Calendar
The Platypus Affiliated Society hosts a weekly informal discussion on Politics, The Left, the Platypus Review, and upcoming Leftist events & Platypus activities in the area.
All are welcomed to attend regardless of whether or not you participate in the discussion. Sometimes certain articles or events are points of discussion, email PlatypusBCC [at] gmail.com to find out.
This week we will be discussing “Organization, political action, history, and consciousness: on anarchism and Marxism” by Chris Cutrone
Organization, political action, history, and consciousness: on anarchism and Marxism
http://www.facebook.com/platypusberkeley
The Platypus Affiliated Society, established in December 2006, organizes reading groups, public fora, research and journalism focused on problems and tasks inherited from the “Old” (1920s-30s), “New” (1960s-70s) and post-political (1980s-90s) Left for the possibilities of emancipatory politics today.
Anyone who has been in the Bay Area in recent years knows that the tech industry plays an outside role in our daily lives. We feel it in our rent, in the price of our drinks—regardless of whether we work in the industry or not. That’s why Catherine Bracy, a co-founder, has created a new Oakland-based organization to try to generate widespread opportunity for all.
Join Ars Technica editors Annalee Newitz and Cyrus Farivar in conversation with Ling at the next Ars Technica Live, at Eli’s Mile High Club in Oakland.
Bracy will discuss her experiences with Code for America and Obama for America, as well as helping to make Oakland a better place. There will be plenty of time for audience questions, too. Doors are at 7 PM and the event starts at 7:30.
Catherine Bracy is a civic technologist and community organizer whose work focuses on the intersection of technology and political and economic inequality. She was previously Code for America’s Senior Director of Partnerships and Ecosystem where she grew Code for America’s Brigade program into a network of over 50,000 civic tech volunteers in 80+ cities across the US. She also founded Code for All, the global network of Code-for organizations with partners on six continents.
Annalee Newitz is the Senior Tech Culture Editor at Ars Technica, and Cyrus Farivar is the Senior Business Editor. Ars Technica Live is a monthly series spotlighting people who are working at the cutting edge of technology, science, and culture. It’s held the third Wednesday of every month at Eli’s.
Monthly APTP meeting, held on every 3rd Wednesday of the month.
– Strategize on addressing proposed changes to the BART police use of force policy.
– Find out ways you can use your talents and resources to support APTP and get involved with the work, including how to join various committees such as the Black Leadership Committee, First Responders, Action, Policy, Media, and Security committees.
– Find out more about the #DefundOPD campaign.
The Anti Police-Terror Project is a project of the ONYX ORGANIZING COMMITTEE that in coalition with other organizations, like Idriss Stelley Foundation, Community READY Corps and Workers World Party – Bay Area, is working to develop a replicable and sustainable model to end police terrorism in this country.
We are led by the most impacted communities but are a multi-racial, mutil-generational coalition.
For the July meeting:
There will be report backs on some of our recent actions including the Defund OPD campaign around the city budget process, including our shutdown of the Council budget meeting. You’ll also hear about our action to protest the promotion of rapist OPD Cops at their “secret” promotions ceremony.
We’d also love to have you get involved with APTP on a regular basis, by joining one of our committees. We will have committee breakouts as part of Wednesday’s meeting, so you can learn about what the different committees do. We know you all have lots of ideas and talent, so please contribute to further APTP’s on-going work.
Some of the committees include:
– Black Leadership
– First Responders
– Action
– Comms/Media
– Policy
– Security
– Fundraising
See you all on Wednesday!
Come out and support DaJon Ford, who was arrested and charged as an adult back in 2013, when he was only 17 years old. He has been waiting almost 4 years for a trial in Santa Rita Jail. We made a lot of noise in support of Dajon at his court hearing last month, but we know we could get a lot more support for his next court hearing:
Last year, Proposition 57 passed, which took the power away from district attorneys to directly try juveniles as adults, and put that power back in the hands of judges. Dajon now has the opportunity to transfer to a juvenile court and this is what the court hearing will be about.
It is important for Dajon to recieve the most support as possible from friends, family, and community members.
