Oakland May Day: March for Immigrant and Worker Rights

CALL TO ACTION
https://oaklandsinfronteras.wordpress.com/
Visit our website to add your organizations name to the list of endorsers or message us here.

We’ll be marching again on May 1st, 2018.

This year and every year we fight for migrant and worker justice!

~~JOIN ILWU LOCAL 10 as they gather at 12pm (noon) at the Oakland Matson Terminal (near the end of the Adeline viaduct)
~~ March to Oscar Grant Plaza and join Oakland Sin Fronteras rallies and march.

CO-ORGANIZORS
67 Sueños
Anakbayan – East Bay
Anti-Police Terror Project
California Immigrant Youth Justice Alliance
Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice
Community READY Corps
Critical Resitance
Design Action
Leumsae
Mujeres Unidas Y Activas
Showing up for Racial Justice
VietUnity – East Bay
Workers’ World Party
Xicano Moratorium Coalition

This week Occupy Forum is heading out to another location for several authors’ readings

Richard Walker, author of
Pictures of a Gone City: Tech and the Dark Side of Prosperity in the San Francisco Bay Area &
Phil Cohen, author of
Archive That Comrade! Left Legacies and the Counter Culture of Remembrance

Richard A. Walker is professor emeritus of geography at the University of California. He has written on a diverse range of topics in economic, urban, and environmental geography. He is coauthor of The Capitalist Imperative (1989) and The New Social Economy (1992) and has written extensively on California, including The Conquest of Bread (2004), The Country in the City (2007) and The Atlas of California (2013). Walker is currently director of the Living New Deal Project, whose purpose is to inventory all New Deal public works sites in the United States and recover the lost memory of government investment for the good of all.

Phil Cohen played a key role in the London counterculture scene of the 1960s. As “Dr. John” he was the public face of the London street commune movement and the occupation of 144 Piccadilly, an event that briefly hit the world’s headlines in July 1969. He subsequently became an urban ethnographer, and for the past forty years he has been involved with working-class communities in East London documenting the impact of structural and demographic change on their livelihoods, lifestyles, and life stories. Currently he is research director of LivingMaps, a network of activists, artists, and academics developing a creative and critical approach to social mapping. He is also professor emeritus at the University of East London and a research fellow of the Young Foundation.

Author Event: HABEAS DATA: Privacy vs. the Rise of Surveillance Tech

This week Occupy Forum is heading out to another location for several authors’ readings

The SF Tenants Union and the San Francisco Community Land Trust Present:
Amanda Huron, author of Carving Out the Commons: Tenant Organizing and Housing Cooperatives in Washington, D.C.

Provoked by mass evictions and the onset of gentrification in the 1970s, tenants in Washington, D.C., began forming cooperative organizations to collectively purchase and manage their apartment buildings. These tenants were creating a commons, taking a resource – housing – that had been used to extract profit from om them and reshaping it as a resource that was collectively owned by them.

In Carving Out the Commons, Amanda Huron theorizes the practice of urban “commoning” through a close investigation of the city’s limited-equity housing cooperatives. Drawing on feminist and anticapitalist perspectives, Huron asks whether a commons can work in a city where land and other resources are scarce and how strangers who may not share a past or future come together to create and maintain commonly held spaces in the midst of capitalism. Arguing against the romanticization of the commons, she instead positions the urban commons as a pragmatic practice. Through the practice of commoning, she contends, we can learn to build communities to challenge capitalism’s totalizing claims over life.

“Through interviews and historical research, Amanda Huron gives us an in-depth description of the formation of a housing cooperative in Washington, D.C. in the ’70s and develops a theoretical structure enabling us to generalize this experience to other cities.” –Silvia Federici, author of Caliban and the Witch: Women, the Body and Primitive Accumulation

“Amanda Huron illuminates new ways of thinking what social justice in the City can look like. Her writing is rigorous yet upholds the dignity of the people she studies and their attempts to stake out a right to their city. Carving Out the Commons will be a go-to both for academics and organizers in the coming years.” –James Tracy, author of Dispatches Against Displacement: Field Notes from San Francisco’s Housing Wars

Agenda:

4. 5:15pm: Surveillance Equipment Ordinance – discuss methodology and department outreach for survey of existing equipment.
5. 5:25pm: Streetline Status Report. Review and take possible action on report.
6. 5:30pm: Vehicle-mounted Automated License Plate Recognition (ALPR) for Parking Enforcement. Review and take possible action on use policy.
7. 6:10pm: Oakland Department of Transportation/Vendor use of UAV/Drones. Review and take possible action on use policy.

