post Office and fight the privatization of our commons.
– The latest on our efforts to help Richmond and NGO allies push for principal reduction for Richmond’s homeowners. Read two articles here and here, written by two Strike Debt Bay Area members on the Richmond principal reduction / eminent domain case.
In addition, we are exploring the use of a public bank to help Richmond, CA and other communities escape the thrall of Wall Street.
– Work on our radio segment broadcast periodically on KPFA.
– A project to bring non-profit, non-usurious payday loan services to Vallejo and Oakland.
– Other projects include efforts to fight against student debt in conjunction with peeps at UC Cal via a Strike Debt UC Berkeley chapter of Strike Debt, a book group with semi-weekly discussions, investigations into the legitimacy of mortgage ownership and therefore the right to foreclose, and more.
– Get your very own cop of The Debt Resisters’ Operations Manual!
“Just as bosses are dependent on workers, so are lenders dependent on borrowers. If workers walk out, the enterprise stops. If borrowers refuse to pay their debts, the lenders could be in real trouble. Each side depends on the other. The millions of underwater mortgage holders, of student debtors and credit card holders, need the bank loans – but so do the banks need those borrowers, and they especially need them to cooperate by paying their monthly charges. Otherwise, the capital that the banks list on their books begins to drain away.” ~Francis Fox Piven
Check out our website, our Facebook, and follow us on Twitter.
Check out the Berkeley Post Office Defenders website too.
The Postal Service has put the Berkeley Post Office up for sale!!
The Postal Service has started to outsource Post Office services to Staples, replacing union jobs with low-paying, low benefit work.
And we’re fighting against both!
Come help us plan our next steps.
We’ve started a “Don’t Shop at Staples” campaign with some awesome… what else? … postcards to send to Staples management! Here’s the front of the postcard. The campaign has been adopted by Postal Unions, has been endorsed by the AFL-CIO, and has gone national!
All four Postal Unions have joined together to support maintaining full service, public Post Offices in every community, with expansion to include postal banking, and to oppose subcontracting and privatization of services. The California Federation of Teachers passed a resolution in support of opposition to Staples. We are trying to get the Alameda Labor Council to pass a similar resolution.
And we need to be prepared if the Post Office announces a sale! The Advisory Commission on Historical Preservation came out with its report, recommending that sales of Historic Post offices be halted until the USPS conforms with historical preservation law. Here is our response. Also the Office of Inspector General’s report on the sale of Historic Post Offices came out recently – anything could happen now since Congress’ “request” that no historic Post Offices be sold until it had come out has been honored and no further Congressional request or mandate has come down. Come help us plan our response.
We have joined with other activists in Berkeley to put a ballot initiative on the ballot to rezone the Berkeley Post Office and other areas in the Historic District to prevent privatization, and also to insure a better Downtown Berkeley. We succeeded in getting the necessary signatures; it may be voted on in November, but Tom Bates and the City Council have nefarious plans to undermine our coalition. More info at the meeting as available!
Encouraging articles have come out recently about using Post Offices as banking facilities for the unbanked. We held a forum on postal and public banking on March 29th on the Post Office steps.
THINGS ARE HAPPENING!
We’re going to finish Richard Heinberg’s The End of Growth with a twist: everyone will read the last chapter (Ch.7) to get a picture of his prophesies and prescriptions while Spencer, Greg, and I will focus on a chapter each and give a short report-back. This way we can finish the book in just one more meeting.
Meeting of the City of Oakland’s “Privacy and Data Retention Ad Hoc Advisory Committee” – open to the public.
