Friday, March 12, 2021

News on the End of the Week.

President Biden signed the America Rescue Plan officially. This is certainly good news for millions of Americans. It took long sacrifice and determination to make this accomplishment a reality. This now law makes it easier for people to pay their rent, to have food on the table, and to live safer in an imperfect world. Poverty will decline, children will have food to eat, and locations will open more safely. This is his first great legislative accomplishment as President of the United States of America. The fight for justice is not over, but we should celebrate this first step victory. The bill also has relief sent to black farmers. No Republican in both Houses of Congress supported it. Most Americans support the law. That tells the world something. We realize that we have so much more to do. Many people worship the free market instead of respecting government intervention. Yet, the skeptics should never stop us from doing the work of improving this nation. Next, people want an infrastructure program to be passed by Congress.  This is the first step in a long road, but right is on our side.

 

Days ago, the House has passed the $1.9 trillion pandemic relief bill. This bill is very historic, and President Biden will sign it into law soon. Looking back, this bill is one of the most progressive legislation passed by Congress during the 21st century. It took a new President and a new Senate to make this reality real. This is the beginning of a new chapter of the Biden administration, and it's one of Joe Biden's greatest legislative accomplishments. We should be thankful of this reality. This soon to be law has $1,400 stimulus checks, $300 a week jobless benefits, $3,000 to $3,600 cash assistance to help children, $34 billion for ACA subsidies, 100% COBRA subsidies, $350 billion in state plus local aid, $14 billion in vaccine distribution, and $25 billion in rental aid. This legislation will help millions of Americans without question in positive ways. Polls show that the majority of American support the American Rescue Plan. One poll said that 75 percent of all Americans endorse the legislation, 59 percent of Republicans, and 71 percent of Independents. This reality was done by activists, political leaders, and a lot of human sacrifice. No GOP Senator voted for this package, but what matters is that this bill will be signed into law. That will make a great difference for the lives of so many human beings. This journey of life is just starting.

 

Tucker Carlson is in another controversy. Back years ago, he was in the show Crossfire. Now, he has a show on FOX. He made derogatory comments about Iraqis, so his bigotry is not new. Tucker said that new hairstyles and maternity  suits are in existence, and he said that pregnant women fighting our wars makes a mockery of the U.S. military. Usually, when you hear trash like that from Carlson, this nonsense was commonly said in public 50-60 years old. Now, we live in a new generation, and many people from across the political spectrum have rightfully criticized Tucker for making that overtly sexist comment. The truth is that women in the military have been discriminated against, and women have every right to have freedom from hair discrimination. Women in the military have every to have maternity benefits in our society. Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin disagree with Carlson. The military being more inclusive and open helps everyone. Women have served in the military since the 1700's, and their service should never be minimized. A lot of heroes in our world are women military leaders. 

 

 

Recently, Stacy Dash has now turned away from Donald Trump. She said that the terrorist attack on January 6, 2021 by racist terrorists turned her off from the Trump movement. Dash said that she is still a conservative, but her previous extremist words were said out of bitterness not out of love. Dash wants to play in more movies, and she is out of FOX News. Years ago, we know Stacy Dash being in TV shows and movies. Now, she wants to apologize for her political mistakes. She once wanted Black History Month and BET to be abolished (that is wrong), because it emphasizes black identity. She made disrespectful comments about black people for years if they disagreed with her ideologically. Dash said that FOX News used her as the "angry black woman" stereotype. Dash even once supported Trump's lie that there were good people on both sides in reference to the events at Charlottesville, Virginia back in 2017. This comes after Dash was arrested after she was physically abused by her husband. Now, she wants to focus more on family and spirituality. The question is how should we respond to these surprising developments? The truth is that we should be nuisance about it. Stacy Dash waking up to the evil that Trump has caused to this world is ironic. For years, tons of black people spoke from the rooftops that Trump is a bigoted, racist, and sexist person without self control. Finally, more people are waking up after all of these years. My response is that Stacy Dash should be treated with dignity and with respect, but we shall see what see will be in a few years. I still don't agree with her on many political issues, but I see no problem with her professing faith in the Savior the Lord Jesus Christ who died for us all. Likewise, Stacy Dash made so many offensive statements that she needs to go to the black community personally and apologize straight up (with sincerity and empathy. She hurt a lot of people with her words, and we want anyone to wake up and come into the knowledge of the truth). Stacy Dash should be further educated on why many black people feel what we do, and the cause for black liberation is legitimate. 

 

Congresswoman Plaskett defended the ideal of Black Lives Matter when a GOP member wanted to disrespect Black Lives Matter as an anti-family group. The truth is that the concept of Black Lives Matter is not about bashing families. It is about standing up for black human dignity and opposition to police brutality. Black Lives Matter seek to have revolutionary change. Black people have always shown a love of families for centuries and thousands of years in human history. Black people always love families in the black community. Plaskett defended the American Rescue Plan which will save millions of American lives. More historic news is that Marcia Fudge is confirmed by the Senate as the new HUD Secretary. She is the first black woman to lead HUD in more than 40 years. Marcia Fudge is a life long progressive who has pledged to address systemic racial inequalities in housing. She was a House Representative from Ohio. We all wish her well. It always important to honor black culture's love of our hair. For those who demonize people with weaves, natural hair, or hair in diverse ways, my response to them: they're completely wrong. As human beings, we have the right to wear our as we see fit and not concern ourselves with what the haters think. For thousands of years, our people (with swag) have shown our hair in a diversity of ways and colors. For all of these years, we recognize the dignity of human hair regardless if it exists in 1a or 4c. I'm really confounded by the fact that some evil folks are more concern about a person's hair in such derogatory ways than our environment, our health care, and our basic human rights.

 

By Timothy

 


Wednesday, March 10, 2021

New Realities.

  

 

The Biden $1.9 trillion stimulus bill is about to be passed by House. After a long time of proposals and being in the Senate, the time has come for Biden to sign the bill into law soon. It will take a community of people to establish a real economic recovery. Over 70 percent of the American people want this bill to be passed into law. Vice President Kamala Harris has announced funding to help address the coronavirus inequalities. We know that far right Republicans are wrong in their policies. Also, centrist Democrats like Joe Manchin and Krysten Sinema (who refuse to vote against the filibuster) are wrong to oppose a $15 minimum wage and refused to support the economic bill until that proposal was gone from the bill. Now, we have the For the People Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Act being passed by the House. Both bills are in the Senate. The filibuster is not even in the Constitution, but it has been used historically to suppress civil rights and voting rights. We reject the big lie that Trump won the 2020 election, and Trump has glorified violence for years. 43 GOP Senators voted to acquit Trump in 2021 which is totally wrong. The goal is not token bipartisanship. The goal is increasing the minimum wage, protecting and enhancing voting rights, eliminating police brutality, having universal health care, and saving our environment.

 

Many people are talking about the bombshell interview that Oprah had with Megan Markle (Duchess of Sussex) and Prince Harry. The special lasted for 2 hours. The couple are known for their split with the Royal family as they are living in America. Meghan said that some people in the Royal family worried about how dark the color of her child would be. She or Meghan admitted that she had thoughts of suicide, because of the pressures that she has experienced with her royal title. Meghan's allegation of racism should come as no shock, especially to black people. For centuries, the British Royals have been complicit in colonialism, imperialism, racism, and monarchical authoritarianism. Megan Markle didn't reveal the names of the people who made the racist comment about the baby's skin color as it would be damaging to that person. Prince Harry said that Charles doesn't talk to him regularly. Prince Harry said that he left the country, because of racism and other reasons. It's not a secret that many tabloids in the UK went too far on many occasions to characterize Markle and Harry. It was a sad interview, and it reminds us that racism and bigotry are not just found in America. These evils are found globally. There is always no excuse to demonize babies, to demonize black women, or to demonize any woman.  The irony is that us black Americans saw this a mile away.

