Join us at the downtown Berkeley Public Library for Homelessness in Berkeley: a Panel Discussion.

There are exciting and viable programs that can house the homeless in Berkeley! Panelists will provide a broad background on homelessness as well as specific conditions in Berkeley in order to demystify this important community issue and share proven solutions that have already worked in other cities. We will hear about solutions that are happening now and those that can be applied in Berkeley.

The panel includes experts on the subject, local service providers and case workers discussing their work in the streets, and people who have expericenced homelessness sharing the reality of life on the street. There will be plenty of time for discussion and Q&A. A reception with the panelists follows including tabling by various organizations.

Nationally known advocate Dr. Julie Winkelstein, PhD, MLIS, moderates the program. She will be joined by:

Sam Davis, UC Professor Emeritus, Department of Architecture

Gwen Austin, Development Associate/Community Builder-Organizer, Building Opportunities for Self-Sufficiency (BOSS)

Eve Ahmed, City of Berkeley, Homeless Outreach, Berkeley Mental Health Adult Services

Joseph, Advocate, Berkeley resident, formerly homeless

Other panelists to be anounced.

Pedie Perez had been drinking when he was arrested by Richmond officer Wallace Jensen. After waiting on the floor for a while, he got up to walk away. He was gunned down. He was unarmed. There are several witnesses that attest that he didn’t attack the cop or try to seize his weapon, but in the follow up investigation NONE of the actual eye witnesses testimony was even mentioned and Jensen was allowed to continue on his merry way without so much as a reprimand.  But folks are organizing and fighting back. Now it is becoming an important issue and several members of the Richmond City Council are becoming actively involved. Stand up! Fight Back! You can read more about the situation on this web site as well as on this Faceplant page.

Saturday, September 10th there will be a BBQ commemorating the second anniversary of his murder at 5:30 PM at John F. Kennedy Park on Cutting Blvd. It will be followed by a candle lighting and walk to Uncle Sam’s Liquors where he was gunned down by a Peace Officer pledged to protect and server the citizens of Richmond.

Peace Bay Area Fam: Artists, Hip-Hop Heads, Mothers, Lovers, Leaders, Healers – people of the movement.

Tatu Vision & Sistar Cypher are coming through with another slammin’ collaboration… Second Saturday Open Mic / Dance Party / Sistar Cypher.
First off, big Love and big Thanks to Kaye Sweat for leading us in a room full of dance last Second Saturday! That was almost too much fun lol!

We still feel the rhythm in our bones and must express it forward! Who better to call than our dynamic dance organization ——–>
FEATURE ARTISTS : No Mirror Movement

Inspirations: No Mirror Movement uses a fusion of hip hop, contemporary, and waacking, because each of those dance styles are rooted in social change and empowering individuals to connect with their bodies, love their bodies, and express themselves in order to build community and challenge the status quo. These three cultures inspire No Mirror Movements literal dance movements. The director, SammyMac, also takes inspiration from her background in musical theatre by ensuring a full story is told, one that holds meaning and captures audiences hearts and minds. She is is also inspired by the personal stories of her dancers and her own history of overcoming a 10 year eating disorder. She believes dance should tell stories that bring important issues, such as body image and mental illness, to the fore front of people’s mind and helps communicate the immediacy of these issues through a language audiences hear rarely….the language of dance.

Beautiful.
Come through ready to share a piece on the mic, dance, cypher, or simply enjoy the vibe and support others. All ages, all by donation. Much love!

NOTE: Tatu Vision is performing in LA on October 7th! Therefore…there will be NO Second Saturday open mic and Sistar Cypher in October.

Monthly interfaith prayer meeting, held on second Sundays, dedicated to survivors and victims of violence and police terror in Oakland.

The Baha’i community of Oakland is organizing this gathering for the community to connect, share prayers, writings and poems from all spiritual traditions, reflect and recharge and build coalitions interested in healing.

Come share prayers, quotes, poems, and favorite passages from your scriptures with us. Simple breakfast will be served.

Sunday Morning at the Marxist Library

Inside U.S. Imperialist Policy Today:
Syria, Libya, Egypt, Iran, Iraq and Beyond

Speaker, Jeff Mackler, National Secretary, Socialist Action and Socialist Action’s 2016 candidate for President; Author, Revolution and Counterrevolution in Egypt; The Tragedy of Libya; Syria 2014; Marx Was Right: The Capitalist Crisis Today and Capitalism Damns the Environment; Director, Mobilization to Free Mumia Abu-Jamal

The panelists and community discussion will focus on what Oaklanders are doing to fight displacement by struggling for African-Americans to obtain a fair share of the jobs in the city.

African Americans at present make up 28 percent of the city and have three times the unemployment rate of whites. Black people are only getting 5 percent of the hours on city-funded construction projects.

Speakers will discuss:

Winning decent paying warehouse jobs at the new Port of Oakland logistics project;

Ensuring city-funding of the job resource centers that are the major pipeline for jobs for many low-income workers

Working for Uber to institute a socially responsible jobs policy in Oakland.

Reinvigorating a city jobs policy that was passed in 2008 but not implemented.

Uniting to support the “Oakland Opportunity Challenge,” aimed at obtaining a fair portion of employment for African American residents in every workplace in every job category.

