Activism

Public Ed Protectors ‘Unwelcome’ NewSchools Venture Fund

Published

5 years ago

May 17, 2019

Oakland Unified School District teachers, students, parents and supporters pose behind a giant mural they created that reads “Schools for Kids, Not for profits” on May 8 outside of Oakland’s Marriott at City Center. The mural was addressed to those attending NewSchools Venture Fund’s, a pro-charter organization backed by billionaires, invite only dinner. Photo by Zack Haber.

As the 2018-19 Oakland Unified School District’s (OUSD) academic year winds down in the wake of an historic teachers’ strike, Oakland educators, students, and their supporters are continuing to fight against school privatization and for increased public education funding.

“When we struck, we said this is just the beginning,” Oakland Education Association’s (OEA) first vice president Ishmael Armendariz said on May 8, speaking over passing traffic honking in support, to a crowd of over 100 people at a rally outside of Oakland Marriott City Center. OEA, the union representing about 3,000 teachers, nurses, and counselors.

“We are on our way to Sacramento because it’s us, as public school teachers, who need to lead the fight to defend public education,” he said, drumming up support for a May 22 rally, where OEA and its supporters plan to join other California educator unions to flood the capital with people calling for increased public education funding and legislation that limits the growth of charter schools.

The May 8 rally, called “Billionaires Can’t Teach Our Kids!” served as an unwelcoming party for those attending an invitation-only dinner organized by the NewSchools Venture Fund (NSVF), an Oakland -based organization funded through multi-million dollar donations from high-profile billionaires, including Mark Zuckerberg, Bill and Melinda Gates, and Sam and Helen Walton.

Speakers at the rally said NSVF and its supporters drive school privatization in Oakland, which harms public schools.

“They are essentially using the unlimited funding of the billionaire class to turn public education into a business,” said Redwood Heights Elementary School parent Erin Brightwell, speaking at the rally. “Their ultimate goal is to turn K-12 education into something you have to pay for.”

NSVF’S website claims that they invest “in both nonprofit and for-profit organizations that are working to improve public education in a variety of ways.”

NSVF has invested in several local charter schools including Lighthouse Community Charter, Aspire, and Alliance. They also have invested in Go Public Schools (GO), an organization that many public school advocates claim works to weaken public education while pushing a pro-charter agenda.

GO has financially backed school board members Jumoke Hinton Hodge, Gary Yee and James Harris with campaign funding, all of whom later voted to close Roots International Academy, a public middle school in East Oakland..

While the Roots campus is being taken over by another public school, Coliseum College Prep Academy (CCPA), in Oakland’s recent past public school closures have often meant that a charter school takes over the public school campus.

The former campus of Lakeview Elementary, which closed in 2012, now houses a charter school called American Indian Model School. Marshall Elementary School, which closed in 2013, now houses East Bay Innovation Academy.

OEA and its supporters are seeking and supporting candidates for the upcoming 2020 school board election who won’t vote to close public schools.

Speaking at the May 8 rally, Kaiser Elementary School parent Steve Young said there were good District 5 and District 3 candidates, but a total of four school board seats will still be up for grabs in 2020, meaning that there is a need for two more Oakland community members to run for office who support public schools and stand against charters.

“I will walk till my feet bleed to elect you and to see these corrupt buffoons cast to the winds of history,” said Young, addressing those considering running against current board members.

District 5 school board candidate Mike Hutchinson spoke at the rally, claiming the pro-charter movement can be stopped by a public that is ready to fight for its public schools.

“The only way we can counter money power is with people power,” he said.

“We are not done,” said second OEA Vice President Chaz Garcia. “There are a great number of us here, but there are going to be more of us in Sacramento [at the May 22 rally], and we are going to continue to let them know that we will not allow them to take our public schools.”

Zack Haber

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Activism

Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024

Published

5 days ago

April 19, 2024

Oakland Post

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Activism

Oakland Schools Honor Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties

Every Jan. 30, OUSD commemorates the legacy of Fred Korematsu, an Oakland native, a Castlemont High School graduate, and a national symbol of resistance, resilience, and justice. His defiant stand against racial injustice and his unwavering commitment to civil rights continue to inspire the local community and the nation. Tuesday was “Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution” in the state of California and a growing number of states across the country.

