Uncategorized

Community Groups Accuse Berkeley Police of Racial Profiling

Published

10 years ago

October 6, 2015

Newly revealed data confirms activists’ longtime charge that Berkeley Police racially profile Berkeley’s declining African American population.

Berkeley Police disproportionate stop and search Blacks and Latinos for no reason, according to an analysis of data collected and released by police.

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Using data on police stops over seven months this year, provided by the Berkeley Police Department, a coalition of civil rights advocates found African Americans are twice as likely to be stopped by police.

The majority of the time, there is no reason provided for the stops.

Of 4,658 people stopped, 1,710 were white, 1,423 are Black and 543 Latino. When compared to the city’s demographics, the data “reveals stark disparities,” activists said.

Although African Americans represent less than eight percent of Berkeley’s population, they were 30.5 percent of those stopped.

Latinos make up a little less than 10 percent of the city’s population and were 11.7 percent of those stopped.

While whites are 60 percent of the city’s population, they comprise only 36.7 percent of those stopped.

That means that Latinos are twice as likely to be stopped than whites and African Americans are eight times as likely to be stopped than whites in Berkeley.

Yet what concerned people most was the “yield” of stops, or what happens after.

The data show that 38.1 percent of whites stopped are released without being arrested or cited. By contrast, 66.2 percent of Blacks, and 56.4 percent of Latinos are released without arrest or citation.

Civil rights advocates and activists said the data shows the department either has “malicious intent” or officers associate some people of color with criminal activity. Neither approach improves public safety.

“If you’re stopping Black folks at an alarming rate and almost two-thirds of the time it’s for no reason, that’s inefficient and ineffective policing,” said Marcel Jones, a member of Berkeley Copwatch and Cal’s Black Student Union.

Also at issue are searches. The data shows Blacks are nearly five times more likely and Latinos three times more likely to be searched than whites while much less likely to yield than whites.

With the disproportionate stops, searches and low yield, the data suggests what many community members say: police racially profiling Black and Brown people in hopes of arresting them for crimes they are innocent of.

“It’s a complete waste of time to stop people for no reason,” civil rights attorney Jim Chanin said.

Besides being ineffective, the unequal treatment discourages people from cooperating with police. The disproportionate policing can be eliminated by action by the department and elected officials, said Chanin.

“What we are demanding is equal law enforcement,” he said.

In 2014, the Berkeley City Council adopted B-4, the “Fair and Impartial Policing” policy. The policy mandated Berkeley Police collect both motorists and pedestrian stop data by race, but lacked a reporting requirement.

Mansour Id Deen of Berkeley NAACP shared community demands, including quarterly reporting of stop data of both pedestrians and motorists. Police should also identify police squads with high rates of profiling and retrain or discipline them. Furthermore, police should be required to wear body cameras, and the city should adopt a comprehensive policy to address privacy concerns and provide public access to records. Finally, Id Deen raised the call for a City Department of Race and Equity that would address issues like policing.

Id Deen noted the ongoing displacement of African Americans who live in Berkeley. Considering the reality that Berkeley’s Black population has been declining over decades, he is concerned to see such high stop and frisk rates.

The data provided by Berkeley Police did not indicate whether racial profiling is citywide or concentrated in South and West Berkeley, where Blacks have been traditionally segregated.

Berkeley Police said the department does not tolerate racial profiling. “Such discrimination is illegal,” according to the department. “It is not our practice and it is not part of our organizational culture.”

“Drawing any conclusion from such limited data is challenging,” according to the BPD statement. “Review of the data cannot, by itself, equate to discrimination, racial profiling or bias.

BPD said the Fair and Impartial Policing Policy had been developed with community groups, and many people had attended the training for police.

The 2014 anti-racial profiling policy followed increased reports of warrantless searches and police harassment in South Berkeley and a highly publicized “jaywalking” incident involving two Cal graduates.

Oakland Post

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Uncategorized

Oakland Housing and Community Development Department Awards $80.5 Million to Affordable Housing Developments

Published

6 months ago

June 17, 2025

Oakland Post

Special to The Post

The City of Oakland’s Housing and Community Development Department (Oakland HCD) announced its awardees for the 2024-2025 New Construction of Multifamily Affordable Housing Notice of Funding Availability (New Construction NOFA) today Five permanently affordable housing developments received awards out of 24 applications received by the Department, with award amounts ranging from $7 million to $28 million.

