OTU’s Mission

The Oakland Tenants Union is an organization of housing activists dedicated to protecting tenant rights and interests. OTU does this by working directly with tenants in their struggle with landlords, impacting legislation and public policy about housing, community education, and working with other organizations committed to furthering renters’ rights. The Oakland Tenants Union is open to anyone who shares our core values and who believes that tenants themselves have the primary responsibility to work on their own behalf.

Monthly Meetings

The Oakland Tenants Union meets regularly at 7:00 pm on the second Monday evening of each month. Our monthly meetings are held in the Community Room of the Madison Park Apartments, 100 – 9th Street (at Oak Street, across from the Lake Merritt BART Station). To enter, gently knock on the window of the room to the right of the main entrance to the building. At the meetings, first we focus on general issues affecting renters city-wide and then second we offer advice to renters regarding their individual concerns.

If you have an issue, a question, or need advice about a tenant/landlord issue, please call us at (510) 704-5276. Leave a message with your name and phone number and someone will get back to you.

We’ll be getting updated on our local housing struggles, and we will take collective steps for tenant and neighborhood organizing.

Let’s get organized against the Bay Area housing market!

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We are a group of Bay Area tenants who are fed up with rising rents, evictions, and harassment at the hands of landlords. We are fed up with our neighbors having no option but to live unsheltered and at constant risk of police harassment. We want to stop landlords, developers, and cops from looting our communities.

A council is a group of tenants who work together to wield collective power against a shared landlord in order to improve their conditions. While, in general, councils may organize for more affordable, habitable, and safer housing, the issues that a council decides to organize around is ultimately dictated by its members. Councils can be powerful because they can directly apply their collective pressure on their landlord without the permission of city hall or other third parties.

TANC will help organize councils and bring them together as a network. While councils interface directly with their landlord, they can find support from other councils who rent from different landlords. We will assist in getting the word out to tenants and researching landlords. Neighbors will get to know each other during dinners, BBQs, and other events that TANC will support. We will compile complaints that are common across councils and aid in seeking their resolution. Councils will discuss and demand timely repairs, and support tenants threatened with eviction. Ultimately, the point is to reconfigure power dynamics of landlords and tenants in the Bay Area.

Want to get involved with SURJ Bay Area? Come learn about our current work and activities. SURJ moves white people to act for justice, with passion and accountability, as part of a multi-racial majority.

Agenda will include presentations from families and discussion about Sheriff Ahern and Santa Rita Jail.

APTP meets monthly on the 3rd Wednesday of the month.​

The Anti Police-Terror Project began as a project of the ONYX Organizing Committee. We are a Black-led, multi-racial, intergenerational coalition that seeks to build a replicable and sustainable model to eradicate police terror in communities of color.

RSVP to Monthly Meeting
Then this Sunday, join us for the No Candlelight Vigil for Jessica St. Louis:

A film examining paid family leave. The film and panel that follows highlight the state and national movement for Paid Family Leave.

Come by our open Delegates Meetings every First and Third Thursday of the month at 7pm! We’ll give space to brief announcements, updates from working groups, proposals up for consensus, and discussion around important issues.

NOTE: During the Plague Year of 2020 GA will be held every week or two on Zoom. To find out the exact time a date get on the Occupy Oakland email list my sending an email to:

occupyoakland-subscribe@lists.riseup.net

The Occupy Oakland General Assembly meets every Sunday at 4 PM at Oscar Grant Plaza amphitheater at 14th Street & Broadway near the steps of City Hall. If for some reason the amphitheater is being used otherwise and/or OGP itself is inaccessible, we will meet at Kaiser Park, right next to the statues, on 19th St. between San Pablo and Telegraph. If it is raining (as in RAINING, not just misting) at 4:00 PM we meet in the basement of the Omni Collective, 4799 Shattuck Ave., Oakland. (Note: we tend to meet at 3:00 PM during the cooler months from November to early March after Daylights Savings Time.)

On every ‘last Sunday’ we meet a little earlier at 3 PM to have a community potluck to which all are welcome.

OO General Assembly has met on a continuous basis for over six years, since October 2011! Our General Assembly is a participatory gathering of Oakland community members and beyond, where everyone who shows up is treated equally. Our Assembly and the process we have collectively cultivated strives to reach agreement while building community.

