Activism

How to Help Black Organizing Project’s Fight to Remove Police from OUSD

Published

6 years ago

June 10, 2020

BOP Director of Organizing, Jessica Black (front), and BOP member leader Desiree Mims (back) at a protest outside of school board member Jumoke Hinton Hodge's home in West Oakland on Fri., June 5. Photo by Ryan Sin, courtesy of BOP.

Black Organizing Project (BOP) could reach a goal on June 24 that they have worked toward since 2011: eliminating school police in Oakland’s Unified School District (OUSD), the only district in Alameda County with its own police force.

They are calling on Oakland residents to help them in their final push.

“What is it going to take for this school district to realize the murders [by police] that we are witnessing of our people in the streets are the same police who are in the schools?” asked BOP Director of organizing, Jessica Black, speaking to uproarious cheers from a crowd of around 8,000 at an Oakland protest against policing and a city and county imposed a curfew on June 3.

Black then said just three months earlier, on March 3, Oakland’s school board rejected a measure by one vote that would have drastically cut Oakland Schools Police Department’s (OSPD) budget.

Board members Amy Eng, Shanti Gonzales, and Roseann Torres voted to approve the measure, but Gary Yee, James Harris, Jody London and Jumoke Hinton Hodge voted against it.

Since police officer Derek Chauvin’s killing of George Floyd sparked protests, riots, and rebellions in Minneapolis which brought defunding and even dismantling police forces into the mainstream national conversation, BOP’s mission has found much wider, louder support.

The Oakland Education Association, Asians for Black Lives, Oakland Not for Sale, the Anti-Police Terror Project, Gender and Sexualities Alliance Network, Critical Resistance, Oakland Public Education Network and many Oakland residents, especially teachers, counselors and social workers, have been vocal in their support of BOP’s mission lately.

BOP is now calling on Oaklanders to call, e-mail, and write letters to school board members, especially the four who voted against the previous measure and OUSD Superintendent Kyla Johnson-Trammell, before the final school board meeting on June 24 to demand that they approve a new, more radical measure submitted by Torres and Gonzales called George Floyd Resolution to Eliminate OSPD.

“We can’t let off pressure,” said BOP Executive Director Jackie Byers. “We need those votes. And then on the 24th…[we need people] to get on the Zoom meeting, make public comments or speak to the agenda item.”

Readers can also submit comments during the school board meeting today, June 10.

Torres, who co-wrote the resolution, suggests people should sign up at 5:30 p.m. for public comment and then can watch the meeting or log off till 7:30 p.m. when comments can be heard.

Courtesy of Oakland Education Association.

She says readers can sign up again at 5:30 p.m. on June 24 to speak at 7:30 p.m. for public comment, but they will also have the ability to speak directly to the agenda item that night.

It is unclear at this point when that agenda item will come up, but readers can link with BOP’s Facebook, Twitter or Instagram accounts for the latest info on how to help.

The bill would eliminate OSPD, removing police officers entirely from Oakland schools. It would be the culmination of a nearly decade-long battle that was sparked by the killing of Raheim Brown, Jr. on Jan 22, 2011, by OSPD Sgt. Barhim Bhatt outside of a school dance at Skyline High School. Bhatt claimed he shot Brown five times because Brown attacked another sergeant at the scene, Johnathan Bellusa, with a screwdriver. But Bellusa later claimed Bhatt may have fired unnecessarily and that OUSD prevented a proper investigation.

OSPD’s website lists that it has around 20 police officers and around 120 school security officers (SSO) but BOP says due to cuts in recent years, that number is now around 10 police officers and 60 SSOs.

All of these employees serve under Police Chief Jeff Godown, an officer who served in Los Angeles during the Rodney King riots.

SSOs have some documented history of use-of-force on minors.

In 2014, there were two separate incidents caught on camera. At Oakland High School an SSO punched a student four times who uses a wheelchair and has cerebral palsy after an altercation over the student possibly skipping class. The SSO was later convicted on one felony count of assault.

SSO officers in Fremont High School put another 15-year-old student in a chokehold, dragged him, and exchanged punches with him.

But BOP says overt acts of violence are not the only threat to students that police systems in schools pose.

Black students, especially, experience more subtle forms of damage from the punitive system that police-based models foster. While suspension rates for Black students have fallen in recent years, they still get suspended at a rate about three times higher than non-Black students.

“Black students aren’t seen in the way that white children are,” said Byers. “They’re seen as a threat from a very early age.”

Byers said the very presence of police brings trauma to Black students.

“Our students don’t feel safe when they’re around law enforcement in the way white students might feel safe,’ she said. “[They’re] constantly barraged with a reality and imagery of law enforcement murdering Black people, including young people…those images are in the psyche of Black students.”

Byers also said many Black students who live in public housing and use public transportation more often than white students are forced to interact with law enforcement constantly, as both BART and the public housing authority have their own police force.

When police are in schools as well, it becomes yet another site of trauma.