You can also sign the petition to address the issue at hand: youth need to be treated as youth, and not as adults. Share and sign this petition to not only advocate for youth justice, but also to show District Attorney Nancy O’Malley and the Judge that the community stands in solidarity with Dajon and expects to see the justice we need to achieve for him. Find the petition at:bit.ly/DajonPetition
#Freedom4Dajon #DreamBeyondBars #Prop57
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. The schedule is created weekly at the following url: https://pad.riseup.net/p/omninom
From the Oakland Post:
Adamika Village and other grass-roots organizations are hosting a town hall meeting to announce “strategic and consistent planning and implementation to stop the violence in Oakland.”
“It is imperative that the community get involved in changing Oakland’s climate of violence. We can no longer rely on anyone but ourselves to make this happen,” says Pastor Anthony Woods, Adamika CEO. “This town hall is the beginning of regular monthly meetings to assure implementation occurs. Please don’t stay home and think somebody else is going to change Oakland. We need your help,” he said.
On the agenda will be a discussion of Adamika Village’s “No Yellow Tape Day” rally at City Hall on Nov. 17 and support for efforts to find Pearl Pinson, Margarita Brown, Aniah Russell, Olivia Betancourt and Larissa Oliver, all young women still missing in the Bay Area.
The #stopkillingourkids” movement started in August 2016 with a “Mother’s Cry” rally at Arroyo Park, where mothers and fathers were provided a forum to express their grief and be heard.
Oakland! This is the caravan of the summer, mobilizing the East Bay to the South Bay for #A19 #Millions4Prisoners march and rally. Come listen, learn, network, share, reach out, march, BUILD!!!
DRIVERS and RIDERS:
This will be a full day so SIGN UP EARLY!! Use the google form at the link to let us know your needs for transportation or comment on this event!!!
Schedule:
March with California Prison Focus & RISE UP FOR JUSTICE
9:00 am – Meet at West Oakland Station, depart 9:30am
11:00 am – Gather at Raymond Bernal Jr. Park
11:30 am – March to Santa Clara County Main Jail
12:30 pm – Rally at James P. McEntee Plaza (70 W. Hedding St.)
~2:00 pm – Drive back to Oakland
M4P A19 is about standing up with and for prisoners and fighting back against:
* Private entities exploiting labor
* Companies overcharging prisoners for goods and services
* Private entities contracted by states and federal government to build and operate prisons, including immigration detention centers
* Racial disparities in America’s prison population and sentencing
* Disproportionate and unaccountable killings by police in black and brown communities
* Felony disenfranchisement laws
* Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) setting detention quotas
* Producing the world’s largest prison population
* State-sponsored murder via the death penalty
* Unjust bail bond system
SOLIDARITY – – FOR A WORLD WITHOUT PRISONS
Aug19 SAN JOSE MILLIONS FOR PRISONERS MARCH https://t.co/Y9OG5mbQiC in solidarity w/March in DC #Abolishthe13th @CAprisonfocus #humanrights pic.twitter.com/fTyT0m7DQH
— CA Hunger Strike (@CAHungerStrike) August 14, 2017
People First! Healthcare, Emergency Preparedness, + Decriminalization
Please join Oakland Power Projects on Saturday as we build our community power to respond to healthcare needs and emergencies without police. We are reminded daily that we must build up our community resilience and preparedness. The racist violence in Charlottesville and the planned white supremacist actions in the Bay Area are yet another reminder to grow our community defense capacities. Saturday’s summit will feature self defense training, first responder and street medic skills, and de-escalation workshops. Join us and spread the word.
FREE and open to all community members.
Facebook event here. Please RSVP and share widely.
Coffee and Lunch provided. Childcare is available on request – please contact us at powerprojects@criticalresistance.org by Thursday August 17.
FULL SCHEDULE BELOW, and HERE.
Let’s send a clear message to the white supremacists rallying in Berkeley on August 27th!
Come help us make banners and signs to say No to Racism and No to Hate Speech in Berkeley. Bring markers and poster board if you can. We will have supplies as well.
RSVP: kaseybrenner@gmail.com
Banner Over I-80 with Our Messages to the World, Aug 19
Join Animals Against Extinction, the Sunflower Alliance art group, to get our messages out to tens of thousands of people driving on Route 80. Show them we have a vibrant progressive movement pushing hard for a just and sustainable world. Every time we banner we get lots of honks and waves.