Barbara Lee and Elihu Harris Lecture Series presents Danny Glover

RSVP 510 434 3988

Co-presented by the Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Center
and the Peralta Community College District

We won! After years of committed actions and struggle, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors has voted to end Urban Shield as of 2019. This would not have been possible without all of you!

The ongoing solidarity efforts of this coalition and visions of community safety have been our greatest power through these years and will continue to be the power that ensures that Urban Shield truly sees its end! Now it’s time to celebrate together, to honor the resistance that has gotten us this far and cheer each other on for the future. All are invited to join the Stop Urban Shield coalition for a night of food, drinks and dancing.

*Food and drinks will be available for purchase from the regular Reems lunch/dinner menu.
*DJ and dancing on the patio
*Indoor seating and slideshow: “Stop Urban Shield Through the Years.”

Accessibility info:
*Patio and cafe are located directly off of the Fruitvale Bart and accessible via ramp.

Come join us for the upcoming Repair Cafe, a half-day community gathering  where some folks bring broken things, others bring know-how and tools, and yet others bring hospitality – and everyone brings goodwill and zeal for fixing. Though free, Repair Cafes aren’t free repair services. They’re participatory events – neighbors helping each other out, getting to know each other over coffee, baked treats, and repair projects, and squeezing more life out of the things they already have.

Volunteer fixers will be on hand who know how to repair all kinds of things – from lamps, clothing, and toys, to bikes, mechanical, furniture, electronics, and appliances … pretty much anything that can be brought through the door. The fix rate runs about 70%, so your item might not be fixed. It might even get worse!  But together you’ll give it a good try and learn a lot about fixing along the way.
You can register or just bring your broken things, puzzle over them with volunteer fixers, then work together to see if you can bring them back to life.

Interested in becoming a Volunteer Fixer or Host?  Great! Check the website to find out what it’s about and sign up.

Besides Fixing… We’ll have a cafe  coffee, tea and goodies, perhaps repair tutorials, perhaps conversation with folks deeply involved in repair and reuse … all’s in the works.

Co-Organized by The Culture of Repair Project and Transition Berkeley

Immigrant rights activists, community leaders and people who have been directly affected by the immigrant detention system will gather in front of the West County Detention Facility (WCDF) for a people’s tribunal to hold Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office accountable for their culture of secrecy and systemic abuse.

The tribunal is one of a series of coordinated people’s tribunals across the country as a part of the #ICEonTrial campaign. The campaign comes with a rise of retaliation by ICE against activists, as the agency is emboldened to be less transparent and unaccountable and to act with increased impunity under the Trump administration.

Justice comes from the people!
La justicia viene del pueblo!

Who: CIVIC (Community Initiatives for Visiting Immigrants in Confinement); Detention Watch Network; Pueblo Sin Fronteras; Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity; Let Our People Go

###

CIVIC (Community Initiatives for Visiting Immigrants in Confinement) is devoted to abolishing U.S. immigration detention, while ending the isolation of people currently suffering in this profit-driven system. We visit and monitor 43 facilities and run the largest national hotline for detained immigrants. Through these windows into the system, we gather data and stories to combat injustice at the individual level and push systemic change.
www.endisolation.org

Detention Watch Network (DWN) is a national coalition of organizations and individuals working to expose and challenge the injustices of the United States’ immigration detention and deportation system and advocate for profound change that promotes the rights and dignity of all persons. Founded in 1997 by immigrant rights groups, DWN brings together advocates to unify strategy and build partnerships on a local and national level to end immigration detention.
www.detentionwatchnetwork.org