 

Protests have existed today in Minneapolis over the police murder of George Floyd. The trial of Chauvin is about to start soon. Many former Minneapolis police officers will face trial for George Floyd's murder. Chauvin was the person who placed his knee on Floyd's neck causing his death. As other people have said, the system has a serious problem with institutional racism, the criminal justice system having disparities, and a huge problem of police brutality.  The police have huge privileges involving a trial that non-police citizens never have. During the trial, Floyd's name will be slandered by the defense team like usual. These things have nothing to do with the event at hand. The truth is that we want a better society where communities are not treated as occupied subjects but as equal human beings. We desire accountability and justice being forthrightly advocated in our world. The NY Times reported about some people fearing that white racist groups may descend in Minneapolis after some of them rioted at the U.S. Capitol. I believe in black liberation. The tape of George Floyd outlined what happened as his death was cruel and unjust. Floyd's neck was held down for 9 minutes. That is why heroic activists (who oppose police terrorism) have been out in force to make their voices known about this important issue in America.

  

Today is a solemn year which is the 56th year anniversary of Blood Sunday and the Selma Voting Rights Movement overall that existed in 1965. This is the first Bloody Sunday anniversary where John Lewis is not physically here to live through. This event was part of the Selma Voting Rights Movement. Back then, tons of black people were readily not allowed to vote, not allowed to register to vote, and had huge obstacles in expressing their human rights. The Selma movement suffered from tons of police brutality and murder by racists. People among many colors came together to promote the right to vote for the black community. John Lewis, Ameila Boynton, and other people wanted to march to Montgomery to let their voices to be heard. The police on the bridge prevented the protesters to cross the bridge. Later, the police used batons, horses, and other weapons to beat the peaceful protesters brutally. Many people were almost killed. Many ran into homes for safety. Some came into a church for protection. The police brutality was so unjust, that the voting rights movement gained more support. Later, the protesters were turned back a second time because of an injunction (called Turnabout Tuesday). On the third time, they finally crossed the bridge to go into Montgomery, Alabama. The Voting Rights Act was passed on August of 1965. Now, in 2021, we face new challenges with Georgia and other states proposing bills that restrict automatic voting registration, mail in ballots, and voting in many different ways. These bills are similar to Jim Crow bills. That is why the House passed real voting rights legislation. The struggle continues, but we will win in the end.


 

It always important to honor black culture's love of our hair. For those (who are racists and others) who demonize people with weaves, natural hair, or hair in diverse ways, my response to them: They're completely wrong. As human beings, we have the right to wear our as we see fit and not concern ourselves with what the haters think. For thousands of years, our people (with swag) have shown our hair in a diversity of ways and colors. For all of these years, we recognize the dignity of human hair regardless if it exists in 1a or 4c. I'm really confounded by the fact that some evil folks are more concern about a person's hair in such derogatory ways than our environment, our health care, and our basic human rights. We shouldn't apologize for wearing our hair in diverse ways. Human freedom is about recognizing our value and realizing that our legitimate forms of expression are truly sacrosanct. 

 

By Timothy
 

Tuesday, March 09, 2021

Spring 2021 Part 6.

  

  

 



  

2021 Part 2: The Fight Against Injustice (March 26, 2020-August 11, 2020)

  

The middle of the year of 2020 was filled with tons of changes in American society. By this time, schools, businesses, museums, restaurants, malls, and other places were closed because of the pandemic. As deaths climb up, there were 2 groups of people who responded to the crisis. There were groups of people who worked their best to live their lives safety, helped their neighbors, and socially distanced. Others had a hostility towards new rules, some even threatened the lives of public officials, and many of them used rallies that promoted reactionary lies. The 2020 Democratic Presidential primary ended, and Bernie Sanders conceded to Joe Biden. This time would be different than 2016 as the stakes were higher, and even more human beings witnessed the far right, dangerous policies of Trump first hand. Even through all of the human turmoil that persisted as product of the pandemic in the four corners of the Earth, Congress had to struggle just to pass pandemic relief that included a stimulus in 2020. The middle of 2020 saw the start of the largest anti-racism, anti-police brutality protests in world history after the unjust murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Brianna Taylor, and George Floyd. In America, people protested in cities, towns, rural areas, suburbs, and in the capital of Washington, D.C. day in and day out. The protesters were black people, white people, Asian people, Native Americans, Pacific Islanders, and human beings of every background. Statues of racist figures were taken down.  Most protests were peaceful. There was violence done by agent provocateurs, racists, far right extremists, and others as well. By the end of this era, a historical event happened. Kamala Harris was chosen as the Vice Presidential candidate by the Democratic political leader from Delaware Joseph Biden. Kamala Harris was inspired by so many women candidates before her like Shirley Chisholm. Kamala Harris will later be the first black woman and South Asian woman to be Vice President of the United States of America. Black women certainly have made monumental contributions in our society. This time of 2020 saw protest, anger, determination, and sense of realizing that this year would be the most important year of our lifetimes. There is no question about it. 


 




Changes due to the Pandemic

 

On March 26, 2020, the pandemic was widespread worldwide. In America, the infections exceeded 82,000 people surpassing infections in China and Italy. The U.S. back at that time had more cases reported than any other country to date. The Department of Labor reported that 3.28 million Americans filed for unemployment benefits in the last week. There was the largest increase in U.S. history. It superseded the all time high of 695,000 in October 1982. On March 26, the Trump administration indicted Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro's government of drug trafficking and narcoterrorism. The Trump team offered a $15 million reward for information leading to Maduro's arrest. The Space Force launched its first satellite, a $1.4 billion Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF-6) military communications satellite. On March 29, 2020, the U.S. led coalition troops withdraw from Iraq's K-1 Air Base. That was the third base transferred to the Iraqi military this month. On March 31, 2021, there were nationwide COVID-19 cases exceeding 163,000 people as the national death toll reached 3,000 human beings. Three-quarters of the U.S. population were under lockdown (by May 31) as Maryland, Virginia, Arizona, and Tennessee were the latest states to restrict movement. The Federal Communications Commission mandated that cell phone providers implement STIR/SHAKEN by June 30, 2021 for large carriers and June 20, 2022 for small carriers to prevent robocalls maliciously using caller ID spoofing to avoid being traced. There was a 6.5 M earthquake at Central Idaho. On April 1, 2020, the Trump administration deployed anti-drug Navy ships and AWACS planes near Venezuela in reportedly the largest military build up in the region since the 1989 invasion of Panama. This refutes the notion that Trump is anti-imperialist. He is an imperialist. Coal companies, owned by West Virginia Governor Jim Justice, agreed to pay $5 million for thousands of mine safety violations. On April 3, 2020, the CDC recommended that all citizens consider wearing cloth or fabric face coverings in public. On April 6, American pandemic deaths surpass 10,000 with more than 19,800 recoveries. Trump signed an executive order encouraging future long term commercial exploitation of various celestial bodies and mining of lunar resources.


 


On April 7, there was the U.S. record (for that time) of most COVID-19 deaths in one day in America with more than 1,800 fatalities reported. Deaths were about almost 13,000 people. On April 8, 2020, Senator Bernie Sanders suspended his Presidential campaign. This caused Joe Biden to be the presumptive Democratic nominee. Bernie Sanders was part of a legitimate progressive movement that changed America forever. His strength was that he spoke in public about wanting universal health care, economic justice, racial justice, environmental justice, and true justice in general for all. Sanders spoke out against corrupt corporations who desired the status quo. He didn't want the 1% (with ties to Wall Street banking interests) to have an inordinate economic centralization that harmed the lives of working people and poor people. He was red baited unfairly by some (like Chris Matthews) in the mainstream corporate media too. Bernie Sanders' weakness was that, on many occasions, he failed to see the interconnected nature of oppression (and Bernie readily de-emphasized the importance of reparations for black people in America. In fact, Bernie Sanders opposed reparations. Of course, I believe in reparations for black Americans. Sanders made the error for not going into Selma, Alabama to remember the sacrifice of black people involving voting rights during the 55th anniversary of Bloody Sunday). Oppression is not just class related. It also involves race, sex, class, and other forms. I reject class reductionism, but you have to oppose class oppression (in recognizing the importance of opposing economic injustice involving class) and oppose racism (while recognizing the need to talk about race and stand up for solidarity in defeating racism) in order to make justice for all a reality. That's real talk. On April 8, over 100 inmates at Monroe Correctional Complex in Monroe, Washington riot after 6 inmates test positive for the pandemic virus. Prison is one of the most dehumanizing places on Earth where men and women are readily abused, raped, disrespected, and disregarded. The prison industrial complex has ruined so many lives during the past and present. On the same day, the Broadway League extended the Broadway theater shutdown through June 7. This was the longest shutdown in Broadway history. By April 11, 2020, America became the country with the highest number of reported COVID-19 deaths, over 20,000 that overtook Italy. For the first time in U.S. history, all 50 states have simultaneous federal major disaster declarations after Wyoming receives the final declaration. Washington, D.C., the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam and Puerto Rico also have major disaster declarations by this time. On April 12, at least 30 people were killed and 1.3 million are left without electricity after an Eastern tornado outbreak across the South. Trump, on April 14th, said that he ended funding of the World Health Organization (WHO) pending an investigation on its early response to the outbreak.


