Bay Area
Once Again, Community Demands Reinstatement of OPD Chief LeRonne Armstrong
Armstrong says there’s a sense of fairness that should be considered due to his track record. “This is not a sport; this is a community in desperate need of public safety…This is a community that has been asking the police department to police the community differently, to build trust and that’s what I’ve been doing. So, any coach should see, based on my track record, I’ve done just that. This department is not the same department as it was 10-20 years ago, and it’s because of the recent leadership.”

By Carla Thomas
After its Sunday service, Acts Full Gospel Church of God in Christ hosted a press conference by the Oakland NAACP in their continued support of reinstating Oakland’s Chief of Police LeRonne Armstrong.
Armstrong was placed on administrative leave last month pending a report accusing him of not holding an Oakland officer accountable for misconduct. In the church’s Madeline Senegal fellowship meeting room, a dozen media outlets heard directly from Armstrong, the Oakland NAACP, and questions from community members.
Armstrong said that additional information from the federal monitor being reviewed by the mayor shows that the conclusions in the summary report leading to his suspension are inaccurate and lack evidentiary support.
“The situation defies common logic,” said Armstrong. “A policy that says the investigation should not be discussed with anyone in an investigation that determined the chief should have known by policy he had no right to know…There’s a reason why the Negotiated Settlement Agreement (NSA) has a clause that says that the IAD (Internal Affairs Division) cannot be located within the OPD. It is located in Frank Ogawa Plaza because an NSA mandates that there’s independence between the departments.”
Armstrong said, “I deserve to be in this position of chief of police, as someone born and raised in Oakland, raised in poverty. As someone who has struggled and come from poverty to make it to the chief of police…but to have someone tarnish my reputation, tarnish the beliefs of my family and friends in this community is unacceptable.”
Armstrong also expressed that he has brought OPD closer to the end of federal oversight than any other chief previously. The OPD has been under federal oversight for two decades since 2003, pending compliance with 52 reforms negotiated in a settlement agreement including racial profiling and reporting practices about the use of force.
The appointed federal monitor, Robert Warshaw, is paid $100,000 a month according to reports, which amounts to $1.2 million annually to oversee and ensure that the OPD remains compliant.
With just months away from the end of federal oversight, Armstrong’s supporters call into question placing Armstrong on leave and that the overall investigation may be a ploy to extend the oversight and allow Warshaw to remain on a lucrative payroll.
“I believe in holding officers accountable when the information is presented to me, but, in this case, that information was not brought to me, so I was not able to take the proper action. If I’d have had the information, I would have launched a full investigation,” said Armstrong.
Armstrong says there’s a sense of fairness that should be considered due to his track record. “This is not a sport; this is a community in desperate need of public safety…This is a community that has been asking the police department to police the community differently, to build trust and that’s what I’ve been doing. So, any coach should see, based on my track record, I’ve done just that. This department is not the same department as it was 10-20 years ago, and it’s because of the recent leadership.”
Armstrong says he’s worked toward building a department that polices professionally and constitutionally.
“I have worked hard to change the way the community views the department because when I was growing up, we didn’t like it: We hated it, and we feared it.”
Armstrong has served the police department his entire adult life, promoting volunteering, giving back and treating people with dignity and respect. As chief, he encouraged this culture and is proudest of reducing stops of African Americans by 65%.
“This is a huge deal because less Black people being touched by law enforcement lowers the risk of the violence we’ve seen across the country. And so, when you can minimize the opportunities for the interaction of law enforcement and African American men in particular, you can reduce the number of violent incidents. I believe we can focus on crime, but not over-police certain communities,” he said.
A church member said, “We have had way too many chiefs in the last decade that have been relieved of their duties, yet we have the same monitor who appears to have made a small fortune.”
Former Chief Assistant District Attorney of Alameda County Terry Wiley supports the chief and said he has known Armstrong for 30 years and characterized him as a “tremendous leader.
“He is a man of integrity, with a highly decorated career as a police officer,” said Wiley. “It says a lot when the African American, Asian and Hispanic community join forces as a collective to say that we want the chief reinstated because he did not do anything wrong. We don’t want to see his career tarnished and he does not deserve the treatment he is receiving. We are here to ask the mayor to reconsider her actions and reinstate the chief.”
“On behalf of the community, the Oakland NAACP, we are asking the mayor, again, again, and again to reinstate the chief,” said Oakland NAACP President Cynthia Adams. “The voters are also asking you, mayor. Listen to the voters, listen to your community; they are asking you to reinstate the chief. Bring the chief back to his duties. Please bring him back to where he needs to be in Oakland.”
A response from Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao has yet to be received.
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of November 22 – 28, 2023
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of November 22 – 28, 2023