At the GA committees, caucuses, and loosely associated groups whose representatives come voluntarily report on past and future actions, with discussion. We encourage everyone participating in the Occupy Oakland GA to be part of at least one associated group, but it is by no means a requirement. If you like, just come and hear all the organizing being done! Occupy Oakland encourages political activity that is decentralized and welcomes diverse voices and actions into the movement.

General Assembly Standard Agenda

Welcome & Introductions
Reports from Committees, Caucuses, & Independent Organizations
Announcements
(Optional) Discussion Topic

Occupy Oakland activities and contact info for some Bay Area Groups with past or present Occupy Oakland members.

Occupy Oakland Web Committee: (web@occupyoakland.org)
Strike Debt Bay Area : strikedebtbayarea.tumblr.com
Berkeley Post Office Defenders:http://berkeleypostofficedefenders.wordpress.com/
Alan Blueford Center 4 Justice:https://www.facebook.com/ABC4JUSTICE
Oakland Privacy Working Group:https://oaklandprivacy.wordpress.com
Prisoner Hunger Strike Solidarity: prisonerhungerstrikesolidarity.wordpress.com/
Bay Area AntiRepression: antirepression@occupyoakland.org
Biblioteca Popular: http://tinyurl.com/mdlzshy
Interfaith Tent: www.facebook.com/InterfaithTent
Port Truckers Solidarity: oaklandporttruckers.wordpress.com
Bay Area Intifada: bayareaintifada.wordpress.com
Transport Workers Solidarity: www.transportworkers.org
Fresh Juice Party (aka Chalkupy) freshjuiceparty.com/chalkupy-gallery
Sudo Room: https://sudoroom.org
Omni Collective: https://omnicommons.org/
First They Came for the Homeless: https://www.facebook.com/pages/First-they-came-for-the-homeless/253882908111999
Sunflower Alliance: http://www.sunflower-alliance.org/
Bay Area Public School: http://thepublicschool.org/bay-area

San Francisco based groups:
Occupy Bay Area United: www.obau.org
Occupy Forum: (see OBAU above)
San Francisco Projection Department: http://tinyurl.com/kpvb3rv

On July 28, 2018, Jessica St. Louis was released from Santa Rita Jail in the middle of the night at 1:25a. Like so many other people released from Santa Rita, she had to walk the 1.9 miles to Dublin BART. She would be found outside, unresponsive and declared dead before the station opened at 5:30a.

We are demanding an end to late night releases.

Please join us as we take the long, dark and desolate walk Jessica and so many other women and men take to get home after incarceration.
Along the way, we will hear the stories of other women who encountered traffickers, were sexually harassed, and braved the cold after release from Santa Rita Jail.

We will have a number of cars shuttling people from Dublin BART to Santa Rita. Those with disabilities will join our walk via caravan.

#SayHerName
#JusticeForJessica
#ProtectOurSisters
#EndLateNightReleases

Join us for this important way to show solidarity with our incarcerated LGBTQ+ and HIV+ community members! Every month on the 3rd Monday, we’ll have mail processing/data entry, birthday cards to our LGBTQ members in nearby Norcal prisons AND penpal info, so join us for whatever your pleasure is (and invite your friends)!

Please join with or without a laptop – there is work for everyone! If you’d like, we’ll train you to respond to letters or to enter and update penpal request forms in our database. Getting these forms into our database helps get our inside folks matched to penpals, so this is an essential part of our work (and we have so much mail!).

If you want to start a penpal relationship, we will also have info on folks to send letters to, all the supplies, and ways to get more involved in the movement to abolish prisons. Letterwriting is one incredible way we have to overcome the isolation intended by the PIC.

Some food and beverages are available for purchase from the cafe. And please bring some dollars and change toward postage, if you can. Any money raised beyond the cost of supplies will be used to support both local & national Black & Pink projects.

Wheelchair accessible, though outlets for laptops are on the 2nd floor only.

RALLY at the San Francisco Federal Courthouse while the four CA Prisoner Hunger Strike and Ashker Class Representatives ‘Meet and Confer’ with CDCr to address the continuing solitary conditions that violate the Ashker lawsuit settlement agreement. The four prisoner hunger strike representatives will be present in the courtroom, an historic presence!

