Weekly Newsletter - October 14, 2019

Monday, October 14 • 12:00 – 3:30 pm
Indigenous Peoples' Day Celebration
Celebrate Indigenous Peoples’ Day today at this free outdoor program with Native American art, vendors, music, and dancers. Talented Indigenous artists include Pura Fé (Tuscarora), Raye Zaragoza (Akimel O’otham descent), Ostwelve (Stō:lo) and Pamyua (Inuit) and more! Jonathan Cordero (Ramaytush Ohlone) begins the celebration with an opening and land acknowledgement. The program highlights the Bay Area’s vastly diverse and talented community of Indigenous artists.
Location: Yerba Buena Gardens, Mission St. between 3rd & 4th Sts. San Francisco

​Monday, October 14 • 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Free Them CA: Panel of Criminalized Survivors & Letter Writing
Join Survived & Punished (S&P) CA and TGI Justice Project (TGIJP) in conversation with a panel of criminalized survivors of gender-based violence. Moderated by S&P organizer Aminah Elster, the panel will share their experiences and analyses about criminalization and their fight for freedom. The evening will include letter writing to incarcerated survivors in California prisons. All letter writing materials provided. RSVP and more details here.
Location: East Side Art Alliance, 2277 International Blvd. Oakland

Wednesday, October 16 • 7:00 – 9:00 pm
Townhall: Community Input for Independent Oversight of Police
In September, The Anti Police-Terror Project (APTP) released a paper on best practices for independent police oversight based on legal research, impacted families' input, and lessons learned from the Oakland Police Commission, with areas to improve. Come out to learn more about the Oakland Police Commission and participate in a community conversation on APTP’s findings. Hear from Police Commission Vice Chair and community representative Ginale Harris. The goal is to help inform the City Council as they draft a ballot measure which can strengthen Oakland’s Police Commission's oversight functions.
Location: East Side Arts Alliance, 2277 International Blvd, Oakland

Saturday, October 19 • 12:00 – 1:00 pm
Human Billboard: Stop Family Separations! Asylum is a Right!
Asylum seekers caged at the border! Thousands of children separated from their families! Unrelenting inhumane conditions inside detention centers! Join us to form a human billboard to demand an end to these atrocities. We refuse to silently accept what is being done in our names. We are taking our outrage and grief out of our homes and into the streets and public spaces. Bring signs! No human is illegal; no one deserves the treatment imposed by our government for seeking asylum. Funds will be raised to support Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES).
Location: In front of Grand Lake Theater, 3200 Grand Ave. Oakland

Saturday, October 19 & Sunday, October 20 • 12:00 - 4:30 pm
25th Annual El Día de los Muertos Community Celebration
Celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Oakland Museum of California’s El Día de los Muertos celebration with an exhibition inspired by Chicano activists who introduced Día de los Muertos traditions to the United States in the 1970s. ¡El Movimiento Vivo! Chicano Roots of El Día de los Muertos will honor and explore the lesser-known origins of Day of the Dead and the ways these traditions continue to inspire social and political change today. Visitors will encounter altars, artworks, and interactive elements that show how Chicano activists used Day of the Dead traditions to foster pride in their Indigenous heritage and unify their communities. The week-end includes live music, food, and dance performances.
Location: Oakland Museum of California, 1000 Oak St. @ 10th, Oakland

Sunday, October 20 • 2:00 – 6:00 pm
Alternatives to Policing: Self- and Community Defense
Part of an ongoing series of workshops designed to reduce reliance on an increasingly militarized police force, this offering from Community Ready Corps (CRC) will cover basic principles and practices to help us keep ourselves and our communities safe. What would you do if you found yourself in the middle of a violent situation? How can you safely get yourself and others out of that situation? Donations will support CRC's vital work. No one will be turned away for lack of funds. Sponsored by a coalition that includes First Congregational Church of Oakland, Kehilla Community Synagogue, Jewish Voice for Peace, Oakland LBGTQ Community Center, among others.
Location: First Congregational Church, 2501 Harrison St. Oakland

Sunday, October 20 • 3:00 – 5:00 pm
Free Our Prisoners – From Palestine to the U.S.
Come out for this in-depth look at imprisonment from Palestine to the U.S. and how we can build solidarity between our freedom struggles. Lana Ramadan from Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association in the West Bank, Palestine, will talk about the current situation – 5,150 Palestinian political prisoners are waging multiple hunger strikes to protest torture, administrative detention and abusive conditions of confinement in Israeli prisons. She will be joined in conversation with people doing work against mass incarceration and detention in the U.S. The event is sponsored by Palestinian Youth Movement, Arab Resource and Organizing Center (AROC), California Coalition for Women's Prisoners, and Critical Resistance, among others.
Location: 518 Valencia St. San Francisco

Tuesday, October 29 • 5:00 pm PST
National SURJ Webinar: Building Anti-Racist Electoral Work
White voters remain one of the biggest barriers to winning transformative, structural change in this country. There’s been a lot of hand wringing, a lot of blame and a lot of calls to action. It’s time for us to answer those calls. SURJ is ready - join in this webinar with SURJ Director Erin Heaney and Working Families Party National Director Maurice Mitchel. They’ll discuss the importance of organizing poor and working class white folks and the strategic electoral interventions needed in this political moment.
Location: Online - register for the call here.