When:
2nd & 4th Thursdays
6:00pm – 8:00pm
Where:
Council Chambers
Oakland City Hall
14th & Broadway
Read the announcement from the City of Oakland City Administrator’s Weekly Report (April 25, 2014):
This committee was created by City Council action during the discussions earlier in the year about the Port Domain Awareness Center (DAC). The goal of the DAC is to improve readiness to prevent, respond to and recover from major emergencies in the Oakland region and ensure better multi-agency coordination across the larger San Francisco Bay Area. The goal of the Privacy and Data Retention Policy is to ensure there are safeguards to protect against potential misuse of the data or violations of individuals’ privacy rights and civil liberties. The meeting is open to the public. For questions about the Ad Hoc Committee, please contact Joe DeVries, Assistant to the City
We need to show up to these meetings and pressure the City to adopt a privacy policy that makes privacy a priority, not only “security” or administrative convenience.
COME ONE ! COME ALL !
The Gill Tract Community Farm is having a meeting for ALL volunteers and community members. Enter through the gate at Jackson St. & Ohlone Ave.
On the Agenda:
- how do we ensure sufficient staffing on a regular basis to keep the farm operating smoothly throughout the summer(year)
- people’s input on which crops to plant for the next season (around mid August)
- how different groups can work co-operatively and collectively on the farm.
We hope to see you there!
Legal scholar Michelle Alexander’s seminal work, “The New Jim Crow : Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness,” outlines how the gains of the civil rights movement have been systematically turned back by the exponential rise in incarcerations of brown and black men.
“Today there are more African-Americans under correctional control — in prison or jail, on probation or parole — than were enslaved in 1850, a decade before the Civil War began.”
The Bay Area Public School is proud to co-present this class with Taylor Memorial United Methodist Church, whose congregation will be reading Alexander’s book over a six-week period. All are welcome to join us for this engaged conversation on the meaning of “The New Jim Crow” for those of us working for social justice in Oakland and beyond.
The Postal Service has put the Berkeley Post Office up for sale!!
The Postal Service has started to outsource Post Office services to Staples, replacing union jobs with low-paying, low benefit work.
And we’re fighting against both!
Come help us plan our next steps.
We’ve started a “Don’t Shop at Staples” campaign with some awesome… what else? … postcards to send to Staples management! Here’s the front of the postcard. The campaign has been adopted by Postal Unions, has been endorsed by the AFL-CIO, and has gone national!
All four Postal Unions have joined together to support maintaining full service, public Post Offices in every community, with expansion to include postal banking, and to oppose subcontracting and privatization of services. The California Federation of Teachers passed a resolution in support of opposition to Staples. We are trying to get the Alameda Labor Council to pass a similar resolution.
And we need to be prepared if the Post Office announces a sale! The Advisory Commission on Historical Preservation came out with its report, recommending that sales of Historic Post offices be halted until the USPS conforms with historical preservation law. Here is our response. Also the Office of Inspector General’s report on the sale of Historic Post Offices came out recently – anything could happen now since Congress’ “request” that no historic Post Offices be sold until it had come out has been honored and no further Congressional request or mandate has come down. Come help us plan our response.
We have joined with other activists in Berkeley to put a ballot initiative on the ballot to rezone the Berkeley Post Office and other areas in the Historic District to prevent privatization, and also to insure a better Downtown Berkeley. We succeeded in getting the necessary signatures; it will be voted on in November, but Tom Bates and the City Council have nefarious plans to undermine our coalition.
Encouraging articles have come out recently about using Post Offices as banking facilities for the unbanked. We held a forum on postal and public banking on March 29th on the Post Office steps.
THINGS ARE HAPPENING!
San Francisco Living Wage Coalition Meeting
(btw. Mission and South Van Ness #12, 14, 22 buses, or 16th St BART)
San Francisco Living Wage Coalition Meeting. The Living Wage Coalition is building a grassroots movement of low-wage workers and their allies to win economic justice. Anyone who works full time should be able to survive on what they earn and support themselves and their children. Come to be a part of discussing next steps in pursuing an economic justice agenda.
More information at http://www.livingwage-sf.org/
The Postal Service has put the Berkeley Post Office up for sale!!