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Oakland Post: Week of November 15 – 21, 2023
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of November 15 – 21, 2023

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Activism
School Board President Shuts Down Meeting Trying to Silence Gaza Ceasefire Protesters
Since the executive board of the Oakland Education Association originally took a stand to oppose genocide and call for a ceasefire, the union has been under intense criticism both from mainstream media and an Oakland parents’ group, which has been encouraging teachers to quit the union.

By Ken Epstein
Several hundred people, including teachers, school staff, students, parents, and community activists, showed up at the Oakland Unified School District board meeting Wednesday night, most of them calling on the board to pass a resolution to support an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and end the killing of civilians, when school board President Mike Hutchinson refused to let them speak and abruptly shut down the meeting as they demanded to be heard.
At the start of the meeting, Hutchinson announced that a resolution proposed by Board member Valarie Bachelor, “Calling for a Ceasefire and Release of Hostages in Israel and Palestine,” would not be discussed that evening and that there was no place anywhere on the agenda where attendees would be allowed to speak on the issue.
However, there was a moment of confusion when the parliamentarian, speaking over Hutchinson’s objections, explained that there was one 30-minute period for people to discuss nonagenda items.
A chorus of boos filled the auditorium as Hutchinson attempted to move on. He quickly suspended the meeting, and he and several other board members left the room, though some board members remained.
One young woman shouted at Hutchinson. “You’re having a tantrum, and we’re talking about genocide.”
People crowded around a bullhorn at the front of the room, and attendees held their own meeting.
“You are on the right side of history – we’ll be back,” said a youth soccer coach, Maria Martinez.
A young woman named Lulwa said, ‘I believe we all deserve our land, we all deserve our freedom, and we all deserve not to have our children bombed. The media is lying to us, and social media is bringing us together.”
Lulwa explained that she has been living in the U.S. and Oakland since the age of 9. “I was taken in by the community in Oakland, and I was loved.”
Board member Bachelor was cheered as she spoke on the bullhorn, supporting the people of Palestine and the people of Israel.
“We have to stop killing children, we have to stop bombing hospitals, we have to stop killing UN workers; we have to stop the killing,” she said. “We are a global community. The fight continues.”
A woman who identified herself as a Jewish Oakland teacher said, “The school board does not speak for the teachers, Monday night, we (teachers) passed a very strong resolution demanding an end to the genocide in Gaza and an end to U.S. funding (for the war).
An Oakland man named Izzy said, “What did the school board do today? They walked out on our kids…. There’s nobody to blame but Mike Hutchinson.”
Jabari Shaw said that African Americans stand in solidarity with Palestine. “We know how it is to not be recognized as human beings,” he said.
Since the executive board of the Oakland Education Association originally took a stand to oppose genocide and call for a ceasefire, the union has been under intense criticism both from mainstream media and an Oakland parents’ group, which has been encouraging teachers to quit the union.
However, on Monday evening, union delegates from the Oakland schools upheld a strong position, voting 66 to 31 in favor of a ceasefire.
Hutchinson and board member Sam Davis, joined by school board candidate Jorge Lerma, have been working with the parent group in opposition to the teachers’ union.
But another group of parents and community members supporting the teachers’ union’s stance just started a petition in the last couple of days and has already received over 300 signatures.
“As Oakland parents, caregivers, and community members, we are committed to the safety and well-being of all of our children,” the petition said. “We are writing to express our solidarity with the families of Palestine and to express support for district leaders and the OEA for standing in solidarity with the people of Palestine.”
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