In the not too distant future, the US has been taken over by white nationalists, and the institutionalized racism that has underscored the country’s entire history has once again been codified. California has seceded from the US, and a band of strong women plan to start the next civil war following the death of their friend at the hands of the police. This is BLM-PD.

Amazon listing

Emma’s Revolution with Annie Patterson

The award winning duo Emma’s Revolution (Pat  Humphries & Sandy O) are joining forces with Rise Up Singing creator Annie Patterson to sing songs of resilience in the spirit of Pete Seeger.

Many people around the world have used the centennial of Pete’s birth this year as a chance to rededicate themselves to peace & justice – things Pete & Toshi Seeger spent their lives working on. As part of this Seeger celebration Annie performed a series of concerts with Pat and Sandy in New England last spring.

You can buy tickets now here or at the door for a suggested donation of $25. No one turned away for lack of funds. (“Be generous! Be affordable!”)

Annie, Pat & Sandy will lead songs out of our new Seeger singalong songbook If I Had a Hammer during a portion of the concert – as well as performing other songs that build resilience, hope, and work for justice. You can order a copy of If I Had a Hammer now with your ticket for pickup at the concert – or borrow or buy one on the evening of…

Sun, Jan 19, 2020: 10:30 am to 12:30 pm
Group Reading: Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence. In honor of Dr. King’s birthday, we will discuss what many believe is the greatest speech by America’s greatest spiritual leader, a speech that cost him his life. It is not widely recognized that Dr. King was an open socialist who stated that: “There must be a better distribution of wealth, and maybe America must move toward a democratic socialism.” Reading the speech will take about an hour, leaving time for open discussion.

Sun, Jan 26, 2020: 10:30 am to 12:30 pm
India:  Modi in his Second Term takes a Hard Right Turn
Modi’s BJP won 303 seats in the Parliament of 545 seats in the 2019 General Elections, after completing his first term of 5 years, in which BJP did not have majority, so it was more dependent on its allied regional parties. Modi has undertaken bold move within the first year of his Second term: Removal of Article 370 of the Constitution, which granted Jammu & Kashmir state substantial autonomy; Outlawing of the Triple Talaq practice (thrice repeated word divorce by which men could divorce their wives) among Muslims; Threatened to carry out National Registration of Citizens (NRC); and enactment of Citizens Amendment Act (CAA), which permits granting of citizenship to refugees of Hindu, Christian & Sikh faiths from three countries, but not Muslims: Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. Each of these moves go against the spirit of the staunchly secular Indian Constitution. Students and Muslims, joined by secular persons of Hindu, Christian and Sikh faiths, have begun strong opposition to these moves of the government, and now the Left Parties are organizing workers to oppose government’s Neo-Liberal policies. The latest incident of goons attacking and injuring Left Students and Faculty members at the prestigious Jawahar Lal Nehru University (JNU) has added to the tension in society already tense. What is in store for India the years ahead with Modi at the helm? Raj Sahai who closely monitors the political and economic affairs in India will present his views. Q/A will follow his 50 minute talk.

Sun, Feb 2, 2020: 10:30 am to 12:30 pm
The Haitian Revolution of 1804.
The imp-act of the Haitian revolution was immeasurable – to the slave system, anti-imperial struggles, France and the US. To other slave societies it became an example of what could be accomplished and a source of hope.

Speakers will be Pierre Labossiere and Gerald Smith.

Sun, Feb 9, 2020: 10:30 am to 12:30 pm
Revolt of the Dispossessed against Neoliberalism in Latin America and the Caribbean
With the Trump administration’s renewed emphasis on imposing the Monroe Doctrine to the Empire’s so-called “backyard,” the peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean resist in a revolt of the dispossessed against neoliberalism. In this year in review, hear about the struggles in Venezuela, Colombia, Cuba, Bolivia, Haiti, and elsewhere along with the solidarity actions by North Americans in support of the social justice movements. The presenters are activists with the 34-year old human rights organization, Task Force on the Americas (https://taskforceamericas.org/).  The presenters are Alice Loaiza, Alicia Jrapko, David Paul, Marilyn Langlois, Bill Hackwell, Roger Harris.

The Occupy Oakland General Assembly meets every Sunday at 3 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 3:00 PM we meet in the basement of the Omni Collective, 4799 Shattuck Ave., Oakland.  (Note: we meet at 3:00 PM during the cooler months,  once Daylight Savings Time springs forward we tend to assemble at 4 PM).

On every ‘last Sunday’ we meet a little earlier at 2 PM to have a community potluck to which all are welcome.

OO General Assembly has met on a continuous basis for over five years! 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

1. Welcome & Introductions
2. Reports from Committees, Caucuses, & Independent Organizations
3. Announcements
4. (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

The Oakland Greens (OGP) look forward to seeing you at the start of this year’s “Free Dinner & Movie Discussion Night” with MC and producer Vicente Cruz on the “Last Sundays” of every month from January through October.

January 26, 2020 will screen the movie “Her” (2013) — a provocative  romantic drama film written, directed, and produced by Spike Jonze. The film follows Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix), a man who develops a relationship with Samantha (Scarlett Johansson), who is an artificially intelligent virtual assistant personified through a female voice.

As usual, the door at the It’s Your Move Games and Hobbies store will open at 6:30 p.m., a free dinner will be served at 7 p.m., and the movie will start promptly at 7:30 p.m.  Although a $20 donation is suggested, no donation is ever too big or small, and, as always, no one will be turned away for lack of funds.

What is this movie really about?   

Official Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJTU48_yghs

The first public meeting
Links to the agenda and press release

Healthy California Now has chartered a bus from the Bay Area with a capacity of 56 people, first-come, first-served. They will be providing lunches to the first 100 people to register.

