Rev. Traci Blackmon, an organizer and registered nurse, discusses her experiences in social justice activism and community health in the wake of Michael Brown Jr.’s murder in Ferguson, MO. In Ferguson, Rev. Blackmon provided a mobile faith-based outreach program to improve health outcomes in underserved and impoverished areas. She co-authored the newly released “White Privilege” curriculum currently being taught throughout the United Church of Christ.

The event is FREE and open to the community.

How activists in a working-class company town (Richmond, CA) harnessed the power of local politics to reclaim their community.

Court Support Needed!

Michael Brewster, was brutally attacked by police on February 8th.
His mother, Trina Peters, flagged down the police, explained Michael was having a mental health problem and asked them to call an ambulance for him. They said they would. Instead, the officers rushed him threw him on the ground and began to detain him. They called for back up and police swarmed the area.
Michael was unarmed and posed no threat to the officers, yet, they had him face down on the ground. Despite telling him he couldn’t breathe, several officers were on top of him. They beat him up and attempted to assault him with a billy club. Police told the people recording the incident to get back because it was a crime scene.
They beat him so badly that he was at SF General Hospital for 4 days before transferring him to the jail at 850 Bryant St, SF. The police denied his mother visitation and refused to release information regarding his wellbeing and that his court date was this last Wednesday. She only learned of it that day by chance.
The judge set his bail at $100,000. He is still being held at 850 Bryant St, SF.
His family is begging for court support.

Rabi’a Keeble, former OO participant, will present on proposed legislation to increase Oakland’s minimum wage to $20, to establish fair scheduling standards, and an office of labor standards enforcement for the City of Oakland. We believe under this presidential administration the best defense is a strong offense. We’ve got the Dubs, why can’t we have the country’s highest minimum wage? -:)

This legislation was drafted at the request of the Oakland Livable Wage Assembly. We will seek your advice and support for the necessary mobilization(s) to secure enactment we hope in 2017.

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The sudo room five minutes of fame is a social event where a bunch of folks meet up and munch on snacks while some folks make short 5 minute presentations about projects they’re working on or things they care about.

This type of event is blatantly stolen^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^Hheavily inspired by the noisebridge 5MoF events.

People are encouraged to bring snacks/food/drinks.

Schedule[edit]
These events happen every first Wednesday of the month at sudo room!

Email info@sudoroom.org or the sudo room mailing list to claim a slot for your project. All we need is the title of your presentation and a way to contact you.

10 minutes are allocated to each 5MoF presentation which includes 5 minutes for the presentation, time for questions and time for the next person to get their computer hooked up.

7 pm: People shuffle in, snack on food and get settled
7:30 pm: 1st 5MoF presentation
7:40 pm: 2nd 5MoF presentation
7:50 pm: 3rd 5MoF presentation
8:00 pm: 10 minute break (announced as a 5 minute break so we actually stay on time)
8:10 pm: Three-minute explanation of sudo room and the Omni. Donation hat passed around. New members encouraged to sign up right then and there.
8:12 pm: 10x 30 second announcements (no computer hookup allowed, no need to book these in advance)
8:20 pm: 4th 5MoF presentation
8:30 pm: 5th 5MoF presentation
8:40 pm: 6th 5MoF presentation
8:50 pm: Announce https://pad.riseup/p/sudoride for letting people ride-share back home.
8:51 pm: Social hangouts and tour of omni for new folk.
10:00 pm: Cleanup of food, chairs, etc. and moving folks to sudo room for continued hacking/socializing.

https://sudoroom.org/wiki/5MoF

Please join EFF’s Executive Director Cindy Cohn in conversation with Alexander Macgillivray and Nicole Wong, both former U.S. Deputy Chief Technology Officers under President Obama who also worked as legal counsel inside Google and Twitter. The panel will discuss the development of the Obama administration’s policies on the Internet, intellectual property, and technology and privacy, as well as the costs and benefits of going “inside” the White House. Attendees will also have the opportunity to participate in a robust Q&A session.

All are welcome to attend this free event so feel free to bring a guest! Space is limited, so please RSVP to reserve your spot. Drinks and light snacks will be served.

Hope to see you there!

How do our eating habits affect climate change? Transition Berkeley invites you to view COWSPIRACY: THE SUSTAINABILITY SECRET a ground breaking documentary that takes a sobering look at a destructive industry that is threatening the health of our planet. The film documents this industry’s impact on species extinction, ocean dead zones, water pollution and more. Learn how we can be part of the solution.
Before the film our special guest, attorney Jeff Pierce with the Animal Legal Defense Fund, will talk about efforts to combat the environmental harms of industrial animal agriculture, and highlight ways our individual choice to consume fewer animal products can help solve the problem. He’ll also discuss policy changes that can be implemented at the local level to address the impacts of animal agriculture on the environment.
After we watch COWSPIRACY we’ll have a time for discussion and planning local actions. Please bring vegan snacks to share for the social gathering at 6:30. The program begins at 7pm.

