Calendar
DSA, the Democratic Socialists of America, has seen a massive influx of new members in the few weeks since the election.
Here in the East Bay and across the country thousands of people have committed to building a left alternative that demands material improvements in our lives.
DSA is dedicated to fighting for single-payer healthcare, tuition-free college, a living wage for all workers, and an end to white supremacy.
We are coming together to oppose the emboldened right wing, protect our targeted brothers and sisters, and build a future that puts people above profit.
Join us on Saturday, December 10th to learn how DSA East Bay is organizing locally. Meet new members, plug into opportunities for action, and enjoy a potluck among friends. Former mayor of Berkeley (and Bernie Sanders surrogate) Gus Newport will speak.
This event is open to new members, old members, friends, family, and anyone who is interested in DSA.
DSA is open to a wide spectrum of beliefs (at least on the left) and you certainly do not need to identify as socialist to attend or participate.
We need people to volunteer to bring food, beverages and utensils, and setup/breakdown the meeting space! To sign up, please follow this link: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1UD8wvboYTEAZKvZaRxGIZrhDVAZpRRYb2PQf54e9sVw/edit#gid=0
Here’s the agenda:
1. Info about DSA. What has happened over the last month and where we’re going
2. Speech by Gus Newport (former Mayor of Berkeley)
3. Breakout sessions for members and non-members
Break
5. Campaigns info
6. Committee info sessions
7. Food/celebration
Note: The building has a security door. There will be someone at the door between 9:45 and 10:15. If you arrive later than that text (510) 776-9291 and someone will come let you in.
*** If you’re not yet a member of DSA, but want to be, you can join here: https://dsausa.nationbuilder.com/join
2016 Vendors
Akratic Behavior || http://akraticbehavior.tumblr.com
Art Activist Nia || http://artactivistnia.com
Asswipe || http://asswipemagazine.storenvy.com
Awkward Ladies Club || http://awkwardladiesclub.com/
Bagger sampler 4 || http://bagger43.com
Bay Area Trans Writers Workshop || http://www.facebook.com/groups/batww/
Bibliophiliac Zines || http://bibliophiliac.bigcartel.com
Breenache || http://breenache.tumblr.com/
Bubblesort Zines || http://bubblesort.io/
Cake and Comix || http://www.cakeandcomix.tumblr.com
Chicken Milkshake Zines || http://chickenmilkshakezines.tumblr.com
Coin-Op || http://coinopbooks.com
comics by Nomi Kane and Kat Efird || http://www.brewforbreakfast.com
Cool Dog || http://miquelacomics.tumblr.com
Courtenberry Comics || http://courtenberrycomics.tumblr.com/
Damian Le || http://calamityhorror.tumblr.com
David Polka || http://davidpolka.com
Deth P. Sun || http://www.dethpsun.com
DisCantBeLife Press (DCBL Press) || https://mkt.com/store/DCBL
E. Sjule Comics || http://www.erikasjule.com
Elise Bernal || http://elisebee.etsy.com
FLOSS Editions || http://flosseditions.bigcartel.com
Fox and Redwood || https://www.etsy.com/shop/FoxandRedwood
Gimme Action || http://www.gimmeaction.com
gracie ct ||
Hunter Savoy Jaffe || http://huntersavoyjaffe.com/a>
irrelevant press || http://irrelevantpress.com
ivy atoms || http://ivyatoms.com
Jamie Oliveira || “http://www.jamie-oliveira.com
Jool’s Comix || http://Jooliefiveash.tumblr.com
Lauren Lim || http://www.lauren-lim.com
Lawrence Lindell Studios || https://facebook.com/lawrencelindellstudios
Lazer Zine || http://alexsodari.com
Lemon Drop Press/COME FIND OUT || http://www.etsy.com/shop/lemondroppresss
Lisa Sy || http://pluralsandnoun.tumblr.com
Lucretia Samuel || http://lucretiarhyssamuel.bigcartel.com/
Maximum Rocknroll || http://www.maximumrocknroll.com
ME(め) || https://mehome.wordpress.com/
MFA in Comics, California College of The Arts || http://comics.cca.edu/