Jasmine Williams, BOP’s communications manager, said eliminating OSPD would mean eliminating all police officers and the school police chief. Funding from those cuts could be used “for hiring additional school-based counseling/mental/behavior health staff,” according to BOP’s People’s Plan for Police Free Schools.

“Counselors and therapists won’t have to rely on security to react to adolescent behavior,” said Williams.

SSOs would be retrained and transformed into peacekeepers, or school climate specialists. They would no longer wear uniforms. They have never been armed and they would continue not to be armed.

Williams said she’s heard reports from principals, teachers and students that some current SSOs have positive relationships with students and act as mentions. But the structure is not in place to encourage those relationships in a widespread way.

“If you say these people can act as mentors let’s support that and not create a punitive model,” said Williams.

Zack Haber

Posts by Zack Haber

Up Next

COMMENTARY: Framing the Moment

Don't Miss

Black Rage is Justified – Statement from the Brotherhood of Elders Network

Zack Haber

Click to comment

Activism

Ann Lowe: The Quiet Genius of American Couture

Lowe was born in Clayton, Alabama, into a family of gifted seamstresses. Her mother and grandmother were well-known dressmakers who created exquisite gowns for women in the area. By the time Lowe was a young girl, she was already showing extraordinary talent — cutting, sewing, and decorating fabric with a skill that far exceeded her age. When her mother died unexpectedly, Lowe – only 16 years old then – took over her mother’s sewing business, completing all the orders herself.

Published

4 days ago

December 14, 2025

Oakland Post

Photo courtesy of National Archives.

By Tamara Shiloh

Ann Cole Lowe, born Dec.14, 1898, was a pioneering American fashion designer whose extraordinary talent shaped some of the most widely recognized and celebrated gowns in U.S. history.

Although she designed dresses for society’s wealthiest families and created masterpieces worn at historic events, Lowe spent much of her life in the shadows — uncredited, underpaid, yet unmatched in skill. Today, she is celebrated as one of the first nationally recognized African American fashion designers and a true visionary in American couture.

In 1917, Lowe moved to New York City to study at the S.T. Taylor Design School. Although she was segregated from White students and forced to work separately, she, of course, excelled, graduating earlier than expected. Her instructors quickly recognized that her abilities were far above the typical student, especially her skill in hand-sewing, applique, and intricate floral embellishment – techniques that would become her signature.

Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, she designed gowns for high-society women in Florida and New York, operating boutiques and working for prestigious department stores. Her reputation for craftsmanship, originality, and elegance grew increasingly. She was known for creating gowns that moved beautifully, featured delicate hand-made flowers, and looked sculpted rather than sewn. Many wealthy clients specifically requested “an Ann Lowe gown” for weddings, balls, and galas.

Her most famous creation came in 1953: the wedding gown worn by Jacqueline Bouvier when she married Massachusetts Sen. John F. Kennedy. The dress – crafted from ivory silk taffeta with dozens of tiny, pleated rosettes – became one of the most photographed bridal gowns in American history. Despite this achievement, Lowe received no public credit at the time. When a flood destroyed her completed gowns 10 days before the wedding, she and her seamstresses worked day and night to remake everything – at her own expense. Her dedication and perfectionism never wavered.

She eventually opened “Ann Lowe Originals,” her own salon on New York’s Madison Avenue. She served clients such as the Rockefellers, DuPonts, Vanderbilts, and actresses like Olivia de Havilland. Yet even with her wealthy clientele, she struggled financially, often undercharging because she wanted every dress to be perfect, even if it meant losing money.

Lowe’s contributions were finally recognized later in life. Today, her exquisite gowns are preserved in museums, including the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

In the last five years of her life, Lowe lived with her daughter Ruth in Queens, N.Y. She died at her daughter’s home on Feb. 25, 1981, at the age of 82, after an extended illness.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Activism

2025 in Review: Seven Questions for Black Women’s Think Tank Founder Kellie Todd Griffin

As the president and CEO of the California Black Women’s Collective Empowerment Institute, Griffin is on a mission to shift the narrative and outcomes for Black women and girls. She founded the nation’s first Black Women’s Think Tank, securing $5 million in state funding to fuel policy change.

Published

4 days ago

December 14, 2025

Oakland Post

Kellie Todd Griffin. CBM file photo.

By Edward Henderson
California Black Media

With more than 25 years of experience spanning public affairs, community engagement, strategy, marketing, and communications, Kellie Todd Griffin is recognized across California as a leader who mobilizes people and policy around issues that matter.

Griffin spoke with California Black Media (CBM) about her successes and setbacks in 2025 and her hopes for 2026.

Looking back at 2025, what stands out to you as your most important achievement and why? 

Our greatest achievement in this year is we got an opportunity to honor the work of 35 Black women throughout California who are trailblazing the way for the next generation of leaders.

How did your leadership, efforts and investments as president and CEO California Black Women’s Collective Empowerment Institute contribute to improving the lives of Black Californians? 

