Activism

Rebecca Kaplan Announces Run for Alameda County Board of Supervisors

Oakland City Councilmember-At-Large, Rebecca Kaplan has advanced important region-leading innovative projects, such as the civilian crisis responder program (known as MACRO), new zero-emission hydrogen fuel cell trucks to reduce dangerous air pollution, expanded bicycle, pedestrian, and transit access, improving access to COVID vaccination and support, improving equity and economic opportunity in development, and expanding solutions for homelessness, including use of hotels and housing on public land.

Published

2 years ago

February 21, 2022

Oakland Post

Rebecca has been representing all of Oakland and was unanimously chosen as Oakland’s Vice Mayor by her colleagues.

On Tuesday, Oakland City Councilmember-At-Large, Rebecca Kaplan announced her run for Alameda County Board of Supervisors District 3.

Rebecca has been representing all of Oakland and was unanimously chosen as Oakland’s Vice Mayor by her colleagues.

Prior to that, she represented the East Bay region as an elected AC Transit director, as a Board member on the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, as a housing rights attorney, and State legislative aide.

She has advanced important region-leading innovative projects, such as the civilian crisis responder program (known as MACRO), new zero-emission hydrogen fuel cell trucks to reduce dangerous air pollution, expanded bicycle, pedestrian, and transit access, improving access to COVID vaccination and support, improving equity and economic opportunity in development, and expanding solutions for homelessness, including use of hotels and housing on public land.

Kaplan looks to continue to build and expand on actions to improve community health, protect and strengthen our public hospitals, transportation connectivity, environmental justice, and expand affordable housing and cut homelessness, and grow economic opportunity for our community.

Serving on the Alameda County Board of Supervisors could provide a vital opportunity to build a healthier and more vibrant future for our community.

These experiences helped Kaplan make the decision to run for Alameda County’s Board of Supervisors District 3, which includes much of Oakland, along with Alameda, San Leandro and San Lorenzo. If elected, Rebecca Kaplan would become the first ever openly-LGBT Supervisor in Alameda County and would be the only woman now on the Board.

She would bring experience and dedication, working for environmental justice and clean air, housing for all and innovative homeless solutions, and community safety, along with her track record of effective regional leadership, coalition-building, and interagency coordination.

Kaplan also brings her education and training, including a bachelor’s degree from MIT, a master’s in Urban and Environmental Policy (Tufts University) and J.D. from Stanford Law School.

“The County governs major issues and controls substantial funding, including for social services, homelessness, public health and hospitals, and other vital community needs,” said a Kaplan. “The County also owns significant properties which could provide an opportunity to expand housing for all and other community revitalization.

“In addition, the County Supervisors get to serve on important regional boards controlling considerable resources, and impacting people’s lives, including the Alameda County Transportation Commission (ACTC), the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC), Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD), and more. I would be honored to serve the public in these important ways, and to work to build stronger communities together.”

Some of the important projects Kaplan initiated in Oakland could also be strengthened through countywide coordination and support, such as the innovative civilian responder program, known as MACRO, which provides trained civilians, in the fire department, to respond to non-violent 911 calls for service, such as mental health and related issues.

This program has been widely recognized as an important step to save money and save lives and has received tens of millions of dollars in State funding. She has helped usher forward important community revitalization, affordable housing, and jobs programs, including through the use of public lands which also could be expanded. Kaplan worked together with County, State and Federal leaders to provide large scale COVID vaccination projects and community sites, and other supports, and would be dedicated to making sure the County expands on these efforts, as well as supporting work to provide improved access to healthy food, clean air, quality jobs, and more.

For more information, please visit Rebecca Kaplan’s website at https://www.supervisorkaplan.org/

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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

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.

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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

7 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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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.