Bay Area

Remembering Housing Activist Lillian Love

Published

6 years ago

March 5, 2020

Lillian Q. Love interviewed for television in Oak Village, August 23, 1967. Source: Oakland Redevelopment Agency Photography Collection at the Oakland Public Library. The photo is thought to have been taken by Oakland Redevelopment Association photographer Harry Wade, and was printed in “Imagining a Past Future” an article by Moriah Ulinskas, published in Places Journal on Jan. 2019.

If you take a stroll through West Oakland along 10th Street, the differences you will notice looking south into the Acorn neighborhood, and looking north into the Oak Center neighborhood are striking.

Acorn’s housing is high density and mostly small homes that look similar to one another. Oak Center’s housing is colorful with high ceilings, different from home to home, and intricate in design.

The reason for the differences? The City of Oakland allowed developers to demolish almost the entire Acorn neighborhood in 1962 to execute the first phase of The General Urban Renewal Plan (GURP). As the city geared up to execute the second phase of the plan, which would have originally meant the almost total destruction of homes in Oak Center, many of which were constructed early in the 20th century, it was met with stubborn organized opposition that changed the city’s plans.

The leader of this opposition was a Black woman named Lillian Q Love, and the old Victorian homes in Oak Center were mostly rehabilitated instead of demolished.
“There is no discussion about West Oakland and its history without the name Lillian Love. There has never been a person who has been more influential in preserving the neighborhood and character of Oak Center,” said Henry Gardner, who moved to Oakland in 1971 and has previously served as Oakland’s city manager.

Love felt that homes in West Oakland needed aid, but was against the manner in which the city worked with Acorn, simply demolishing homes there instead of working to fix them. While a World War II and post-WWII migration caused the Black population of Oakland to quintuple between 1940 and 1950, discriminatory lending practices and racist zoning laws confined Blacks during that time mostly to West Oakland. But the population was far too large for the housing available, and the overcrowding was a cause for many of the area’s old homes to fall into disrepair.

“The City did more to destroy West Oakland than anyone else,” said Gardner, of the time.
Born in Texas on April 3, 1912, Love moved to Oakland as a child, and graduated from The University of California, Berkeley, probably at some point in the 1930s. She claims her organizing was inspired by her father, William E. Meneweather, who unsuccessfully fought the city over constructing public housing that displaced his family in 1938.

In 1963, Love formed The Oak Center Neighborhood Association (OCNA), an organization that pushed the city to provide housing rehabilitation funding in place of destruction and redevelopment. The OCNA then accused Thomas Bell, the first director of The Oakland Redevelopment Agency (ORA), of purposely misleading the public on GURP. Bell faced pressure to resign by the federal Urban Renewal Administration and did so in 1964, but there’s evidence that pressure from the OCNA also caused Bell’s resignation.

“He said he was with us for preservation but in his actions he was for clearance,” said Constantine Lekas, the OCNA’s original vice president, in a 1981 interview. In the same interview, Lekas claims that OCNA was able to get Bell fired, and describes his leaving the position as “a turning point.”

While Love worked almost entirely with other Black people, it’s noteworthy that some of her organizing crossed racial lines. Lekas was an immigrant from Greece.

After Bell resigned, John B. Williams became the ORA’s new director. In 1966, Love was named a commissioner for the ORA. Williams also allotted a grant to the OCNA in 1966 in the amount of $15 million for housing rehabilitation, which is about $120 million in today’s dollars when adjusted for inflation.

Williams enforced minority training and hiring policies, which required the ORA to hire and award contracts to far more non-white people than they had previously.
Love died on Feb.21, 1987, at the age of 74. Henry Gardner, who saw her speak regularly at City Hall and admired her, said she kept up her housing activism long after the Oak Center fight had ended.

“She understood the issues upside-down. And she was active until her last breath,” said Gardner.

The Oakland Post thanks Moriah Ulinskas, who provided biographical information for this article that will soon be added to the biography cards in the Oakland History Room at The Oakland Library.

Zack Haber

Posts by Zack Haber

Related Topics:Acorn neighborhood Lillian Love Lillian Q Love Oak Center Zack Haber

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Activism

Big God Ministry Gives Away Toys in Marin City

Pastor Hall also gave a message of encouragement to the crowd, thanking Jesus for the “best year of their lives.” He asked each of the children what they wanted to be when they grow up.

Published

3 days ago

December 29, 2025

Oakland Post

From top left: Pastor David Hall asking the children what they want to be when they grow up. Worship team Jake Monaghan, Ruby Friedman, and Keri Carpenter. Children lining up to receive their presents. Photos by Godfrey Lee.

By Godfrey Lee

Big God Ministries, pastored by David Hall, gave toys to the children in Marin City on Monday, Dec. 15, on the lawn near the corner of Drake Avenue and Donahue Street.

Pastor Hall also gave a message of encouragement to the crowd, thanking Jesus for the “best year of their lives.” He asked each of the children what they wanted to be when they grew up.

Around 75 parents and children were there to receive the presents, which consisted mainly of Gideon Bibles, Cat in the Hat pillows, Barbie dolls, Tonka trucks, and Lego building sets.

A half dozen volunteers from the Big God Ministry, including Donnie Roary, helped to set up the tables for the toy giveaway. The worship music was sung by Ruby Friedman, Keri Carpenter, and Jake Monaghan, who also played the accordion.

