Activism

COMMENTARY: No Unity in America? Remember 9/11 Before We all Forget

I will never be in doubt again about what to do on Sept. 11. At each time stamp of terror, mark it with a moment of silence to honor the dead and the brave. That’s what they’ve done in New York the last 22 years.

Published

3 years ago

October 3, 2023

Oakland Post

Photo: iStock photo

By Emil Guillermo

The politics of the week was as polarizing as it gets. President Biden spoke to the UN General assembly about defending democracy, especially when it comes to giving aide to Ukraine, a sovereign nation invaded by Russia.

That would normally happen without debate, but now polls in the U.S show more than 50% say we’ve given enough to Ukraine. And with already $60 billion given to date, fulfilling the request for another $40 billion may be in doubt.

It’s easy to say, “Gee, wouldn’t it be nice if any of that could be used to fix our local problems.” But we’re talking about a threat of a different level. Gang bangers shooting up neighborhoods and local smash-and-grabs are one thing. A superpower like Russia smash-and-grabbing a free country like Ukraine, we all need to care about.

That’s not how democracy works.

And then there is the weaponizing of government by Republicans in Congressional hearings, on full display when the GOP lead Justice Committee member badgered Attorney General Merrick Garland for hours on irrelevancies like Hunter Biden.

“…They do that at the expense of millions of Americans who need the government to stay open and want their kids safe in school, and like to see Ukraine stay in the fights that don’t help Russia,” said California District 14 Congressman Eric Swalwell, who called the hearings a clown show. “Except they actually have real responsibilities that affect real Americans.”

That hearing was on Sept. 20, nine days after the 9/11 anniversary.

When I think of an America United I like to think of that day.

Where Were You on 9/11?

I was in the San Francisco Bay Area, thinking about trading the markets, so I was up way early with CNBC at 5.46 a.m. Pacific time when the first plane flew into the North Tower.

Then the second plane at 6:03 a.m. Pacific time struck the South Tower.

And then the third plane struck the Pentagon at 6:37 a.m Pacific time.

It’s too early for all this, I recall thinking, my head spinning from the news. But then the South Tower fell at 6:59 a.m. Pacific.

OMFG wasn’t an acronym back then.

I would need something stronger at 10:03 a.m. Pacific, when a fourth plane crashed in Shanksville, Pa.

Within the half hour at 10:28 a.m. Pacific, the North Tower fell.

It’s the timeline of when the terrorists’ war came to us. It was in Lower Manhattan. But I felt it instantly via television in California while still in my pajamas.

It was also a day I lost my taste for the markets and the mindless chase of the almighty dollar. Sept. 11 made me sense something more was at stake, our sense of country, of ourselves, and of our America.

There were shattered buildings in New York, but was there ever a moment when the country was more united?

Remember that, America. Because there have been so many times since then when we forget what it’s like to be on the same side, always, together.

It shouldn’t take an act of terrorism to get back that feeling. Just think of what we did for each other when our real patriotism emerged Sept. 12, 2001.

The Last Thing I Did on Sept. 11

After 2001, my life really did take a different path. I went from television and radio to newspapers. This is not unlike saying to the modern world that you prefer communicating through cave drawings.

But I survived.

One of my friends became a big-time corporate lawyer and is now retired. Our politics are polar opposites, but we’re still buddies. We have history together. We both graduated from San Francisco’s Lowell High School. He moans about the Cal Bears.

If Sept. 11 can have a unifying effect, would it happen when I had dinner with my friend?

The answer is at least on the surface, yes. We were in New York, at, coincidentally, a Ukrainian restaurant with few vegan options. But I made do.

We disagreed on everything. Especially on affirmative action. He sided with the Supreme Court against Harvard. I didn’t. He brought up the historical discrimination against Jews. “There were some law firms that wouldn’t even talk to me when I graduated,” said my friend, who is Jewish.

We agreed that was wrong. But he couldn’t get past his belief that discrimination happens to everyone. You deal with it and get over it, he said.