We’ll have banners saying
RESIST PERSIST,
WTF! THERE IS NO PLANET B,
IMMIGRANTS R US,
NO BAN NO WALL and a new one,
SINGLE PAYER
Its lots of fun and a way to gauge public thinking in our bubble. We’ve done the math and figure we are seen by a MINIMUM of 40,000 people in an hour and a half.
Join us!
Please join us for a discussion on reforming Urban Shield with
distinguished panelists David Muhammad, Reggie Lyles, Tracy Rosenberg, and Elliot Hosman.
D a v i d M u h a m m a d i s a n a t i o n a l l e a d e r i n t h e f i e l d s o f c r i m i n a l
j u s t i c e , v i o l e n c e p r e v e n t i o n , a n d y o u t h d e v e l o p m e n t .
R e g g i e L y l e s i s a r e t i r e d p o l i c e e x e c u t i v e f r o m B e r k e l e y P D , w h o
h e l p e d r e f o r m B e r k e l e y p o l i c e d u r i n g t h e 7 0 s a n d 8 0 s .
T r a c y R o s e n b e r g i s a t h o u g h t l e a d e r a n d a p u b l i c p o l i c y a d v o c a t e
o n f r e e , a c c o u n t a b l e , a n d a c c e s s i b l e m e d i a s y s t e m s .
E l l i o t H o s m a n i s a B a y A r e a l a w y e r a n d a c t i v i s t .
Hosted by Berkeley Councilperson Ben Bartlett.
Please join us for a potluck lunch followed by our regular biweekly meeting of the Sunflower Alliance. Lots going on, lots to talk about — what’s happening, and what we’re doing to stop fossil fuels from doing any more damage. New people encouraged to join us! We need your participation and your voice.
This training introduces APTP first responders model for conducting independent investigations of police terror and providing support to impacted families. The training will cover:
-Preparation and building investigation team
-Conducting investigations
-Trauma focused interviewing
-Cultural sensitivity
-Providing family support
-Lessons learned from past investigations
-Know your rights
– Collecting video evidence – by Dia Kayyali of Witness.org
-Security considerations
This training is organized together with SURJ – Oakland/Bay Area as a fundraiser for Anti Police-Terror Project.
Nobody will be turned away for lack of funds.
ART & SOUL will be using Oscar Grant Plaza this weekend so we will meet at 19th & Telegraph.
The Community Democracy Project is your connection to direct democracy in Oakland! Convened out of Occupy Oakland in Fall 2011, we’re gathering steam on a campaign to bring the people back in touch with the city’s resources through participatory budgeting.
Picture this: Across Oakland, Neighborhood Assemblies are regularly
held in every community. People come together to tackle the important issues of their neighborhoods and of the city. At these assemblies, people don’t just have discussions–they learn from one another, from city staff, and they make fundamental decisions about how the city should run. They decide the city budget.
Democratic, community budgeting is a powerful step toward building strong communities, real democracy, and economic justice–and it’s being done all over the world.
The budget of the City Oakland totals more than $1 billion per year. Although part of the budget must be used for specific purposes, still over half of the budget–over $500 billion per year–consists of general purpose funds paid by the taxes, fees, and fines of the people of Oakland. The Mayor and the City Council decide the city budget, with minimal input from the community.
Working together, we will not only get a seat at the table–we will REBUILD the table itself. Participatory democracy is real democracy–join us to say: Local People, Local Resources, Local Power!
Kick-off meeting to create Slingshot issue #125.
* Brainstorm articles for next issue
* Orientation on how you can submit articles, art, photographs
* Help us discuss our audience and themes for the next issue
* Discuss fundraising and distribution
* Your chance to comment on Slingshot
Everyone is welcome.
Issue #125 is due out on October 6, 2017
Deadline for Issue #125 is September 23, 2017
Facebook event here. Please share widely!
Calling all teachers, educators and anyone else with those first day of school blues! Come pick up a drink for a rad cause. 15% of all bar proceeds go directly to support the work of Critical Resistance. @SUP! TV Street Food from 6pm onward. Starline kitchen open from 3-6pm on.