 


By April 15, 2020, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer faced 2 federal lawsuits accusing her of violating constitutional rights during the state's containment efforts. Thousands of people attended a protest in Lansing, Michigan as anti-lockdown sentiment spreads. This backlash spreads nationwide. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed an executive order requiring everyone in NY state to wear a mask or a mouth/nose covering in public when not social distancing. By April 16, 2020, nearly 22 million Americans have filed for unemployment within a single month due to COVID-19 lockdowns. This was the worst unemployment crisis since the Great Depression. The Trump administration revealed federal guidelines outlining a three-phased, gradual reopening of schools, commerce, and services for parts of the country. By April 17, Texas was the first state to start to ease coronavirus related restrictions. Florida's Duval County is the first in the state to ease restrictions, with Jacksonville, Atlantic, and Neptune being the first beaches in the state to reopen on a limited basis. By April 20, 2020, oil prices were at a record low. They have negative values because of the pandemic and the Russia-Saudi Arabia oil price war. By April 21, the state of Missouri challenged China's sovereign immunity in the U.S. district court by suing three Chinese government ministries,  two local governments, two laboratories and the Chinese Communist Party over its handling of the COVID-19 outbreak. A bipartisan Senate report reaffirmed intelligence findings that Russia meddled in the 2016 presidential election. On April 22, then President Trump signed an immigration executive order halting the issuance of certain green cards for 60 days. By April 24, New Jersey reported 100,000 cases and 5,617 deaths. President Trump on the same day signed a $483 billion bill to rescue small businesses. On April 27, 2020, pandemic cases in America surpassed 1 million human beings. The Pentagon officially released three short videos showing "unidentified aerial phenomena" that had previously been revealed by The New York Times in 2019. By April 29, 2020, the  Department of Commerce reports that the U.S. economy shrank by 4.8% in the first quarter of 2020, its most severe contraction since 2008.


 





On April 30, 2020, the far right backlash against pandemic responses reached a boiling point. This was the date when armed far right extremists (many of them had weapons) entered and stormed the Michigan State Capitol building to demand an end to lockdown measures. Many of these extremists screamed at the police with words like: "Let Us In!" and "Tyranny!" Some cursed at the police. One far right extremist praised Hitler on tape. So much for these hypocrites claiming to love the police or the blue. This was a prelude to the future 2021 terrorist mob insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. NASA selected three U.S. companies—Blue Origin, Dynetics, and SpaceX—to design and develop human landing systems for the agency's Artemis program, one of which is planned to deliver the first woman and next man on the Moon by 2024. By May 1, 2020, the FDA authorized emergency remdesivir use to treat the sickest COVID-19 patients. Joe Biden won in a mail in primary with ranked choice voting during the May 2, 2020 Kansas Democratic primary. Giant hornets invade America on May 3 threatening domestic bees. By May 7, 2020, the  Department of Justice dropped charges against former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn in the Mueller investigation.  On May 11, nearly 2,000 former Justice Department officials signed a letter calling for Attorney General William Barr to resign over what they describe as his improper intervention in the Flynn case. The national unemployment level reached 14.7 percent with more than 33 million jobless claims having been filed since mid-March on May 8. The Broadway League on May 12 stops Broadway theaters until September 6 (On May 12). Paul Manafort comes to home confinement because of the virus on May 13. He was Trump's former election campaign chairman. On May 15, 2020, the  Trump administration formally announces Operation Warp Speed, a public–private partnership for accelerating the development of a COVID-19 vaccine. The Senate Intelligence Committee submits the fifth and final volume of its report on Russian election meddling to the ODNI for classification review. The report totals "nearly 1,000 pages." It is released on August 18, reportedly providing new information about President Trump's relationship with Russian officials. The Earthquake came to Nevada at a 6.4 M. The Tropical Storm Arthur is the first storm of the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season by May 16. On May 18, the  FBI confirmed that the 2019 Naval Air Station Pensacola shooting was the first terrorist attack on U.S. territory that had been directed by a foreign actor since 9/11.

 

America had more than 1.5 million cases of the virus and 90,000 death on May 19. Two dams in Midland County, Michigan, fail, resulting in extensive evacuations and the declaration of a state of emergency. The Congressional Budget Office reports a 38% fall in GDP on an annualized basis in the second quarter of 2020, with 26 million more unemployed Americans than in Q4 2019. On May 20, James Jamal Curry, 31, who spat and coughed on a police officer in Miami, Florida after claiming to have COVID-19, is indicted for committing a biological weapon hoax (terrorism).

 



 

Breonna Taylor and George Floyd

 

May 25, 2020 is the date that changed the United States of America and the world in general. That was the date when Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was videotaped kneeling on the neck of George Floyd (who was a 46 year old man) for about 9 minutes until he died. Floyd was accused of paying cigarettes with a counterfeit 20 dollar bill. Floyd was handcuffed. Floyd was struggling to breathe, and he said that he couldn't breathe to officer Chauvin, Thao, and Lane multiple times. Three other officers watched, and they did nothing to stop Chauvin from abusing Floyd. Floyd said that he couldn't breathe and mama many times while Chauvin's knee was one Floyd's neck. Floyd was bleeding out of his mouth according to a witness. Thao lied and said George Floyd was fine. The crowd saw Floyd being unconscious, and the police threatened to use mace on the crowd. Ambulance came. Chauvin kept his knee on Floyd's neck for almost a minute after the ambulance arrived, despite Floyd being silent and motionless. George Floyd was pronounced dead at 9:25 at the Hennepin County Medical Center emergency room. Video of the incident went viral, and the four officers were later fired. By May 26, 2020, George Floyd protests existed in Minneapolis-Saint Paul (Twin Cities) area. They spread worldwide in a multiracial, working class, and united movement for social change. Black people led the fight to support the human dignity of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and other Brothers and Sisters who were unjustly killed by the police. On May 27, the official nationwide death toll in America surpassed 100,000—more Americans than were killed in the Vietnam and Korean wars combined, and approaching that of the First World War, when more than 116,000 Americans died in combat. Protests continued in Minneapolis. Most are peaceful. Violence occurred too by the usual agent provocateurs, racists, and nihilists. Activists desired murder charges against the police officers who were involved in George Floyd's death. President Trump threatened to shut down Twitter and other social media platforms accusing them of bias against conservatives. The truth is that many of the conservatives in social media spewed racist, sexist hate speech. On May 28, 2020 involving the George Floyd protests, a state of emergency is declared in the Twin Cities, with hundreds of National Guard soldiers deployed on the streets as protests spread nationwide. On the same date, President Trump signed an executive order rolling back liability protections for social media companies over user generated content. 


 




 

Protests Worldwide for Justice

 

On May 29, 2020, Minneapolis officer Derek Chauvin was charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter in the killing of George Floyd.  An independent autopsy concluded on June 1 that Floyd's cause of death was "homicide caused by asphyxia." Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison later increased the charge against Derek Chauvin to second degree on June 3; charges against the three other officers who were present are also filed.  Twitter hide a tweet by President Trump after he reacts to the Minneapolis unrest by warning that "when the looting starts, the shooting starts." Twitter says the post violates its rules on glorifying violence. On May 30, 2020, the  first crewed flight of the SpaceX Dragon 2 (initially scheduled for May 27 but delayed due to weather) was launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, the first crewed spacecraft to launch from U.S. soil since 2011. By May 30, 2020, George Floyd protests continued. Curfews were declared in Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Atlanta as rebellions and protests continue nationwide. The weeks' rioting is termed the worst instance of civil unrest in the United States since the 1968 King assassination riots. I haven't seen anything like it in my lifetime. During the events, many protesters and journalists were hit with tear gas as proven on tape. 