This event is co-sponsored by Transition Berkeley and BFUU’s Social Justice Ctee.

Wheelchair accessible.

Thinking outward and giving our time to others!

Acts 20:35 “In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”

With everything that’s been going on this month (politically, socially, and emotionally) it’s time to fill Berkeley with the love of Christ. It’s time to put the church at the forefront for healing and reconciliation.

Friday: donation collection on Sproul Plaza! 12pm-3pm
Satuday: 10:30am- 2pm / sandwich prep and distribution
Join, Join, Join.

If you cannot offer your time but would still like to help you can donate materials or ingredients OR just pray that God would use this to bless the people of Berkeley.

Counter protest planned for noon today 2 hours ahead of Berkeley #March4Trump pic.twitter.com/NmdeoGyzoo

— Scott Morris (@OakMorr) March 4, 2017

People getting organized against fascist ‘Proud Boys’ holding ‘March 4 Trump’ in #Berkeley.

East Bay DSA is proud to present: NOW IS THE TIME

Join us on March Fifth and learn more about the fight to make single payer healthcare a reality!

Through interviews, animations and exposé, this new documentary film tells the story of the drama, struggle, and success of the movement towards healthcare equity.

Aftwards, the filmmakers Laurie Simons and Terry Sterrenberg will answer questions about the film and the state of healthcare in the United States.

Sponsors:

East Bay Democratic Socialists of America (EBDSA)
Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP)
Therapists for Single Payer (TSP)

Escuela Comunitaria presents:

This dialogue in the Latino community will be an evening of telling our stories, and the first showing of the new film ‘Where the Guns Go’, a documentary on U.S. weapons and testimonies of victims of organized crime and the drug war in Mexico.

Organizado por Oakland Sin Fronteras, American Friends Service Committee, Frente Indigena de Organizaciones Binacionales, 67 Suenos, Encinal.

Public Defender Jeff Adachi believes the officers should have used crisis intervention techniques. “Mr. Moore did not have to be shot and the officers, had they properly used deescalation techniques, would have gone home.”

Tthe suggested theme is “Congress: Tell Sessions to Resign Now!”—join members of MoveOn, the Working Families Party, Democracy for America, Public Citizen, and other allies as we deliver this message!

This noon time rally is our part in a National Day of Action. We will represent the Bay Area for Res…

#ResistTrumpTuesdays: 
WHAT: Rally to tell CONGRESS: jEFF Sessions MUST Resign now!

Attorney General Jeff Sessions lied under oath about conversations with Russian officials during the campaign. His recusal is not enough. He cannot uphold the law if he can’t follow the law. Sessions must resign, and we need an independent investigation into Trump’s ties to Russia.

Together, we’ll make sure members of Congress see impassioned crowds on Tuesday and hear our calls to fire Sessions. We’ll also make it clear that Trump’s second Muslim Ban, just released today, is as bad as his first, and must go. Join the next #ResistTrumpTuesdays event near you.
Will you join the rally tomorrow to tell your member of Congress to “Tell Sessions to resign now” as a part of #ResistTrumpTuesdays?
YES, I’LL BE THERE!

The rally kicks off at noon at Chelsea Manning (Justin Herman) Plaza. There will be speakers, free childcare at the plaza park, and materials for making signs – please bring extra materials to share if you can!

PARTICIPATE WITH YOUR CREW – SELF-ORGANIZATION, SELF-DETERMINATION!

At 2pm we will march from Justin Herman Plaza to I.C.E headquarters. In the spirit of direct action and participation, we encourage folks to form affinity groups: come with your family or friends, form your own bloc, or join one of the several blocs that will be coordinating. For example, there will be a feminist bloc wearing all pink & black, with pink balaclavas or other face coverings, distributing condoms & feminist propaganda. We call on self-organized groups of neighbors, coworkers, or other kinds of community members to march together, pick a color or a theme, get creative, and bloc up!

Once we reach the I.C.E. headquarters building, we will “build a wall around I.C.E.” Bring banners, signs, drawings, poems, posters and other materials to contribute to this wall and to SHUT DOWN I.C.E.!

STRIKE AGAINST GENDER

In solidarity with the International Women’s Strike, which has called for militant action, strikes, blockades, occupations, and disruption of business as usual, we call for an all out strike against gender and all its forms of oppression, and against all systems of capitalist, racist, xenophobic, and fascist domination.

On March 8th we propose a feminist strike which will not be content to pinkwash the bombs on Baghdad, or to knit crowns honoring biology as our destiny. Instead, we propose a different strike, a strike against all forms of gender exclusion, exploitation and domination. A gender strike from below.

DAY OF ACTION – SHUT DOWN ICE!

As feminists, we see the struggle against ICE, against deportations, against borders, imperialism, and nationalism, as deeply intertwined with and crucial to the struggle for gender liberation.

