Activism

Bay Area Activists Protest SF ICE for All of August

Published

5 years ago

August 17, 2019

Dozens of bay area groups and organizations as well as large crowds of unaffiliated people are protesting outside of ICE’s San Francisco federal building everyday around noon for the rest of August. The protests are part of the Month of Momentum to Close the Camps, a month-long event

that’s working to build collaborative resistance and rebellion against both the existence of concentration camps for immigrants and government policy that criminalizes immigration.

“Immigrants are fleeing danger and persecution and they’re being imprisoned here” said Lisa Geduldig, who ‘s part of the ad hoc group

of East Bay women who are organizing the action. While the group is encouraging people to attend any day they can, they’ve organized each day to support different professions and/or identities. The schedule lists days dedicated to lawyers, adoptees, health workers, journalists, poets and many others.

“I think people have been needing a forum,” said Gedul

dig. ‘They’ve been excited that they have their own day to show up with others in their profession or social group.

Aug. 19th’s Monday protest at noon, titled Queers Melt ICE!, will be dedicated to queer people. Queers Undermining Israeli Terrorism (QUIT), Gay Shame, and Lagai—Queer Insurrection are all helping to organize it. The groups have agreed to three points of unity: closing all the concentration camps, ending all deportations, and abolishing ICE.

“Solidarity knows no borders and it’s important to remember that queer people are everywhere,” said Kate Raphael, who co-founded QUIT and came up with the whole idea for the Month of Momentum. “Queer people are not safe in a lot of places, situations can change quickly, and they need to be able to freely move to get to safety.”

Aug 10th’s protest was dedicated to tenants. Members of Causa Justa/Just Cause, the East Bay’s Tenants and Neighborhood Councils, and the Housing Rights Committee of San Francisco all showed up with supporters. Around 100 protestors waved signs, chanted in both English and Spanish, played drums, and gave and listened to speeches. Passing cars, trucks, taxis and city busses honked in support. When an unidentified man approached and screamed “Build the wall,” protestors chanted, “We stand with immigrants” and he quickly left.

“We’re out here making the connection between housing, migration, and forced displacement,” said Leticia Arce who works as a lead organizer for San Francisco Causa Justa/Just Cause.

“Immigrant tenants are intimidated by their landlords who tell them that since they’re undocumented, they don’t have rights and can easily be evicted,” said Arce. “They’re afraid to enforce their rights due to the ICE’s crackdowns.”

Faith groups have also been part of the Month of Momentum. Aug 9th’s event was co-hosted by the Interfaith Movement of Human Integrity (IMHI) and the Council on American Islamic Relations.

In a speech at the event, IMHI director Rev. Deborah Lee encouraged people to expand the focus of their rebellion beyond Donald Trump.

“It’s not just Trump,” said Lee. “We have to push the congress that continues to foot the bill for these detention centers, that continues to send weapons to Saudi Arabia that are bombing Yemen and Syria, that continues to send military aid, weapons, and tear gas to Honduras.”

The Month of Momentum’s organizers are especially encouraging people to come out for the final day’s protest at noon on August 31st entitled “EVERYONE: Sustaining the Momentum.” It’s the only day not dedicated to a specific group and is a broad call for anyone who wants to come out.

Protestors feel that when the Month of Momentum ends, the work must continue.

“We’re hoping the momentum builds into the following months and years,” said Kate Raphael. “Come September 1st our work’s just started.”

Zach Haber

Posts by Zach Haber

Activism

Oakland’s ‘Green the Church,’ Others, Host a Climate Revival

On April 20, Oakland’s Green The Church California (GTC) and the Center For Food, Faith and Justice will celebrate Earth Day and present a Climate Revival event titled “Growing Healthy Communities From Soil To The Soul” at McGee Avenue Baptist Church at 1640 Stuart St, Berkeley, CA. The day will include inspiring talks, interactive workshops, networking opportunities, and a special panel on Food Sovereignty and Global Food Resilience.

Published

2 hours ago

April 17, 2024

Oakland Post

The revival will take place at McGee Avenue Baptist Church in Berkeley on April 20. Courtesy image.

Growing Healthy Communities from Soil to the Soul in Berkeley

By Y’Anad Burrell

The day will include inspiring talks, interactive workshops, networking opportunities, and a special panel on Food Sovereignty and Global Food Resilience.

The keynote speaker is Rev. Danté R. Quick, PhD, senior pastor of First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens in Somerset, N.J. Quick is well known in the Bay Area, having served for more than 10 years as pastor of Friendship Missionary Baptist Church in Vallejo, CA.

Green The Church, founded in 2010 by Rev. Dr. Ambrose Carroll, Sr., and headquartered in Oakland, helps galvanize Black churches and their local communities and leaders to address issues critical to populations historically disengaged from conversations around pollution and health, climate change, and sustainability and energy efficiency.

The organization collaborates with major environmental, sustainability, food security, faith, and community-based non-profit organizations, and is committed to “creation justice”—care and justice for God’s people and the planet—and building the Beloved Community.

Environmental justice has long been a pressing concern for communities of color who bear the brunt of pollution and ecological degradation. Climate change exacerbates these issues, disproportionately impacting vulnerable communities. Recognizing this urgency, Black churches across the country are taking action.

With deep roots in the African American community and its commitment to social justice, the Black Church has become an essential advocate for sustainable practices and policies.

Over the past 14 years, in a powerful collaboration with significant environmental, sustainability, food security, faith, and community-based non-profit organizations, GTC has created a cadre of Black churches engaging in the environmental justice, climate, and sustainability movement.

GTC presently works with more than 1,000 pastors and congregations across the U.S., and groups in the Bahamas, Ghana, Nigeria, and the UK, showing that we can make a difference together.

The partnership between environmental justice advocates and the Black Church extends beyond individual congregations. Green The Church provides resources and support for faith communities seeking to address climate change and promote environmental justice.

Through collaboration, initiatives such as energy efficiency programs, solar installations, and environmental education have been implemented in Black churches nationwide. These efforts reduce the carbon footprint and save money on energy bills, benefiting the congregations and their communities.

The involvement of the Black Church in the fight against climate change is not just a participation, it’s a powerful message that galvanizes action across communities.

By integrating environmental justice into their ministry, Black churches are demonstrating that addressing climate change is not only a matter of science but also of social and moral responsibility, inspiring change at a grassroots level.

For more information, go to: www.greenthechurch.org.