Activism

Domestic Abuse Discussed During a Paint & Sip Event at Marin City Gallery

The group briefly discussed how abuse and violence impacts women and men in their relationships, and about the eight types of abuse: They are physical, emotional, economic, verbal, sexual, spiritual, stalking/cyber, and choking/strangulation.

Published

1 year ago

November 7, 2022

Oakland Post

Top: The group displaying their finished tulip paintings. The man, in the lower right, displays his portrait of two of the participants. Bottom left: Starr Lamare before she was burned. (nydailynews.com) Bottom right: Olubori Babaoye, Cynthia Williams, and Starr Lamare. (Photo by Godfrey Lee)

By Godfrey Lee

Domestic Violence and its signs were discussed at a Paint & Sip event held at the Marin City Art Gallery on Sunday, October 30.

The Paint & Sip instructor, Olubori Babaoye, a Nigerian-American artist from Oakland who works as a classical painter and digital illustrator, directed the group in painting a drawing of a tulip on a small canvas, encouraging each person to render work in their own individual style as they sipped wine. Domestic violence survivor Starr Lamare shared experience while they painted.

Physical abuse is physical violence done to the victim such as hitting, or around the victim such as breaking their possessions, which sends the message that “You’re next!”
Emotional abuse is deliberately withholding the 4 A’s: acceptance, appreciation, attention and affection in order to control and coerce the victim. This will include negative name calling to demean the victim’s spirit.
Economic abuse occurs when the abuser controls the victim’s financial resources, such as keeping the victim from getting a job or going to school, or unjustly taking their money.
Verbal abuse is when the abuser threatens, teases, taunts, trivializes, or “Thingifies” (being called a name that makes the victim feel like an object) their victim.
Sexual abuse is sexual behavior that crosses the victim’s boundaries without their permission.
Spiritual abuse includes putting down the victim’s spiritual beliefs and customs. It can also include using improper interpretation of spiritual doctrines to control the victim.
Stalking/Cyber abuse includes excessive following and repeated contacting, threatening the victim through a variety of means, or to monitor and harm the victim though computer technology.
Strangulation is the squeezing of the victim’s neck, which cuts off blood flow and oxygen from the brain, resulting in loss of consciousness or death within a few minutes.

Lamare, a mother of three, described how she was burned in January of 2013 by her boyfriend, Dexter Oliver, in San Francisco, when they were arguing whether or not they should leave her wash clothes at the laundromat. Oliver then ran home, got some gasoline, ran back to the laundromat, threw the gasoline on Lamare, then lit the gasoline and setting Lamare on fire, according to the news reports.

Oliver was soon arrested in Oakland and is still serving his 27 years prison term for attempted murder, along with a prior strike on his record.

Lamare says that life is hard for her, and she has her ups and downs. Still, as someone in the Paint & pointed out, that she is lucky to be alive, and that her children still have their mother to care for them.

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Activism

Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 17 – 23, 2024

Published

6 days ago

April 19, 2024

Oakland Post

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Activism

Oakland Schools Honor Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties

Every Jan. 30, OUSD commemorates the legacy of Fred Korematsu, an Oakland native, a Castlemont High School graduate, and a national symbol of resistance, resilience, and justice. His defiant stand against racial injustice and his unwavering commitment to civil rights continue to inspire the local community and the nation. Tuesday was “Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution” in the state of California and a growing number of states across the country.

Published

6 days ago

April 19, 2024

Oakland Post

Fred Korematsu. Courtesy of OUSD.

By Post Staff

Every Jan. 30, OUSD commemorates the legacy of Fred Korematsu, an Oakland native, a Castlemont High School graduate, and a national symbol of resistance, resilience, and justice.

His defiant stand against racial injustice and his unwavering commitment to civil rights continue to inspire the local community and the nation. Tuesday was “Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution” in the state of California and a growing number of states across the country.
One OUSD school is named in his honor: Fred T. Korematsu Discovery Academy (KDA) elementary in East Oakland.

Several years ago, founding KDA Principal Charles Wilson, in a video interview with anti-hate organization “Not In Our Town,” said, “We chose the name Fred Korematsu because we really felt like the attributes that he showed in his work are things that the children need to learn … that common people can stand up and make differences in a large number of people’s lives.”

Fred Korematsu was born in Oakland on Jan. 30, 1919. His parents ran a floral nursery business, and his upbringing in Oakland shaped his worldview. His belief in the importance of standing up for your rights and the rights of others, regardless of race or background, was the foundation for his activism against racial prejudice and for the rights of Japanese Americans during World War II.

At the start of the war, Korematsu was turned away from enlisting in the National Guard and the Coast Guard because of his race. He trained as a welder, working at the docks in Oakland, but was fired after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941. Fear and prejudice led to federal Executive Order 9066, which forced more than 120,000 Japanese Americans out of their homes and neighborhoods and into remote internment camps.

The 23-year-old Korematsu resisted the order. He underwent cosmetic surgery and assumed a false identity, choosing freedom over unjust imprisonment. His later arrest and conviction sparked a legal battle that would challenge the foundation of civil liberties in America.

Korematsu’s fight culminated in the Supreme Court’s initial ruling against him in 1944. He spent years in a Utah internment camp with his family, followed by time living in Salt Lake City where he was dogged by racism.

In 1976, President Gerald Ford overturned Executive Order 9066. Seven years later, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco vacated Korematsu’s conviction. He said in court, “I would like to see the government admit that they were wrong and do something about it so this will never happen again to any American citizen of any race, creed, or color.”

Korematsu’s dedication and determination established him as a national icon of civil rights and social justice. He advocated for justice with Rosa Parks. In 1998, President Bill Clinton gave him the Presidential Medal of Freedom saying, “In the long history of our country’s constant search for justice, some names of ordinary citizens stand for millions of souls … To that distinguished list, today we add the name of Fred Korematsu.”

After Sept. 11, 2001, Korematsu spoke out against hatred and discrimination, saying what happened to Japanese Americans should not happen to people of Middle Eastern descent.
Korematsu’s roots in Oakland and his education in OUSD are a source of great pride for the city, according to the school district. His most famous quote, which is on the Korematsu elementary school mural, is as relevant now as ever, “If you have the feeling that something is wrong, don’t be afraid to speak up.”

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Activism

WOMEN IMPACTING THE CHURCH AND COMMUNITY

Published

1 week ago

April 17, 2024

Oakland Post

Juanita Matthews

Sister Juanita Matthews

55 Years with Oakland Public School District

The Teacher, Mother, Community Outreach Champion, And Child of God

Juanita Matthews, better known as “Sister Teacher,” is a walking Bible scholar. She moved to California from the great state of Arkansas in 1971. Sister Teacher has a passion for teaching. She has been a member of Bible Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church since 1971. She followed her passion for teaching, and in 1977 became the lead teacher for Adult Class #6. Her motto still today is “Once My Student, Always My Student”.

Beyond her remarkable love for the Lord, Sister Teacher has showcased her love for teaching by working for the Oakland Unified School District for 55 years, all but four of those years spent at Emerson Elementary and Child Development School. She truly cares about her students, making sure they have the tools/supplies needed to learn either at OUSD or Bible Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church.

She’s also had a “Clothes Closet Ministry” for 51 years, making sure her students have sufficient clothing for school. The Clothes Closet Ministry extends past her students, she has been clothing the community for over 50 years as well. She loves the Lord and is a servant on a mission. She is a loving mother to two beautiful children, Sandra and Andre. This is the impact this woman of God has on her church and the community.