Bay Area
Schaaf Seeks Retraction from Post Over School Closing Remarks
In a KQED interview, Mayor Libby Schaaf supported the proposed closing of 15 schools as an “opportunity” and even went father. “This is not just some painful but necessary budget cut,” she said. “I really feel for parents, students, teachers. We have been through so much trauma, and they have every right to feel distrustful and fearful about this decision. But I believe that it is different this time.
![Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf. Oakland.ca.org photo.](https://www.postnewsgroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/libby-schaaf-featured-web.jpg)
By Ken Epstein
The Office of Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf has demanded a retraction from Oakland Post, saying the newspaper was incorrect to characterize Schaaf as a supporter of permanently closing up to half of the public schools in Oakland.
“She’s never held that position,” said Justin Berton, the mayor’s spokesperson, in an email to the Post. “As you know, knowingly publishing false information is not only unethical, it’s potentially actionable,” he wrote.
Berton was responding to a sentence in an article in last week’s Post that said, “Schaaf, a longtime supporter of charter schools, has spoken forcefully in the media in favor of closing as many as half of the city’s public schools.”
The Post’s comments on the mayor’s position was based on a Feb. 4, 2022, interview with KQED. At the time, the school district had just announced that it was closing 15 schools this year and next and was planning to close more in future years.
The City Council took a strong position opposing the school closings not Mayor Schaaf.
In the KQED interview, Schaaf supported the proposed closing of 15 schools as an “opportunity” and even went farther.
“This is not just some painful but necessary budget cut,” she said. “I really feel for parents, students, teachers. We have been through so much trauma, and they have every right to feel distrustful and fearful about this decision. But I believe that it is different this time.
“When you look at districts like Stockton, Fremont, San Jose, they serve roughly the same number of students, about (33,000). But they do it in almost half the campuses, between 41 and 48 campuses in those three districts, whereas Oakland has EIGHTY CAMPUSES (Schaaf’s emphasis).
“This is an opportunity to do better for our students, our educators, our families, and I trust this leader to deliver on that promise in a way that has never happened before.”
To review Mayor Schaaf’s remarks, go to the original interview at https://archive.org/details/KQED_20220205_030000_KQED_Newsroom/start/360/end/420
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of July 24 – 30, 2024
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of July 24 – 30, 2024
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Activism
Oakland Post: Week of July 17 -23, 2024
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of July 17 -23, 2024
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Bay Area
Op-Ed Senate Bill 966 Threatens Health Equity in East Bay
My East Bay community is struggling to get by. A proposed State Senate bill would set us back even further. Serving the East Bay community has been my life’s work and my greatest joy. After leaving the Bay Area to complete my seminary, I returned home to found The Community Church in Oakland. From the outset of my time as the church’s pastor, I have been guided by the belief that my service must extend beyond the pulpit, because the health and economic needs of my community are so great. Our church has organized free food banks, COVID-19 testing clinics, and a housing and re-entry program for those suffering from addiction.
![Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook.](https://www.postnewsgroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/VanHook-featured-web.jpg)
By Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook
Special to the Post
My East Bay community is struggling to get by. A proposed State Senate bill would set us back even further.
Serving the East Bay community has been my life’s work and my greatest joy. After leaving the Bay Area to complete my seminary, I returned home to found The Community Church in Oakland.
From the outset of my time as the church’s pastor, I have been guided by the belief that my service must extend beyond the pulpit, because the health and economic needs of my community are so great. Our church has organized free food banks, COVID-19 testing clinics, and a housing and re-entry program for those suffering from addiction.
Through my service, I have seen the challenges that our community members are facing. Oakland, my hometown, has the third-highest rate of violent crime in the state. The local economy is strained. Oakland-based businesses are leaving our community because they’re struggling to get ahead.
Both East and West Oakland has disproportionately high rates of respiratory illness due to heavy air pollution. While our local efforts have brought some aid to those in need, we are also counting on our state elected officials to help us address the systemic health disparities afflicting the community.
Chief among the health concerns of community members is having reliable and affordable access to prescription drugs. Equitable access to medications gives us the peace of mind that we can keep ourselves and our families healthy and safe. Our community should not have to choose between paying rent or purchasing prescriptions.
Unfortunately, rather than taking action to combat soaring prescription drug prices, some California lawmakers are pushing legislation that could raise patient costs at the pharmacy counter.
The Legislature is currently considering SB 966, a bill backed by special interests that would undercut the few tools we have to keep prescription drug costs contained, letting big drug companies increase their prices, profiting on the backs of working families – some of whom already live paycheck to paycheck.
SB 966 would target the fundamental programs through which small businesses, unions, and government health programs are able to offer their employees and members quality and affordable healthcare. Millions of Californians rely on these plans to obtain essential medications at the lowest-possible cost.
The bill would make it illegal for employers and unions to incentivize the administrators of their prescription drug plans to negotiate for the lowest possible cost for prescriptions. Right now, small businesses and unions can choose to pay these administrators more for taking on big drug companies and securing discounts – a choice that will be outlawed under this bill.
As a result, employers will have no leverage to stop big drug companies from setting sky-high prices, disproportionately impacting working families.
As these health costs quickly add up, employers will have little choice but to pass the increases down to their employees. That means California patients will see higher healthcare costs and co-pays.
From my perspective, most concerning is that the bill would exacerbate the health disparities impacting my community and other underserved populations. If SB 966 becomes law, the most vulnerable may be forced to skip prescription doses, stop filling their prescriptions, and avoid essential care.
By rejecting this cash grab by big drug companies, our state elected officials can send a clear message that they stand with the community, patients, and working families.
We cannot afford SB 966.
Rev. Dr. VanHook is the founder and pastor of The Community Church in Oakland and the founder of The Charis House, a re-entry facility for men recovering from alcohol and drug abuse.
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