Activism
City Begins Wood Street Homeless Encampment Clearance and Faces Protest
On Nov. 5 and 6, the City of Oakland began a clearance operation of a homeless encampment on a privately owned tract of land west of Wood St in West Oakland and were met with local residents who protested against displacing homeless people.
“I’ve developed relationships with people that live there and I understand that their situation is precarious,” said local resident Dale Smith, who protested on Nov. 6. “I don’t think the solution the city is putting forth is going to work.”
The city plans to eventually clear the lot, which runs about quarter mile from north to south. Oakland residents have lived there for over five years in vehicles, tents and self-made structures. No one knows exactly how many people live on the site, but most residents claim there are over 100. The lot has become more crowded recently as residents have been evicted from other areas of the city. Some residents claim that police officers directed them to the site.
“The city has been reviewing the idea of converting this privately owned lot to a safe RV parking area that would serve West Oakland RV dwellers,” said assistant city administrator Joe DeVries, “but the owner would need to clean it thoroughly first.”
The land is owned by a corporation called GameChanger LLC, but the city hasn’t stated who the individual owner is. The East Bay Times has reported that GameChanger LLC’s owner agreed to lease the land to the city for the next two to three years free of charge. As the city’s stated goal for Nov. 5 and 6 was to clear all vehicles from the site, GameChanger also agreed to pay the estimated quarter million dollar towing bill to the city.
The city’s communication director, Karen Boyd, claims OPD identified 139 vehicles that needed to be towed. Although the majority of the vehicles were abandoned, many of the lot’s RVs, vans, and buses serve as homes for people who are unable to afford housing in Oakland.
Past Oakland homeless clearances and evictions have resulted in people losing their vehicle-homes to impound lots. The poorest of the poor were especially vulnerable to these losses, as vehicle-homes that no longer ran were most likely to be impounded. Since many of the lot’s residents had been evicted before and lost their vehicle-homes, they, and the protestors supporting them feared they would lose them again.
On Nov. 5, over 35 housed protestors joined their unhoused neighbors, held signs and chanted “shame” and “quit your jobs” as police officers walked through the lot, directing people out of the way so tow operators could tow vehicles. Some of the signs read “Don’t tow our homes,” “Stop the evictions,” and “Ayuda no destruye,” which means “help don’t destroy” in Spanish.
After word spread that during the present clearance vehicles that served as people’s homes would be towed off the lot and unto Wood Street, as opposed to impound lots, the number of protestors dwindled, though homeless people and their housed supporters were still unhappy with the move. Around a dozen protestors showed up on Nov. 6.
Natasha Noel, a lifelong Oakland resident who was evicted from her home of 17 years, sits in front of her RV with a sign rested on it that says “I live here. this is my home.” Photo by Zack Haber
“It’s more of a safety zone in here and out on streets it’s more public,” said Jennifer ‘Harley’ Boslar, who was forced to move from the lot, “I feel like accidents can happen. A car could run into your RV. A semi-truck could run into your RV. People can get easier access to your RV than they can behind the fence.”
Wood Street, where many of the vehicles were moved, is a major route for big rig trucks. The Wood Street lot sits behind a fence with two small entrances, so residents have an easier time monitoring who approaches their vehicle-homes.
As of the night of Nov. 6, 15 vehicle-homes remain on the site. Police were unclear about when the remaining vehicles would be moved as the clearance was only originally planned to be a two day operation.
Natasha Noel, who grew up in Oakland and was recently evicted from her home of 17 years, still lives in an RV on the site and wants to stay there.
“I don’t feel like [moving] is a safe option at all,” said Noel. “On the street we’re likely to be towed at any second.”
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of September 9 – 15, 2026
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of September 9 – 15, 2026
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Activism
Oakland Post: Week of September 2 – 8, 2026
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of September 2 – 8, 2026
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Activism
Youth-Led Black August Event Brings Past to Present at East Oakland Boxing Association
The mission of Youth Alive! Is to “break the cycle of violence, heal trauma, and uplift a thriving community of leaders, to save lives in Oakland and beyond” by serving “as mentors, youth leaders, counselors, case managers, intervention specialists and violence interrupters,” working “to help violently wounded people heal themselves and their community.”
Youth-Led Black August Event Brings Past to Present at East Oakland Boxing Association
The East Oakland Boxing Association (EOBA) and Youth Alive! came together on Aug. 21 to share with their community all that Black August means to them.
Held on EOBA’s patio at 816 98th Ave. in Deep East Oakland, the two organizations hosted their second annual Black August Experience, featuring a food tasting, financial literacy and mindfulness workshops, and voter registration with the League of Women Voters Oakland (LWV).
Black August is known as a time to uphold the legacy of prisoners who protested their conditions by fasting, fighting, and educating themselves on the economic and political circumstances that contributed to their incarceration.
According to its website, “EOBA is a multi-service youth and community development hub that goes far beyond the ring. While rooted in the discipline of boxing, for nearly 40 years EOBA has also integrated robust programs in workforce development, food justice, afterschool enrichment, financial literacy, mentorship, and wellness.”.
The mission of Youth Alive! Is to “break the cycle of violence, heal trauma, and uplift a thriving community of leaders, to save lives in Oakland and beyond” by serving “as mentors, youth leaders, counselors, case managers, intervention specialists and violence interrupters,” working “to help violently wounded people heal themselves and their community.”
Through Coro California, another leadership organization serving young people across the state for 80 years, they gained a broader understanding of Black August.
EOBA Executive Director Dawna Williams spoke about how much she learned about Black August from the youth who created it. “I let them educate me,” she said. Instead of talking about prison reform and mass incarceration, Williams and youth interns found that Black August meant so much more. “We would have done a disservice if we had just focused on who the people were and what their situation was…We tried to take their message from back in the day and make it relevant to the young people today. What do they need to know?”
Youth interns created and placed posters around the patio to help participants understand how traditional Black foodways, civic engagement, financial literacy, and the power of education are relevant to Black resistance today.
An EOBA member described Black August with Youth ALIVE! as “a whole vibe. “This year we added the Fun Zone for the kids, because you really cannot go wrong with a Fun Zone. I also loved seeing everyone chillin’ in the outdoor lounge, catching some Vitamin D and just enjoying a Friday evening together.”
The food tasting, a popular event from last year, featured traditional Black foods such as black-eyed peas, johnny cakes, and fried chicken. Led by Williams, the tasting included a talk about how these traditional foods were made and why they are forms of Black resilience.
The “‘Plate of History’ was a favorite of the online writers. “Fun, educational, and did I mention delicious? Our Taste of History cook, Angela Southall, served up some good eats while connecting food to history and culture.”
The writer also commended the “League of Women Voters Oakland for their civic leadership and for getting our young people informed, ready, and registered to vote.”
Overall, it was a “good Friday event in East Oakland,” the writer said.
Upcoming Black August events: Building Opportunities for Self-Sufficiency (BOSS), will host “Black August: The Arc of Liberation” at Oakland City Hall on Sat. Aug. 29, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The websites for East Oakland Boxing Association, Youth Alive! and CORO are sources for this report.
Jana Lang is an Oakland resident, teacher, gardener and poet participating in the Propel News Initiative.
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