Easier said than done, if you happen to be a darker shade.

But we’re friends and respect each other.

On the matter of 9/11, he told me where he was that day. His office was a few blocks from the World Trade Center. But he came to work shortly after the first tower fell.

He remembers seeing people walking up FDR Drive from Lower Manhattan covered in soot, their faces in shock.

I told him about my theory of 9/12, how it sparked a feeling of unity that is so rare these days.

He said it was still there, though admittedly, it’s gotten worse. “It doesn’t matter about your politics,” he said, adding how he didn’t care about my point of view. We went to high school together. I called him. He saw my show in New York and now we’re having dinner.

“So, you’re a crazy guy, but so what, I am too,” he said. “You’re my friend and if you need anything, you just ask me.”

Maybe that’s the best we can hope for in a polarized America.

To have a meal together. Laugh. Then fight over the check. Not politics.

But making the feeling last beyond 9/12 is getting tougher and tougher in America.

Emil Guillermo is a journalist and commentator. See his Emil Amok videos on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook.

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At the event, 16 entities signed the EIP pledge, vowing to take steps to increase public contracting opportunities in their spheres for small and historically underutilized businesses. The pledge signees included Hub International, the Port of San Francisco, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, California High-Speed Rail Authority, the Port of Oakland, Robert Graham of Webcor Builders, Holder Construction, the Weitz Company, Sky Blue Builders, Hornblower, Swinerton, Luster National, Talson Solutions, Center for Community Wealth Building, and the Construction Contractors Alliance.

Published

5 days ago

June 24, 2026

Oakland Post

Toks Omishakin, secretary of the California State Transportation Agency, was one of the speakers at the event. Photo by Shellee Fisher Photography and Design.

By Calvin Naito, Special to The Post

On June 4, a national nonprofit named the Equity in Infrastructure Project (EIP) – which aims to increase public construction contracting opportunities for small and historically underutilized businesses – held a day-long event in downtown San Francisco to rally supporters and build momentum to its cause.

It was attended by more than 100 individuals from public agencies, private firms, and other organizations committed to increasing contracting opportunities with governmental agencies, thereby creating more competition and lowering public costs.

The EIP event was held the Hyatt Regency San Francisco in conjunction with BuildIT, which aims to increase contracting opportunities for LGBT-owned businesses.

At the event, 16 entities signed the EIP pledge, vowing to take steps to increase public contracting opportunities in their spheres for small and historically underutilized businesses.

The pledge signees included Hub International, the Port of San Francisco, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, California High-Speed Rail Authority, the Port of Oakland, Robert Graham of Webcor Builders, Holder Construction, the Weitz Company, Sky Blue Builders, Hornblower, Swinerton, Luster National, Talson Solutions, Center for Community Wealth Building, and the Construction Contractors Alliance.

Following the workshop, BuildIT hosted a VIP evening reception honoring EIP, whose principals – Phil Washington, John Procari, and Rick Jacobs – accepted the award.

The event also set in motion the coalition’s efforts to implement recommendations from EIP’s “Procurement for Prosperity: A Playbook.”

The Playbook is a practical guide for public agency leaders and procurement and contracting practitioners to grow the capacity of small and first-time contractors, strengthen competition, and deliver better value for taxpayers.

Toks Omishakin, Secretary of the California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA), a long-time EIP supporter, also told attendees, “This is about commitment. This has been a life’s work. This is a tailwind moment.”

The event’s presenting sponsor was Hub International, one of the largest insurance brokerages in the nation, which was joined by partners Travelers Insurance and the State Compensation Insurance Fund.

After the pledge-signing ceremony, attendees participated in a workshop in which they examined the policies, practices, and programs needed to meet EIP goals, learned from practitioners, and identified next steps toward utilizing the Playbook.

Ingrid Meriwether, formerly of Merriwether & Williams Insurance Services (MWIS) and current president of Hub International’s Aligned Risk Management, MWIS, described the hard-fought lessons she and her MWIS team have learned over the last three decades administering contractor development programs (CDPs) for the City and County of San Francisco, Alameda County, City of Los Angeles, LA Metro, and other municipalities.

