Calendar

9896
May
28
Wed
Protest the Cancellation of KPFA’s Morning Mix @ KPFA Radio Station
May 28 @ 2:30 pm – 4:00 pm

Protest the cancellation of the Morning Mix, a radio show on KPFA during morning drive time, which was hosted by diverse programmers who are based in the local community. KPFA management is replacing it with a show, with one radio personality, that will be piped in from Los Angeles.

Only some Morning Mix segments have been rescheduled, and at times of the day when most working people are at work and unable to listen, including the labor show Work Week Radio (https://soundcloud.com/workweek-radio), and Project Censored (http://www.projectcensored.org/category/radio/).

This removal of the Morning Mix from drive time is part of a larger, ongoing coup, which you can read about here: http://www.unitedforcommunityradio.org/

On Monday, with the support of the community, the Morning Mix hosts continued to broadcast in spite of attempts to remove it from the air, but was not able to reenter the studio the following day. You can listen to Monday’s broadcast at http://www.kpfa.org/archive/id/103151

 

Support the Morning Mix hosts and real Community Radio.

 

Rally in front of KPFA:

 

Wednesday, May 28, 2014

7:30am

1929 Martin Luther King Jr. Way

Berkeley, California

 

 

https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2014/05/23/18756199.php

 

May 23, 2014
For Immediate Release

Stand Up And Fight Back For Free Speech Radio

“This is Miguel Gavilan Molina. It has come to my attention that this past Wednesday – the same day that Pacifica’s new interim executive director was introducing the staff of KPFA to the three finalists for the general manager position – KPFA’s outgoing interim manager was slashing and scattering the Morning Mix and removing it from the morning.

Whose idea was it to make major changes and have them put in place by a manager in his last days at KPFA? Regardless of who decided this, what reason was there to rush it through, with no prior notice to listeners, instead of waiting for the new manager to come in?

The co-hosts of the Project Censored Show, part of the Morning Mix on Friday mornings, were told by the interim General Manager last Friday that they were pre-empted for the final week of the fund drive, but were moved to the 1 P.M. slot for that week only, and that no program changes would be implemented until a new manager was in place.

I ask, as a former child farmworker, who toiled in the fields of misery, and as a producer on Pacifica for over thirty years: Who is running KPFA? Who is making the decisions?

And what do those people who are killing the Morning Mix, think they are doing to the morale for our newest group of emerging producers? Once again, mostly white people are deciding for the entire KPFA community—mostly black and brown – how things are to be run at KPFA.

It is time to defend this station or lose it: the white-minority ruling group does not have the right to drive through their own changes, which now include destroying the Morning Mix.

One of the Morning Mix crew, Sabrina Jacobs, is now calling for support by the black, brown, Asian, and progressive white staff and the community, to rIse up and support the Morning Mix.

I quote our colleague, Sabrina Jacobs:

“The People of Color that are affiliated with KPFA and Pacifica Radio will not be silenced until the questions of all those concerned are answered. The world outside of this “bubble” that has been created where white supremacy reigns will cease to exist when the necessary changes are made and our demands to be treated equally are heard and executed, post haste.”

Dr. Marc Sapir, a long time generous supporter of KPFA, and a long time activitist said in a widely distributed statement: “The stepping forward of minority programmers along with the rest of the Mix staff can be a signal that this resistance is possible and this could lead to a much improved station and network…”

STAND UP AND FIGHT BACK FOR FREE SPEECH RADIO: LONG LIVE THE MORNING MIX.

This is Miguel Gavilan Molina standing strong for Free Speech Radio, KPFA Pacifica”

After this statement on air Miguel continues to discuss this with Dennis Bernstein on his program; hear more at http://www.kpfa.org/archive/id/103089 ; statement at about 28 minutes and 35 seconds into the program.

 

55843
Save the Park Garden, development review at City Hall @ City Hall, Oakland
May 28 @ 11:30 pm – May 29 @ 12:30 am

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.

10272651_10152161098596589_133009457724382292_o

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!

473571_3851464643966_1617992469_o

55851
May
30
Fri
How to keep tasers out of Berkeley. @ Grassroots House
May 30 @ 2:00 am – 3:30 am

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.

