Activism

Schaaf Cuts Police Service But Blames Councilmembers Bas and Kaplan

At a recent town hall meeting in Chinatown to discuss an alarming increase in crime against Asian American elders, Schaaf attempted to blame Council President Nikki Fortunato Bas and Vice Mayor Rebecca Kaplan for making the cuts that in fact came from her administration.

Published

3 years ago

February 18, 2021

Kiki

Libby Schaaf

Rebecca Kaplan

Nikki Fortunato Bas

Mayor Libby Schaaf set off a fire storm in December when she and her administration unilaterally made $29 million in cuts to the city’s budget, including reductions in fire department services and public safety services without discussing the cuts publicly with the City Council or impacted communities.

The Chinatown community was particularly upset about the elimination of a Chinese-speaking foot patrol that served the Chinatown area.

According to many community activists, those cuts put the community at risk, and those cuts, made by the mayor and her administration, include the cuts that Chinatown leaders had called their press conference about.

Among the administration’s cuts: closing fire stations, cutting the ceasefire program, which deals with gun violence, and cutting walking beat officers and community policing resources, including s the Chinatown Walking Beat Officers.

These cuts were announced in an Informational Memorandum, dated Dec. 20, 2020, from the Director of Finance to the City Administrator, making Schaaf’s position clear. ”The fiscal crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic requires immediate and impactful service cuts….Most of these cost-cutting measures will take effect immediately,” according to the memo.

The December memo justified making these cuts without a transparent public process.

“The Charter provides the City Council with the sole authority to appropriate funds; and the Charter provides the responsibility of the City Administrator to ‘control and administer the financial affairs of the city,’ which staff interprets to mean that the administration has the power to “reduce expenditures of appropriated funds to align with declining actual revenues” without consulting the City Council or the public.

Schaaf compounded the damage and inflamed passions by using the press conference to blame Bas and Kaplan for making the cuts that her administration made. According to community leaders who responded in anger, Schaaf had come into Chinatown and publicly attacked and demeaned the local Chinatown elected representative, and falsely claimed that the cuts to the Chinatown walking officers were the fault of Councilmembers Kaplan and Bas.

The mayor also stoked racial fears and community division, according to many community leaders.

In an interview with the Oakland Post, Bas, who had attended the Chinatown press conference, said, “ I was really shocked that she (the mayor) would take this press conference as a political platform to attack me and Rebecca (Kaplan) and spreading misinformation.”

“It is extremely important for the public to know that the Mayor and City Administrator are able to make decisions behind closed doors without public input,” Bas said. “If this had come from the council,” it wouldn’t have passed, she said.

Agreeing with Bas, Kaplan, in a Tweet, criticized the mayor for making decisions in secret. “When councilmembers want to cut items from the budget, there must be a public meeting where input is taken before a public decision. That should be required for mayors’ cuts too. These cuts wouldn’t have passed if they had come publicly.”

In the fallout from the Chinatown press conference, Schaaf has been asked to apologize for fomenting racial divisions between Black and Asian communities.

The issue recently went national in a February 11 Newsweek article: “Oakland Mayor Blames Crime Wave Against Asians on Defunded Police; Black and Asian Activists Disagree.”

The magazine article quoted Bas as saying in a Tweet, “Across the nation, some electeds are seeding division among racial groups. I continue to be angered by what Mayor Schaaf did—taking a space for healing & safety (the Chinatown press conference) & using it to politically attack me.”

The article also quoted District 3 Councilmember Carroll Fife, who defended her colleagues.

“I’m saying this publicly because the disrespect was done publicly,” said Fife addressing the mayor. “You owe her, as well as Oakland’s Asian and Black communities an apology.”

“What we feel is important and what I felt in that moment was triggered by the image of a white woman using dog whistle tactics to create a fracture between the Asian community and the Black community,” Fife said.

To see the Newsweek article go to www.newsweek.com/black-asian-communities-fed-being pitted-against-each-other-city-officials-1568410

Kiki

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Calif. Anti-Sex Trafficking Advocates Discuss Competing Bills, Strategies

Advocates from across California are challenging state officials and community leaders to support legislation that provides resources and services for survivors and victims of human trafficking, as well as assistance as they transition back into civil society.  Some of those advocates are also calling for more effective state policy to curtail trafficking, a crime that has an outsized impact on Black children, particularly girls.