In a statement released on Jan. 16, Oakland’s HCD stated, “Five New Construction Multifamily Affordable Housing Development projects awarded a total of $80.5 million to develop 583 affordable rental homes throughout Oakland. Awardees will leverage the City’s investments to apply for funding from the state and private entities.”

In December, the office of Rebecca Kaplan, interim District 2 City Councilmember, worked with HCD to allocate an additional $10 Million from Measure U to the funding pool. The legislation also readopted various capital improvement projects including street paving and upgrades to public facilities.

The following Oakland affordable housing developments have been awarded in the current round:

Mandela Station Affordable

238 Affordable Units including 60 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $15 million + previously awarded $18 million
Developer: Mandela Station LP (Pacific West Communities, Inc. and Strategic Urban Development Alliance, LLC)
City Council District: 3
Address: 1451 7th St.

Liberation Park Residences

118 Affordable Units including 30 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $28 million
Developer: Eden Housing and Black Cultural Zone
City Council District: 6
Address: 7101 Foothill Blvd.

34th & San Pablo

59 Affordable Units including 30 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $7 million
Developer: 34SP Development LP (EBALDC)
City Council District: 3
Address: 3419-3431 San Pablo Ave.

The Eliza

96 Affordable Units including 20 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $20 million
Developer: Mercy Housing California
City Council District: 3
Address: 2125 Telegraph Ave.

3135 San Pablo

72 Affordable Units including 36 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $10.5 million
Developer: SAHA and St. Mary’s Center
City Council District: 3
Address: 3515 San Pablo Ave.

The source of this story is the media reltations office of District 2 City Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan.

Oakland Post

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Activism

Oakland Housing and Community Development Department Awards $80.5 Million to Affordable Housing Developments

Published

11 months ago

January 30, 2025

Oakland Post

Rebecca Kaplan, interim District 2 city councilmember. File photo.

Special to The Post

The following Oakland affordable housing developments have been awarded in the current round:

Mandela Station Affordable

238 Affordable Units including 60 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $15 million + previously awarded $18 million
Developer: Mandela Station LP (Pacific West Communities, Inc. and Strategic Urban Development Alliance, LLC)
City Council District: 3
Address: 1451 7th St.

Liberation Park Residences

118 Affordable Units including 30 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $28 million
Developer: Eden Housing and Black Cultural Zone
City Council District: 6
Address: 7101 Foothill Blvd.

34th & San Pablo

59 Affordable Units including 30 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $7 million
Developer: 34SP Development LP (EBALDC)
City Council District: 3
Address: 3419-3431 San Pablo Ave.

The Eliza

96 Affordable Units, including 20 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $20 million
Developer: Mercy Housing California
City Council District: 3
Address: 2125 Telegraph Ave.

3135 San Pablo

72 Affordable Units including 36 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $10.5 million
Developer: SAHA and St. Mary’s Center
City Council District: 3
Address: 3515 San Pablo Ave.

The source of this story is media reltations office of District 2 City Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan.

Oakland Post

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Alameda County

Oakland Acquisition Company’s Acquisition of County’s Interest in Coliseum Property on the Verge of Completion

The Board of Supervisors is committed to closing the deal expeditiously, and County staff have worked tirelessly to move the deal forward on mutually agreeable terms. The parties are down to the final details and, with the cooperation of OAC and Coliseum Way Partners, LLC, the Board will take a public vote at an upcoming meeting to seal this transaction.

Published

11 months ago

January 11, 2025

Oakland Post

Alameda County Board of Supervisors Chairman David Haubert. Official photo.

Special to The Post

The County of Alameda announced this week that a deal allowing the Oakland Acquisition Company, LLC, (“OAC”) to acquire the County’s 50% undivided interest in the Oakland- Alameda County Coliseum complex is in the final stages of completion.

Oakland has already finalized a purchase and sale agreement with OAC for its interest in the property. OAC’s acquisition of the County’s property interest will achieve two longstanding goals of the County:

The Oakland-Alameda Coliseum complex will finally be under the control of a sole owner with capacity to make unilateral decisions regarding the property; and
The County will be out of the sports and entertainment business, free to focus and rededicate resources to its core safety net

In an October 2024 press release from the City of Oakland, the former Oakland mayor described the sale of its 50% interest in the property as an “historic achievement” stating that the transaction will “continue to pay dividends for generations to come.”

The Board of Supervisors is pleased to facilitate single-entity ownership of this property uniquely centered in a corridor of East Oakland that has amazing potential.

“The County is committed to bringing its negotiations with OAC to a close,” said Board President David Haubert.