The CDPs help small and local construction firms win public infrastructure contracts with these government agencies. The program provides bonding assistance, contract financing, technical support, training, and other services to underrepresented businesses funded by public agencies who seek greater contracting participation with these firms.

Merriwether said programs like these “break down systemic barriers, create greater fairness, and save taxpayers money by enabling more competition. The contractor development programs have, cumulatively, over two decades, helped contractors access over $1 billion in bonding, supporting over $380 million in awarded contracts, and maintaining a loss ratio 250 times lower than the industry average – while saving participating municipalities more than $27 million in contracting costs as a result of enabling more competition.”

Rick Jacobs, EIP co-founder and co-chair urged attendees make plans to meet again in the near future “to continue building on this work, share progress on organizational commitments, and discuss how we can collectively advance the goals of the EIP pledge.”

For more information on the EIP and to access a copy of the Playbook, go online to https://equityininfrastructure.org/

Calvin Naito is communications manager for Equity in Infrastructure Project.

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Oakland Museum Presents Landmark Retrospective Celebrating Beloved Bay Area Artist Mildred Howard

“Poetics of Memory” coincides with a year of major recognition for Howard. In 2026, she received the California Arts Council’s 50th Anniversary Award, honoring artists whose work has shaped California’s cultural and civic life, as well as the Museum of the African Diaspora’s Artist Impact Award. In 2025, she was awarded a prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship in recognition of her transformative contributions to American cultural life.

Published

5 days ago

June 24, 2026

Oakland Post

Mildred Howard. Photo by Christine Cueto for the Oakland Museum of California, 2025.

Special to The Post

The Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) opened “Mildred Howard: Poetics of Memory,” the first major museum survey of Bay Area artist Mildred Howard, on June 12.

The exhibition spans five decades of Howard’s influential work, bringing together immersive installations, found-object sculptures, archival materials, and new commissions that explore memory, identity, and power in American life.

Howard was born in San Francisco in 1945 and raised in the East Bay, where she went on to study Afro-Haitian dance, make and sell clothing, and experiment with collage and sculpture.

Her multimedia art practice emerged from these experiences, later becoming associated with West Coast conceptual art, San Francisco funk, and a vibrant community of artists like Oliver Jackson, Betye Saar, and Raymond Saunders. Since the 1970s, she has used found materials and family stories to explore memory—both individual and collective.

At OMCA, visitors enter “Poetics of Memory” through a series of intimate galleries featuring Howard’s early mixed-media pieces and sculptures, along with a large video projection of a number of her public artworks.

Together, they emphasize Howard’s interest in everyday objects as powerful carriers of individual and shared stories. Highlights include collages that remix images of the artist herself; found-object sculptures like The History of the United States with a few Parts Missing (2007) that address omissions in dominant narratives; and public works like “Locks and Keys for Harry Bridges” (2001) that transform urban space into a meditation on access and labor.

This culminates in a richly detailed “studio” environment, where works in progress, archival exhibition flyers, historic photographs of Howard and her community, postcards from fellow artists, and other materials offer insight into her creative process and daily life.

The exhibition then opens into a high-ceilinged, dramatically lit space that brings together Howard’s signature immersive installations. On one end, “Crossings” (1997/2026) – a field of hundreds of ceramic eggs leading to an ornate mirror – suggests cycles of birth, motherhood, and transition, while drawing on the emotional echoes of the Middle Passage. On the other end, “Blackbird in a Red Sky” (a.k.a. “Fall of the Blood House”) (2002) – a red glass shack bordered by a pond – also uses reflection and transparency to draw viewers into the work and prompt consideration of themes of identity and home.

Howard’s newest video installation, “Moving Stills” (2026), repurposes never-before-seen family footage she took as a teenager on a train trip to the American South. Projected onto cascading layers of translucent fabric that stretch across an entire gallery wall, the piece immerses viewers in a layered meditation on memory, migration, and time.