We’re training the next leaders. We have been able to train 35 women over a two-year period, and we’re about to start a new cohort of another 30 women. We also have trained over 500 middle and high school girls in leadership, advocacy, and financial literacy.

What frustrated you the most over the last year?

Getting the question, “why.” Why advocate for Black women? Why invest in Black people, Black communities? It’s always constantly having to explain that, although we are aware that there are other populations that are in great need, the quality-of-life indices for Black Californians continue to decrease. Our life expectancies are decreasing. Our unhoused population is increasing. Our health outcomes remain the worst.

We’re not asking anyone to choose one group to prioritize. We are saying, though, in addition to your investments into our immigrant brothers and sisters – or our religious brothers and sisters – we are also asking you to uplift the needs of Black Californians. That way, all of us can move forward together.

What inspired you the most over the last year?

I’ve always been amazed by the joy of Black women in the midst of crisis.

That is really our secret sauce. We don’t let the current state of any issue take our joy from us. It may break us a little bit. We may get tired a little bit. But we find ways to express that – through the arts, through music, through poetry.

What is one lesson you learned in 2025 that will inform your decision-making next year?

Reset. It’s so important not to be sitting still. We have a new administration. We’re seeing data showing that Black women have the largest unemployment rate. We’ve lost so many jobs. We can have rest – we can be restful – but we have to continue the resistance.

In one word, what is the biggest challenge Black Californians faced in 2025?

Motivation.

I choose motivation because of the tiredness. What is going to motivate us to be involved in 2026?

What is the goal you want to achieve most in 2026?

I want to get Black Californians in spaces and places of power and influence – as well as opportunities to thrive economically, socially, and physically.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Activism

BRIDGE Housing President and CEO Ken Lombard Scores Top Honors for Affordable Housing Leadership

The Development Company of the Year honor represents a milestone for BRIDGE Housing, which received the Gold award—its top designation—in a category that included both affordable and market-rate developers. The recognition caps what has been one of the strongest growth periods in the organization’s 42-year history.

Published

5 days ago

December 14, 2025

Oakland Post

BRIDGE Housing President and CEO Ken Lombard. Courtesy of BRIDGE Housing.

By the Oakland Post Staff

San Francisco-based BRIDGE Housing and its president and CEO, Ken Lombard, have been named among the nation’s housing industry standouts, earning two of the top prizes at the 2025 Multi-Housing News Excellence Awards.

BRIDGE Housing was named Development Company of the Year, while Lombard received Executive of the Year, recognition that places the nonprofit affordable housing provider alongside leading national developers of both affordable and market-rate housing.

The awards were announced in New York for the accomplishments achieved during 2024.

Multi-Housing News is one of the industry’s most respected publications. Award winners are selected by a panel of housing professionals, including multifamily developers, architects, and owners.

“BRIDGE Housing is deeply honored to be recognized by Multi-Housing News and our industry peers,” Lombard said. “These awards are a testament to the high-impact, mission-driven work by BRIDGE’s exceptional team to deliver quality affordable housing and support services that empower residents to improve their lives.”

In 2024, BRIDGE significantly expanded its footprint across California, Oregon, and Washington. That momentum continued into 2025, with portfolio growth of 9%, including the addition of nine new communities and 1,187 new or acquired affordable housing units. The nonprofit also added three new projects to its development pipeline as it nears a portfolio of 16,000 units.

The growth reflects a broader strategy aimed at accelerating both acquisitions and ground-up development, supported by partnerships with major financial institutions and innovative capital markets strategies. BRIDGE has also emphasized high-quality design and deep community engagement as central elements of its approach.

BRIDGE became the first affordable housing developer to issue tax-exempt construction bonds for one of the largest affordable housing projects in Portland, Ore., leveraging its strong credit rating.

Earlier this year, the nonprofit launched the BRIDGE Housing Impact Fund, with a goal of investing $1 billion to preserve and create affordable housing. It also closed on $175 million in taxable general-obligation bonds after increasing the offering in response to strong investor demand.

The company’s performance also underscores the role of Lombard, who has led BRIDGE since 2021 and was honored individually for his leadership.

Under Lombard’s tenure, BRIDGE has built a new leadership team with experience drawn from both the nonprofit and private sectors, with a particular focus on what the organization describes as efforts to “break the status quo,” especially in affordable housing finance. Those initiatives have helped reduce capital and construction costs, strengthen relationships with institutional investors, and expand resident support services.

Today, BRIDGE Housing serves more than 33,000 residents across 139 communities on the West Coast.

“Ken has dedicated his career to innovative real estate solutions that improve the quality of life in underserved neighborhoods,” said Kenneth Novack, chair of BRIDGE Housing’s board of directors. “His visionary leadership and the work of our incredible team have positioned BRIDGE for long-term growth that will extend our impact throughout the West Coast.”

Founded in 1983, BRIDGE Housing has helped create more than 23,000 affordable homes with a total development cost of $6 billion.