Pueblo Sin Fronteras is a collective of friends who decided to be in permanent solidarity with displaced peoples. For more than fifteen years, members of Pueblo Sin Fronteras have been reaching out to the most vulnerable immigrants in the United States and to migrants and refugees on the move. We accompany migrants and refugees in their journey of hope, and together, we demand our human rights. We provide humanitarian aid to migrants and refugees on the move. Our dream is to build solidarity bridges among peoples and turndown border walls imposed by greed.
www.pueblosinfronteras.org

The Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity works to achieve an equitable, inclusive and healthy society, culture, and economy where the most vulnerable, disenfranchised and marginalized have equal opportunities and access to the resources and tools needed to achieve a dignified quality of life.
www.im4humanintegrity.org

Kehilla Community Synagogue’s Immigration Committee holds a monthly multi-faith, one-hour protest on site called Let Our People Go, on the second Sunday of every month. Let Our People Go is a youth-and-elder-friendly, accessible action that opposes the detentions/deportations and mass incarceration with activist debriefs, music, art, stories and representation from different faith communities (including faithful and faithless humanists).
www.kehillasynagogue.org/immigration-committee

Summon Alameda County Sheriff Gregory Ahern to Appear at a People’s Tribunal

On Saturday, May 5, 2018 immigrant rights activists, community leaders and people who have been directly affected by the immigrant detention system will gather in front of the West County Detention Facility (WCDF) for a people’s tribunal to hold Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Alameda and Contra Costa Sheriff’s Office accountable for their culture of secrecy and systemic abuse.

The tribunal is one of a series of coordinated people’s tribunals across the country as a part of the #ICEonTrial campaign. The campaign comes with a rise of retaliation by ICE against activists, as the agency is emboldened to be less transparent, unaccountable and act with increased impunity under the Trump administration.

Justice comes from the people!
La justicia viene del pueblo!

Who: CIVIC (Community Initiatives for Visiting Immigrants in Confinement) and Detention Watch Network

The SF Living Wage Coalition invites you to our spring art and literature gala.  A celebration of cross-border unity and taking back the TRUE meaning of the holiday. MUSIC/ART/FOOD.

We will celebrate the two hundredth birthday of Karl Marx (b. March 5, 1818) with discussion led by three volunteers who will share their views on the contemporary significance of Marx: Antonio Trossero, an Argentinian labor leader and political exile living in the Bay Area; Eugene Ruyle, Emeritus Professor of Anthropology, Cal State Long Beach; and Raj Sahai, our ICSS member from India, and longtime Bay Area resident.

Sun, May 6, 2018: 1-2 pm
Planning Session
We get together after the morning session on the first Sunday of every month to discuss things in general and plan the schedule for our Sunday Morning at the Marxist Library forums. This is an open meeting. Everyone is welcome to help plan our future sessions. Please come with suggestions and concrete plans. Newcomers and Old Timers welcome

Wealth & Income Inequality: A Two-Part Workshop by Strike Debt Bay Area

Everywhere we look, everything from the headlines to our paychecks to the tents under the freeway remind us that rich people are getting richer and poor people are getting poorer. But it can be hard to understand exactly how and why that is happening. If we can’t understand it, we can’t change it. And change it we must!

After a look at the causes of runaway inequality in Part 1, we’ll talk about some fairer ways to provide economic security for all in Part 2. What do alternatives to corporate capitalism look like?

Part 1: How Corporations Move Money from the Many to the Few
Sunday, April 29, 11:00am to 12:45pm

Do you wonder what role racism plays in wealth inequality? Do you wish you understood exactly how Wall Street exploits Main Street? The answers are not terribly complicated, but they are shocking. We’ll learn about stock manipulation, financialization, strip-mining, redlining and more.

Part 2: How We Can Build a More Just Economy for All
Sunday, May 6, 11:00am to 12:45pm

Using our shared understanding of the problem, we will examine past and existing movements for change: what they are, how they work, and how they can grow. We’ll talk about better ways to make sure all have access to the basic necessities. Then we’ll discuss how we can keep the wealth we create in our communities instead of paying it into the bank accounts of global elites. In sum, what might a fair, sustainable, and joyful economic system look like?

We’d love you to RSVP to strike.debt.bay.area@gmail.com so we know how many people to expect.
This workshop is free.
We’d love you to come to both parts if you can.

