Community

John Burris Receives Civil Rights Award from Legislative Black Caucus

Published

7 years ago

January 24, 2017

By David Greenwald, Davis Vanguard

The California Legislative Black Caucus held it annual Martin Luther King Breakfast last Thursday to honor the legacy of Dr. King and the relentless commitment to community service in the Black community.

Among the honorees was Attorney John Burris, who received the Civil Rights Leadership Award.

“Prominent Bay Area Civil Rights Attorney John Burris is best known for handling high profile cases,” the emcee for the event explained. Burris is author of the book, “Blue versus Black: Let’s End the Conflict Between Cops and Minorities.”

Burris was awarded by Assemblymember Reggie Jones-Sawyer and Senator Holly Mitchell.

“Given Mr. Burris’ stellar 40 plus year career in the legal field, and how relevant he is to our community, my assembly brother, and I decided we would yield our time to Mr. Burris himself to say a few words,” said Senator Mitchell.

Burris said, “I’m very fortunate to be involved in a social movement in a progressive way on police issues.” “But I’m also now extremely worried about where we are. The Justice Department under Obama did tremendous work in bringing forth issues of patterns of practice in various cities.

“Yesterday, watching Jeff Sessions, perhaps the new attorney general, I became very worried that those kinds of matters will not be brought forward,” he said.

He is concerned that those like himself who are working and fighting against issues of police brutality and racial profiling will have an uphill struggle. “People who have mental health issues are being shot and killed, it’s unconscionable,” he said. “The use of deadly force in ways that we all know with unarmed African American men are being shot and killed under very questionable circumstances.

“We have a case here in Sacramento that I’ve been working on for the last several months,” he said. “All I can say is that there is work to be done.

“As I listen and think about Dr. King, who said we need to keep grinding through difficult times,” he said. “There’s always been difficult times. I think often about my parents and grandparents who all had difficult times in the South, but they overcame. And we can as well.”

He said, with the leadership in California, “I know at the very least, regardless of the state does, in California, we have the kind of leadership that will move forward and maintain the gains that we have made and make even more progressive gains in the times ahead. I will be part of that gain as we continue to work.”

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Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

Published

15 hours ago

April 26, 2024

Oakland Post

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Alameda County

DA Pamela Price Stands by Mom Who Lost Son to Gun Violence in Oakland

Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018.

Published

4 days ago

April 22, 2024

Oakland Post

District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones

Publisher’s note: Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018. The photo was too small for readers to see where the women were and what they were doing. Here we show Price and Jones as they complete a walk in memory of Scott. For more information and to contribute, please contact Carol Jones at 510-978-5517 at morefoundation.help@gmail.com. Courtesy photo.

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City Government

Vallejo Welcomes Interim City Manager Beverli Marshall

At Tuesday night’s Council meeting, the Vallejo City Council appointed Beverli Marshall as the interim city manager. Her tenure in the City Manager’s Office began today, Wednesday, April 10. Mayor Robert McConnell praised Marshall’s extensive background, noting her “wide breadth of experience in many areas that will assist the City and its citizens in understanding the complexity of the many issues that must be solved” in Vallejo.

Published

4 days ago

April 22, 2024

Oakland Post

Beverli Marshall began her first day with the City on April 10. ICMA image.

Special to The Post

At Tuesday night’s Council meeting, the Vallejo City Council appointed Beverli Marshall as the interim city manager. Her tenure in the City Manager’s Office began today, Wednesday, April 10.

Mayor Robert McConnell praised Marshall’s extensive background, noting her “wide breadth of experience in many areas that will assist the City and its citizens in understanding the complexity of the many issues that must be solved” in Vallejo.

Current City Manager Michael Malone, whose official departure is slated for April 18, expressed his well wishes. “I wish the City of Vallejo and Interim City Manager Marshall all the best in moving forward on the progress we’ve made to improve service to residents.” Malone expressed his hope that the staff and Council will work closely with ICM Marshall to “ensure success and prosperity for the City.”

According to the Vallejo Sun, Malone stepped into the role of interim city manager in 2021 and became permanent in 2022. Previously, Malone served as the city’s water director and decided to retire from city service e at the end of his contract which is April 18.

“I hope the excellent work of City staff will continue for years to come in Vallejo,” he said. “However, recent developments have led me to this decision to announce my retirement.”

When Malone was appointed, Vallejo was awash in scandals involving the housing division and the police department. A third of the city’s jobs went unfilled during most of his tenure, making for a rocky road for getting things done, the Vallejo Sun reported.

At last night’s council meeting, McConnell explained the selection process, highlighting the council’s confidence in achieving positive outcomes through a collaborative effort, and said this afternoon, “The Council is confident that by working closely together, positive results will be obtained.”

While the search for a permanent city manager is ongoing, an announcement is expected in the coming months.

On behalf of the City Council, Mayor McConnell extended gratitude to the staff, citizen groups, and recruitment firm.

“The Council wishes to thank the staff, the citizens’ group, and the recruitment firm for their diligent work and careful consideration for the selection of what is possibly the most important decision a Council can make on behalf of the betterment of our City,” McConnell said.

The Vallejo Sun contributed to this report.