 


By May 31, Trump wants to declare the activist group Antifa a terrorist organization. By June 1, 2020, peaceful protesters were pushed back violently by Trump's authorities and policing agencies unjustly at Washington, D.C. The events were shown on live TV on CNN, MSNBC, etc. It was so unjust, that huge outcry existed from people from across the political spectrum including people in the military. This was when Trump had the photo-op with the Bible at St. John's Episcopal Church. At night, helicopters were down near residential areas harassing protesters which is illegal. Many protesters came into Good Samaritans' homes to seek refuge and protection from harassment by policing authorities. 


 


 
 

On June 2, 2020, there was Blackout Tuesday which was a collective protest against racism and police brutality inspired by the George Floyd protests. There was an earthquake on June 3 that is said to be an aftershock of the 2019 Ridgecrest earthquakes near Searles Valley, California. No injuries or damages are reported in the 5.5 M Earthquake. Also on June 3, lat least 200 cities in America had imposed curfews, while more than 30 states and Washington,D.C. activated over 62,000 National Guard personnel due to the mass unrest. By June 5, 2020, Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser designated a two block long section of the 16th Street NW as "Black Lives Matter Plaza." On June 8, during unrest in Seattle, protesters declared an autonomous zone in the city's Capitol Hill. By this day, there was a renewed national debate over Confederate monuments. As we all know, the Confederacy was evil, the Confederate flag is racist, we don't respect Confederate monuments period. Army Secretary Ryan D. McCarthy said that he will consider renaming the service's 10 bases and facilities that are named after Confederate leaders, a reversal of the Army's previous position on the issue. A provision to rename the bases is later included in the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act. On June 6, 2020, murals of George Floyd Floyd were created in cities like Manchester, Dallas, Miami, Idlib, Los Angeles, Nairobi, Oakland, Strombeek-Bever, Berlin, Pensacola, and La Mesa. On June 9,  Air Force General Charles Brown becomes the first African American to lead a branch of U.S. Armed Forces and the first African American Air Force Chief of Staff. By June 10, the pandemic cases surpass 2 million people in America. On June 11, the Trump administration authorized sanctions and additional visa restrictions against the International Criminal Court in retaliation for their investigation into potential war crimes by U.S. officials (in their treatment of protesters in D.C., etc.). 

  


On June 12, 2020, the  Minneapolis City Council voted unanimously to disband the Minneapolis Police Department and replace it with a "community" safety department, however it is prevented from doing so by the city charter. Protests breakout in Atlanta following the killing of Rayshard Brooks, 27, by a police officer in the parking lot of a fast food restaurant.  The next day, June 13, Atlanta Chief of Police Erika Shields resigned, and protesters burned down the fast food restaurant where the incident took place. On June 14, new infections increased by 25,000, the highest since May 2, in part due to increased testing. On June 15, the Supreme Court rules that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which makes it illegal for employers to discriminate because of a person's sex, also covers sexual orientation. On the same day, the FDA withdraws emergency use authorization for hydroxychloroquine to treat hospitalized COVID-19 patients, citing unnecessary risk. On June 18, the  Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) withdraws the introduction of federal limits for perchlorate, which has been linked to brain damage in infants. Juneteenth was celebrated across the nation under special circumstances by June 19, 2020. June 20 was when   President Trump held his first 2020 campaign rally in months at the Bank of Oklahoma Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma. On June 25, the U.S. reaches a record daily high of 40,000 new COVID-19 cases, following a reversal in the downward trend of infections in early June. Southern and western states are the worst affected. President Trump signed an executive order against the destruction or vandalism of public monuments, memorials, or statues on June 26. Trump cares more for racist monuments than human justice. The New York Times reports that a Russian military intelligence unit offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants for the killing of U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan and that President Trump was briefed on the findings in late March 2020, but did not authorize any response. Trump denied he was ever briefed on the matter.


  



 

June 29 was when Arizona Governor Doug Ducey ordered all bars, nightclubs, gyms, movie theaters, and water parks to close or 30 days due to a spike in pandemic cases. On June 30, 2020, after a vote by the  state legislature, Mississippi governor Tate Reeves signed a bill retiring the official Mississippi state flag, the last state flag incorporating the Confederate Battle Flag of the Army of Northern Virginia into its design. A commission is established to design a new state flag. July 1 was when the  House Armed Services Committee voted for a National Defense Authorization Act amendment to restrict President Trump's ongoing troop withdrawal from Afghanistan and prospective withdrawal from Germany. By July 2, 2020, the  FBI arrested British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, an associate of late disgraced U.S. financier Jeffrey Epstein, in New Hampshire. Maxwell would later reveals secrets about the sick acts done by some of the super wealthy as time goes on. Florida reported 10,000 new coronavirus cases in a single day. That was the biggest one day increase in the state since the pandemic started, and more than any European country had at the height of their outbreaks. Kanye West ran for President on July 4. Trump's Salute to America Independence day event was held in D.C. On July 7, the primary elections are held in New Jersey. By July 8, the Supreme Court rules that President Trump must release his financial records for examination by prosecutors in New York. At the same date,  Florida emerges as the world's new epicenter of the pandemic, with 220,500 confirmed cases statewide. Naya Rivera from Glee passed away at the age of 33 from drowning. Trump commuted the 40 month sentence of political consultant Roger Stone on July 10. By July 11, President Trump wore a face mask for the first time while visiting wounded soldiers and health care workers at Walter Reed military hospital. July 12 was when 18 sailors were injured by an explosion and fire on the USS Bonhomme Richard in San Diego, California.  Florida reported 15,299 cases, a new single-day record since the start of the pandemic. July 14 was when white supremacist and murderer Daniel Lewis Lee was executed by lethal injection in Terre Haute, Indiana, becoming the first federal execution since 2003. 


  





 

The Presidential Race

 

The Trump administration ordered hospitals to bypass the CDC and send all COVID-19 patient data to a central database in Washington, D.C. Pharmaceutical company Moderna announced that its vaccine will begin the final phase of testing, with approximately 30,000 human volunteers. July 15 was when the  Twitter accounts of prominent political figures, CEOs, and celebrities are hacked to promote a bitcoin scam. Georgia Governor Brian Kemp voided all of the state's local face masks mandates. On July 17,  Secretary of Defense Mark Esper issued a memorandum to the military on the appropriate display of flags, which excludes the Confederate flag, thereby effectively banning it. Georgia Floyd protests continue on July 18 when Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum files a lawsuit against the federal government, accusing it of unlawfully detaining protesters in Portland. On July 21, Republican Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder was arrested by federal agents in connection with a $60 million bribery case. Former Ohio GOP Chairman Matt Borges was also arrested, along with a GOP advisor and two lobbyists. A 7.8 magnitude earthquake took place off the coast of Alaska on July 22.   President Trump announces a "surge" in deployments of federal officers to Democratic-run cities, following an earlier crackdown on protests in Oregon. On July 23, the racist Trump announces that it is revoking the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing provision of the 1968 Fair Housing Act. Hurricane Hanna made 2 landfalls in South Texas killing 5 people in July 25. On July 29, Oregon Governor Kate Brown and Vice President Mike Pence agree to a phased withdrawal of deployed federal law enforcement from Portland. 


 


By July 30, 2020, federal economic figures show a 32.9% annualized rate of GDP contraction between April and June, the sharpest decline since records began in 1945. Knowing that he will lose the election, Donald Trump wanted a delay of the 2020 Presidential election, because he sees increased voting by mail. He lied and said that vote by mail will cause widespread fraud and inaccurate results. On August 2,  Crew Dragon Demo-2, the first U.S.-crewed splashdown since 1975, lands in the Gulf of Mexico. Hurricane Isaias made landfall in North Carolina on August 3. 7,500 east Los Angeles residents were evacuated in the Apple Fire. The Great American Outdoors Act was passed on August 4. On August 5,  Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar traveled to Taiwan, the highest U.S. official visit to the country in 40 years. On August 6, 2020, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced a lawsuit aimed at dissolving the National Rifle Association over alleged financial mismanagement. The irony was that the NRA was originally created as a gun sportsmanship group by Union soldiers during the 19th century. They endorsed gun control until the late 1970's when the leadership of the NRA went far right. President Trump signed an executive order banning any U.S. companies or citizens from making transactions with ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, in 45 days. He takes similar action against Tencent. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg reaches a net worth exceeding $100 billion, becoming the third centibillionaire, alongside Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates. From August 7-17, the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally took place despite concerns by health officials. They put their own lives at risk. On August 9, 2020, President Trump is escorted from a news briefing by the Secret Service following a shooting near the White House. A derecho with winds recorded at up to 140 mph struck the Midwest, resulting in four deaths, hundreds of injuries, widespread utility outages, and severe property damage on August 10-11.  