If you do not need the charter bus and are able to carpool, please do so and organize among your colleagues to maximize efficiency.

Please RSVP and find more information here.

For people who cannot join us in Sacramento there is a teleconference option:

Dial-In 877-692-8957; Participant Code: 4540351

(“Please join the call 20 minutes prior to the scheduled start time to register with the operator and be placed into conference.”)

The number of social justice movements is growing  That means there are more people relying on  “Public Comment” at City Council meetings.

Why do people rely on “Public Comment”?
Because they are locked out of policy-making !

The rules of council need to be changed so that:

1.      those who will be affected by a policy get to participate in writing and deciding the policy

2.      the council stops silencing people with its procedures.

About the film: “The documentary We Cried Power is an intimate account of a “season of resistance,” told through his eyes and the mothers, veterans, preachers, and students who are the voices and founding members of this new “fusion” movement. The film bears witness to the profound process by which those without power decide not to accept their powerlessness. Instead, they claim – through protest, dance, song, and poems, through testimony and tears – their birthright: to live decent lives in the United States of America.”

Dara Kell, dir. (USA, 45 mins.)
A link to the trailer: https://vimeo.com/383590763/b39d6b011f

An informal discussion of Nick Estes’ book Our History is the Future about the history of indigenous resistance to capitalism and colonialism leading up to and including the Standing Rock #NoDAPL movement. This will be an ongoing reading series.

The Haitian Revolution of 1804.
The imp-act of the Haitian revolution was immeasurable – to the slave system, anti-imperial struggles, France and the US. To other slave societies it became an example of what could be accomplished and a source of hope.

Speakers will be Pierre Labossiere and Gerald Smith.

Sun, Jan 19, 2020: 10:30 am to 12:30 pm
Group Reading: Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence. In honor of Dr. King’s birthday, we will discuss what many believe is the greatest speech by America’s greatest spiritual leader, a speech that cost him his life. It is not widely recognized that Dr. King was an open socialist who stated that: “There must be a better distribution of wealth, and maybe America must move toward a democratic socialism.” Reading the speech will take about an hour, leaving time for open discussion.

Sun, Jan 26, 2020: 10:30 am to 12:30 pm
India:  Modi in his Second Term takes a Hard Right Turn
Modi’s BJP won 303 seats in the Parliament of 545 seats in the 2019 General Elections, after completing his first term of 5 years, in which BJP did not have majority, so it was more dependent on its allied regional parties. Modi has undertaken bold move within the first year of his Second term: Removal of Article 370 of the Constitution, which granted Jammu & Kashmir state substantial autonomy; Outlawing of the Triple Talaq practice (thrice repeated word divorce by which men could divorce their wives) among Muslims; Threatened to carry out National Registration of Citizens (NRC); and enactment of Citizens Amendment Act (CAA), which permits granting of citizenship to refugees of Hindu, Christian & Sikh faiths from three countries, but not Muslims: Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. Each of these moves go against the spirit of the staunchly secular Indian Constitution. Students and Muslims, joined by secular persons of Hindu, Christian and Sikh faiths, have begun strong opposition to these moves of the government, and now the Left Parties are organizing workers to oppose government’s Neo-Liberal policies. The latest incident of goons attacking and injuring Left Students and Faculty members at the prestigious Jawahar Lal Nehru University (JNU) has added to the tension in society already tense. What is in store for India the years ahead with Modi at the helm? Raj Sahai who closely monitors the political and economic affairs in India will present his views. Q/A will follow his 50 minute talk.

Sun, Feb 2, 2020: 10:30 am to 12:30 pm
The Haitian Revolution of 1804.
The imp-act of the Haitian revolution was immeasurable – to the slave system, anti-imperial struggles, France and the US. To other slave societies it became an example of what could be accomplished and a source of hope.

Speakers will be Pierre Labossiere and Gerald Smith.

Sun, Feb 9, 2020: 10:30 am to 12:30 pm
Revolt of the Dispossessed against Neoliberalism in Latin America and the Caribbean
With the Trump administration’s renewed emphasis on imposing the Monroe Doctrine to the Empire’s so-called “backyard,” the peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean resist in a revolt of the dispossessed against neoliberalism. In this year in review, hear about the struggles in Venezuela, Colombia, Cuba, Bolivia, Haiti, and elsewhere along with the solidarity actions by North Americans in support of the social justice movements. The presenters are activists with the 34-year old human rights organization, Task Force on the Americas (https://taskforceamericas.org/).  The presenters are Alice Loaiza, Alicia Jrapko, David Paul, Marilyn Langlois, Bill Hackwell, Roger Harris.

It’s a good time to take a fresh look at what has worked in times of trouble, and share what we have learned about successful campaigning that gives hope for the future.” – George Lakey.

These times call for new and creative tactics in order to make changes to the status quo.

Explore: What makes nonviolent direct action campaigns relevant now? What about polarization? How do we build stronger campaigns? Can campaigns build a movement of movements that can deliver really big changes?

Expect: experiential activities, small group work, a big picture, affirmation of your own power.

Activist, sociologist and author George Lakey has been on the forefront of social change for five decades, leading social change workshops on five continents and heading projects on local, national and international levels. His latest book, How We Win, details how we can achieve needed social change.

Kazu Haga is the founder of the East Point Peace Academy, as well as a core member of the Ahimsa Collective and a trainer in Kingian Nonviolence, a philosophy developed out of teachings of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. His book, Healing Resistance, will be released January 14th.

Sponsored by the Social Justice Committee of BFUU, and the Social and Environmental Action Committee of the Berkeley Society of Friends.

Register at eastpointpeace.org/howwewin or call.