The Postal Service has started to outsource Post Office services to Staples, replacing union jobs with low-paying, low benefit work.
And we’re fighting against both!
Come help us plan our next steps.
We’ve began the “Don’t Shop at Staples” campaign with some awesome… what else? … postcards to send to Staples management! Here’s the front of the postcard. The campaign has been adopted by Postal Unions, the San Francisco Labor Council and has been endorsed by the AFL-CIO, and has gone national!
All four Postal Unions have joined together to support maintaining full service, public Post Offices in every community, with expansion to include postal banking, and to oppose subcontracting and privatization of services. The California Federation of Teachers passed a resolution in support of opposition to Staples. We are trying to get the Alameda Labor Council to pass a similar resolution.
And we need to be prepared if the Post Office announces a sale! The Advisory Commission on Historical Preservation came out with its report, recommending that sales of Historic Post offices be halted until the USPS conforms with historical preservation law. Here is our response. Also the Office of Inspector General’s report on the sale of Historic Post Offices came out recently – anything could happen now since Congress’ “request” that no historic Post Offices be sold until it had come out has been honored and no further Congressional request or mandate has come down. Come help us plan our response.
We have joined with other activists in Berkeley to put a ballot initiative on the ballot to rezone the Berkeley Post Office and other areas in the Historic District to prevent privatization, and also to insure a better Downtown Berkeley. We succeeded in getting the necessary signatures; it will be voted on in November, but Tom Bates and the City Council have nefarious plans to undermine our coalition.
Encouraging articles are still coming out about using Post Offices as banking facilities for the unbanked. We held a forum on postal and public banking on March 29th on the Post Office steps.
We are planning our next event, ‘Jam the Sale.’ Come help us out!
THINGS ARE HAPPENING!
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon has called a special UN Climate Summit on September 23 to “catalyze action by governments, business, finance, industry, and civil society”. It’s unlikely any more will come of this meeting than came of the gatherings in Copenhagen, Cancún, Kyoto, and elsewhere. But a large number of environmental and progressive organizations are planning actions in New York City right before and during the UN meeting to call the world’s attention to the failure of world “leaders” to deal with the crisis. One of these actions, the People’s Climate March, will take place on Sept. 20 and 21. It is spearheaded by 350.org and endorsed by about 100 other organizations.
In solidarity, a Bay Area action is being planned. If you want to help plan the fall action, please come to this meeting. And spread the word.
The Politics of Debt Reading Group, a subgroup of Strike Debt Bay Area, meets every other week to discuss readings on debt and related issues agreed to from previous meetings.
This meeting we will be discussing Chapter’s 2 & 4 of Taibbi’s Griftopia.
Here is a PDF with the reading material (large!)
Meeting of the City of Oakland’s “Privacy and Data Retention Ad Hoc Advisory Committee” – open to the public.
When:
2nd & 4th Thursdays
6:00pm – 8:00pm
Where:
Council Chambers
Oakland City Hall
14th & Broadway
Read the announcement from the City of Oakland City Administrator’s Weekly Report (April 25, 2014):
This committee was created by City Council action during the discussions earlier in the year about the Port Domain Awareness Center (DAC). The goal of the DAC is to improve readiness to prevent, respond to and recover from major emergencies in the Oakland region and ensure better multi-agency coordination across the larger San Francisco Bay Area. The goal of the Privacy and Data Retention Policy is to ensure there are safeguards to protect against potential misuse of the data or violations of individuals’ privacy rights and civil liberties. The meeting is open to the public. For questions about the Ad Hoc Committee, please contact Joe DeVries, Assistant to the City
We need to show up to these meetings and pressure the City to adopt a privacy policy that makes privacy a priority, not only “security” or administrative convenience.
The KONO Community Benefit District invites you to an open meeting about Oakland First Fridays. The event will be hosted by KONO Board President Phil Porter, KONO Executive Director Shari Godinez and Oakland First Fridays Fundraiser/Coordinator Sarah Kidder.