 




 

A Historic Event (involving a Woman breaking down Barriers) 


August 11, 2020 is one of the most historic dates of the history of the United States of America. Many have dreamed of this event to come to pass. Now, we are blessed enough to witness this historic occurrence in our lifetimes. This was the date when Democratic Presidential candidate Joe Biden named Kamala Harris as his vice Presidential nominee. Kamala Harris is the first African American woman and South Asian American woman to be Vice President of the United States of America. That date was the start of the beginning of her future role. Kamala Harris thanked the black political pioneers before her like Presidential candidate Shirley Chisholm who paved the way for black women, black people in general, and all people to achieve their dreams politically and socially. Kamala Harris has wide ranging political experience. She was the 27th District Attorney of San Francisco, the 32nd Attorney General of California, and the United States Senator from California. Her story is an American story. Her mother was Shyamala Gopalan, who was biologist, civil rights activist, and researcher. Her mother was of Tamil descent in India. Her father is the Jamaican Stanford University professor emeritus of economics Donald J. Harris. Kamala Harris has a younger sister named Maya. Kamala Harris sang both at an African American church in Oakland and at a Hindu temple. Her maternal grandfather P. V. Gopalan inspired her to promote progressive views on democracy and women's rights. Kamala Harris graduated from the historically black university of Howard University based at Washington, D.C. She worked at  the San Francisco  City Hall too. Kamala Harris has a membership at the Third Baptist Church of San Francisco. Kamala Harris' selection was heavily celebrated by people the world over. 

  





 

Conclusion (for Spring 2021)

 

Black History is certainly about honoring legends, unsung people, and us. One of the greatest writers, playwrights, and music teachers was Thelma Myrtle Duncan. She was born in St. Louis, Missouri. She studied at Howard University and Columbia University (at NYC). From Howard University, Thelma Myrtle Duncan graduated from the university cum laude with a degree in music. Dr. Carl J. Murphy was a journalist, publisher, educator, and civil rights leader. His father was a former slave in Montgomery County. Also, his father served in the Union Army, won his freedom, and founded the Baltimore Afro-American newspaper. He earned his B.A. from Howard University in 1911 and a M.A. from Harvard University in 1913. We know about the legendary Ruby Dee. A life long civil rights activist, a progressive black woman, and being against the Vietnam War, she loved truth. She loved Ossie Davis with a great love which outlines the beauty of Black Love. Without Black Love, no human would exist on this Earth as black people are the first humans of human history. Joseph Winters was a black man who invented the wagon mounted fire escape ladder. Benjamin A. Quarles was a great African American historian, administrator, scholar, educator, and writer. He wrote works entitled, The Negro in the Civil War, Black Abolitionists, The Negro in the American Revolution, etc. 

Enolia P. McMillian was the first woman President of the Baltimore, Maryland NAACP. Her father was born a slave. For the rest of her life, she fought for equal pay for black teachers and better schools for black students. May Miller was a playwright and poet of the Harlem Renaissance. Black history and black culture are global. It is found in the United States of America, in Africa, in Europe, in the Caribbean, in Latin America, in Asia, and in other places of the world. Black people exist in the four corners of the globe, and we are always appreciative of our Blackness. Recently, Bianca Belair was the first black woman to win the WWE Women's Royal Rumble. She is from Knoxville, Tennessee. She was a track athlete filled with charisma and power. To see the emotions on her and her parents' faces certainly represents a new era of our time. We should cherish these events, because not too long ago, we couldn't eat where we want in America. It was only about 66 years ago when Jim Crow existed. I was born only about 15 years after Dr. King's assassination. The great point that Bianca Belair made recently is that any human being is made up of history, we have the right to establish our own history in a forthright fashion. 

  

No one should be surprised at Bill Maher and Megyn Kelly allying with each other. Maher is known for his Islamophobia, caught saying the n word and for his faux talking points. When Maher disrespected Wayne Brady using racist stereotypes, then that shows how Maher is the fake liberal. Many black women have accused Maher of verbally abusing them. Megyn Kelly was part of FOX News, was fired from NBC for justifying the racist blackface image, and hates the ideology of promoting anti-racist activism. Maher had coddled the racist Ann Coulter too. Kelly lied and said that "cancel culture" caused her firing. No, she was fired for justifying anti-black racism. Kelly is silent on her previous network of FOX calling Michelle Obama "Obama's babymama," and she demonized a black teenage girl (who was assaulted in Texas by a cop) as "no saint." She said that black communities have a "thug mentality." So, we know racists like this. They make millions of dollars demonizing our people, then lecture us on "victimhood" when they have tons of privilege. Kelly lied and said that any person exposing white racism and black bodies dying is racist. Right now, black people are hospitalized from the virus 2.9x the rate of white Americans are 1.5x more likely to die from the disease. People like Maher and Kelly embrace a historical revisionism not the real truth about what's going on in America.


 




One lesson learned in 2021 is that going to the "center" isn't worth it while lives are being lost and massive suffering is still in existence. Healthcare, equality, and other just concepts are what we desire. We know that 93% of all House Republicans voted against impeaching Trump for inciting insurrection. This existed even after Trump promoted an attempted coup that risked the lives of every Congressmen and Congresswomen. The Republican Party has evolved into a pro-Trump cult. There is no other way to put it. Polls show that 45 percent of Republicans support the evil storming of the Capitol and more than half of all Republicans believe in the lie that Trump won the 2020 election. These polls outline what we have been saying for years (that far right extremism is a threat to the world). There is no middle ground in dealing with Qanon cultists, sexists, racists, and xenophobes. We have to speak truth to power. That is precisely why justice is our aim. Biden is pushing for the pandemic relief bill to be passed quickly. The bill has money for programs to help with public health and economic recovery. The majority of the American people desire a solution and such bold policies to be enacted. We have Lou Dobbs' show canceled from FOX News. I knew of Lou Dobbs for years as a xenophobe and a person who lied about Obama's citizenship. Many voting companies are suing far right media figures over the far right folks' denials of the legitimacy of the 2020 election. 

There are more rallies in Russia in favor of Navalny (Putin is wrong for his authoritarianism, but Navalny is wrong for his anti-immigrant, far right politics too). The BBC further proves the oppression of Uighur Muslims in China. Biden's plan is worth $1.9 trillion. There are calls for the Department of Education to eliminate $50,000 per debtor of student loan debt. Trump's attorney are using the lie that the BLM movement incites violence as an excuse for Trump inciting violence. Trump during the rally said that he wanted people to fight at Congress to end the peaceful democratic transition of power. Trump was explicitly involved in a failed coup attempt against the 2020 election. Studies have shown that 93 percent of all BLM protests are peaceful, the BLM movement in general doesn't advocate violent insurrection against the U.S. government, and Trump is clear that he wanted to use strength and fighting to eliminate the results of the election. The insurrection involved treason, violence, threats, and death. The violence at the Capitol represents the mindset and philosophies of tons of Trump supporters. That is why polls show that most Republicans believe that Trump won the 2020 election, which is a lie. Trump wanted to stop the certification of the 2020 election which is an attempted coup d'etat. That is wrong, illegal, and treason by Trump.