 

 

55839
May
31
Sat
Protest the Cancellation of KPFA’s Morning Mix @ KPFA Radio Station
May 31 @ 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm

Protest the cancellation of the Morning Mix, a radio show on KPFA during morning drive time, which was hosted by diverse programmers who are based in the local community. KPFA management is replacing it with a show, with one radio personality, that will be piped in from Los Angeles.

Only some Morning Mix segments have been rescheduled, and at times of the day when most working people are at work and unable to listen, including the labor show Work Week Radio (https://soundcloud.com/workweek-radio), and Project Censored (http://www.projectcensored.org/category/radio/).

This removal of the Morning Mix from drive time is part of a larger, ongoing coup, which you can read about here: http://www.unitedforcommunityradio.org/

On Monday, with the support of the community, the Morning Mix hosts continued to broadcast in spite of attempts to remove it from the air, but was not able to reenter the studio the following day. You can listen to Monday’s broadcast at http://www.kpfa.org/archive/id/103151

 

Support the Morning Mix hosts and real Community Radio.

 

Rally in front of KPFA:

 

Saturday, May 31, 2014

10am

1929 Martin Luther King Jr. Way

Berkeley, California

 

 

https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2014/05/23/18756199.php

 

May 23, 2014
For Immediate Release

Stand Up And Fight Back For Free Speech Radio

“This is Miguel Gavilan Molina. It has come to my attention that this past Wednesday – the same day that Pacifica’s new interim executive director was introducing the staff of KPFA to the three finalists for the general manager position – KPFA’s outgoing interim manager was slashing and scattering the Morning Mix and removing it from the morning.

Whose idea was it to make major changes and have them put in place by a manager in his last days at KPFA? Regardless of who decided this, what reason was there to rush it through, with no prior notice to listeners, instead of waiting for the new manager to come in?

The co-hosts of the Project Censored Show, part of the Morning Mix on Friday mornings, were told by the interim General Manager last Friday that they were pre-empted for the final week of the fund drive, but were moved to the 1 P.M. slot for that week only, and that no program changes would be implemented until a new manager was in place.

I ask, as a former child farmworker, who toiled in the fields of misery, and as a producer on Pacifica for over thirty years: Who is running KPFA? Who is making the decisions?

And what do those people who are killing the Morning Mix, think they are doing to the morale for our newest group of emerging producers? Once again, mostly white people are deciding for the entire KPFA community—mostly black and brown – how things are to be run at KPFA.

It is time to defend this station or lose it: the white-minority ruling group does not have the right to drive through their own changes, which now include destroying the Morning Mix.

One of the Morning Mix crew, Sabrina Jacobs, is now calling for support by the black, brown, Asian, and progressive white staff and the community, to rIse up and support the Morning Mix.

I quote our colleague, Sabrina Jacobs:

“The People of Color that are affiliated with KPFA and Pacifica Radio will not be silenced until the questions of all those concerned are answered. The world outside of this “bubble” that has been created where white supremacy reigns will cease to exist when the necessary changes are made and our demands to be treated equally are heard and executed, post haste.”

Dr. Marc Sapir, a long time generous supporter of KPFA, and a long time activitist said in a widely distributed statement: “The stepping forward of minority programmers along with the rest of the Mix staff can be a signal that this resistance is possible and this could lead to a much improved station and network…”

STAND UP AND FIGHT BACK FOR FREE SPEECH RADIO: LONG LIVE THE MORNING MIX.

This is Miguel Gavilan Molina standing strong for Free Speech Radio, KPFA Pacifica”

After this statement on air Miguel continues to discuss this with Dennis Bernstein on his program; hear more at http://www.kpfa.org/archive/id/103089 ; statement at about 28 minutes and 35 seconds into the program.

 

55845
“DON’T Support the Salinas PD” Rally
May 31 @ 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm

A rally to support the Salinas Police Department has been organized for Sat. from 11am-2pm. This is a response to that rally. The Direct Action Monterey Network and our comrades in Salinas are mobilizing for a counter demonstration because a pro-cop rally in response to what’s been going on is a pro-murder-of-Latino-farmworkers rally and can not be left unanswered.

This is not about specific cops or their personal attitudes and beliefs. This is about exposing the Salinas PD for being the violent, oppressive institution that it is. Their daily intimidation and harassment, as well as these recent murders, reinforces a racist, exploitative system. We are standing up to them, as well as to those members of the community who are voicing their support for such an institution.

http://www.facebook.com/events/824296990931334/

Original notice on IndyBay.

