Activism

Many Openings on Boards and Commissions as Sheng Thao Takes Office

Promoting community participation, James Vann, a longtime Oakland advocate for tenants’ rights and for humane homelessness policies, said he hopes to see people stepping up to work with Thao’s administration. “There are many openings on boards and commissions, and there will be opportunities for people to help make positive changes in Oakland,” said Vann.

Published

1 year ago

January 3, 2023

Oakland Post

Mayor-Elect Sheng Thao. Photo courtesy of Sheng Thao.

By Ken Epstein

As Mayor-elect Sheng Thao prepares to take office, many Oaklanders are looking forward to the possibility of creating a new era in which the city administration creates policy more transparently and inclusively than it did for the past eight years under Libby Schaaf’s leadership.

One important step may be for Oakland residents with ideas and energy to become actively involved in developing policy by joining one of the city’s many voluntary appointed boards and commissions.

James Vann. Photo courtesy of James Vann.

“There are many openings on boards and commissions, and there will be opportunities for people to help make positive changes in Oakland,” said Vann.

LaNiece Jones. Photo courtesy of LaNiece Jones.

Added LaNiece Jones of Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA):

“Now, we have a great opportunity to help encourage and increase civic participation for community change among our BWOPA members and the Black community at large with our new administration via the numerous boards and commission opportunities available. Let’s go!”

“It’s a chance for our people who have not had an opportunity to be part of decision making to be at the table,” she said.

At present, some of the nearly 40 boards and commissions are almost dormant, and others have a narrow range of members mostly allied with the outgoing mayor’s pro-corporate development agenda. The list includes:

City Planning Commission (2 vacancies)
Commission on Homelessness (7 vacancies)
Oakland Youth Commission (2 vacancies)
Cultural Affairs Commission (5 vacancies)
Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission (1 vacancy)
Police Commission (2 vacancies)
Oakland Workforce Development Board (3 vacancies)
Public Safety and Service Violence Prevention (2 vacancies)
Cannabis Regulatory Commission (5 vacancies)
Oakland Housing Authority (4 vacancies)
Budget Advisory Commission (8 vacancies)

For a list of boards and commissions, an explanation of what they do and an application, go to www.oaklandca.gov/boards-commissions

For a list of current vacancies on these bodies, go to: https://oakland.granicus.com/boards/w/8552f8c4c0e15460/boards/6672

Vann told the Oakland Post that at the last City Council meeting, Mayor Schaaf had submitted some appointments to the boards and commissions, but the council did not approve them.

“The Council held them back because the incoming mayor should have the opportunity to fill the vacancies. That was a good decision,” he said.

Pamela Drake. Photo courtesy of Pamela Drake.

Pamela Drake, who is a member of the Wellstone Democratic Club and is active in the Democratic Party said, “We have a lot of commissions and boards, but under Libby, anyone who had influence was part of an inside clique. She left us in a state of dysfunction.”

“To me, it’s most important that people are involved in local government,” she said. “They need to be involved in making decisions. At the level of commissions, they can actually make policy.”

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Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

Published

17 hours ago

April 26, 2024

Oakland Post

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Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024

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

Published

1 week ago

April 19, 2024

Oakland Post

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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

1 week 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.”