Milvia Street || Minnie Phan || http://minniephan.com
Mixed Race Queer Feminist || http://mrqfzine.tumblr.com/
Mixed Rice Zines || http://www.jesswuohlson.com
MochaMixZines || http://maryaerrinjones.com
Nicole Goux || http://nicolegoux.com
Oatmeal Magazine || http://www.oatmealmagazine.com
Paradox Creations || http://etsy.com/shop/ParadoxNowCreations
Queer Anxiety Babiez Distro || http://queeranxietybabiezdistro.tumblr.com
Re/SEARCH || http://www.researchpubs.com/
Rock Paper Scissors Collective || http://rpscollective.org
Ryan King || http://www.ryankingwrites.com
Sabrina Barekzai || http://sabrinabarekzai.com
Scumburbia || http://www.samgrinberg.com
Silver Sprocket || http://www.silversprocket.net/
Snack Bar Collective || http://thesnackbarcollective.tumblr.com
STIMULUS || http://stimuluscomic.com
The Grand Newsstand || http://www.thegrandnewsstand.com/
The Stay At Home Girlfriend || http://www.missmuffcake.com
Thick Thigh Collective || https://www.facebook.com/ThickThighCollective
THREE, SADHANA and 100 YEARS FROM NOW OUR BONES WILL BE DIFFERENT || http://anandvedawala.com
Two Photon Art || http://www.twophotonart.com
Unity Press || http://www.jeffreycheung.com
Zines Rasquache || http://www.etsy.com/shop/ZinesRasquache
Volunteer and help build the fightback movement against Trump!
Join us for a mass organizing meeting to build for the Jan. 20 protest on the day of Trump’s inauguration.
You can also join an outreach session Tuesdays between 5:30 and 7:30pm or contact us and let us know when you are available. No experience is necessary! We need help making phone calls, putting up posters, handing out flyers, painting banners and making signs.
Come by any time to pick up flyers and posters or to help out. Only an organized people’s movement can push back the Trump program of racism, sexism and war! Join us!
Read the Jan. 20 Call to Action. http://www.answercoalition.org/j20_sf
- Join the Oakland Justice Coalition for our final meeting of 2016.
- Topics include:
- National and Local Elections
- What’s Next for OJC?
- MLK Week Actions
- 2018 Elections
- Hope to see you there! Bring a friend.
Oakland General Strike Organizing Assembly – #J20 and Beyond
https://www.facebook.com/
***We are a part of the APTP Spokescouncil for the 120 Hours of Direct Action that has been endorsed by the Alameda Labor Council*** https://www.facebook.com/
Please Invite all of your friends (After going to the invite window clicking on past events will enable you to invite all friends from that event.) , share with groups, text blast, and email friends to outreach for the organizing. Feel free to copy and paste the details of this event.
We will gather to discuss organizing a General Strike in Oakland (Ohlone Land) on #J20 and or during the Trump presidency. We will have a general discussion about what that would look like then break out into several committees to organize media, outreach, logistics, etc.
The conversation will center working class black and brown voices but everyone is welcome to speak and share their thoughts and skills!
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. (In prior years we have agreed to meet at 4:00 PM during summer hours, that is, once Daylight Savings Time goes back into effect).
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
- Welcome & Introductions
- Reports from Committees, Caucuses, & Independent Organizations
- Announcements
- (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 first 100 people to arrive will get a free pocket Constitution!
You’re invited to the 2016 Bill of Rights Day when we celebrate the goals we’ve achieved together and look ahead to even greater challenges.
We know that you may be concerned about the presidential election results. Many of the proposed policies are unlawful and unconstitutional. The ACLU is swinging into high gear, ready for whatever awaits us.