Published

21 hours ago

May 3, 2024

Oakland Post

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By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

Some of those advocates are also calling for more effective state policy to curtail trafficking, a crime that has an outsized impact on Black children, particularly girls.

According to the FBI, a report covering a two-year period found Black children accounted for 57% of all juvenile arrests for prostitution. In addition, 40% of sex trafficking victims were Black and 60% of those victims had been enrolled in the foster care system.

“It is time to hold the perpetrators who take advantage of our children accountable,” said the Rev. Shane Harris, a San Diego-based activist, former foster youth and founder of the Peoples Association of Justice Advocates, (PAJA), a national civil rights organization and policy think tank.

“It is time to send a thorough message that if you seek to buy a child for sex, you will pay the highest criminal penalties in this state,” added Harris who was speaking at a rally at the State Capitol earlier this month. Harris was speaking in support of Senate Bill 1414, authored by Sen. Shannon Grove (D-Bakersfield), which calls for people who buy sex from minors to be punished with a felony. The punishment includes a two-year prison sentence and a $25,000 fine.

Harris said the PAJA is the only civil rights organization in the state that supports SB 1414.

Harris urged other Black-led groups who favor anti-trafficking legislation more focused on criminal justice reforms (as opposed to stiffer penalties), to “join the movement.”

Many of those civil rights groups fear that SB 1414 could lead to the incarceration of more Black youth.

Those sentiments were echoed in a panel discussion organized by Black women advocates on April 26 to examine the cause and effects of human trafficking in California’s Black communities. The virtual event was hosted by the Forgotten Children, Inc, a faith-based nonprofit that advocates for survivors and victims of human trafficking through anti-trafficking campaigns and initiatives.

Panelists shared the psychological impact of sexual exploitation on youth and children in the long term.

Author and educator Dr. Stephany Powell shared statistics and information revealing that African American women and girls are the most trafficked nationwide.

Powell, who serves as the senior advisor on law enforcement and policy at the National Center on Sexual Exploitation said that national data indicates that sex trade survivors are disproportionately women of color. She stated that male survivors often go unnoticed because boys rarely report trafficked crimes.

Powell said that decriminalizing prostitution in California could increase human trafficking. She argued that Senate Bill 357, authored by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), which was signed into law in 2022 and legalized loitering for prostitution, caused a surge in street-level prostitution.

Panelist and psychologist Dr. Gloria Morrow shared opposing views on decriminalizing prostitution. She said that decriminalizing prostitution could help survivors gain access to state resources and support.

Despite opposing views, Powell and Morrow agree that the Black community needs resources and educational programs to address human trafficking.

Oakland Post

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Obituary: Social Justice Leader, the Rev. Cecil Williams, Passes at 94

On April 22, community leader and social justice advocate Reverend Cecil Williams died at his home in San Francisco surrounded by his loved ones, according to his family. He was 94 years old.

Published

22 hours ago

May 3, 2024

Oakland Post

The Rev. Cecil Williams, civil rights activist and social justice leader was the head pastor of San Francisco’s non-denominational GLIDE Memorial United Methodist Church.

By California Black Media

On April 22, community leader and social justice advocate Reverend Cecil Williams died at his home in San Francisco surrounded by his loved ones, according to his family.

He was 94 years old.

The reverend was a civil rights leader who advocated for the equal rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people in the Bay Area.

Williams was the head pastor of the non-denominational GLIDE Memorial United Methodist Church. The church welcomed individuals from the queer community and people struggling with homelessness, housing instability and substance use disorder (SUD).

Through his work, Rev. Williams attracted national attention. Prominent political and cultural leaders such as Maya Angelou, Bono, Oprah Winfrey, and Bill Clinton all attended church services at Glide.

Congressmember Barbara Lee (D-CA-12) said she is deeply saddened about the passing of her dear friend.

“The Reverend changed the lives of millions through radical love, support, inclusivity, and a commitment to service to the most marginalized,” Lee said.

Gov. Gavin Newsom said that the reverend inspired people across California to embody the values of generosity and acceptance.

Rev. Williams was, “a visionary leader whose legendary compassion and love for his community transformed the lives of people from all walks of life,” Newsom said.

Rev. Williams served as the chief executive officer of the Glide Foundation until his retirement in 2023.