The GOP at the CPAC rally including Trump are still promoting the lie that the 2020 election was stolen and is illegitimate. We know of the crowd found at CPAC. They include racists, sexists, xenophobes, extreme free market advocates, and others who care more for one man than for the American people collectively. Some Trump supporters made even a golden idol of Trump. Every effort by the far right extremists used to try to make Trump steal the 2020 election failed. The attacks on our democracy failed during the most important election of our lifetimes in 2020. Georgia is one state that ground zero in trying to promote more voter suppression. That is why Democrats are trying to end the aim of some to cut early voting. Arizona and Pennsylvania also have extremists trying to overhaul U.S. election laws. That is why legal scholars, lawyers, and activists should do their part to get the legal system involved to stop voter suppression proposals (like trying to harm vote by mail). Not to mention that we should always be clear to believe in independent. It is not a secret that many social movements with sincere motivations have been infiltrated and co-opted by large foundations like the Rockefeller Foundation, the Ford Foundation, the Open Society, etc. Showing the truth in an uncompromising fashion is always important in our lives. 

    


By Timothy

Spring 2021 Part 5.

 


  








 

 Oakland, California

 

For over 150 years, Oakland has existed in its power and influence. Flourishing with diversity and culture, Oakland is one of the most socially conscious cities in the world. When an injustice comes about, people in Oakland are out to protest that injustice.  It has been home to one of the destinations of the Second Great Migration. The Second Great Migration was a time from 1940 to 1970 where millions of African Americans traveled from the South into the North, the Midwest, and the West Coast (for the purpose of escaping oppressing and seeking better social, economic opportunities). Much of the culture of Oakland resides in its diverse music from Tony Toni Tone, MC Hammer, and Sheila E. Oakland is a West Coast port city found in the East Bay region of the overall Bay Area.  It's the third largest city in the San Francisco Bay Area, and it's the 8th most populated city in California. It has over 433,000 people with about 77.89 square miles (with 55 square miles of land). Oakland has been the home of many social movements like the Black Panther Party of Self Defense which was formed in 1966 (by Bobby Seale and Huey Newton). In fact, one time, black people were about 57% of the population of Oakland by 1980. To this day, the Moms 4 Housing is fighting for housing rights. It has been the home of diverse people like C. L. Dellums, Ron Dellums, Jerry Brown, Marcus Goster, Alicia Garza, Kamala Harris, Fred Korematsu, Keyshia Cole, En Vogue, The Pointer Sisters, Clara Elizabeth Chan Lee, and other human beings. The story of Oakland is an American story filled with overcoming challenges, hard work, resisting oppressive systems, and realizing that to have victory is to work together sincerely for real change. If you want change, then action constructively used to promote justice must be enacted thoroughly. 

 



 

The History of Oakland

 

The Early Years

 

In Oakland, California, the first people were the Native Americans from thousands of years ago. The earliest known inhabitants of the area were the Huchiun tribe.  New genetic research document how Native Americans are genetic cousins of Siberians as Native Americans came from Siberia. They lived in Oakland since time immemorial. The Huchiun people belonged to a linguistic groups called the Ohlone (a Milwok word meaning "western people"). In Oakland, they lived around Lake Merritt and Temescal Creek, or a stream that enters the San Francisco Bay at Emeryville. Later, there was the Spanish and Mexican period of Oakland's history. Conquistadors from New Spain claimed Oakland, and other Ohlone lands of the East Bay. The conquistadors also conquered the rest of California for the king of Spain in 1772. By the early 19th century, the Spanish crown deeded the East Bay area to Luis Maria Peralta for his Rancho San Antonio. The grant was confirmed by successor Mexican republic upon its independence from Spain. Upon his death in 1842, Peralta divided his land among his 4 sons. Most of Oakland was within the shares given to Antonio Maria and Vicente. The Peralta ranch included a stand of oak trees that stretched from the land that is today Oakland's downtown area to the adjacent part of Alameda, then a peninsula. The peralta called the area encinal or the Spanish word that means, "oak grove." This was translated more loosely as "Oakland" in the subsequent naming of the town (according to Horace Carpenter in his first address as mayor). He said: "The chief ornament and attraction of this city consists, doubtless, in the magnificent grove of evergreen oaks which covers its present site and from which it takes both its former name of 'Encinal' and its present one of 'Oakland.'" The trees were California live oaks which are the dominant oversotyr plant of the coast like oak woodland habitant. 


 


The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo after the Mexican-American War, the Mexican government ceded 525,0000 square miles or 55 percent of its pre-war territory (excluding Texas) to America in exchange for $15 million. The Treaty also gave the safeguarding of the land and property of Mexican citizens. Yet, that provision was regularly ignored by squatters and land speculators. Some of them began settling in the Peralta Ranch during the Gold Rush especially. Before Congress created a Land Commission in 1851 to pursue a settlement of property claims, there were a group of three men. These men were Horace Carpentier, Edson Adams, and Andrew Moon. They were backed at one point by a small army of some 200 men hired from San Francisco to develop a small settlement on Peralta land. It was at first called Contra Costa (opposite shore). It was the Spanish name for the lands on the east side of the Bay in the area that is now downtown Oakland. The United States Post Office recognized this by establishing a post office there with the name "Contra Costa." Carpentier was elected to the California state legislature and go the town of Oakland incorporated on May 4, 1852. By the time of the Land Commission got around to confirming the Peraltas' claims in 1854, Oakland was quickly being further developed. The Peraltas in the meantime had been persuaded to sell various parcels of their vast holdings. In 1853, John Coffee "Jack" Hays, a famous Texas Ranger, was one of the first to establish residence in Oakland while performing his duties as sheriff of San Francisco. 

 



 

The Early American Period

 

On March 25, 1854, Oakland was re-incorporated as the City of Oakland. Horace Carpentier was elected its first mayor. His tenure didn't last. He was ousted in 1855. People were angry that he acquired exclusive rights to the waterfront from the Town Board of Trustees in 1852. Charles Campbell replaced him as Mayor on March 5, 1852. The city and its environs grew quickly. There were railroads making Oakland a major rail terminal in the late 1860's and 1870's. In 1868, the Central Pacific made the Oakland Long Wharf at Oakland Point. That is the site of today's Port of Oakland.  The Long Wharf served as the terminus both for the Transcontinental Railroad and for local commuter trains of the Central (later, Southern) Pacific. The Central Pacific also established one of its largest rail yards and servicing facilities in West Oakland, which continued to be a major local employer under the Southern Pacific well into the 20th century. The principal depot of the Southern Pacific in Oakland was the 16th Street Station located at 16th and Wood, which is currently being restored as part of a redevelopment project. 


 


In 1871, Cyrus and Susan Mills paid $5,000 for the Young Ladies' Seminary in Benicia, renamed it Mills College, and moved it to its current location in Oakland, adjacent to what is now Seminary Boulevard. In 1872, the town of Brooklyn was incorporated into Oakland. Brooklyn, a large municipality southeast of Lake Merritt, was part of what was then called the Brooklyn Township.




A number of horse-car and cable car lines were constructed in Oakland during the latter half of the 19th century. The first electric streetcar set out from Oakland to Berkeley in 1891, and other lines were converted and added over the course of the 1890's. The various streetcar companies operating in Oakland were acquired by Francis "Borax" Smith and consolidated into what eventually became known as the Key System, the predecessor of today's publicly owned AC Transit. In addition to its system of streetcars in the East Bay, the Key System also operated commuter trains to its own pier and ferry boats to San Francisco, in competition with the Southern Pacific. Upon completion of the Bay Bridge, both companies ran their commuter trains on the south side of the lower deck, directly to San Francisco. The Key System in its earliest years was actually in part a real estate venture, with the transit part serving to help open up new tracts for buyers. The Key System's investors (incorporated as the "Realty Syndicate") also established two large hotels in Oakland, one of which survives as the Claremont Resort. The other, which burned down in the early 1930's, was the Key Route Inn, at what is now West Grand and Broadway. From 1904 to 1929, the Realty Syndicate also operated a major amusement park in north Oakland called Idora Park.


