Calendar

there’s been a lot of interest in Betty Reid Soskin’s soon-to-be-released autobiography, Sign My Name To Freedom, as well as to the Bay Area book launch event we’ve organized for her.

Because of that interest in the book launch event, we’ve taken a couple of measures in order to make sure we can comfortably accommodate all those who may come.

First, we’ve moved back the opening hour of the event to 5 pm. While there will be a brief program in the middle of the book launch, you will be able to come any time between 5 pm and 8 pm to meet and talk with Betty, to have your book signed by her, and to enjoy the entertainment and Geoffrey’s well-known soulfood cuisine. Come and stay a few minutes, or stay the whole time.

Second, we’ve set up an Eventbrite page in order to gauge interest in the book launch.

This will help us a great deal in planning for Betty’s book launch.

Meanwhile, looking forward to seeing you on the 21st at Geoffrey’s. Indeed, it’s going to be a historic event for Oakland and all of the Bay Area.

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, opposing Urban Shield 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

“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. This month Oakland Privacy will be preparing for the passage of transparency ordinances in Oakland and Berkeley and 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.

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

Featured Speaker: Troy Williams, former editor of the monthly San Francisco Bay View, National Black Newspaper which has been publishing since 1976.

Come learn about our current work and activities! You’ll also hear about SURJ’s new pathways for entering the work, including Study and Action groups as well as committee work, upcoming workshops, and events. We’ll answer your questions and share how you can get involved in the movement for racial justice.

Building Accessibility: There are two entrances to Sierra Club Office building on Webster and 21st both of which are accessible for mobility devices. The building has an elevator, and the kitchen space, conference room, and restrooms can also all accommodate mobility devices.

Special guest speaker for January: Chairman Fred Hampton, Jr. Don’t miss this!

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. Founding coalition members include the Black Power Network, Community Ready Corps, Workers World, and the Idriss Stelley Foundation.

2/22/18 9M BART BOARD MEETING

JUSTICE FOR SHALEEM TINDLE

Join the family of Shaleem Tindle who was murdered by officer Joseph Mateu at the BART Board meeting and demand justice

Featuring:

Thomas Mariadason, member, NLG-SF

Liz Derias-Tyehimba, Center for Political Education

Kiilu Nyasha, former Black Panther and host of Freedom is a Constant Struggle

Tur-ha Ak, Community Ready Corps

Woods Ervin, TGI Justice Project

Zoé Samudzi, writer and activist

Facebook Event Page

Please join LSPC, CCR, and partners in court for oral argument in Ashker v. Governor of California, a federal class action lawsuit on behalf of prisoners held in solitary confinement in California’s Pelican Bay State Prison and throughout the state.

Ashker settled in 2015, and in the years since settlement, the Center for Constitutional Rights and co-counsel have been monitoring the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) as it ends longterm indeterminate solitary confinement. In the course of that monitoring, CCR developed evidence that many class members have been released to “general population” units where have been forced to spend as much or more time locked in their cells as when they were in solitary, with little to no rehabilitative or educational programming.

On February 23, CCR cooperating counsel Jules Lobel will be arguing a motion challenging these SHU-like general population units as a violation of the settlement agreement.

A rally preceding the hearing will start at 12:00 P.M. PST outside the courthouse, and will conclude at 12:40 to allow time to enter the building. The hearing will begin at 1 P.M.

Or watch here on Facebook Live on Friday!

ID is required to enter the courthouse.

Thank you for your support!!!

Like us on Facebook
www.prisonerswithchildren.org

MLK, The Other America.  (The Historic Stanford Speech).

By Filmmaker Allen Willis, Commemorating Black History Month 2018.

Join the picket line with SEIU Service Employees Union EVERY FRIDAY.
STOP DEPORTATIONS and harassment of immigrants and refugees.

​Also…​

SF Labor Council Calls for a Clean Dream Act Now,
No Compromises;
Urges Labor Movement to Take Action!

