City Government

Cat Brooks Commands, Schaaf Struggles in First Mayoral Debate

Published

8 years ago

August 31, 2018

(l to r) Mayoral candidates Libby Schaaf, Nancy Sidebotham, Cat Brooks and Saied Karamooz.

Last Thursday evening, the first debate of the 2018 Oakland Mayor’s race took place, hosted by the Democratic Party and multiple co-sponsors, and held at the Elihu Harris State Office Building auditorium in downtown Oakland.

A large and engaged crowd attended and had the opportunity to submit written questions.

Former Assemblymember and Mayor Elihu Harris moderated the debate, which included current Mayor Libby Schaaf, Nancy Sidebotham, Cat Brooks, Saied Karamooz, Cedric Anthony Troupe, and Pamela Price.

Candidates discussed how to help small businesses, improve public safety, and, substantially, what to do about Oakland’s large and growing homelessness crisis.

Mayor Schaaf read from prepared remarks, and incorrectly claimed that other cities’ homeless problems are all as bad as Oakland’s, in defending her record.

Cat Brooks, leader in the movement against police abuse, prior radio host, and, longtime community organizer, gave a strong response, which included her moral commitment to the urgency of solving the homelessness crisis, and specific solutions, including use of publicly-owned properties, tiny homes, churches and other community partners, which received much applause from the crowd.

Candidate Saied Karamooz, member of the Oakland Privacy Advisory Commission, opposed the Mayor’s “tuff sheds” program.

Pamela Price, who recently won a majority of the Oakland vote while running for District Attorney in Alameda County, criticized Schaaf for failing to issue over $2 million in anti-displacement funding that the Council had approved, which would have helped protect more renters from being pushed into homelessness.

Price called for the city to utilize vacant warehouses as a temporary homeless solution, saying that homelessness is a “crisis like we have never seen before.” She said that leaders would have responded immediately with food, social services and shelter if this had been a natural disaster.

Another topic of much discussion Thursday evening was policing and meaningful public safety. Multiple candidates expressed concern about militarized policing and the importance of improving relations with the community, and healing from recent scandals.

Pamela Price and Cat Brooks shared information from the recent Oakland Equity Report, which found that the Oakland Administration failed dramatically and is not improving on racial equity in public safety.

On the importance of changing our safety focus, Cat Brooks stated, “If we could police and incarcerate our way into safety, we’d be the safest country in the world. We need to get to the gun before the bullet flies, not hold the mothers as they mourn.”

By the end of the debate, a number of attendees saidthat Cat Brooks led in the debate, while incumbent Libby Schaaf struggled to keep up.

One tweet by #Demdebate said:

“Post-game mayoral analysis: Libby is weak. Weaker than you know. A paper tiger.

“The crowd was extremely polite. Her weakness was unbearably offensive when she tried to defend and congratulate herself on homelessness.

“There’s something fearful or ashamed in her.”

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Oakland Post: Week of July 22 – 28, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of July 22 – 28, 2026

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18 hours ago

July 27, 2026

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Oakland Post: Week of July 15 – 21, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of July 15 – 21, 2026

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1 week ago

July 18, 2026

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From Disparity Study to Solutions: Oakland Coalition and Mayor Barbara Lee Renew Commitment to Reform City Contracting

She committed to ensuring the coalition has direct access to City leadership by designating Assistant Deputy City Administrator Chuck Baker the primary liaison. Working alongside Deputy City Administrator Sofia Navarro, DWES Director Emylene Aspilla, Race and Equity Director Darlene Flynn, and other City departments, the coalition will continue advancing these priorities while maintaining regular communication with City leadership.

Published

2 weeks ago

July 15, 2026

Oakland Post

Present at the recent meeting on implementing recommendations on Oakland’s Disparity Study on city work contracts were (first row, l. to r.): Chuck Baker, Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee and Darlene Flynn. Second row, l. to r.) Samuel Adams, Erica Astrella, Chadwick Spell, Cathy Adams, Stanley Cooper, Maria Wagner, Len Turner, Derek Barnes, Paul Cobb. Photo courtesy of Oakland Mayor’s Office.

Special to The Post

On June 30, a coalition of minority business leaders, contractors and others met with Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee to discuss the City’s commitment to implement recommendations outlined in Oakland’s Disparity Study and eliminate barriers that have historically prevented Black and minority-owned businesses from fully participating in public contracting opportunities.

Representatives of the Oakland African American Chamber of Commerce (OAACC), National Association of Minority Contractors Northern California (NAMC NorCal), Construction Resource Center (CRC), and the East Bay Rental Housing Association (EBRHA) said the meeting represented an important milestone in a process that has been underway for several months.

On April 21, the Oakland City Council’s Life Enrichment Committee received a progress report from the Department of Workplace and Employment Standards (DWES), where Director Emylene Aspilla presented the coalition’s working document and outlined a collaborative implementation plan between the coalition and the City. That report established 30-, 60-, and 90-day objectives focused on five key priorities:

Reforming Local and Small Local Business Enterprise (L/SLBE) waiver practices
Strengthening prompt payment compliance
Improving procurement forecasting and transparency
Expanding contractor capacity building and business development
Increasing oversight, accountability, and public reporting

A series of working sessions was scheduled between coalition representatives, DWES, and the City Administrator’s Office to begin implementing those priorities but were temporarily delayed by the resignation of former City Administrator Jestin Johnson.

Rather than allowing that momentum to stall, OAACC President and CEO Cathy Adams requested a meeting with Lee to gain clarity on the City’s direction and reaffirm its commitment to implementing the recommendations contained within the Disparity Study.

Coalition leaders described the meeting as productive, candid, collaborative, and encouraging.

During the meeting, Lee spoke not only from her role as mayor but also from her experience as an 8(a) contractor and business owner, sharing that she understands firsthand what it takes to build and grow a successful company, employ a substantial workforce, compete for public work, and navigate the complexities of municipal contracting.

Mayor Lee also expressed her commitment to personally participate in future working meetings with the coalition.

“This meeting represents a renewed commitment to partnership,” said Adams. “Mayor Lee listened, engaged, and demonstrated that she wants to move beyond conversation and into implementation.”

CRC’s Len Turner said the roadmap is already in place. ““The City already has the evidence. What’s been missing is execution. …Now it’s time to deliver results.”

Mario Wagner, president of NAMC NorCal agreed that the next phase must focus on implementation, funding, and accountability.

“The coalition is ready to get to work. …The next step is ensuring these initiatives receive meaningful funding in the upcoming fiscal budget cycle. Just as important, the City must establish transparent reporting mechanisms that keep the public informed through regular progress reports, measurable benchmarks, and accountability.”

Coalition leaders also acknowledged that while City leadership has indicated it is reviewing Local and Small Local Business Enterprise waiver practices, the community continues to seek a formal response regarding existing long-term waivers, including waivers extending 10 and 25 years. The coalition believes those waivers should be comprehensively reviewed and, where appropriate, rolled back as part of the City’s broader contracting reforms.

The coalition is also calling on the City to include meaningful funding in the upcoming fiscal budget cycle to support implementation of the Disparity Study recommendations and establish better methods and mechanisms to keep the public informed through regular progress reports, measurable benchmarks, and transparent accountability.

The coalition’s immediate next step is to schedule a working meeting with Baker, Aspilla, Lee, and the appropriate City staff to review what has already been accomplished under the implementation framework.