Help create a strong show of solidarity with prisoners fighting for human rights!

What’s going on? The prisoner class-led movement and the Ashker class action lawsuit resulted in the release of over 1400 people from solitary confinement Security Housing Units (SHUs) to what the CA Department of Corrections (CDCr) calls “General Population.” However, many of those people continue to be subjected to conditions of extreme isolation. With little to no out-of-cell time and no chance for social interaction, they are still in SOLITARY CONFINEMENT.

On July 3, 2018, U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken ruled:

“The Settlement Agreement was intended to remove Plaintiffs from detention in the SHU, where they were isolated in a cell for 22 ½ to 24 hours a day.� many Plaintiffs [now] spend an average of less than an hourr of out-of-cell time each day, which is similar to the conditions they endured in the SHU.�  … This demonstrates a violation of the Settlement Agreement.” FULL RULING HERE

and “…a substantial percentage of Plaintiffs in Restricted Custody General Population (RCGP) are …not permitted to exercise in small group yards or engage in group leisure activities. This does not comply with the terms of the Settlement Agreement.” FULL RULING HERE

The Ashker Plaintiff class reps and legal team were ordered to meet and confer* with CDCr lawyers to explore a resolution of these two issues. The four prisoner hunger strike representatives will be inside the courtroom. Please join us outside, and bring a friend, in a strong show of solidarity.

SOLITARY CONFINEMENT IS TORTURE

UNITY INSIDE, UNITY OUTSIDE

IMPORTANT NOTE: August 21, 2018 is the 47 year memorial anniversary of revered prison activist, George Jackson, who was assassinated by CA guards in San Quentin prison. It is also the first day of the 2018 National Prison Strike for humane living conditions, access to rehabilitation, sentencing reform, and the end of modern day slavery.

*Meet and confers are usually private with no judge present. This one will be in the presence of Magistrate Robert Illman and not open to the public.

prisonerhungerstrikesolidarity.wordpress.com

 Organized by Cheryl Davila Vice Mayor.

Agenda: Closure of homeless shelter at 9^th and University, which houses 95 people per evening.

Join the Thrive Street Choir (Oakland) and the Peace Poets (Brooklyn) for a dynamic song leading workshop, a week before RISE for Climate Jobs & Justice 9/8.

The Peace Poets are LEGENDS, coming to Oakland for a short time and will grace us with a performance and workshop!

We will gearing up for a 50k person Choral Flashmob, the largest singing climate mobilization in history! Come learn and practice the movement songs that we will be singing together in the streets of San Francisco (in harmony!).

We will be teaching techniques for being an effective song leader for this mobilization and beyond, and teaching some legendary and fresh new funky songs for (climate) justice – our present day movements need more songs!

facebook event page

This event is the second in a two-part mini-series on race, class, and the socialist struggle against racial oppression. This class will build on the concepts of the first class, focusing on socialism and the struggle against racial oppression via a discussion of the US police state. We’ll discuss how democratic socialists can put theory into practice to most effectively combat police violence and mass incarceration.

Aside from a short opening lecture, the bulk of class time will be spent in small, group-facilitated discussions. We’ll provide a short set of readings here beforehand, and we encourage all participants to read them before class. Members and non-members of any experience and knowledge level on this issue are warmly invited.

Required Readings

See the readings that we’ll be discussing after a brief introduction from our members.

Last month, community pressure led to the cancellation of a contract to detain hundreds of immigrants for ICE in Contra Costa County, and community groups called for the release of all immigrants incarcerated there. Instead, in an arbitrary abuse of power, ICE transferred our community members from the West County Detention Facility to for-profit immigration jails in Denver, Colorado, and Tacoma, Washington. Thus, separating individuals further away from their families, lawyers, and social services.

Please join community members and faith leaders to pack the court for Hugo and Misael who’s bond hearings are scheduled for Wednesday, August 22, 2018 (times for each hearing underneath). RSVP to both Lourdes at lbarraza@im4humanintegrity.org & Sarah at slee@im4humanintegrity.org if you plan on attending any of these events.