Sunday, November 3, 2019 • 12:45 – 3:00 pm
Spill The Disabili-Tea™: A Disability Justice Workshop
What is Disability Justice? People often express feeling intimidated and ill-equipped to unpack what we've been taught about disability, and how to support and advocate for disabled people in our everyday lives. This workshop is a fabulous opportunity for you to dive into the magic of disability justice with SURJ and Alex Locust at the helm. Alex will facilitate an interactive discussion of disability justice for those committed to elevating their support for disabled folks in their community. Come join us for an afternoon of real talk, experiential exercises, group work, and lots of laughs. Click here for tickets, sliding scale from $20 - $80.
Location: Sierra Club, 2101 Webster Street, 13th floor, Oakland

Sunday, November 3, 2019 • 1:30 – 4:30 pm
Challenging Conversations About Race and White Supremacy
How do we approach difficult conversations, whether it’s about racist violence on the border, cultural appropriation, or white supremacy and racial justice in general? What is it like to have these conversations with our family, friends and coworkers with a vision for the long haul? Members of the White Noise Collective will facilitate this SURJ workshop exploring the difficult conversations in our lives around race and power. Just in time for the holidays! Tickets are sliding scale $15 - $85.  No one turned away for lack of funds. Please register - space is limited.
Location: East Bay Community Space, 507 55th Street, Oakland

Wednesday, November 13 • 6:45 – 9:00 pm
Intro to SURJ Meeting
Want to get involved with SURJ Bay Area? Come learn about our current work and activities. SURJ moves white people to act for justice, with passion and accountability, as part of a multi-racial majority. You will hear about SURJ's pathways for entering the work, including committee work, upcoming workshops, and events. We'll answer your questions and share how you can get involved in the movement for racial justice. Register today!
Location: Movement Strategy Center, 436 14th Street, Suite 500, Oakland

Tell Berkeley to Say No to Facial Recognition Tech
We already know that facial recognition technology routinely fails to accurately identify people of color, and in the hands of police, will only accelerate the nation’s lethal track record of racial profiling and discrimination. The Berkeley City Council will be considering a measure banning the use of facial recognition technology by city government on October 15th, and it’s urgent that they, and the Mayor's office, hear from us about this insidious new form of surveillance. Sign on this Media Justice email to Berkeley officials to keep harmful facial recognition tech off our streets. Learn more and sign here.  

Support Abundant Beginnings!
SURJ Bay Area partner organization Abundant Beginnings needs our financial support to continue their programs and to eventually purchase land. Please donate and share their donation page far and wide. Abundant Beginnings is a community education and empowerment initiative that is re-imagining how communities can grow learners who think critically, live responsibly, and create meaningful change. They center the needs of those who are currently marginalized from meaningful educational experiences, with emphases on students of color, gender expansive and queer students, and differently-abled learners. Check out this adorable video and then donate HERE.

In SURJ Blogs – Racial Justice Books for White People
In recent months, some thirty members of SURJ Bay Area suggested and voted on books for white people about racial justice, indicating those they recommend, as well as those they want to read. See the non-fiction list here. You can see the list of fiction recommendations here. In addition to the SURJ lists, the blogs also include recommended reading lists from other organizations and individuals.

Support ACA 6 and Voting Rights for Formally Incarcerated Californians
Nearly 50,000 California voters are barred from voting every year because they are on parole. ACA 6 would restore voting rights to these individuals. If the bill passes the California Senate, it will be on the 2020 ballot. Democracy needs everyone, including people on parole who are reentering our communities. You can show your support for ACA 6 by signing this petition and sharing it with family and friends.

Demand the University of Alabama Re-Hire Dr. James Riley
The University of Alabama has seemingly pushed for the resignation of its Dean of Students and Assistant Vice President — a Black man who had been in the job just seven months — for past tweets that made honest, straightforward statements about racism in America. The University of Alabama needs to rehire Dr. Riley immediately and make clear it will stand up for the rights of Black students, faculty, and employees. Learn more and sign the Color of Change petition to reinstate Dr. Riley.

Fire LAPD Officers Lee and Robles for the Murder of Grechario Mack
Sign and share the petition to fire the Los Angeles police officers who murdered 30-year-old Grechario Mack, father of two daughters. On April 10, 2018, Mack was in the midst of a mental health challenge inside the the Crenshaw-Baldwin Hills Mall when LAPD Officers Ryan Lee and Martin Robles shot him and then stood over him – he was still alive – and fired two more rounds into his body, killing him. Black Lives Matter Los Angeles is calling on LAPD Police Chief Michel Moore to fire the two police. Learn more about the case and sign the petition here.

Support Central Maine SURJ's Know Your Rights Working Group

Police in Lewiston, Maine, are collaborating with ICE, putting immigrant communities in danger. In response, Central Maine SURJ has started a "Know Your Rights" working group focused on educating local communities with peer-to-peer "Know Your Rights" presentations, zines, posters and mutual aid projects. Your support now will go a long way toward strengthening their efforts and the work of their partner orgs.  Learn more about their plans and make a donation here.

SURJ Bay Area Chapter - Join us! Through community organizing, mobilizing, and education, SURJ moves white people to act as part of a multi-racial majority for justice with passion and accountability. Learn more at www.surjbayarea.org. SURJ Bay Area is one of 150 chapters and affiliates nationwide. Learn about SURJ National and our mission, vision, and values HERE.
Want to support our work? You can make a donation for SURJ's organizing and educational efforts with over half of what we raise going to Black and people of color-led partner organizations. Make a one-time donation or become a monthly sustainer HERE. Contributions are tax-deductible.

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Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) Bay Area c/o PO Box 22748, Oakland CA 94609