Black Organizing Project

MINDFUL MONDAY | BLACK AUGUST
Peace, beautiful people! We hope you are having a revolutionary Black August so far.

It is critical that we take time this month to slow down and to go deeper—more profound in our chosen methods of learning, fasting, and training—to silence the distractions that have been weakening our efforts and watering down our movements. It is critical to take inventory of what we are doing and why and to look at the impact it is or isn’t having on our communities and our trek toward liberation.

It can feel at times that we are in many ways shackled and confined in this country- continuing to be subjected to mistreatment, racism, and hatred but we must never forget that we are in many ways approaching this fight from a place of privilege and not a jail cell– where too many of our predecessors remain simply for having the courage to FIGHT even if it would cost them their lives, health and happiness.

This is what Black August is about. To commemorate those who were stolen by the system and forced to sit and wither their lives away simply for demanding that they be treated as worthy humans and organizing righteous rebellions when they weren’t.

Let us be mindful this month. Let us take the time to go within so that we can come out stronger and ready to handle what is undoubtedly on its way to us in these trying times.

In Revolutionary Love,

HAPPY GFR DAY!
Can you believe it's already been 4 years since our George Floyd Resolution was passed making Oakland Schools entirely police free !!!

In honor of GFR Day, we are releasing our special edition OUSD Police-Free Shirts!

Grab one for yourself and a friend and wear it proudly!
Police-free schools from Oakland and beyond ✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾

Visit www.gfranniversary.com

Last month, BOP organizers and members made a visit to the State Capital to support CA Assembly Bill 2441.
If passed, this bill would:

➡️Allow educators the discretion to decide whether to report certain student behaviors to law enforcement and the ability to deny the involvement of law enforcement.

➡️Support students in thriving at school by decreasing law enforcement involvement in certain student behavioral issues.

🎉As cosponsors of this bill, we are happy to announce that AB2441 has PASSED the California assembly and is making its way to the CA State Senate!

" Our progress in Oakland has shown us what works to transform local systems that punish Black youth and communities of color: Put young people, parents, and community members at the center of the work.

Be bold and keep fighting for transformational change and not just incremental, feel-good actions. And claim every single community win.

That is what will continue to inspire those who will come after us. That is what will ignite every day, regular people to realize that we ourselves have the power to shift, change, and transform. "

🗞 Check out our E.D.'s OP-Ed in YES! Magazine this month!

https://www.yesmagazine.org/opinion/2024/06/06/black-police-schools-parents-oakland

Attention Families!

Don't forget to register your kiddos for our Baby BOP Summer Camp!

This is a free 2 week offering to our community. This program is most appropriate for elementary and early middle school aged children.

This year we are excited to work with:
➡️Jump 510\\ Double Dutch and jumping skills

➡️Afro Urban Society\\ Pan-African arts, dance, music & cultural activities

➡️Young Gifted and Black\\ Black History through poetry, rap and freedom songs.

Register HERE:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeHANEDwGFBi-1GWJLx4EsgbKydr6u_Ix95kQPl72MTQGxbeQ/viewform

Pittsburg Unified Families Need Your Support!
For the past few years, Pittsburg Unified School District has ranked as the school district with the highest suspension rates for Black students in the Bay Area.
Several reports and special investigations have unearthed concerning numbers highlighting the racial disparities in the district.

Now, several families are suing the district with the support of the ACLU.
BUT– more support is needed!

Join the families of PUSD in calling and emailing PUSD Superintendent Janet Schulze and urge that she take action today to stop the discrimination faced by Black and disabled students.

See the graphics and email template in the toolkit HERE: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LoVPMkuo108kWu9MYBLQBiL-C3_cbwBu275jpImAG6E/edit?usp=drivesdk

Our hearts go out to the students and families of Skyline High School. We know there are better days on the horizon, and we will continue to do our part to achieve better, safer schools in OUSD.

Special Shout Out to Community Member Victor Vasquez for his impeccable words and reflections as a Skyline Alumni. (See Open Letter)

We are better together, Oakland. 💜🖤

RIGHT NOW
Police Free Schools Organizers and Allies are in Sacramento at a hearing to voice their opposition for the proposed CA Bill 3038— a bill that would require all CA schools to have at least one armed police officer on campus.

BOP has waged a fight to make Oakland schools police free for more than a decade, and we can not sit idle and allow any potential threat like this to our work and our students' safety. There are countless other organizations, especially in CA, who are breaking real ground on their way to achieving police free schools in their respective districts. Stand with BOP as we push back against this bill and instead call on our state to invest in what truly creates safety (for all, not some).

