By Jesse Brooks National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day is a time to share knowledge and shed light on the often-overlooked impact of the disease on women and families in our communities. The official commemoration was March 10, but events happen all month. Often buried within the data on the general AIDS population or [...]
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The Africana and African American Studies and Friends of the Library group at Contra Costa College presented a book signing this week with Rufus Battle, author of “One Man’s Battle: An African American Journey.” The book, a tale of struggle and redemption, tells his story of living in a “sharecropper’s shack near a Louisiana cotton [...]
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Contra Costa College and Community Engagement Initiatives (CEI) are presenting a “State of Emergency” conference Saturday, April 6 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. to “discuss challenges and issues facing under-performing children, their families and communities.” The conference, which will be held at Contra Costa College at 2600 Mission Bell Drive in San Pablo, is [...]
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By Shaveela Raniga Award winning director Damon Jamal and executive producer Haqq Shabazz of InYoFaceFilm are coming out with “White Boy Faded,” a light hearted comical music video on getting faded by up and coming artist Danny A. The video features an appearance by hip-hop’s Droop-E, the son of the Ambassador of the Bay, E-40. [...]
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By Lee Hubbard The Ernest Ingold Boys and Girls Club at 1950 Page St. in San Francisco is holding its annual crab feast, Saturday, March 30 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Proceeds will support the San Francisco Rebels basketball program, which has been in existence for the past 21 years. The program operates boys’ [...]
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By Danielle Savage About 80,000 American prisoners spend 23 hours a day in closed isolation units for 10, 20 or even more than 30 years. Now, there is growing evidence that such isolation causes mental breakdown, and the Federal Bureau of Prisons has decided for the first time to review its policies on solitary confinement. [...]
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By Kia Croom Richmond resident Myrtle Braxton’s life gives meaning to the word “service.” She is known and loved throughout the city and West Contra Costa County for her selfless volunteerism, generosity and goodwill. On an ordinary day, Braxton can be found at one of many board or committee meetings, networking at a community event [...]
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By BAPAC Staff Jael Myrick knows a difficult job lies ahead. But if the recently appointed city councilman ever had a doubt about the size of his community support, Thursday night’s welcome reception at Salute e Vita Ristorante likely erased it. “We have a lot of work to do,” Myrick told a packed reception room. [...]
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Dr. David Satcher, former U.S. Surgeon General and former CDC director, and Dr. J. Michael McGinnis, a top health official who served under four U.S. presidential administrations, are receiving the 17th annual Public Health Heroes Award this week from the University of California, Berkeley School of Public Health. The awards were presented Thursday, March 14 [...]
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“The Albino,” a painting by Keli Walker, is now on display at Joyce Gordon Gallery, 406 14th St. in downtown Oakland. “This is one of the best exhibits we have had,” said gallery owner Joyce Gordon, The artwork will be on display until April 28. Photo by Babatunde Harrison.
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By Randie Ellington On Tuesday Jan. 12, 2010, a little over three years ago, at 4:53 p.m., a catastrophic 7.0 magnitude earthquake hit Haiti, 16 miles from its capital city of Port Au Prince. In less than 45 seconds, more than 200,000 people were killed. One of the survivors, Séphora Pierre-Louis, found herself mourning for [...]
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“There are not enough Griots to tell the stories of the brave men, women and children who lived through the pain and stench of the dungeon castle. This castle holds millions of intangible horror stories. And, annually, thousands of descendants of the millions gone, return to pass through this dungeon to imagine and relive the [...]
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By Post Staff Police Chief Howard Jordan spoke last Sunday at Evergreen Missionary Baptist Church, seeking community support for his efforts to curb the high crime rate in Oakland. Speaking to the congregation, the chief emphasized that he is committed to “reducing crime and providing a safer Oakland through ways and means that increase trust [...]
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“Are You Positioned for Success?” – The second in a free series of workshops of the 2013 Model Built on Faith Capacity Building Series VI - will be presented Thursday, March 21 at the First Unitarian Church, 685 14th St. from 9 a.m. to noon. The workshop will look at answers to the questions: Is [...]
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Pope Francis Becomes the first pontiff from the Americas By Sylvia Hui and Raphael Satter, Associated Press World leaders sent in their congratulations, and Catholics around the world were celebrating Wednesday after the Vatican announced the election of Argentine Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio to the papacy — making him the first pontiff from the Americas. As [...]
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By Jesse Douglas Allen-Taylor Oakland City Councilmember Larry Reid blasted Oakland developer Phil Tagami’s and Oakland city staff’s handling of the removal of small business tenants from the old Oakland Army Base this week, telling members of the Council’s Community and Economic Development Committee that Oakland was operating a “double standard” between the small businesses [...]
