Some 60 languages are taught on campus and revitalizing and preserving endangered languages is a priority

By Gretchen Kell, UC Berkeley News

At least 60 languages — from Mongolian and Old Norse to Polish, Catalan, Ancient Egyptian, Arabic and Biblical Hebrew — are taught at UC Berkeley, one of the nation’s top institutions for the breadth and depth of its world languages program.

A growing emphasis also is being placed at Berkeley on revitalizing and preserving endangered languages, most of them spoken by Indigenous peoples.

To help honor more than 150 years of global languages at Berkeley, 63 colorful banners began flying throughout campus last week — and for the next 18 months — that feature facts about the campus’s language programs, as well as 21 bilingual and multilingual faculty members, students and alumni.

Among the messages on the banners:

• Collectively, undergraduates at UC Berkeley speak more than 220 different first languages.
• More than 500 language learning classes are taught at Berkeley annually.
• More than 6,000 Berkeley students enroll in those classes each year.
• In 1872, the first endowed chair in the UC system was created — for the study of East Asian languages at Berkeley.
• Students at all UC campuses can take online African language classes at Berkeley, which is well-known for Amharic, Igbo and Swahili instruction.

Across the country, some colleges and universities are eliminating world language courses to save money. West Virginia’s flagship public university, for example, recently ended courses and degree programs in all foreign languages except Spanish and Chinese.

Meanwhile, Berkeley has “a longstanding commitment to linguistic diversity and the humanistic insights that come from the study of world languages, literatures and cultures,” said Rick Kern, French professor and chair of the French department. “We think that Berkeley can be a model of multilingual global engagement.”

Kern is co-chair of the campus’s Task Force on Languages, Language-Based Disciplines and Global Citizenship that was initiated by Sara Guyer, dean of the College of Letters and Sciences’ Division of Arts and Humanities.

The committee met for three semesters and presented its recommendations last summer on how the campus can enhance and support instructional and research strengths in global languages.

Guyer said the study of so many languages on campus “opens up new worlds of knowledge, research and communication.” She added that Berkeley’s steadfast commitment to multilingualism is an effort to help students become global citizens who can “interact meaningfully with people and ideas from different regions of our fast-changing world.”

By Family Support Advocates
Special to The Post

Desiree Davis was only 17 years old when she was senselessly murdered in North Oakland 14 years ago on September 7, 2009. Desiree, or Dezzy as she preferred, was a beautiful little girl that instantly liked people, adults included.

Dez was artistic, a good swimmer and athlete, an animal lover who wanted to be a veterinarian, a good writer in prose and poetry and she could rap lyrics to a great many songs. She was a naturally happy kid who loved so much of life.

When Dez started school, she was criticized for an eye imperfection, which sometimes made her sad and isolated, but it didn’t stop her from pursuing happiness.

Dez was independent and didn’t mind working for the extra things she wanted for herself. She worked three jobs by the time she was 16, and especially loved working at The Black Repertory Theater in Berkeley. As she began her senior year in high school, just before her murder, she was co-editor of the school’s yearbook, began running track and volunteered at the Berkeley Humane Society. She was gaining in self-confidence and trying new interests.

Dezzy’s mother, Dru Ann Davis, said, “How could this irreversible horror, caused by idiots, have happened to my, our, Dezzy?

“A soul that hurt no one and wanted to do good work with animals and people. If you can provide information on any of these killers, please be brave and contact Oakland Police. You may be the one to bring a sense of peace to the lives of Dezzy’s family.”

The Family Support Advocates joins with the grieving family and loved ones of Desiree Dezzy Davis’ in their pursuit of justice.

Anyone in the community with information about Dezzy’s murder is asked to contact the Homicide Section at (510) 238-3821 or the TIP LINE at (510) 238-7950. CrimeStoppers of Oakland is offering a reward for an arrest in this case.  #JusticeforDesiree.

FAMILY SUPPORT ADVOCACY TASK FORCE

The mission of the Family Support Advocacy Task Force, a committee of the Violence Prevention Coalition, is to advocate for local, state and federal policies and legislation to enhance and expand support to families and friends of those who experienced violence; for more compassionate and transparent communication between law enforcement, the district attorney with the family of homicide victims and to push for the elimination of all violence, but particularly gun violence and homicides.

By Paola Laverde and Tony Chapelle

After two years of being misled, stonewalled, and left to live in hazardous conditions, residents at an apartment complex for low-income senior citizens will celebrate the fruits of their strong organizing efforts – the appointment of a paid housing advocate by the City of Berkeley.

Everyone who lives in Berkeley is invited to join the victorious seniors and community members on Saturday, Sept. 9^th between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. for a celebration and rally at the Harriet Tubman Terrace apartments, 2870 Adeline St., in South Berkeley.  The event will include a drum march, press conference, speakers, food, and music performances.

The new advocate is a liaison to monitor living conditions and services between tenants, FPI Management Company (FPI) and the landlord investment group led by Foundation Housing.

Harriet Tubman Terrace is a low-income senior apartment complex that was originally built to house musicians and other artists in their old age. FPI is a privately-owned, third-party property manager for senior facilities that are funded by Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC).

“Our hard work has paid off,” said Dar Oyamasela, president of the tenants’ association at Harriet Tubman Terrace. “We have won Round One, but the struggle continues.”

In 2022, the 91-unit Harriet Tubman Terrace underwent a major remodeling with the contractors making mistakes and violating numerous building codes.

Tenants lived in dangerous conditions as workmen tore out kitchens, bathrooms, and closets in their apartments while exposing residents to deadly asbestos. The poor remodeling included installation of flimsy, sometimes unusable, replacement fixtures. Sliding-glass patio door frames were installed improperly and let in air and rain. The management relocated tenants to dirty, bug-ridden empty units in the building, often not caring that they were not accessible for disabled residents. Several tenants suffered the loss or destruction of personal items and family heirlooms.

The appalling conditions are shown in a YouTube video report, “Harriet Tubman Terrace Residents Face Horrendous Violations in their Homes,” with a link at

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWB1FrIZ1rE.

While the residents and community celebrate the appointment of the paid ombudsman, the rally will also acknowledge the importance of empowering low-income senior tenants, many of whom are isolated and afraid to speak up for their housing rights.

“The advocate will approach management for us. That alone is helpful, as most of the residents are fearful of the management but not of the advocate,” said Elaine Bloom, a Harriet Tubman Terrace resident. “An ally will help us to live in safe housing and have quiet enjoyment in this our ‘forever’ home.”

Many members of the neighborhood consider the two-year ordeal for the seniors at Harriet Tubman an affront to all of South Berkeley. The grassroots group Friends of Adeline says the community and Berkeley City Council should be outraged.

The Friends of Adeline calls it elder abuse, abuse by contractors, and ownership. “This is an indication of lack of concern for the people who live in [this] city,” the group says.

For more information, contact Paola Laverde at Plaverde64@gmail.com or Tony Chapelle at TonyChapelle@hotmail.com.