Big God Ministries meets on Sundays at 10 a.m. at the Mill Valley Community Center, 180 Camino Alto, Mill Valley, CA Their phone number is (415) 797-2567.

Oakland Post

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Activism

First 5 Alameda County Distributes Over $8 Million in First Wave of Critical Relief Funds for Historically Underpaid Caregivers

“Family, Friend, and Neighbor caregivers are lifelines for so many children and families in Alameda County,” said Kristin Spanos, CEO, First 5 Alameda County. “Yet, they often go unrecognized and undercompensated for their labor and ability to give individualized, culturally connected care. At First 5, we support the conditions that allow families to thrive, and getting this money into the hands of these caregivers and families at a time of heightened financial stress for parents is part of that commitment.”

Published

3 days ago

December 29, 2025

Oakland Post

Costco. Courtesy image.

Family, Friend, and Neighbor Caregivers Can Now Opt Into $4,000 Grants to Help Bolster Economic Stability and Strengthen Early Learning Experiences

By Post Staff

Today, First 5 Alameda County announced the distribution of $4,000 relief grants to more than 2,000 Family, Friend, and Neighbor (FFN) caregivers, totaling over $8 million in the first round of funding. Over the full course of the funding initiative, First 5 Alameda County anticipates supporting over 3,000 FFN caregivers, who collectively care for an estimated 5,200 children across Alameda County. These grants are only a portion of the estimated $190 million being invested into expanding our early childcare system through direct caregiver relief to upcoming facilities, shelter, and long-term sustainability investments for providers fromMeasure C in its first year. This investment builds on the early rollout of Measure C and reflects a comprehensive, system-wide strategy to strengthen Alameda County’s early childhood ecosystem so families can rely on sustainable, accessible care,

These important caregivers provide child care in Alameda County to their relatives, friends, and neighbors. While public benefits continue to decrease for families, and inflation and the cost of living continue to rise, these grants provide direct economic support for FFN caregivers, whose wages have historically been very low or nonexistent, and very few of whom receive benefits. As families continue to face growing financial pressures, especially during the winter and holiday season, these grants will help these caregivers with living expenses such as rent, utilities, supplies, and food.

The funding for these relief grants comes from Measure C, a local voter-approved sales tax in Alameda County that invests in young children, their families, communities, providers, and caregivers. Within the first year of First 5’s 5-Year Plan for Measure C, in addition to the relief grants to informal FFN caregivers, other significant investments will benefit licensed child care providers. These investments include over $40 million in Early Care and Education (ECE) Emergency Grants, which have already flowed to nearly 800 center-based and family child care providers. As part of First 5’s 5-Year Plan, preparations are also underway to distribute facilities grants early next year for child care providers who need to make urgent repairs or improvements, and to launch the Emergency Revolving Fund in Spring 2026 to support licensed child care providers in Alameda County who are at risk of closure.

The FFN Relief Grants recognize and support the essential work that an estimated 3,000 FFN caregivers provide to 5,200 children in Alameda County. There is still an opportunity to receive funds for FFN caregivers who have not yet received them.

In partnership with First 5 Alameda County, Child Care Payment Agencies play a critical role in identifying eligible caregivers and leading coordinated outreach efforts to ensure FFN caregivers are informed of and able to access these relief funds.FFN caregivers are eligible for the grant if they receive a child care payment from an Alameda County Child Care Payment Agency, 4Cs of Alameda County, BANANAS, Hively, and Davis Street, and are currently caring for a child 12 years old or younger in Alameda County. Additionally, FFN caregivers who provided care for a child 12 years or younger at any time since April 1, 2025, but are no longer doing so, are also eligible for the funds. Eligible caregivers are being contacted by their Child Care Payment Agency on a rolling basis, beginning with those who provided care between April and July 2025.

“This money is coming to me at a critical time of heightened economic strain,” said Jill Morton, a caregiver in Oakland, California. “Since I am a non-licensed childcare provider, I didn’t think I was eligible for this financial support. I was relieved that this money can help pay my rent, purchase learning materials for the children as well as enhance childcare, buy groceries and take care of grandchildren.”

Eligible FFN caregivers who provided care at any time between April 1, 2025 and July 31, 2025, who haven’t yet opted into the process, are encouraged to check their mail and email for an eligibility letter. Those who have cared for a child after this period should expect to receive communications from their child care payment agency in the coming months. FFN caregivers with questions may also contact the agency they work with to receive child care payments, or the First 5 Alameda help desk, Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. PST, at 510-227-6964. The help desk will be closed 12/25/25 – 1/1/26. Additional grant payments will be made on a rolling basis as opt-ins are received by the four child care payment agencies in Alameda County.

Beginning in the second year of Measure C implementation, FFN caregivers who care for a child from birth to age five and receive an Alameda County subsidized voucher will get an additional $500 per month. This amounts to an annual increase of about $6,000 per child receiving a subsidy. Together with more Measure C funding expected to flow back into the community as part of First 5’s 5-Year Plan, investments will continue to become available in the coming year for addressing the needs of childcare providers in Alameda County.

About First 5 Alameda County

First 5 Alameda County builds the local childhood systems and supports needed to ensure our county’s youngest children are safe, healthy, and ready to succeed in school and life.

Our Mission

In partnership with the community, we support a county-wide continuous prevention and early intervention system that promotes optimal health and development, narrows disparities, and improves the lives of children from birth to age five and their families.

Our Vision

Every child in Alameda County will have optimal health, development, and well-being to reach their greatest potential.

Learn more at www.first5alameda.org.