55881
End Police Terrorisim BBQ in Stockton: Free Community BBQ & Justice For James Rivera 3rd Annual Speak Out. @ Bus leaves for Stockton from OGP
May 31 @ 6:00 pm – Jun 1 @ 1:00 am

OAKLAND: BUS FROM OAKLAND, MEET AT OGP 11:00AM

For all those who have suffered police brutality
please join us, and speak out about the corruption in San Joaquin county that affects us all.
When?
Saturday May 31st 2014 for the 3rd annual Speak out for victims of police violence/brutality. Bring your friends, invite your friends. In 2010 16 year old James Rivera Jr, was driving a mini van that was violently forced off of the road by multiple Police units. The vehicle was forced to crash, going through two residential garages, rendering the vehicle immobile. Stockton Police officers Gregory Dunn and Eric Azarvand, with deputy Sheriff John Nesbit, got out of their patrol cars and within seconds opened fire on James. A total of forty eight rounds entered the childs body from the sides and behind, killing him at the scene. Eric Azarvand, is said to have been firing with an AR-15 assault rifle. James’ family still has not received the police reports, video or picture evidence, or James’ personal property. Join his family and other members of the community who support the family or have been victims themselves.

Speakers for other families who have been victimized by the Police are expected to be attending, as well as our brothers and sisters from the East Bay area who will be coming out to support these families, and give some educational speeches about the commonalities of police violence taking place almost daily, and all around us.

If you are against Police Violence, if you or a loved one has ever been subject to non warranted police attacks, you need to be here on the 31st of May, and have your voice heard.

JUSTICE FOR JAMES RIVERA JR
JUSTICE FOR DONALD RAY HAYNES
JUSTICE FOR ANGEL SAUCEDA.

END POLICE TERRORISM.

55792
STOP CRUDE OIL BY RAIL SHIPMENTS TO RICHMOND!
May 31 @ 8:00 pm – 10:30 pm

If the Government Won’t, the People Will…..

STOP CRUDE OIL BY RAIL SHIPMENTS TO RICHMOND!

Stop pollution of our communities and our climate!

PROTEST AT KINDER MORGAN’S RAIL YARD

SHUTTLES WILL PROVIDE RIDES FROM RICHMOND BART — 12:15-12:30 pm

Meet at Castro St. entrance to Kinder Morgan train yard between entrance to Chevron Refinery/Hwy 580 &
Hensley Street, close to Hensley across Castro Street from General Chemical’s entrance at525 Castro Street.
(Closet parking is up Hensley Street)

The Bay Area Air Quality Management District issued a permit to Kinder Morgan to operate its crude-by-rail project to import highly explosive and toxic crude oil into Richmond, a low income community of color already burdened by pollution caused by the fossil fuel industry. BAAQMD issued the permit without public notice or opportunities for public comment. The number of trains carrying crude oil has risen dramatically due to increased drilling in both the Alberta tar sands in Canada and the Bakken shale oil area of North Dakota, and the number of serious accidents has also increased.
We the people must raise our voices and send a loud and clear message that more pollution from dirty crude oil and tar sands is not acceptable in the bay area or anywhere else.

KEEP THE OIL IN THE GROUND!!

Sponsors: West County Toxics Coalition, Greenaction for Health and Environmental Justice, Sunflower Alliance, 350 Bay Area, Idle No More/SF Bay, ANSWER/SF, Communities for a Better Environment, Environmental Justice Air Quality Coalition, Asian Pacific Environmental Network, Global Community Monitor, Forest Ethics
F

55874
Jun
3
Tue
Berkeley Post Office Defenders General Assembly @ Downtown Berkeley Post Office
Jun 3 @ 1:00 am – 2:30 am

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.

staples-invasion-postcard_Page_1

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!

AND CHECK OUT OUR WEBSITE.

55855
Jun
5
Thu
OUR Walmart National Strike Day and Action! @ Walmart Supercenter Union City
Jun 5 @ 12:00 am – 3:30 am

Walmart Associates will be on strike to protest Walmart’s illegal retaliation against Associates who have spoken up about inequality and have gone on strike.