– Free screenings of CR’s new “Breaking Down the Prison Industrial Complex” video series & learn how to bring the video + curriculum into your classroom
– Free copies of The Abolitionist bilingual newspaper
– And many more resources for bringing abolition into your classroom!Not an educator or student? Just down for abolition? Come through to chill with some rad organizers, activists and other cool folks trying to dismantle the prison industrial complex!
Occupella organizes informal public singing at Bay Area occupation sites, marches and at BART stations. We sing to promote peace, justice, and an end to corporate domination, especially in support of the Occupy movement.
Music has the power to build spirit, foster a sense of unity, convey messages and emotions, spread information, and bring joy to participants and audience alike. See spirited clip of an action at BART. Check out the actions calendar and come add your voice. There are lots of ways to participate and everyone is welcome.
Moving ahead with the feasibility study
The next Oakland City Council meeting is set for Tuesday, September 18th. On the agenda is authorizing the feasibility study on establishing the Public Bank of Oakland. But authorization is only half the battle; it is contingent on finding an additional $25,000 from outside the city coffers to supplement the budgeted $75,000.
If you live outside Oakland, you can help establish PBO so it can bring beneficial banking to the whole bay area. Whether you live in Berkeley, San Leandro, Alameda, Newark or another town, let your local councilmembers know that you support PBO. Tell them to put money into funding this study.
Of course, you can also support PBO by donating or pledging financial support on our website.
How public banking can help address climate change
We’re excited to announce the next forum on public banking! Visiting from Berlin, Wolfram Morales of the Sparkassen public banks will discuss the role of public banking in financing renewable energy projects. Joining him on the panel will be Nicholas Chaset, CEO of the brand-new East Bay Community Energy agency, and renewable energy activists. Hosted by councilmembers Dan Kalb and Rebecca Kaplan, the forum is set for Monday, September 25th, from 7 to 9pm, at the Oakland City Hall.
FPBO at the Laurel street fair
Our outreach efforts got a major boost at last weekend’s Laurel street fair. We spoke with hundreds of fair-goers who hadn’t yet heard of public banking and collected 300+ signatures for our petition to the Oakland City Council.
Coming up in Oakland
We’ll continue to build public support for PBO at two more August events. On the 19th look for our table at the Latinx Cultural Festival at Peralta Hacienda Historical Park.
And on Saturday the 26th, we’ll be at the Freedom Farmers’ Market at 5316 Telegraph Avenue. This market’s mission is to bring traditional legacy foods from Black farmers and other socially disadvantaged farmers into Oakland. We hope to meet you there!
Information, discussion & community! Monday Night Forum!!
OccupyForum is an opportunity for open and respectful dialogue
on all sides of these critically important issues!
With unprecedented access, filmmakers Bob Hercules and Rita Coburn Whack trace Dr. Angelou’s journey, shedding light on the untold aspects of her life through never-before-seen footage, rare archival photographs and videos and her own words. From her upbringing in the Depression-era South and her early performing career, to her work with Malcolm X in Ghana and her many writing successes, including her inaugural poem for President Bill Clinton, Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise reveals hidden facets of her life during some of America’s most defining moments.
The film also features exclusive interviews with Dr. Angelou, her friends and family, including Bill Clinton, Oprah Winfrey, Common, Alfre Woodard, Cicely Tyson, Quincy Jones, Hillary Clinton, Louis Gossett, Jr., John Singleton, Diahann Carroll, Valerie Simpson, Random House editor Bob Loomis, and Dr. Angelou’s son, Guy Johnson.
This is a beautifully constructed documentary that gives a total picture of the amazing Maya Angelou. It goes back to her roots, which included being raped as a child, to her dancing and singing. It wasn’t long before she began to become the voice of humanity and blackness. It includes the cream of the black artists. There is a bit where they list a series of black performers who play before sold out audiences and then are not allowed to go out and mingle with the crowds. But Angelou faced off against authority and kept to her African roots (Viewer review).
Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise premiered to critical acclaim at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. It won the Audience Award at AFI Docs and was featured at notable film festivals worldwide, including Full Frame, Sheffield, IDFA and Seattle, winning 17 awards on three continents, and has been nominated for an NAACP Image Award.
Time will be allotted for discussion and announcements.