Full Statement: https://blackorganizingproject.org/bop-statement-regarding-ca-bill-3038/

4 years ago today, 26 year old Breonna Taylor was taken from her family and community. 4 years to this day, and the officers (at least 7 of them) who are responsible for killing her during what is called a “botched raid” have yet to be prosecuted. But we know that what happened to Breonna was not a “botched raid” because it also happened to 7 year old Aiyana Jones in 2010 and to so many others.

Breonna’s death was partly the catalyst for the social reckoning that swept the nation in 2020, just months before the death of George Floyd. But the unique sorrow in Breonna’s death is what seems to be true for many Black women killed by police– they are invisiblized and rarely receive justice. The same can be said about Sandra Bland, Korryn Gaines, and plenty more.

Use your time and energy during this Women’s History Month to amplify these types of messages. These calls from women and Black women in particular, for justice and safety and autonomy and ALL the things that women have fought for and continue to fight for. In honor of Breonna and all the others.

📸Snapshots from todays walk out led by Westlake Middle School's BSU.
Our youth are powerful, and they know what they will and won't stand for ✊🏾

It's school board meeting time again!
TONIGHT: Superintendent Kyla will be reporting updates on the GFR implementation and safety plan. Come stand in solidarity with us ✊🏾

We must hold the board accountable to community driven processes like the GFR People's Budget and more— AND we demand the board be transparent about the lack of funding for GFR and the recent violations against the resolution.

Join virtually: bit.ly/FEB28JOIN
Sign up to speak by 3pm: bit.ly/FEB28SPEAK

About yesterday!
thank you, , for having us and putting on one of the biggest displays of what Oakland is truly about! Love, Culture, Art and Resistance.

This is what the media won't show because it negates every narrative they attempt to paint about this beautiful city.

Did you go to Black Joy Parade yesterday? What were some of your favorite moments?

Dear community,

We want to thank you for the loving support that you all give to BOP– from sharing our messages, speaking out, to being a part of the community that pushes our vision forward, today we send you LOVE!

This Valentine’s Day, show your love by sharing a piece of art, dropping a comment, or sending us a video message that expresses your love for the community and tag us so we can share it!

While you’re at it: keep the love flowing by signing up to become a donor today! You can be a part of helping us build sustainability through collective community contributions. 💜

Share this post with your friends and family and encourage them to share & donate on this love day.

Donate: bit.ly/GIVEBOP23

Love drives out hate but also pulls in and recruits community! And when community comes together— shackles break and systems transform!

Tonight at 5pm! : Stand in loving solidarity with BOP at the OUSD School Board Meeting.

If we love our schools and students, we need this board to invest in proven solutions that foster thriving schools.

❤️ We will also be standing in support of 's push for the ceasefire resolution.

Join here: https://bit.ly/VDAYOUSD
Sign up to speak: https://bit.ly/VDAYSPEAK

Step into the light!

Gov. Newsom deploys hundreds of CHP officers to Oakland/East Bay. But at what cost?

By now, most have heard the news. This week, Oakland and other East Bay cities saw an influx of at least 120 California Highway Patrol officers hitting the streets. The decision was met with varied reactions. Oakland Mayor Thao, Councilmember Gallo, and the Oakland chapter of NAACP applauded this decision– even claiming it was long overdue. Yet, those on the ground with deep relationships in the community, such as CURYJ, APTP, and other community-based organizations, criticize this decision as being ill-informed, ineffective, and dangerous.

CHP has a dark history of violence and misconduct in the city, most notably the killing of Erik Salgado in 2020, to which the department paid out a $7m settlement just last year. So, we are left as a community with deep concerns about the impact this surge of policing will have on Black and Brown communities as we now grapple with having to navigate through both OPD and CHP policing institutions throughout our city. While policing has proven to be a grossly expensive yet ineffective attempt to create a safer Oakland– the decision to increase police while underfunding community-driven violence prevention practices is a confusing one.

So we ask, who or what are we trying to keep “safe,” and at what cost?

Snapshot from our Membership Engagement Team meeting tonight! We've got a great Black History Month member event in the works ✊🏾🖤

Are you familiar with West Oakland’s 7th Street Corridor?
This commercial zone was once a bustling business district so well known, it was referred to as the Harlem of the West. During the southern migration– tons of Black folks flocked to the Bay Area for job opportunities– West Oakland being one of the main epicenters. As a result, the 7th street corridor became an answer to the needs of this new budding community. At its height in the early 1930’s, it became a hub for Black-owned jazz clubs, record stores, pharmacies, grocery stores, and more! One of the shining gems of this hub was Esther’s Orbit Room, a rising jazz club that hosted names as big as Etta James and B.B. King.