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By David Scott The Bay Area Gospel trio Inspired Catholic Voices – Leona Powers, Luana Striplin, and Leila Bellow – recently won the Best Female Group of the Year Award and Best CD Project of the Year for their album, “Praise Him Forever” at the Texas Gospel Music Excellence Awards in Houston, Texas. The singers [...]
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Hannigan on the returned $600,000 jobs fund said, “I was the chair at the time . It happened on my watch. It’s a problem that is not going to be repeated.” By Ken A. Epstein Some representatives of nonprofits agencies and community leaders are calling for a sweeping discussion and overhaul of the way [...]
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Dr. Wole Soyinka, Nobel Laureate for Literature, visited his relatives Alice Arthur, Dr. Folarinde Christiana Harrison and a Babatunde Harrison on a trip to the Bay Area.
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Egungun Festival of Nigeria’s Yoruba Ancestors The Egungun is a secret society among the Yoruba people of Ibadan, Oyo, and Modakeke, Gbongan Osun State, Nigeria. The major Egungun festival takes place in June, when members of the society come to the market place and perform masked dances. The masks represent ancestral spirits. It is considered [...]
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By Barbara Bauer Charles L. Burns Jr., who worked as an administrator for Four Seasons Arts and other symphonies, died Feb. 24 in San Francisco. He was 76. Burns was born on Aug. 8 1936 to Beamen White Burns and Charles L. Burns, Sr. in Grand Ridge, Florida. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree [...]
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By Ashley Chambers Men of Iron (MOI) is an organization that seeks to provide a positive influence for young boys in Oakland, Seeing the lives of young Black men taken away by countless homicides and incarceration, six deputy sheriffs started the program in 2007 in response to the lack of positive male role models in [...]
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By Post Staff As millions of Venezuelans mourn the death of 58-year-old President Hugo Chavez, a number of local residents remember the controversial leader’s efforts on behalf of the poor in his country and the U.S. Under Chavez, the CITGO – Venezuela Heating Oil Program has provided low-cost heating oil to 1.7 million people in [...]
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By Ashley Chambers Students across the nation can boost their math and science scores from the comfort of their computer screens by tuning in to live stream sessions conducted by Rev. Robert Lacy Jr. of St. Andrew Private School in Oakland. As a teacher of math and science for the past 15 years, Lacy says [...]
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Gigi Crowder has received the Mental Health Association of Alameda County’s Distinguished Achievement Award for her work as ethnic services manager in the county’s Behavioral Health program. Crowder received the award for her “commitment to cultural diversity in mental health” and “the outstanding work she does to honor the consumer and family voice regarding the [...]
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History, says Wanda Ravernell of Omnira Institute, is not a subject you study. It is something you live with. Day in and day out, we live with the choices made in the past, choices that continue to affect us. “It is important to know that history,” said Ravernell, “because it frames the choices we [...]
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The Senior Travel Troupe will discuss upcoming excursions for adults 50+ Monday, April 1, 10 a.m. to noon at the Senior Community Center, 13909 East 14th St. in San Leandro. Learn the affordable, exciting and fun way to travel. Preregistration is required to attend this free meeting. Priority registration for all trips will be given [...]
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Bancroft Middle School sixth grader Isaac Silva won a brand new 24-inch mountain bike this week as part San Leandro’s Safe Routes to School Program. The bicycle was presented Monday by Vice-Mayor Michael Gregory, along with San Leandro School Board Trustee Diana Prola and Safe Moves Coordinator Lisa Jackson. Bancroft Middle School students took to [...]
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By Ashley Chambers A few hours or more spent viewing the Kinsey Collection will put you in touch with the legacy of Black history in its original powerful form. Examine the iron shackles used for female slaves, the bill of sale of William Johnson sold for $550 in 1832, or look at the insightful drawings [...]
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Berkeley High School’s jazz bands kick off their spring season with two shows at Yoshi’s Oakland on Tuesday, March 26. Both shows will feature the Berkeley High Jazz Ensemble, the program’s flagship big band. The show will also feature one of the program’s smaller combos, made up of students poised to become tomorrow’s jazz stars. [...]
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In commemoration of Harriet Tubman and Women’s History Month, the national nonprofit GirlTrek is challenging Black women and girls to join the “We Are Harriet” challenge on Sunday, March 10. Event organizers are asking women to commit to walk 30 minutes a day, five days a week for eight weeks to pay homage to Harriet [...]
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Vice President Joe Biden marched Sunday, March 3 with Congressman John Lewis and other Black civil rights leaders in Selma, Alabama to commemorate the “Bloody Sunday” beating of voting rights marchers 48 years ago. State police assaulted the original marchers in 1965 over the protest urging Congress to pass the 1965 Voting Rights Act that [...]
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The Senate’s version of the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 was approved by the House on Thursday, Feb. 28 but not until Democratic members of Congress spoke out against the plan proposed by the House, which excluded women of Native American ancestry and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender people. “I pray that this body [...]
