City Government
Renter Protection Going to Oakland Voters in November
In an historic win for tenants’ rights advocates and Oakland’s most vulnerable residents, the Oakland City Council voted unanimously Wednesday morning after seven hours to place the strongest renter protection initiative that the city has ever seen onto the November ballot.
The vote comes several months after housing organizations, labor groups and interfaith leaders launched a campaign to strengthen Oakland’s 35-year rent law to help tackle the city’s unprecedented displacement crisis.
“We’re just so happy for Oakland to see that we could pass this with unanimous support from the council,” said Camilo Zamora of Causa Justa: Just Cause, which is a member of the Protect Oakland Renters Coalition.
“Hopefully, this will show people out there who are losing hope in Oakland that there is momentum, and a movement growing for them in the region,” Zamora said.
Now, the coalition will shift to campaign mode to encourage Oaklanders to registered to vote and go to the polls in November.
“We know that landlord and realtor organizations, on a state and national level, are going to put a lot of money into an anti-renter protection campaign to beat this,” said James Vann of the Post Salon Community Assembly.
“We need to be ready to fight for renters’ rights because tenants are the majority of residents and this is a fight for the soul of Oakland,” Vann said.
Wednesday’s vote is a first-time victory for Oakland tenants and housing advocates who have fought for improved renter protections for nearly every election cycle since 1983.
Not since 2002 has a renter protection initiative made it onto the ballot and just a couple of months ago it appeared that the council would not send renter protection to the voters this year.
“Just a month ago we only had three solid votes” in support from council members, while five were needed to place the initiative on the ballot, according to Zamora.
“They didn’t want a ballot measure in the beginning,” he said. “It just shows how the council was moved by community pressure to ultimately vote unanimously on this vital issue.”
The renter protection initiative, put forward by the renters’ coalition and introduced to the council by Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan, would make several changes to the current rent law if it is approved by voters in November.
These include requiring landlords to petition through the Rent Board if they wish to increase rents above the annual consumer price index, extending Just Cause eviction protections to buildings built up to Dec. 31, 1995, and increasing transparency and accountability of the Rent Board by broadening its powers to include more tenant representation.
On Tuesday evening, several hundred community members packed City Hall to speak to Kaplan’s renter protection proposal, the majority speaking in favor.
“Oakland is no longer a diverse city like it once was,” said Dorothy King, owner of Everett and Jones BBQ.
“I’m a landlord, but I got compassion for people,” she said. “They can’t afford to live here anymore and we need to put up some protection for people renting in Oakland.”
Dozens of small property owners spoke out against the ballot measure, arguing that by increasing protections to tenants, the city will be exacerbating Oakland’s displacement crisis since owners will be forced to sell their buildings to wealthier developers, thus hiking up rents.
But for many small property landlords, the opposite seems true.
“I want this city to be as diverse as possible in terms of class and race,” said Stephanie Schaudel, a landlord and public school teacher in Oakland.
“We’re currently seeing a bleeding of people throughout the Bay due to a lack of renter protection. We need the most aggressive and protective measure on the ballot,” Schaudel said.
The majority of speakers Tuesday night were tenants who have either experienced displacement or are in the midst of it now.
“I remember to this day in the fourth grade as my mother packed our belongings into a suitcase and we made our way to a homeless shelter,” said Sinorti Iris Stegman, an Oakland native who is now pursuing a bachelor’s degree at Carnegie Mellon University.
“I made a commitment to return to Oakland and serve my community,” Stegman said. “Will I be able to afford to come back to my home and by the time I graduate, will there be a Black community to serve?”
Another renter protection proposal put forward by Councilmembers Dan Kalb, Abel Guillén, Annie Campbell Washington and Council President Lynette McElhaney was also passed this week with seven votes in favor and one abstention from Councilmember Desley Brooks.
Some of this proposal’s changes would not go into effect until as late as 2018 but would be superseded by Kaplan’s ballot measure if it passes in November.