The fall of 7th street came after WW2 ended, and jobs began to dwindle and again after various “revitalization” projects, such as the build of the Cypress Freeway and the West Oakland Bart station, which displaced thousands of residents and hundreds of businesses. We also know to be true that West Oakland as a whole became a target for redlining and racist practices as a means to stifle the revolutionary spirit that began to sprout amidst the 60’s Black Power movements.

All hope is not lost though! There are currently plans to redevelop and reinvigorate the corridor led by 7th Street Thrives, a coalition made of representatives from non profit orgs, family owned businesses and more.

What would you like to see come to the 7th street area in this revamp?

Today's powerful words are an excerpt from Dr. King’s last book and this months recommended reading, "Where Do We Go From Here? Chaos or Community."

📚Have you read this book?
If so, what stood out to you?

Reminder!
Tonight: APTP is hosting 2 powerful events.
➡️In Oakland: Show up and support the Defund OPD Town Hall. See flyer for zoom link and details.
➡️In Sacramento: Join the Reimagining Safety Film Screening and Town Hall. This is an in person and virtual opportunity. See flyer for zoom link and details.

video cred: chasefukuoka61

Today, we honor one of this nation's most fearless and dedicated leaders. The words and work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. have reshaped our culture and still act as a North star for us still chasing freedom. A beacon of light for us to look to as we march on, fight on, press on.

Starting TODAY - There is a week full of actions in honor of MLK hosted by Anti Police-Terror Project
Check back here for the details and more inspiring revolutionary MLK content.

We will see you out in the streets ✊🏾

We are halfway to our goal! Help us reach it by the end of the year by donating today!

When police-free schools were a mere dream– you all helped us make that a reality.
Now, we are dreaming of Black Sanctuary, which is truly a sanctuary for all.
To make that a reality, we need your support once again.

Donate Here: bit.ly/GIVEBOP23

Happy holidays to you and yours!

We are committed to pushing past what is and into what can be.
We are proud of the work we have done by creating an organization whose center is Black Organizing, as it is the legacy of our ancestors who have resisted, dismantled, and disrupted systems intended to break them. This is the legacy we wish to continue. This is what we are asking you to invest in.

✨️Help us reach our end-of-year goal of $30,000!
Currently, we are at around $10,000.
That’s already a third of the way there!

Be a part of this vision for Black Sanctuary and donate today!

➡️bit.ly/GIVEBOP23
➡️Screenshot your receipt and post it to your story with hashtag

Join the Donor Club!
At BOP we are looking forward to continuing to create impact in the year ahead and for years to come. We can’t do it without you, we are asking for your help by donating to our vision. We are invested in creating Black Sanctuary, which is sanctuary for all! We are dedicated to continuing to build solidarity with all of our brothers and sisters across the world in our struggles for freedom and liberation. We are committed to amplifying the voices of our folks who are most impacted. We want to continue to push for radical changes that create a better world.

We have a goal to raise $30,000 by the end of this year and we need your support to reach it!

Be apart of that vision and donate today , after you do please share on your page or story with hashtag so we can honor and celebrate your giving

Thank you for all your support thus far!

Donate here: https://blackorganizingproject.org/donate/

💰HELP US REACH OUR GOAL!
This is the time of year that is normally focused on big spending! This time around, spend your dollars toward a cause that has a collective impact 💜

“Organizing in Black communities is critical to our survival and freedom as a people. Having the resources necessary to build together in the context of isolation, resource deprivation, and community destabilization is essential to our success”
-Ebony, Black Sanctuary Organizer, BOP

➡️Donate Here: bit.ly/GIVEBOP23

As an organizing organization, our work is to center the voices and expertise of our most impacted community members. The people who are affected most by oppressive systems yet see the least amount of resources or aid. So many of you saw the vision we painted for Black Sanctuary over the last decade, and you supported our work– even after all the dust settled and giving Black became less "popular."

For that, we are incredibly thankful!

Today, on Giving Tuesday, we encourage you to contribute more, be that by giving a one-time donation or increasing your monthly contribution to help us reach our goal of $30,000 by the end of 2023.

Donate Here: bit.ly/GIVEBOP23 💜
Together, we will make Black Sanctuary a reality!