Come find out more about the event-ask questions, bring ideas, share concerns. We’re also actively seeking volunteers to get involved with the workings of the event before, during and after the first Friday of each month on either a short or long-term basis. The meeting is open to anyone with an interest in the Oakland First Fridays.
We are always looking for new people to join us, and work on our many projects, which include saving the Berkeley Post Office, organizing for public banking in Oakland, getting funding from the city of Vallejo for nonprofit check cashing (and public bank study initiatives), working with the City of Richmond and other municipalities for eminent domain seizure of underwater mortgages from the banksters, and much more.
“Just as bosses are dependent on workers, so are lenders dependent on borrowers. If workers walk out, the enterprise stops. If borrowers refuse to pay their debts, the lenders could be in real trouble. Each side depends on the other. The millions of underwater mortgage holders, of student debtors and credit card holders, need the bank loans – but so do the banks need those borrowers, and they especially need them to cooperate by paying their monthly charges. Otherwise, the capital that the banks list on their books begins to drain away.” ~Francis Fox Piven
Check out our website, our Facebook,
and follow us on Twitter.
Check out the Berkeley Post Office Defenders website too.
The Postal Service has put the Berkeley Post Office up for sale!!
The Postal Service has started to outsource Post Office services to Staples, replacing union jobs with low-paying, low benefit work.
And we’re fighting against both!
Come help us plan our next steps.
We’ve began the “Don’t Shop at Staples” campaign with some awesome… what else? … postcards to send to Staples management! Here’s the front of the postcard. The campaign has been adopted by Postal Unions, the San Francisco Labor Council and has been endorsed by the AFL-CIO, and has gone national!
All four Postal Unions have joined together to support maintaining full service, public Post Offices in every community, with expansion to include postal banking, and to oppose subcontracting and privatization of services. The California Federation of Teachers passed a resolution in support of opposition to Staples. We are trying to get the Alameda Labor Council to pass a similar resolution.
And we need to be prepared if the Post Office announces a sale! The Advisory Commission on Historical Preservation came out with its report, recommending that sales of Historic Post offices be halted until the USPS conforms with historical preservation law. Here is our response. Also the Office of Inspector General’s report on the sale of Historic Post Offices came out recently – anything could happen now since Congress’ “request” that no historic Post Offices be sold until it had come out has been honored and no further Congressional request or mandate has come down. Come help us plan our response.
We have joined with other activists in Berkeley to put a ballot initiative on the ballot to rezone the Berkeley Post Office and other areas in the Historic District to prevent privatization, and also to insure a better Downtown Berkeley. We succeeded in getting the necessary signatures; it will be voted on in November, but Tom Bates and the City Council have nefarious plans to undermine our coalition.
Encouraging articles are still coming out about using Post Offices as banking facilities for the unbanked. The National Conference of Mayors just endorsed Postal Banking. We held a forum on postal and public banking on March 29th on the Post Office steps.
We are planning our next event, ‘Jam the Sale.’ Spread the workd and come help us out!
THINGS ARE HAPPENING!
Special Meeting with Andrew Chirwa.
“Bloody Thursday” July 5th commemorates the police murder of maritime workers in the 1934 Big Strike which provoked the San Francisco General Strike. All US West Coast ports are shutdown to honor the 6 labor martyrs killed during the strike.
In 2012, at the Marikana mine in South Africa, 34 striking miners were massacred by police. ILWU Local 10 sent a letter of protest to the ANC-led government. Andrew Chirwa, president of NUMSA, the largest union in that country will address workers about the massacre and miners strike, the longest in South African history, and the impending metalworkers stroke.
On July 1, both the South African metalworkers union and the ILWU longshore contracts expire. NUMSA is preparing for a “full-blown strike” much like the maritime workers did in 1934. Now is the time for international labor solidarity.
Organized by the Transport Workers Solidarity Committee.