[Resolution Adopted Unanimously by the Feb. 12, 2018, Delegates Assembly of the San Francisco Labor Council]

� For a Clean Dream Act Now and a Path to Citizenship for all Undocumented Youth!

� Not One More Deportatioon!

� No Funding for the Wall of Shame!

� No More Funding for Immigration Enforcement!

• Stop the I-9 Audits!

� No Workplace Raids!

� Defend Our Sanctuary Cities!

� Maintain TPS!

Whereas, on Feb. 9, 2018, both houses of the U.S. Congress adopted a budget for the upcoming fiscal year that does not include any protections for the close to 800,000 undocumented youth (Dreamers) brought to this country when they were children;

Whereas, United We Dream and thousands of undocumented youth organized actions and lobbied Congress in support of a Clean Dream Act — that is, continued protections and a path to citizenship for the 800,000 undocumented youth, WITHOUT any funding for the Wall of Shame and WITHOUT any further funding for ICE immigration enforcement;

Whereas, March 5, 2018, has been set as the deadline by the Trump administration for the adoption of any legislation that would extend DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals);

Whereas, House Speaker Paul Ryan — taking his lead from the Trump administration — has stated that any protection for undocumented youth, would require, in exchange, millions of dollars more to build the Wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and millions of dollars more for immigration enforcement;

Whereas, Sanctuary Cities — particularly in California — are under increased attack by the Trump administration;

Whereas, on Nov. 20, 2017, Trump’s Secretary of Homeland Security Elaine Duke cut off Temporary Protective Status (TPS) for 60,000 Haitians and for more than 240,000 other immigrants from 10 nations (mainly from Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua);

Whereas, the San Francisco Chronicle reported that 77 I-9 audits took place in Northern California at the end of January 2018 — audits that are expected to increase and become workplace raids and deportations if and when a deal is struck on protections for undocumented youth in exchange for increased immigration enforcement and funding for the Wall; and

Whereas, undocumented youth — just like all 11 million undocumented immigrants, and just like all hundreds of thousands of TPS recipients — are part of the U.S. working class and deserve protections and a path to citizenship through a just immigration reform; in particular, they deserve the labor movement’s protection and support.

Therefore be it resolved, that the San Francisco Labor Council reaffirms its stance in support of the following demands: “For a Clean Dream Act and a Path to Citizenship for all Undocumented Youth! Not one More Deportation, No Funding for the Wall of Shame, No More Funding for Immigration Enforcement! Stop the I-9 Audits! No Workplace Raids! Defend Our Sanctuary Cities! Maintain TPS!”

Be it further resolved, that the San Francisco Labor Council will work closely with our community partners to call on our elected representatives to take a firm and unwavering stand for a Clean Dream Act Now; and

Be it finally resolved, that the San Francisco Labor Council calls on the California Federation of Labor and the national AFL-CIO to issue statements in support of a Clean Dream Act Now and to call for mobilizations, where possible, in alliance with our immigrant sisters and brothers and their organizations, to promote the above-stated demands.

Respectfully submitted by:

Olga Miranda, SEIU Local 87; member SF Labor Council Executive Committee; Rudy Gonzalez, IBT 856, member SF Labor Council Executive Committee; Susan Solomon, UESF, member SF Labor Council Executive Committee; Alan Benjamin, OPEIU Local 29.

The Oscar Grant Foundation Hosts …. A Mother’s Day for Justice .

Join mothers from California and beyond who have lost their children to police and communal violence

East Side Arts Alliance and the SF National Lawyers Guild present…

FREE FILM EVENT

Refreshments served
Accessible venue
Community discussion

The six-month old Trump Era has ushered in an upsurge in I.C.E. enforcement actions against immigrants across the U.S.A. and many people are not aware of their basic rights when interacting with law enforcement. As a result they can face difficulties in defending their cases, or can sometimes give up their rights without even knowing it.

The San Francisco chapter of The National Lawyers Guild has produced three short films, which are based upon actual recent incidents, hope to educate vulnerable immigrants about how to respond to I.C.E. agents when approached at home, at work, or on the street.