   







 

 

World War II

By the early 1900's, there was a plague epidemic. That is why authorities used quarantines measures at Oakland ports to save lives. Some rats were infected. Over 5,000 people were quarantined in 1908. Hunters came into to shoot the squirrels. The State Board of Health of the U.S. Public Health Service only allotted about $60,000 a year to end the disease. Oakland didn't have sufficient health facilities back then. Some of the infected human beings were treated at home. The pnuemoic plague killed a dozen people in Oakland in 1919. The situation started when a man went hunting in Contra Costa Valley and killed a squirrel. After eating the squirrel, the man fell ill. 4 days later, another household member had the plague. This led to others having it. Officials acted quickly by issuing death certificates to monitor the spread of the plague. Oakland grew in size. It started to annex farmland and settlements to the east and north. Industries grew in the city. Alameda was made an island. By 1906, the city's population doubled with migrants made homeless after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and fire. The Rotary Club of Oakland was created in 1908. By 1916, General Motors opened an automobile factory in East Oakland called the Oakland Assembly. The location produced Chevrolet cars and then GMC trucks until 1963. Then, it moved to Fremont in southern Alameda County. By 1916, the Fageol Motor Company chose East Oakland for their first factory, manufacturing farming tractors from 1918 to 1923.  By 1920, Oakland was the home of numerous manufacturing industries, including metals, canneries, bakeries, internal combustion engines, automobiles, and shipbuilding.  By 1929, when Chrysler expanded with a new plant there, Oakland had become known as the "Detroit of the West," referring to the major auto manufacturing center in Michigan. 


 


Oakland's population in the 1920's further expanded with factory workers. About 13,000 homes were built in the 3 years between 1921 and 1924. That was more than during the 13 years between 1907 and 1920. Many of the large downtown office buildings, apartment buildings, and single family houses still exist in Oakland like they did in the 1920's. Russell Clifford Durant formed the Durant Field at 82 Avenue and East 14th Street in 1916. The  first transcontinental airmail flight finished its journey at Durant Field on August 9, 1920, flown by Army Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker and Navy Lt. Bert Acosta.  Durant Field was often called Oakland Airport, though the current Oakland International Airport was soon established four miles (6.4 km) to the southwest. 




During World War II, the East Bay Area was home to many war-related industries. Oakland's Moore Dry Dock Company expanded its shipbuilding capabilities and built over 100 ships. Valued at $100 million in 1943, Oakland's canning industry was its second-most-valuable war contribution after shipbuilding. The largest canneries were in the Fruitvale District, and included the Josiah Lusk Canning Company, the Oakland Preserving Company (which started the Del Monte brand), and the California Packing Company 

 







President Franklin D. Roosevelt called on defense industries with government contracts to integrate their workforces and provide opportunities for all Americans. Tens of thousands of laborers came from around the country, especially poor whites and blacks from the Deep South: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Texas, as well as Missouri and Tennessee. Henry J. Kaiser's representatives recruited sharecroppers and tenant farmers from rural areas to work in his shipyards. African Americans part of the Great Migration (in about 5 million people) left the South to the West and all over America from 1940 to 1970. White migrants from the Jim Crow South carried their racial attitudes, causing tension to rise among black and white workers competing for the better paying jobs in the Bay Ara. The racial harmony that many Oakland black people have been accustomed to prior to the war ended. Many Mexican Americans migrated to the area from New Mexico, Texas, and Colorado. Many worked for the Southern Pacific Railroad, as its major rail yard in West Oakland. Their young men encountered hostility and discrimination by Armed Forces personnel, and tensions broke out in "zoot suit riots" in downtown Oakland in 1943 in the wake of a major disturbance in Los Angeles that year. In 1946, National City Lines (NCL), a General Motors holding company, acquired 64% of Key System stock. This was during the next several years NCL engaged in the conspiratorial dissolution of Oakland's electric streetcar system. The city's expensive streetcar fleet was converted to the cheaper diesel buses. The state Legislature formed the Alameda and Contra Costa Transit District in 1955, which operates today as AC Transit, the third-largest bus-only transit system in the nation. Soon after the war, as Oakland's shipbuilding industry declined and the automobile industry went through restructuring, many jobs were lost. Economic competition increased racial tension.  In addition, labor unrest increased as workers struggled to protect their livelihoods. Oakland was the center of a general strike during the first week of December 1946, one of six cities across the country that had such a strike after World War II.








 

The Civil Rights Movement of Oakland, California.

 

There is a long history of the Civil Rights Movement in Oakland and in the Bay Area in general. After World War II, the Great Migration caused a lot of Black Americans to go into the Bay Area from the South. Activists wanted an end to oppression in general. In the West Coast, people fought for equality, fairness in education, housing rights, and employment opportunities. Many people in California supported the Civil Rights Movement of the South too. This movement included people of all colors and backgrounds. In Oakland, demonstrations, sit-ins, marches, pickets, and parades were commonplace back then. The evil 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act banned Chinese people from immigrating to America based upon race. The law was only repealed decades after it was passed. By the 1940's and the 1950's, the federal housing redlining policies banned communities of color from developing their own wealth. Neighborhoods suffered. There was the white flight to the suburbs. Many Oakland homes and businesses were destroyed to build the Nimitz Freeway and the Cypress Viaduct. Urban renewal was at West Oakland by the 1960's. Many black and Latino families were displaced from West Oakland during htis time. The BART and the Main Post Office at 1675 7th Street was built. Many black Americans moved into East Oakland and at Elmhurst district. Latinos moved into the Fruitvale neighborhood. People of Oakland fought back. After the Woolworth sit-in in Greensboro, North Carolina, many people in the Bay Area boycotted Woolworths. Terry Francois, the President of the San Francisco branch of the NAACP and the college student Thomas Gaither supported equality. 2,500 people marched along Post Street San Francisco to protest the tragedy of 4 little young African American girls being murdered by a bomb at the 16th Street Baptist Church at Birmingham, Labama (in 1963). 

 

The protest had Rabbi Alvin Fine, Chairman William Chester of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU), U.S. attorney Cecil Poole, and Leonard Farmer speak their minds. 40,000 people marched along Market Street to protest the nomination of Senator Barry Goldwater as the Republican Presidential nominee because of his views of civil rights (Goldwater opposed the 1964 Civil Rights Act, because he didn't want the federal government to eliminate Jim Crow apartheid. He only wanted states separately to eliminate racial discrimination). The U.C. Berkeley Chapter of Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) used sit-ins and protests too. Many in the Bay Area fought for Fair Housing rights too. In May of 1964, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. visited the Bay Area to have a rally to fight for the civil rights bill in America. By 1967, the California Supreme Court eliminating a housing law that discriminated against black people.  By the 1960's, community groups like Oakland Community Organizations, Unity Council, Intertribal Friendship House, the Black Panthers and other groups fought for racial justice, equal access to jobs, housing transportation, health care, etc. By the 1980's and 1990's, community group fought institutionalized racism. There was the PolicyLink, the Green Lining Institute, and the Center for Racial Justice Innovation. During the 21st century, civil rights groups flourish in Oakland. Oakland had a long history of protest. There was a black mutiny after an explosion killed over 200 African American sailors during World War II. Biranna Noble rode her horse to protest the police killing of George Floyd. 

 



 
Bobby Seale and Terika Lewis (on the right) were famous Black Panther Party leaders in Oakland, California. 


 

Oakland was always a place where protests involving military desegregation, civil rights, economic justice, etc. existed. The Port Chicago Mutiny of 1944 was over the explosion at the Port Chicago at July 17, 1944. A tons of munitions blew up.Racists didn't even want just compensation to the families of the black sailors. Many of the 50 black seamen who mutinied were sentenced to prison. They were only exonerated in 2019. There was the Oakland General strike in 1946.  It opposed discrimination. By 1960, 83,000 African Americans were in Oakland out of 368,000 people. There was the civil rights protest at the Oakland Tribune in 1964. The protest wanted fair hiring practices without racism. The Black Panthers was a group who wanted proletariat revolution, and they were formed at Oakland on October of 1966. They were socialists who desired the black people to be protected from police brutality. They used programs of helping children, adults, etc. in order to be the catalyst to eliminate global imperialism. They opposed the Vietnam War. The Black Panthers had a breakfast program to feed children, establish medical clinics, form transportation services, and create a nationwide newspaper sending out important messages of the day to the people. They studied revolutionary scholars. The Black Panthers used a grassroots movement in desiring change. They were in the California legislature at Sacramento, California to protest the Mulford bill as the Black Panthers openly carried rifles (which was legal at the time). This happened on May 2, 1967 after the Richmond police killed unarmed black man Denzil Dowell. The protest at Sacramento represented the Black Panthers' activism. Many stories of the Black Panthers have shown their heroism, courage, and a sense of love for the black community. From Fred Hampton to Terika Lewis, the Panthers constituted tons of intellectual power including social consciousness. They were the progressive side of the overall black freedom struggle. 