Wealth & Income Inequality: A Two-Part Workshop by Strike Debt Bay Area

Everywhere we look, everything from the headlines to our paychecks to the tents under the freeway remind us that rich people are getting richer and poor people are getting poorer. But it can be hard to understand exactly how and why that is happening. If we can’t understand it, we can’t change it. And change it we must!

After a look at the causes of runaway inequality in Part 1, we’ll talk about some fairer ways to provide economic security for all in Part 2. What do alternatives to corporate capitalism look like?

Part 1: How Corporations Move Money from the Many to the Few
Sunday, April 29, 11:00am to 12:45pm

Do you wonder what role racism plays in wealth inequality? Do you wish you understood exactly how Wall Street exploits Main Street? The answers are not terribly complicated, but they are shocking. We’ll learn about stock manipulation, financialization, strip-mining, redlining and more.

Part 2: How We Can Build a More Just Economy for All
Sunday, May 6, 11:00am to 12:45pm

Using our shared understanding of the problem, we will examine past and existing movements for change: what they are, how they work, and how they can grow. We’ll talk about better ways to make sure all have access to the basic necessities. Then we’ll discuss how we can keep the wealth we create in our communities instead of paying it into the bank accounts of global elites. In sum, what might a fair, sustainable, and joyful economic system look like?

We’d love you to RSVP to strike.debt.bay.area@gmail.com so we know how many people to expect.
This workshop is free.
We’d love you to come to both parts if you can.

Mobilization to Submit Reports to the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

It comes as no surprise that the Trump administration seems to have failed to submit its report to the U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) by the deadline November 20, 2017. The Meiklejohn Civil Liberties Institute (MCLI) continues to reach out to the community to ensure that all forms of racism by the federal, state, and local governments in the U.S. are included in a shadow report to be submitted by MCLI and allies working in communities experiencing racism at the hands of the government.

With the election of Donald Trump racism in the U.S. has been amplified. The struggle of the Water Protectors at Standing Rock, the “Muslim Ban”, the repeal of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), the police violence against and mass incarceration of African Americans, harassment and criminalization of immigrant communities, and exploitation of immigrant labor are just some of the forms of racism that the MCLI would like to address in the upcoming report.

MCLI is holding this event to explain the process of holding the U.S. accountable for racism, to include the lived experiences of community members who have experienced racism at the hands of the government as well as social justice organizations working in communities of color, and to seek assistance compiling the report.

MCLI wants our shadow report to be as expansive and comprehensive as possible. The only way we can do this is with community input and assistance. Please come to this event to find out how your experiences can be included and how you can help MCLI compile this report.

There will be a presentation by organizers working with MCLI followed by a Q and A.

The People’s Community Medics teach basic emergency first aid skills free of charge “BECAUSE NO ONE SHOULD DIE WAITING FOR AN AMBULANCE.”

Currently, Sharena Diamond Thomas is the only first aid trainer at the People’s Community Medics and she has asked us, The Community Democracy Project (Oakland)* to help her find other folks in Oakland willing to help her do this incredibly important and life-saving work. We’re honored to help her out and invite YOU to come join us.

Feel free to bring food (and booze! because we’re also celebrating Shawn and Tia‘s birthdays!)

*The Community Democracy Project is an all-volunteer campaign working to turn the power structure right side up by putting the people of Oakland in charge of the city budget.

Come and hear co-authors, Mumia Abu-Jamal (who will call in during the event) and Stephen Vittoria, plus readers Pam Africa, Tyson Amir, Cat Brooks, Ayanna Davis, Aya de Leon, Emory Douglas, Derethia DuVal, Anita Johnson, devorah major, and others, recite passages from Dreaming of Empire.

This is the first in Mumia Abu-Jamal’s most ambitious work to date, a trilogy written as he struggles for life.
5-20 donation at the door, no one turned away for lack of funds

Socialist solidarity rally TONIGHT!
6pm, Bancroft and Telegraph
Wear green if you have it!

We are joining @norcalsocialism, @LaVozLITci, and @AFSCMELocal3299 pic.twitter.com/OtP9gG0cDW

— East Bay DSA (@DSAEastBay) May 7, 2018