Published

6 days ago

April 19, 2024

Oakland Post

Fred Korematsu. Courtesy of OUSD.

By Post Staff

Every Jan. 30, OUSD commemorates the legacy of Fred Korematsu, an Oakland native, a Castlemont High School graduate, and a national symbol of resistance, resilience, and justice.

His defiant stand against racial injustice and his unwavering commitment to civil rights continue to inspire the local community and the nation. Tuesday was “Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution” in the state of California and a growing number of states across the country.
One OUSD school is named in his honor: Fred T. Korematsu Discovery Academy (KDA) elementary in East Oakland.

Several years ago, founding KDA Principal Charles Wilson, in a video interview with anti-hate organization “Not In Our Town,” said, “We chose the name Fred Korematsu because we really felt like the attributes that he showed in his work are things that the children need to learn … that common people can stand up and make differences in a large number of people’s lives.”

Fred Korematsu was born in Oakland on Jan. 30, 1919. His parents ran a floral nursery business, and his upbringing in Oakland shaped his worldview. His belief in the importance of standing up for your rights and the rights of others, regardless of race or background, was the foundation for his activism against racial prejudice and for the rights of Japanese Americans during World War II.

At the start of the war, Korematsu was turned away from enlisting in the National Guard and the Coast Guard because of his race. He trained as a welder, working at the docks in Oakland, but was fired after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941. Fear and prejudice led to federal Executive Order 9066, which forced more than 120,000 Japanese Americans out of their homes and neighborhoods and into remote internment camps.

The 23-year-old Korematsu resisted the order. He underwent cosmetic surgery and assumed a false identity, choosing freedom over unjust imprisonment. His later arrest and conviction sparked a legal battle that would challenge the foundation of civil liberties in America.

Korematsu’s fight culminated in the Supreme Court’s initial ruling against him in 1944. He spent years in a Utah internment camp with his family, followed by time living in Salt Lake City where he was dogged by racism.

In 1976, President Gerald Ford overturned Executive Order 9066. Seven years later, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco vacated Korematsu’s conviction. He said in court, “I would like to see the government admit that they were wrong and do something about it so this will never happen again to any American citizen of any race, creed, or color.”

Korematsu’s dedication and determination established him as a national icon of civil rights and social justice. He advocated for justice with Rosa Parks. In 1998, President Bill Clinton gave him the Presidential Medal of Freedom saying, “In the long history of our country’s constant search for justice, some names of ordinary citizens stand for millions of souls … To that distinguished list, today we add the name of Fred Korematsu.”

After Sept. 11, 2001, Korematsu spoke out against hatred and discrimination, saying what happened to Japanese Americans should not happen to people of Middle Eastern descent.
Korematsu’s roots in Oakland and his education in OUSD are a source of great pride for the city, according to the school district. His most famous quote, which is on the Korematsu elementary school mural, is as relevant now as ever, “If you have the feeling that something is wrong, don’t be afraid to speak up.”

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Activism

WOMEN IMPACTING THE CHURCH AND COMMUNITY

Published

7 days ago

April 17, 2024

Oakland Post

Juanita Matthews

Sister Juanita Matthews

55 Years with Oakland Public School District

The Teacher, Mother, Community Outreach Champion, And Child of God

Juanita Matthews, better known as “Sister Teacher,” is a walking Bible scholar. She moved to California from the great state of Arkansas in 1971. Sister Teacher has a passion for teaching. She has been a member of Bible Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church since 1971. She followed her passion for teaching, and in 1977 became the lead teacher for Adult Class #6. Her motto still today is “Once My Student, Always My Student”.

Beyond her remarkable love for the Lord, Sister Teacher has showcased her love for teaching by working for the Oakland Unified School District for 55 years, all but four of those years spent at Emerson Elementary and Child Development School. She truly cares about her students, making sure they have the tools/supplies needed to learn either at OUSD or Bible Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church.

She’s also had a “Clothes Closet Ministry” for 51 years, making sure her students have sufficient clothing for school. The Clothes Closet Ministry extends past her students, she has been clothing the community for over 50 years as well. She loves the Lord and is a servant on a mission. She is a loving mother to two beautiful children, Sandra and Andre. This is the impact this woman of God has on her church and the community.