The Alameda County Jail Fight Coalition is calling health care workers and community members to attend the Alameda County Mental Health Advisory Board meeting where they will be discussing the Sherffis proposal to build a new “mental health unit” at the Santa Rita Jail. The sheriff thinks he can get the Mental Health Adviory Board to rubberstamp his proposal – join us as we demand real accountability and real solutions to our county’s needs. We need to let the Mental Health Adviory Board know that the community and healthcare workers are opposed to the use of jail as mental healthcare.

Stand with us in our demands to:

1. Stop all construction plans for the new jail
2. Invest in alternatives to incarceration and community health
3. Divest from incarceration and policing

If you can’t make it, you can still take action:

Sign here to add your name to the growing list of healthcare providers who oppose this project.
https://www.change.org/p/board-of-supervisors-health-workers-in-bay-area-denounce-new-mental-health-jail

Sign here if you are a California resident opposed to this project.
https://www.change.org/p/alameda-county-board-of-supervisors-no-new-jail-in-alameda-county

The “Dakota Acces” Pipeline (DAPL) is a $3.8B, 1,100 mile fracked-oil pipeline currently under construction from the Bakken shale fields of North Dakota to Peoria, Illinois. DAPL is slated to cross Lakota Treaty Territory at the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation where it would be laid underneath the Missouri River, the longest river on the continent.

Construction of the DAPL would engender a renewed fracking-frenzy in the Bakken shale region, as well as endanger a source of fresh water for the Standing Rock Sioux and 8 million people living downstream. DAPL would also impact many sites that are sacred to the Standing Rock Sioux and other indigenous nations.

The DAPL is a massive project being organized by a shady group of the world’s largest fossil-fuel companies and banks. They have offices in cities around the world. Putting direct, nonviolent pressure on the corporations building and funding this project is critical for supporting frontline resistance to DAPL.

Why Target Obama?
Obama has been one of the most outspoken presidents on indigenous rights, and one of few to visit a Native American reservation during his time in office. The reservation that he visited happened to be the Standing Rock Sioux Nation (the same tribe with a lawsuit against this pipeline). President Obama also has the power to direct the Army Corps of Engineers to revoke the permit for this pipeline, and we want him to be referenced in press articles as a possible decision maker on this as the issue continues to escalate. We think that with dozens or even hundreds of actions, we’ll be able to convey to the press that the movement is calling on him to step in as the decision maker.

https://actionnetwork.org/events/san-francisco-stands-with-standing-rock-no-keystone-by-any-name

http://www.350bayarea.org/no_dapl_oak_160913

https://nodaplsolidarity.org/

Photographers! Know your rights when you cover marches, demonstrations and other movement actions. Know how to protect yourself, who is on your side, and where the lines are in the real world.

Have you ever wondered:
* Can police confiscate my camera or images?
* What are my rights to photograph or film police themselves?
* Is it safe to stay after a dispersal order?
* What additional rights, if any, does a press pass confer?

We’ll hear from activist photographers, seasoned photojornalists, and movement lawyers on these questions and more. Even if you don’t consider yourself a “photographer” but take cell phone pics/video at protests, this workshop is for YOU too!!

Sponsored by Class Conscious Photographers/Silicon Valley DeBug and Pacific Media Workers CWA Local 39521.

Our weekly PARTY to get this hackerspace together, to provide a venue for those things that otherwise cannot be worked out through day-to-day practice.

Potluck! – bring your own tasty dish!

Sudo room, located in the southwast corner of the ground floor, is a creative community and hackerspace. We offer tools and project space for a wide range of activities: electronics, sewing/crafting, 3D and 2D manufacturing, coding, and good old-fashioned co-learning!

Hours: The space is open whenever a member is present. Come visit! Best times to drop in are evenings between 7 and 9pm. See the calendar for recurring meetups and upcoming events: https://sudoroom.org/calendar

Draft agenda:

• Alameda County Mental Health Advisory Board Meeting report back and next steps
• Turnout for Friday’s meeting
• Outreach

You’re invited to join us tonight to discuss justice and injustice at UC Berkeley, and how to build a student organization on campus.

The ISO will hold a discussion about UC Berkeley’s history of complicity with sexual harassment, and its censorship of a student-run course on Palestine, and plan how to expand socialist organization on campus.

We are asking if anyone in the community has any information, eyewitness accounts or video showing the unjust killing of Colby Friday, shot in the back by Stockton Police Officer David Wells.

The community can no longer tolerate Stockton police officers shooting their citizens in the back – it is the same tired narrative that repeats time and time again.

From Luther Brown, James Cook and James Rivera Jr., all shot and yet these officers all still work, are promoted and are allowed to stalk the streets for their next victim.

Your family many be next. Take this seriously – we don’t want to be out there for you next.

Justice 4 Colby Friday Facebook

Want to learn how to work toward eliminating the cops? Want to hear how we challenge the notion that policing keeps us safe? CR Oakland regularly offers this workshop that looks at the role and history of policing in the U.S., the way it has impacted various communities, and how people have resisted and challenged its inherent violence. This workshop also goes over how we can reduce our reliance on policing by highlighting the various ways that building up community strength and practices lead to true safety that does not depend on law enforcement.