This Critical Resistance workshop explores the role and history of policing in the U.S., the way it has impacted different 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.

We are asking for a $5 – 20 donation, however no one will be turned away for lack of funds.100% of donations will go to support Critical Resistance.

Building Accessibility: There are two entrances to Sierra Club Office building on Webster and 21st both of which are accessible for mobility devices. The building has an elevator, and the kitchen space, conference room, and restrooms can also all accommodate mobility devices.

Scents: The Sierra Club’s space endeavors to offer a scent free environment; however as the Club is currently transitioning towards the use of only scent free products, we cannot guarantee an entirely scent free space. We ask everyone to please arrive at meetings fragrance free to support access for folks who experience multiple chemical sensitivities and allergies. This means using only body products and laundry detergent that say “fragrance free” or “unscented” on the label and do not have scented ingredients.

Restrooms: Restrooms are currently labeled in a gender-binary way. The Sierra Club is working on changing this and has an office policy that all restrooms are available to anyone, regardless of lived or perceived gender identity. We ask that folks choose the restroom that is right for them, and that no one question a person’s chosen restroom.

We’re taking the repeal of the Costa Hawkins Rental Housing Act to the ballot!!!

Strong Rent Control and Just Cause Eviction laws are the way to keep people in their homes now, while we work to get more (truly) affordable housing built.  In order to have strong Rent Control laws, we need to repeal the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act, a state law which ties the hands of local government. Costa-Hawkins prevents\ cities and counties from applying rent control to apartments built after 1995 or to single-family rental units.  It also allows landlords to raise the rent as much as they want when a unit becomes vacant.

Our signature goal is 585,000 by the end of April, and well over 25% have been collected so far.  We can do this, but we need all hands on deck!!!

• Come out for a community kick-off event & signature gathering, followed by lunch.
• Endorse the Affordable Housing Act & get your petitions for your organization to help repeal Costa Hawkins & allow the expansion of strong rent control.

  CHIAPAS SUPPORT COMMITTEE

Home of the Compañero Manuel blog on the Zapatistas & Mexico

The next Waffles & Zapatismo class, with an open membership meeting after class from 12 Noon to 1pm. This first class of a series begins with the origins of the EZLN: the formation of the FLN, its entry into the Lacandón Jungle, its interaction with the indigenous communities and the formation of the EZLN. There is discussion after the presentation and from 12-1 there will be an open members meeting and an opportunity for folks to become activist members of the Chiapas Support Committee.

Zapatista News & Analysis
!. 3 Dead in Oxchuc, Chiapas violence – Armed with high-powered weapons, supporters of the mayor-in-exile attacked supporters of an Indigenous movement that wants to oust the political bosses and govern by tradition in an indigenous Chiapas municipality.

En español: http://www.proceso.com.mx/520205/miles-de-pobladores-exigen-justicia-para-indigenas-caidos-en-ataque-armado-en-oxchuc

2.  EZLN: 24 years of dignity and ethical congruence – López y Rivas reminds us that when the EZLN rose up in arms on January 1, 1994, it spoke of a genocidal war. Now, he says, that war has worsened until making Mexico the 2nd deadliest country in the world, after only Syria. During all these years, the EZLN has been the incorruptible critical conscience vis a vis the State and society.

En español: http://www.jornada.unam.mx/2018/01/12/opinion/017a2pol

3. The word of Marichuy – María de Jesús never speaks in her own name, but rather in the name of the peoples that elected her. “She doesn’t use the word I, but rather we.”

En español: http://www.jornada.unam.mx/2018/01/23/opinion/017a2pol

4. The strategy of the 1% and ours – The preferred tactic of the 1% is electoral fraud. The 1% has has the power of money, legal and illegal weapons and the communications media.

En español: http://www.jornada.unam.mx/2018/02/02/opinion/019a1pol
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Chiapas Support Committee/Comité de Apoyo a Chiapas