The “Mildred Howard: Poetics of Memory” exhibit will be on display through Oct. 11 at the Oakland Museum of California, 1000 Oak St., Oakland, CA 94612. Museum hours are Wednesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., with extended hours on Fridays to 9 p.m.

This story is sourced from the Oakland Museum of California press office.

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Stop the Hate Symposium Brings Oakland Together Through Dialogue, Partnership, and Community Healing

More than a meeting and panel discussion, the annual symposium serves as a powerful example of what can happen when neighbors, community leaders, and organizations choose conversation over division, and unity over silence.

Published

5 days ago

June 24, 2026

Oakland Post

Speakers and guests at the annual ‘Stop the Hate Symposium posed with Oakland Chinatown Improvement Council ambassadors. Photo by Marcus Calloway.

By Dr. Maritony Jones, Special to The Post

With the purpose of creating safer, stronger, and more inclusive communities, and in partnership with the Oakland Private Industry Council and other community organizations, the Oakland Chinatown Improvement Council (OCIC) hosted the ‘Stop the Hate Symposium’ on June 13 at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center.

The free event featured keynote speakers, breakout sessions, cultural programming, creating a space where people from many backgrounds sat together with a shared purpose.

The turnout itself reflected the urgency and importance of the topic. The room was packed with community members eager not only to listen, but also to participate. Throughout the event, speakers shared data, personal experiences, research, and practical solutions designed to address hate, violence, social inequity, and community safety.

The keynote panel featured respected leaders and advocates, including Ray Bobbitt, founder of the African American Sports & Entertainment Group (AASEG); Ryan Takemiya from RAMA; Caheri Gutierrez from the Unity Council; honorary guest speaker Oakland City Councilmember at-Large Rowena Brown and City Councilmember Charlene Wang; representatives for Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee and U.S. Rep. Lateefah Simon, with Gia Vang of NBC serving as moderator.

The symposium also offered multiple breakout sessions that addressed issues affecting communities across Oakland and Alameda County:

Session 1, 2, 3: Building Safer and More Inclusive Communities, led by Pastor Raymond Lankfort, CEO of Oakland Private Industry Council (OPIC), Jessica Kang, research manager for Stop AAPI Hate, Kara Guerra of The Unity Council, and Gabriela delaRiva of the Spanish Speaking Citizens Foundation
Session 4: Talk Story: Collective Healing and Relationship Repair, presented by Ryan Takemiya, executive director of RAMA
Session 5: Sexual Violence Prevention, presented by Tunisia Owens, interim deputy director of Realized Potential
Session 6: Violent Attacks on Teens, presented by MaryAnn Alvarado, program manager of Youth Alive

Every session contributed to an important truth: meaningful change begins within communities, through honest dialogue and a willingness to work together.

One of the strongest themes to emerge from the day was the need to create more conversations and stronger partnerships—not just during times of crisis, but consistently and intentionally. Relationships among organizations, neighborhoods, and community leaders often operate behind the scenes but are not always highlighted or celebrated.

Bobbitt spoke powerfully about this issue, noting that partnerships and relationships often go unrecognized despite being essential to community progress. He pointed to examples such as the partnership between OPIC and OCHIC, emphasizing that these collaborations deserve more visibility, investment, and expansion.

Perhaps his most memorable message resonated deeply throughout the room. Bobbitt explained that when a grandparent is attacked or harmed, the impact extends beyond race or ethnicity because today’s families and communities are increasingly multicultural and interconnected.

“We are not going to see our grandparents as just Latino, Asian, Caucasian, or African American,” he shared in essence. “We are going to see them simply as our grandparents.”

Those words reflected the heart of the symposium. Hate may target one group, but pain and loss are felt by everyone. Likewise, healing and progress are shared responsibilities.

For more information about the Stop The Hate Program visit the website: https://www.oaklandchinatownchamber.org/stop-the-hate (or) https://oaklandpic.or