Since our founding, we’ve worked together to defend the constitutional rights and freedoms of all Californians. Rest assured we’ll continue to do so. We’ve got your back!
Join us in Oakland on December 11 to celebrate the Bill of Rights and continue the fight together. With supporters like you, failure is not an option.
Tickets will NOT be sold at the door.
Abdi Soltani
Executive Director
ACLU of Northern California
ACLU. Because freedom can’t protect itself.
American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California
39 Drumm Street, San Francisco, CA 94111
On the 60th anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution:
Humanism vs. fascism, opposing capitalism then and now
Hailed by Martin Luther King, Jr., Hungarian revolutionaries in 1956 not only created a new form of direct democracy in Workers’ Councils but raised Marx’s humanism as freedom from Communism. “The goal of human development, the form of human society,” which Marx had warned is not communism, took center stage against the single-party-state.
Today various forms of humanism, from Black Lives Matter to Prisoners’ Human Rights Movement, also project humanism as an answer to global capitalism. Can Marx’s humanism help our age in is search for a way to unite the idea of freedom with a new post-capitalist reality? (see “Spontaneity of action and organization of thought. In memoriam: Hungarian Revolution”, Nov-Dec N&L at newsandletters.org)
Sponsored by Bay Area News and Letters Committees
We document current events, make films together, steward an editing suite and share a film equipment library. We also host film screenings, often with local directors, and put on an annual short film festival for independent Bay Area filmmakers. Our goal is to make the digital filmmaking accessible – no overpriced college degree or certificate program required!
We are also a good group to reach out to if you’d like to screen a film at the Omni. We can be reached at [ liberatedlens@lists.riseup.net ].
We usually meet in the basement, unless otherwise noted.
Information, discussion & community! Monday Night Forum!!
Occupy Forum is an opportunity for open and respectful dialogue
on all sides of these critically important issues!
Alan Haber, SDS:
The Port Huron Statement, Occupy, and a Blueprint for Action
In the 50 years since its initial publication, Tom Hayden has attracted the bulk of media attention surrounding the Port Huron Statement. He wrote much of the original text and served as its high-profile articulator and leader of its execution. But it’s the lesser-known Robert Alan (Al) Haber who is credited as the “big brain,” the “visionary,” and the “indispensable element” of the student movement.
As the founder of SDS, Haber was elected its first president in 1960. He spent the first few years building the organizational and intellectual foundation that would support Henry David Thoreau’s call of “voting with your whole body.” In the SDS, Haber had established an educational association that, in his words, was “concerned with building a responsible and articulate left in universities and to extending the influence of this community into the political life of society more generally.” After one of the organization’s first meetings he wrote, “Pessimism and cynicism have given way to direct action.”
Haber, Hayden, and a handful of SDS members organized a conference to discuss Hayden’s working treatise. In the course of five days, more than 60 student activists from New York to California hunkered down at Port Huron’s FDR Camp to hash out, then publish the consensus document that would change the course of American social and political history.
Join us at OccupyForum to hear from Al Haber, and discuss the implications and applications of the Port Huron Statement, and Occupy, for today’s precarious times.
Q&A and Announcements will follow. Donations to OccupyForum to cover our costs are encouraged; no one turned away!
http://www.sds-1960s.org/PortHuronStatement-draft.htm
http://michigantoday.umich.edu/a8402/
https://www.jacobinmag.com/2016/10/tom-hayden-sds-port-huron-counterculture-protest-vietnam/
This workshop for APTP comrades supports the resilience and wellbeing of front line change-makers, justice seekers, organizers, and activists.
Together we will explore:
• How to keep alive and vital that place within us where the motivation to work for social change arises
• How to not only “keep on keeping on,” but to keep on in a way that is transformative for us as individuals, for the organization, the movement, and the community
• How to stay connected to the larger vision and purpose that inspires, uplifts, and sustains each of us to be our best and most whole selves in every area of our lives
• How to process and clear trauma
The workshop will be held in Shelton Hall of the Oakland Peace Center (OPC).