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Thomas C. Frazier, former police commissioner from Baltimore and deputy police chief of San Jose, has been appointed by a federal court judge to oversee long-stalled reforms in the Oakland Police Department. Frazier will have unprecedented powers to fire or demote the police chief and commanders and spend money without city approval. He will report [...]
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Senator Huff visited Post/El Mundo offices to discuss issues affecting minorities State Senate Republican Leader Bob Huff this week visited the Oakland Post Newspaper to open a dialogue regarding educational opportunities for all Californians. Huff is backing an education reform package that he says is designed to promote equal and quality access to public education [...]
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By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor The beginning stages of Oakland’s redevelopment of its portion of the old Army Base grew a little more confused last week when city officials filed an unlawful detainer legal action in Superior Court against Pacific Coast Container (PCC) Logistics to make sure the company is off the base property in time [...]
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By Ken A. Epstein Is the city retaliating against Pivotal Point Youth Services, which provides job training to low-income youth in West Oakland, after the Oakland Post reported on the city’s failure to provide timely payments to the agency? The Post reported complaints made by Pivotal Points at public meetings of the Oakland Workforce Investment [...]
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Cape Coast Castle dungeons where slaves were housed before the middle passage journey to America By Babatunde Harrison Part I—My mother “The Ancestress” If it were not for the British Navy, my father told me, our family would have ended up on an American slave plantation. My great grandfather, Labia Harrison, was kidnapped in Nigeria [...]
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Raised in Oakland, Dr. E.N. Crawford accepted Christ at the age of 13. He acknowledged his call to the Gospel ministry in 1973, making him the youngest preacher in the California State Baptist Convention. Crawford took on an active role as part of the ministerial staff at the Union Baptist Church, where he became involved [...]
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By Jesse Brooks Acclaimed photographer and HIV advocate Duane Cramer is partnering with Project Runway star Mondo Guerra on the national HIV education campaign “I Design,” which encourages people with HIV to become personally involved in their treatment. “I Design” kicked off the second year of its initiative on National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, Feb. [...]
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By Jesse Jackson The Supreme Court this week heard a challenge to the Voting Rights Act in the case of Shelby v. Holder. On the same day, across the street in the congressional rotunda, a statue honoring Rosa Parks was unveiled. And one week later, the nation will celebrate the 48th anniversary of Bloody Sunday, [...]
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Jazz Search West 2013, a Bay Area’s Jazz talent search for adults and teens 15 and up, is holding four competitions at Jazz venues in San Francisco and Oakland during the month of March. Contestants will perform at the venue of their choice in front of a panel of judges chosen from Bay Area Jazz [...]
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In celebration of Black History Month, Supervisor Keith Carson and community leaders held the African American Organizations Making Connections 2013 conference, “Strategies and Outcomes for Our Black Community,” Feb. 23 at Laney College in Oakland. More than 500 people attended. “The Black community faces many challenges, including high unemployment, Black-on-Black violence and poor health outcomes,” [...]
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Problem gambling crosses the lines of culture, race and economic status—impacting more than a million people in California. The 2013 Problem Gambling Training Summit, hosted by the California Office of Problem Gambling (OPG) on March 4-5 in San Diego, will focus on prevention and treatment approaches tailored for the state’s diverse populations. “There is not [...]
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By Tanya Dennis Acting Executive Director Deborah Ale-Flint has become the first African-American woman to serve at the helm of the Port of Oakland, the fifth busiest container port in the country. She had previously worked since 2010 as aviation director at the Oakland International Airport, another first for an African-American woman. A resident of [...]
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Charles Darden, 66, a music conductor and pianist who worked with the Dance Theater of Harlem and performed frequently in Europe, died Feb.20 at his home in Dublin, California. Born in Galveston, Texas on Aug. 28, 1946 to Linnie L. Darden, Sr. and Victoria Darden, he attended local schools in Galveston and and Berkeley. After [...]
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James Noel, local artist and former local resident, will be exhibiting his work at the Hannah Gallery in Marin City. The opening reception will be on March 9 from 5 p.m. to 7 pm. The exhibit will continue through April 30. Special guests at the opening will include best selling author and jazz critic Paul [...]
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The San Leandro Public Library is hosting a talk with San Leandro City Attorney Jayne Williams in celebration of Women’s History Month. Williams was recently selected by the legal periodical The Recorder for its 2012 “Women Leaders in Law” list. She heads the law firm Meyers Nave’s Crisis Management Practice. Her prominence in the law [...]
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The San Leandro Public Library is offering a visit to the Museum of the African Diaspora (MoAD) in the heart of the Yerba Buena Cultural District in San Francisco on Saturday, March 9. A guided tour of the museum will include MoAD’s new temporary exhibit of The Kinsey Collection: Shared Treasures of Bernard and Shirley [...]
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