Activism
Lend A Hand Foundation Celebrates 25th Anniversary
Lend A Hand Foundation Celebrates 25th Anniversary at the Scottish Rite Center in Oakland. On stage: KTVU Fox 2 Broadcasters Roberta Gonzales and Dave ClarkDance-A-Vision Founder, Carla Service, Vice Mayor Kimberly Mayfield-Lynch, California State Assemblymember Mia Bonta and Lend A Hand Foundation Executive Director Dee Johnson with the Dance-A-Vision Dancers. Photo By Carla Thomas
By Carla Thomas
The Lend A Hand Foundation (LAHF) celebrated the 25th anniversary of the organization’s Stay In School Program on May 9 at the Scottish Rite Center in Oakland.
Themed “Together We Can Empower Our Youth to Stay in School,” the event featured a pre-event reception featuring Oakland’s Kev Choice Ensemble.
The ensemble featured Oakland School for the Arts student, Ayo Brame, a 16-year-old, up-and-coming tenor saxophone jazz musician. The master and mistress of ceremonies were local broadcasters Dave Clark and Roberta Gonzales of KTVU Fox 2. Clark’s wife, Lucretia also supported the program.
A special appearance featured Dwayne Wiggins of Tony! Toni! Toné! on guitar, performing the group’s hit song “Anniversary” as guests dined on salmon, chicken, beef and vegetarian entrees prepared by the Food Network “Chopped” Champion, Chef Rashad Armstead of Oakland. California State Assemblymember Mia Bonta (D-Oakland) provided the keynote address and the Carla Service Dance-A-Vision youth dancers energetically performed a hip hop routine throughout the audience in white leotards as attendees clapped along. An auction led by Auctioneer Franco Finn assisted in raising funds for the organization with prizes that included a luxury resort vacation and other items.
LAHF presented District 5 Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson and District 4 Alameda County Supervisor Nate Miley with Lifetime Supporter Awards. LAHF presented the Trailblazer Award to Guy Richardson of Ernst and Young; Dante Green of Kaiser Permanente; Antioch Attorney Gordon Greenwood of the Kazan McClain Partner’s Foundation; and Sarah Yoell of PG&E.
Oakland Unified School District Superintendent, Dr. Kyla Trammel Johnson acknowledged LAHF’s impact.
“Each year, LAHF gives backpacks and school supplies to thousands of students across Oakland,” said Johnson. “In 2022 the effort topped 25,000 students. No matter the need, big or small, involving lots of students or just one, Lend A Hand is always there ready to make a difference in the lives of our young people.”
Founder and executive director of LAHF Dee Johnson took the stage as the DJ played the Sledge Sisters’ “We Are Family.”
Guests gave Johnson a standing ovation as she thanked supporters and presented many of them with gifts.
“It’s heartbreaking to know some children don’t have clothes or supplies for school,” said Johnson. “The babies really need our support and when we deliver supplies to them, it makes them really happy.”
Since the LAHF Annual Stay in School Program began in 1999, it has provided over 150,000 educational school supply kits to students throughout Alameda County, including Oakland, Berkeley, Emeryville, and San Leandro, among other cities.
“This past August, we provided for over 12,000 students with supplies, with the help and support of our very generous donors,” said Johnson. “This year, we aim to do all we can to match that amount or provide even more.”
For more information visit: www.LendaHandFoundation.org
Alameda County
Alameda DA Pamela Price is Ready to ‘Protect the Win’ in Upcoming Recall Election
Alameda District Attorney Pamela Price and her “Protect the Win” campaign held a press conference Wednesday morning to discuss the consolidation of the recall election with the November general election and her steps moving forward. “We are here today to appreciate that the Board of Supervisors yesterday did the right thing and decided not to invest $20 million of our hard-earned tax dollars for a failed effort to overturn the November 2022 election,” Price said.
By Magaly Muñoz
Alameda District Attorney Pamela Price and her “Protect the Win” campaign held a press conference Wednesday morning to discuss the consolidation of the recall election with the November general election and her steps moving forward.
“We are here today to appreciate that the Board of Supervisors yesterday did the right thing and decided not to invest $20 million of our hard-earned tax dollars for a failed effort to overturn the November 2022 election,” Price said.
The Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday evening to consolidate the recall election so as to not put themselves in an even larger deficit than they are soon headed into. The board reported that they are almost $68 million in deficit for the county budget, but now with the consolidation, the election will only cost taxpayers about $4 million.
Proponents of the recall had continuously asked the Board to schedule a special election in August, regardless if it would cost upwards of $20 million to fund.
At her press conference, Price emphasized that she is the first non-appointed district attorney in decades and the first Black woman elected for the position.