We call upon antagonists to these systems of oppression in the Bay Area to come out for a day of action to shut down ICE and demand the removal of any and all ICE operations from San Francisco and the wider Bay Area. If this is truly to be a sanctuary city, if sanctuary is to be more than an ideal or a convenient phrase, we must act decisively to make the concept a reality.

We call for this as one step toward fighting for a world we can survive and want to live in.

ICE is a direct manifestation of the worst forms of oppression faced by the most vulnerable women, queer and trans folks. Last week, ICE arrested and deported a trans woman on the steps of an El Paso courthouse just after she had filed a protective order against her abusive boyfriend. Aggressive ICE raids have been reported around the country, and in the Bay Area they have shown up at social services agencies such as the WOMEN’S BUILDING, at grocery stores, and at other public places, terrifying the local community and causing people to avoid going to work or to school.

THE FUTURE IS NOT FEMALE, IF IT IS TRULY FEMINIST

Our actions will honor a different feminism, a feminism which refuses to collaborate with elite power brokers, naked capital and imperial interests, opportunists, managers and tepid reformists of every pink stripe.

Our feminism will never opportunistically invoke the hollow praises of “intersectionality” because we actually *live* intersectional violence, on our bodies and in our communities daily.

We must act on our own behalf: we will not be spoken for and co-opted by upwardly mobile, white, establishment “feminists” with designs on appropriating and exploiting our labor, our struggles and our formidable strength.

THE FUTURE IS NOT GENDERED, IF IT IS TRULY REVOLUTIONARY

Ours is a feminism that always fights, uncompromisingly, in defense of all who are oppressed by gender: trans women, undocumented migrants and domestic workers, refugees, black and brown people subjected to daily harassment and murder by police, and all who are situated at the intersection of life and death, surviving so many deadly forms of racialized, feminized and gendered exploitation.

Ours is a feminism that is anti capitalist; that is antifascist; that is against all forms of white supremacy, racism, imperialism, and nationalism; ours is a feminism that must destroy every patriarchal wall or border built between us and *our future*. We proclaim, the future is our total liberation! and nothing less.

AGAINST STATE VIOLENCE AND REPRESSION

Necessarily, our strike will not call upon the police to protect our “safety” because our feminism opposes state violence, absolutely.

Police do not make everyone safer. When women, especially those of color, call the police seeking protection from abusive partners, they are met with violence from the police. When people call the police for help in a mental health crisis, they are met with fatal violence from the police.

We will rally against ALL forms of oppression! Because ALL of these oppressions deepen and contribute to patriarchy, and to all that genders us & subjects us to gendered violence, exclusion, exploitation & oppression.

Facebook event

The idea for the women’s strike actually didn’t originate in the United States, but it is a call in solidarity with women’s organizations from 30 different countries who put out a call for a strike on International Women’s Day, March 8. This is our effort at trying to explain why it was important that American feminists sign onto this call … in this country, part of our intention is to bring politics back to International Women’s Day by turning it into a political event, by highlighting the ways that women continue to suffer from misogyny and sexism in the United States and to give concrete descriptions of that.

But also, the strike is about highlighting the ways that “women’s work” or “women’s labor” is at times unseen. It can be undervalued, underpaid. The strike is about drawing attention to that by, in effect, extracting those many different manifestations of women’s labor on March 8 to highlight the extent to which women’s labor continues to play a central role in the political and, I would say, social economy of the United States…

International Women’s Day came out of a demonstration of working class and poor women in Petrograd in Russia in 1917 in opposition to World War I and to fight the redirection of resources out of war back into the lives of regular people. The slogan was, “Demonstration for Peace and Bread.”

More

We are a growing group that is interested in building collective power among women and their comrades. We reject Trump’s racist and sexist basis of power, and the entrenchment of these power asymmetries by capitalism. These forms of women’s domination, and oppression centered on gender more broadly, are not merely a women’s issue. So, unless otherwise noted, our meetings and events are open to all.

_ the plan _
We are starting this process by building towards an action on March 8th, women’s day, in Oakland. This modest goal will help us lay the groundwork for a women’s bloc on the May 1st general strike. The general strike has been called by SEIU, a labor organization that represents mostly service workers–a line of work that mostly employs women and people of color.

WOMEN’S DAY – It is not enough to oppose Trump and his aggressively misogynistic, homophobic, transphobic and racist policies. We must also target the ongoing neoliberal attack on social provision and labor rights. The assault on our dignity, livelihood, friends, lovers, and neighbors is only just beginning. We can expect the repeal of our healthcare, the widening of any wage equity, the elimination of overtime protections, the destruction of already weak student loan provisions. And all of this while waging a militarized police war against immigrants, black and brown communities of color.

We have got to act. Let us join together on March 8th to inagurate a new politics. Let us use the occasion of this international day of action to be done with lean-in feminism and to build in its place a feminism for the 99%, a grassroots, anti-capitalist feminism – a feminism in solidarity with working women, their families and their allies throughout the world.