This is the building of the First Christian Church of Oakland (the big white church at the corner of Fairmount Ave and 29th St.) You will need to enter through the glass office door via the parking lot (enter parking lot from Fairmount Ave). Please arrive early if possible. After 7pm the door will be locked and you can text the number posted to be let in.
OTU’s Mission
The Oakland Tenants Union is an organization of housing activists dedicated to protecting tenant rights and interests. OTU does this by working directly with tenants in their struggle with landlords, impacting legislation and public policy about housing, community education, and working with other organizations committed to furthering renters’ rights. The Oakland Tenants Union is open to anyone who shares our core values and who believes that tenants themselves have the primary responsibility to work on their own behalf.
Monthly Meetings
The Oakland Tenants Union meets regularly at 7:00 pm on the second Monday evening of each month. Our monthly meetings are held in the Community Room of the Madison Park Apartments, 100 – 9th Street (at Oak Street, across from the Lake Merritt BART Station). To enter, gently knock on the window of the room to the right of the main entrance to the building. At the meetings, first we focus on general issues affecting renters city-wide and then second we offer advice to renters regarding their individual concerns.
If you have an issue, a question, or need advice about a tenant/landlord issue, please call us at (510) 704-5276. Leave a message with your name and phone number and someone will get back to you.
This month we had a conflict so the meeting will be held on the second Monday, December 12th at 7 PM at the Niebyl-Proctor Library.
The Oscar Grant Committee Against Police Brutality & State Repression (OGC) is a grassroots democratic organization that was formed as a conscious united front for justice against police brutality. The OGC is involved in the struggle for police accountability and is committed to stopping police brutality.
Note: At our November meeting we changed our meeting date from the first Tuesday of the month to the first Monday, starting January 2nd.
“Faulty Towers: Where do we go from here in contingent academic labor organizing?”
By Jessica Lawless, who is a former adjunct professor and current organizer for SEIU 1021’s Northern California Faculty Forward Campaign.
This is part of the Oakland Livable Wage Assembly meeting. The talk will be preceded by introductions and a short business meeting. This will be OLWA’s last meeting for 2016.
This year, Oakland’s Anti Police-Terror Project is calling on our Bay Area community to up the resistance level, as we reclaim the radical legacy of Martin Luther King and resist the fascist Trump agenda. This year the Reclaiming King’s Radical Legacy March on Monday (1/16) will launch 120 hours of direct action, culminating on #HellNawGuration Day (1/20). This year we are focused on immigrant rights, protection of our Muslim brothers and sisters, womens reproductive rights, loving our LGBTQ sisters, brothers and siblings, and the defense of Black life.
As is our custom, we will host a Spokescouncil meeting to plan and coordinate actions in the SF Bay Area. PLEASE SAVE THE FOLLOWING DATES in your calendar.
> Tuesday Dec 6th, 6:30pm orientation and kickoff meeting, GPW 955 7th Street.
> Tuesday Dec 13th, 6:30pm orientation, 7pm meeting, OMNI Commons
> Tuesday Dec 20th, 6:30pm orientation, 7pm meeting, OMNI Commons
> Tuesday Dec 27th, 6:30pm orientation, 7pm meeting, OMNI Commons
> More dates TBA
* If it”s your first meeting, please make sure to show up early to attend the orientation!
What is a spokescouncil?
A spokescouncil is a collective framework for direct action mobilizations, where large masses of people organize themselves into smaller teams called “affinity groups”. Affinity groups plan their actions independently with the intention of advancing the larger goal of the spokescouncil. Affinity groups are represented by at least one person (“a spoke”) at the meetings, where they are able to share resources and coordinate their actions with other groups.
Why a spokescouncil?
We propose the spokescouncil as a solution to many of the shortcomings of unstructured mass assemblies. We intend to provide a highly structured organizing space with clear tactical and messaging guidelines, that empowers participants to organize independently and in parallel. We intend to inspire a multitude of diverse actions and awaken the massive potential we have as a community engaging in direct action.
