Activism

Welcoming Homes Needed in Marin for Youth in Foster Care

Just in time for Foster Care Awareness Month, the Marin Foster Care Association, and Children & Family Services is launching Lunch and Learns, new monthly one-hour, in-person gatherings that will include lunch with foster parents who will share about their experiences and answer questions. The gatherings set up to serve as a casual way to learn more about the foster care system in Marin and how others can help support youth in the community.

Published

2 years ago

June 9, 2022

Oakland Post

Resource parent Linda and her son are considered one of Marin’s fostering successes.

Many are placed outside of the county due to a lack of resource families

Courtesy of Marin County

Parenting always has its ups and downs, but it has been particularly challenging over the past two years during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Marin County Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) would like to recognize and thank those who stood by the children in foster care and started the process of becoming a resource parent during particularly stressful times. It is also promoting a new way for potential foster parents to learn about resource families.

On May 10, the Marin County Board of Supervisors adopted a resolution proclaiming May Foster Care Awareness Month, prompting Bree Marchman, Division Director of Marin HHS Children & Family Services, to express her gratitude.

“Children & Family Services would not be able to serve our community without the support of our local resource parents and siblings, and we are deeply indebted to their commitments to the welfare of foster children,” she said.

The resolution recognized those who authentically engage with youth to build lasting relationships. Resource families are often the place where a child can begin their healing journey. Studies show that it takes just one committed adult to make a world of difference in a child’s life. Resource families do more than support the children, they often support the parents on their healing journey as well, helping to reunify families and often becoming integral members of the child’s extended family. When reunification can’t happen, those families sometimes find themselves providing a forever family to a special child.

Online registration is open.

The need for more families, especially for teens, has been a constant even prior to COVID-19. Marin averages 85 youth in foster care and nearly 40% of them, mostly teens, are placed in homes outside of Marin. Anyone who has ever considered fostering is welcome to learn more at an information meeting. Online meetings are held monthly, hosted by a social worker and a resource parent who discuss the application process, training, and support available, as well as answer questions. For more information and to register for an orientation meeting, visit www.FosterOurFuture.org or call Leslie Fields at (415) 473-6418.

Children enter the child welfare system through no fault of their own and deserve to live in safe and supportive homes. Every effort is made to keep children in their community, to keep siblings together, and to create good matches between kids and families. To do that, Marin needs a larger, more diverse pool of homes for foster children. Resource families can provide temporary care to children while biological families work toward reunification, or they can choose to be an adoptive family; both are needed.

While not everyone is able to foster a child, any adult can volunteer with the Friends of the Family Program to provide support to resource families. Interested applicants will work with Children and Family Services and the Marin County Volunteers Program to become approved as a Friend of the Family. The assessment process varies depending on the level of involvement a prospective participant will have and may include a background check and an interview with a social worker.

For more information and the application, visit FosterOurFutureMarin.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

6 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.”

Oakland Post

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Activism

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.