We’ll be talking to customers and asking them to support Walmart Associates who continue to highlight the issue of Walmart’s poverty wages deepening income inequality and the impact it has on its workers, customers, and communities as a whole and call on Walmart to raise workers’ wages to $25,000 per year.

55813
Jun
7
Sat
Honoring Andy Lopez @ Dollar Tree Parking lot
Jun 7 @ 6:00 pm – 10:30 pm

Andy Lopez will be honored by family, friends and supporters on the occasion of his 14th birthday. Andy will be celebrated by both those who knew him personally and by those who have been seeking a just response to his death. Speakers at the opening and concluding gatherings will share what Andy’s life and memory mean to them and what they expect to be his lasting legacy.

The noon march will lead by Danza Azteca Coyolxauqui and by youth contingents from Andy’s Youth and the Windsor Bloco Youth Ensemble. Participating group members of the Justice Coalition for Andy Lopez (JCAL), and Mothers in White, as well as other local and state-wide supporters and groups.

The event, entitled, “Not Forgotten – Andy Lopez Presente!,” will begin at 11:00. At noon, participants will march to central Santa Rosa for a culminating birthday rally at Old Courthouse Square.

Time: 11-12Noon – Gather and Speakers
12-1:30pm – March To Courthouse Square, Santa Rosa, CA
1:30-3pm – Rally and Speakers

55869
Haiti Action Committee Study Group Mtg @ Niebyl-Proctor Library
Jun 7 @ 9:00 pm – 11:00 pm

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?

 

Facebook page & RSVP

55955
Strike Debt Bay Area Meeting: Ideas Into Action. @ Oscar Grant Plaza amphitheater, next to City Hall
Jun 7 @ 10:00 pm – Jun 8 @ 12:30 am

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@gmail.com and let us know you’re coming.

Join Strike Debt Bay Area in working on some exciting projects locally and nationally to fight unjust debt.

 photo da3-color_zpsf9036587.jpg

– 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.

55921
Jun
10
Tue
Berkeley Post Office Defenders General Assembly @ Downtown Berkeley Post Office
Jun 10 @ 1:00 am – 2:30 am

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!

staples-invasion-postcard_Page_1

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!

AND CHECK OUT OUR WEBSITE.

55947
Jun
11
Wed
Wreck the W.O.S.P. – STOP GENTRIFICATION! @ Defemery (Lil' Bobby Hutton) Park
Jun 11 @ 11:00 pm – Jun 12 @ 1:00 am

The West Oakland Specific Plan is a massive development project that will lead to gentrification and displacement across West Oakland. The Plan itself, while saying much about attracting business and investment by playing up West Oakland’s ‘uniqueness’ and ‘diversity,’ actually contains NO guarantees for protecting and providing for people who already live here.

JOIN THE MARCH: Leaving from Defremery Park at 4pm, through West Oakland to spread the word, arriving at City Hall for the 6pm Planning Commission meeting!

NO TO DISPLACEMENT!
NO TO GENTRIFICATION!
DEFEND WEST OAKLAND!

 Original event notice on IndyBay.

wreckwosp_meme.jpg

 

55959
Jun
12
Thu
Politics of Debt Book Group of Strike Debt Bay Area. @ Public School Space (entrance on 22nd St, use buzzer)
Jun 12 @ 2:30 am – 4:30 am

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.

Heinberg-CH-7

Heinberg-CH-7-cont

55816
Jun
13
Fri
City of Oakland Privacy Committee Meeting @ Oakland City Hall Council Chambers
Jun 13 @ 1:00 am – 3:00 am

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.

StopTheDAC

55981
Jun
15
Sun
Gill Tract Community Farm Meeting: COME ONE ! COME ALL ! @ Gill Tract
Jun 15 @ 5:00 pm – 6:30 pm

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!

More info.

55979
The New Jim Crow Reading Group @ Taylor Memorial United Methodist Church (chapel)
Jun 15 @ 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm

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.

55969
Jun
17
Tue
Berkeley Post Office Defenders General Assembly @ Downtown Berkeley Post Office
Jun 17 @ 1:30 am – 2:30 am

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!

staples-invasion-postcard_Page_1

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!

AND CHECK OUT OUR WEBSITE.

55965
Jun
19
Thu
San Francisco Living Wage Coalition Meeting @ Redstone Building, Room 301
Jun 19 @ 1:00 am – 3:00 am

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/

55960