** for questions or more information about the spokescouncil please contact aptpspokescouncil@gmail.co
Casino San Pablo makes millions. Its workers are struggling to get out of poverty. This holiday season, stand with them!
Casino San Pablo made $263 million* in FY 2014-15. But its workers make as little as $11 per hour – less than the minimum wage in nearby towns like Richmond, El Cerrito and Oakland. And the Casino’s proposed raise for its lowest-paid workers in 2017 is just 22 cents per hour!
State labor laws don’t apply at the Casino, so workers are denied many of the basic rights that other California workers take for granted – from California workers’ compensation benefits to a smoke-free workplace. And the Casino’s contract only provides for 3 months of medical leave – so workers can be fired if they need more time to recover from surgery or childbirth.
Workers are standing up to demand the Casino do better. Join them!
In Solidarity, UNITE HERE Local 2850
*gross gaming revenue 2014-15
UNITE HERE Local 2850, 1440 Broadway, Suite 208, Oakland, CA 94612 | www.unitehere2850.org
Due to an overwhelming level of interest, we had to move this month’s meeting to a larger venue. Despite our best efforts to accommodate all who showed interest, the largest site we could secure is the Oakland Peace Center.
We are sorry to have to limit attendance, but we have to adhere to the building’s fire safety rules. Note that we will be holding our next intro meeting on January 11 and would love to see you then, as well!
At this meeting gathering, we will create an altar in honor of Will Sims, the beloved young, Black man and gifted musician who was a killed in El Sobrante on November 12. Please bring items to offer on the altar we will build for him and his community. In so doing, we strengthen our commitment to fighting white supremacy right here in the Bay Area.
Please note: There is very limited parking near the venue. Please allow time to find parking or plan to take the bus, bike, walk, or carpool. 19th Street BART is the closest station and is a 20 minute, .8 mile walk. Bus lines 51A and 11 stop within a block.
Thank you so much for your interest in SURJ Bay and look forward to working for racial justice with each and everyone of you. Additionally, you’ll hear about upcoming workshops and trainings as well as reports from SURJ’s committees – Basebuilding, Communications, Fundraising, Mobilization, Youth & Families, and the Queen & Trans Working Group. We’ll answer your questions, and share how you can get involved in local racial justice efforts.
PLEASE RSVP HERE: http://
Space is limited so we are asking folks to please let us know they’re coming.
Showing up for Racial Justice (SURJ) Bay Area is a local chapter of a national network of groups and individuals organizing white people for racial justice. There are over 150 chapters and affiliates nationwide. Through community organizing, mobilizing, and education, SURJ moves white people to act as part of a multi-racial majority for justice with passion and accountability.
Accessibility:
The space is wheelchair accessible through the glass door off of the parking lot on Farimount Avenue, and there are several accessible parking spaces in the lot next to the door. The bathrooms have a flat entryway but are not wheelchair accessible. There is one gender-neutral restroom, and the other two restrooms will also be gender neutral during the event. The space uses some scented cleaning products. We ask that you do your best to arrive at the event scent/fragrance free to keep the space as low-scent as possible to support people with chemical and scent sensitivities – please see https://
We’ll be continuing the coordination of immediate responses toward making Oakland DIY spaces safer, in the short and long-term.
The goal of this meeting will be to tighten coordination efforts and check-in on developments from various working groups since the last meeting, as well as getting new volunteers up to speed and involved.
Everyone is welcome to attend the meeting; as volunteers, as members of DIY spaces, or simply as people wanting to know what is going on and how to help.
* We do ask that all press remain outside the event, and respect the privacy of this process.
Please collaborate on the agenda here: https://pad.riseup.net/p/
Add comments or questions to the agenda in the chat window in the the right-hand corner.
The notes from the previous meeting can be found here:
https://omnicommons.org/