8:30 AM – Pack the Court for Hugo Aguilar*
Hugo has lived in the U.S. for over 24 years and is a proud father of 3 U.S. citizen children who miss their father dearly. For almost 17 months, Hugo’s children have been without their father and Hulissa, his 12-year-old daughter, has been very outspoken about how much she needs her dad home. For the past six months, Hugo’s attorney has worked tirelessly to get a bond hearing for Hugo and thankfully, the family was just notified that the hearing was granted. Hugo is 1 out 6 people left at the WCDF. Support Hugo and his family at his bond hearing!

11:00 to 11:30 AM – Press Conference Highlighting Families with Loved Ones Transferred from WCDF

12:30 PM – Pack the Court for Misael Quezada Flores*
Misael is a loving father and husband who has lived in the U.S. for over 20 years. He was one of the community members transferred to Colorado last week, even though he had a hearing scheduled in SF. His wife, Fatima, is 6.5 months pregnant and has suffered physical stress because of Misael’s detention. This Wednesday is his last hearing on his asylum case and will determine whether he’s released. Misael will be on a video call from Colorado. Fatima asks for community presence at this important hearing – let’s show up for Misael!

*If you are attending a bond hearing – bring a valid form of ID, no signs or clothing with words relating to the hearing. If you have clergy attire please wear.

West Oakland Punks with Lunch is a guerilla not-for-profit Harm reduction outreach organization providing food and other necessities to people experiencing homelessness.

Anyone and everyone is welcome to volunteer with us! We just ask a few simple guidelines to keep PWL running smoothly.

Please come wearing closed toed shoes and dressed appropriately for the weather. We ask that you show up with a non-judgemental, come as you are attitude. Be ready to work hard and have fun!

Wednesday:  Mobile Outreach

Meet at: 36th and MLK                Hours: 6pm-8pm

We do mobile outreach from 56th St. and MLK all the way down to 30th and MLK.
We provide snacks, water, hygiene and harm reduction supplies.
If you are interested in volunteering Wednesdays, please email us at:
oaklandpunkswithlunch@gmail.com

Sunday: Fixed Sites

Meet at: 2630 Union St.               Hours:    Prep 1pm-3pm, Distribution: 3pm-6pm
We have two fixed sites on Sundays. One at 35th and Peralta St. from 3:30pm-4:15pm and the other at 4:30pm-5:15pm. Ideally we stay on time, but we don’t beat ourselves up if we are a little late.  You have the option of staying for only prep, only distribution, or BOTH!  Sundays are the perfect day to get to know our organization for the day, or continue working with us to grow as on organization.

Surveillance Camera Plan Under Consideration

Additional Info…

Join Oakland Privacy to organize against the surveillance state, police militarization and ICE, and to advocate for surveillance regulation around the Bay.

We fight against “pre-crime” and “thought-crime,” spy drones, facial recognition, police body cameras and requirements for “backdoors” to cellphones, to list just a few invasions of our privacy by all levels of Government.

We draft and push for privacy legislation for City Councils, at the County level, and in Sacramento. We advocate in op-eds and in the streets. We stand in solidarity with Black Lives Matter and believe no one is illegal.

Oakland Privacy originally came together in 2013 to fight against the Domain Awareness Center, Oakland’s citywide networked mass surveillance hub. OP was instrumental in stopping the DAC from becoming a city-wide spying network.

Our major projects currently include local legislation to regulate state surveillance (we got the strongest surveillance regulation ordinance in the country passed in Oakland!), opposing Urban Shield (now gone!) and pushing back against ICE with local legislation.

If you are interested in joining the Oakland Privacy email listserv, coming to a meeting, or have questions, send an email to:

contact@oaklandprivacy.org

Check out our website: http://oaklandprivacy.org/   Follow us on twitter: @oaklandprivacy

Check out our sister site DeportICE.

“WATCHING YOU WATCHING US”

Oakland Privacy works regionally to defend the right to privacy and enhance public transparency and oversight regarding the use of surveillance techniques and equipment.  Oakland Privacy drove the passage of surveillance regulation and transparency ordinances in Oakland and Berkeley and is kicking off new processes in Richmond and Alameda County.  To help slow down the encroaching police state all over the Bay Area, join us at the Omni.