She characterized the recall efforts against her to be a “platinum roots movement” bankrolled by a handful of super-rich real estate investors and tech executives.
The recall group Save Alameda For Everyone (SAFE) raised over $3 million for their campaign against Price, spending a large amount of their funds on paying signature gatherers to collect names to put the election on the ballot. This has created a point of contention with many who are opposing the recall efforts.
Although her campaign has not been able to raise nearly as much money, she assures the community that their efforts are best used for “defending the democracy” and serving the residents of Alameda County.
Price challenged the big donors behind the recall efforts, stating that if they have thousands of dollars to spend on overturning an election, then they can better use their funds to invest in the community, such as donating to Oakland Unified School District, Highland Hospital, homeless and housing services and anti-trafficking efforts.
A few key donors mentioned were Philip Dreyfuss, who donated $600,000; Isaac Abid donated $225,000; Kenneth Lin donated $100,000; and John Wayland donated $135,000.
The DA said she will continue to do her job including advocating for victims, prosecuting people who have committed crimes in the community, combatting retail theft efforts, implementing new technology to protect youth, amongst many other priorities.
The recall proponents have long accused Price of being “soft on crime” and that crime rates have gone up since she’s been in office, but according to Oakland Police data, crime is down 33% since 2023.
When asked about the drop in crime rates on Tuesday, SAFE leaders said they do not follow OPD data because they claim it is not accurate. They only listen to what they hear from the community.
Price refuted the accusations stating that her office does not track or count the type of data that the opposition claims to be following. She says that the recall supporters are spreading misinformation and the data they are referencing only “exists in the figment of their imagination.”
In an annual report that the DA Office released last week, it revealed that Price is prosecuting cases at a similar rate to her predecessor. Former DA Nancy O’Malley was prosecuting anywhere from 60% to 66% of cases in 2019 to 2022, while Price prosecuted 62% of cases in 2023.
Price stated that being district attorney is her priority and this recall election would not stop her from doing her job. She trusts the efforts of the Protect the Win campaign to ensure that the message of keeping her in office is heard loud and clear.
“We believe in democracy, the people of this county have the right to elect a district attorney. They did that. We should not have to do it again, but we will do it again,” Price said.
Bay Area
California Makes Strides in Fight Against Fentanyl
California National Guard’s Counterdrug Task Force has seized over 7,000 pounds of fentanyl including 3.4 million pills since the state launched a multi-agency operation in January 2024. Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the state’s progress on May 7, National Fentanyl Awareness Day. The Governor said he deployed the state’s highway patrol and National Guard personnel last year as part of a public safety operation in partnership with local government officials and law enforcement.
By California Black Media
California National Guard’s Counterdrug Task Force has seized over 7,000 pounds of fentanyl including 3.4 million pills since the state launched a multi-agency operation in January 2024.
Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the state’s progress on May 7, National Fentanyl Awareness Day.
The Governor said he deployed the state’s highway patrol and National Guard personnel last year as part of a public safety operation in partnership with local government officials and law enforcement.
“As we recognize the serious dangers of illegal fentanyl, California is continuing to tackle this issue head-on. Our efforts are getting this poison off our streets and out of our communities as we continue to support people struggling with substance use.” Newsom said.
CalGuard Major General Matthew Beevers said that the state’s unprecedented investment in the Counterdrug Task Force has immobilized operations and revenue channels of transnational criminal organizations.
“The CalGuard is committed to supporting our state, federal, local and tribal law enforcement partners to eliminate the scourge of fentanyl,” Beevers said.
In the past five years, California has invested $1.1 billion in operations and initiatives to fight crime, support local law enforcement, and improve public safety. The Newsom administration has implemented a comprehensive approach as part of the governor’s Master Plan to tackle the fentanyl and opioid crisis.
The Newsom administration has expanded efforts to improve public safety across the state where operations occurred in cities such as San Francisco, Oakland, and Bakersfield.
San Francisco Mayor London Breed acknowledged that joint operation was a step in the right direction toward curbing illegal activity and improving public safety.
“Our coordinated work to shut down drug markets in San Francisco is making a difference, but we have more work to do,” Breed said.
“Together we are sending a message at all levels of government that anyone selling fentanyl in this city will be arrested and prosecuted,” she said.
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