 

In 2009, tons of people protested the unjust killing of Oscar Grant. The cop, who killed him, received a slap on the risk. Oscar Grant was a working class, young black man who just wanted to provide for his family. The 1980's saw high unemployment and crime in Oakland. Oscar Grant was only 22 years old when he passed on New Year's Day 2009. The killer is Johannes Mehserle. Oscar Grant was shot at Fruitvale Station. Oakland had the Occupy movement to promote economic justice in the midst of Wall Street financial issues. The Oakland rebellion took place in 2014 over the death of Michael Brown. Oakland protests continued in 2020 after the passing of George Floyd and Breonna Tyalor. There were legitimate protests and vandalism. Many of the old school activist who fought for justice and back then are Walter Riley (an Oakland attorney), Ned Saturu (a former Black Panther Party people, activist, and entrepreneur), Steve McCutchen (who is an activist and a former member of the Black Panther Party), Dr. Ayodele Nzinga (who is a theater director, author, and founder of the Black Arts Movement Business District), Cat Brooks (a fighter against police terror), and other unsung heroes. The struggle for justice continues. 

 





 

The Post World War II Era

 

After WWII, massive changes happened in Oakland. In 1960, the Kaiser Corporation created its new headquarters. It was the largest skyscrapers in Oakland and was the largest office tower back then west of Chicago. By this time, suburban developed increased around Oakland. Wealthier residents moved into new housing. Despite the major increases in the number and proportion of African Americans in the city. In 1966, only 16 of the city's 661 police officers were black. Tensions between the black community and the largely white police force were high, as expectations during the civil rights era increased to gain social justice and equality before the law. Police abuse of blacks was common. Students Huey Newton and Bobby Seale founded the Black Panther Party at Merritt College (then located at a former high school on Grove Street, now occupied by Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute), which emphasized black power, advocated armed self-defense against police brutality, and was involved in several incidents that ended in the deaths of police officers and other Black Panther members. Among their social programs were feeding children and providing other services to the needy. During the 1970's, Oakland began to suffer serious violence and other problems related to gang-controlled dealing of heroin and cocaine when drug kingpin Felix Mitchell created the nation's first large-scale operation of this kind. Both violent crime and property crime increased during this period, and Oakland's murder rate rose to over twice that of San Francisco and New York.  

 




The 1980's and the 1990's

 

Many other American cities during the 1980's had the crack cocaine epidemic. It was a serious problem in Oakland too. Back then, no one issued programs to help with families or drug addiction in a massive level. People were placed into prison, people were scapegoated, and no radical changes happened to save families. Crime rates grown. By 1980, Oakland's black population had its 20th century peak at 47% of the overall city population.


 


The 6.9 M Loma Prieta earthquake happened on October 17, 1989. The rupture was related to the San Andreas fault system and affected the entire San Francisco Bay Area with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent). Many structures in Oakland were badly damaged including the double-decker portion of Interstate 880 that collapsed. The eastern span of the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge also sustained damage and was closed to traffic for one month. On October 20, 1991, a massive firestorm swept down from the Berkeley/Oakland hills above the Caldecott Tunnel. Twenty-five people were killed, 150 people were injured, and nearly 4,000 homes destroyed. With the loss of life and an estimated economic loss of US$1.5 billion, this was the worst urban firestorm in American history, until 2017. During the mid-1990s, Oakland's economy began to recover as it transitioned to new types of jobs. In addition, the city participated in large development and urban renewal projects, concentrated especially in the downtown area, at the Port of Oakland, and at the Oakland International Airport. 

 



 

 

The 2000s

 

After the 1999 inauguration of Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown, he continued with his predecessor Elihu Harris' public policy of supporting downtown housing development in the Central Business District via the Oakland 1998 General Plan. This Central Business District is located at Downtown Oakland. Since Brown's stated goal was to add 10,000 residents to downtown Oakland, it became known as the "10K" plan. It resulted in redevelopment projects in the Jack London District, where Brown purchased and later sold an industrial warehouse, which he used as a personal residence, and in the Lakeside Apartments District near Lake Merritt, where two infill projects were approved. The 10K plan touched the historic Old Oakland district, the Chinatown district, the Uptown district, and downtown. Obviously, the 10K plan and other redevelopment plans were controversial, because of the possible rent increases and gentrification. Gentrification would displace lower income residents from downtown Oakland into other neighborhoods and cities. Another controversy over the development proposals developed when there was the weakening of the Bay Area and the national economy in 2000, 2001, 2007, and the credit crunch and the recession of 2008. These downturns resulted in lowered sales, rentals and occupancy of the new housing and slower growth and economic recovery than expected.


The Oakland Athletics have long sought a site to build a new baseball stadium. A deal announced in 2006 to build a new park in Fremont, to be called Cisco Field was halted three years later as a result of opposition from businesses and local residents.  Local efforts have been put forth by both fans and city politicians to retain the A's, including three potential locations near downtown and the Oakland waterfront.The South Bay city of San Jose showed continuing, strong interest in becoming the team's new home, and was the preferred destination for then majority team owner Lew Wolff,but was blocked by the San Francisco Giants. Currently plans call for a 34,000 seat new stadium dubbed Oakland Ballpark at Howard Terminal (owned by the Port of Oakland) next to Jack London Square. The Oakland Ballet, performing in the city since 1965, folded temporarily in 2006 due to financial problems and the closure of their performance facility, the Calvin Simmons Theater at the Kaiser Convention Center.  The following year, founder Ronn Guidi announced the revival of the Ballet under new director Graham Lustig, and the program continues to perform at the Laney College Theater. 

Early morning January 1, 2009 changed Oakland, California forever. This was when the unarmed civilian black man named Oscar Grant was shot and killed by the BART police officer Johannes Mehserle on a crowded platform at the Fruitville BART Station in East Oakland. Officers had subdued and handcuffed Grant in a prone position for allegedly resisting arrest before Mehserle shot Grant in the back with his gun. Mehserle thought his gun was a stun gun. Later, demonstrations and rebellions took place in Downtown Oakland, with demonstrations opposing police brutality and racial injustice. Mehserle was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in July 2010, and sentenced to 2 years in prison. Both the verdict and sentencing set off further demonstrations in downtown Oakland which included looting and destruction of property. In February 2009, the Fox Oakland Theater reopened. The theater had been closed for most of the previous 42 years, with few events held there. After a thorough restoration, seismic retrofit, and many other improvements following years of severe neglect (including a fire as recently as 2004), the historic landmark theater started drawing patrons from all over the Bay Area. On March 21, 2009, Oakland parolee Lovelle Mixon, 26, fatally shot four Oakland police officers, and wounded a fifth officer. At approximately 1:00 p.m., Mixon shot and killed two officers during a routine traffic stop. Mixon fled the scene, hiding in his sister's nearby apartment, and shortly after 3:00 p.m., he killed two more officers as they responded. During the ensuing shootout, the police killed Mixon in self-defense and a fifth officer was wounded. Three of the officers killed were ranking sergeants, the first time the Oakland Police Department had lost a sergeant in the line of duty. It was the single deadliest day for sworn personnel in the department's history,  and also the deadliest attack on U.S. law enforcement since the September 11 attacks. 

 



 

The 2010's and the 2020s

 

Due to misconduct by the Oakland Police Department, the City of Oakland has paid a total of $57 million during the 2001–2011 time  frame to victims of police abuse—the largest sum of any city in California. On October 10, 2011, protesters and civic activists began Occupy Oakland. They protested national social and economic inequality at Frank Ogawa Plaza in Downtown Oakland. The demonstrators set up an encampment that one point, consisted of a "miniature city" of as many as 150 tents. A 2nd encampment was formed at Snow Park on Lake Merrritt. Oakland Police raided and dismantled the 2 protest sites at Frank Ogawa Plaza and Snow Park early in the morning on October 25. Later the same day, in efforts to reestablish the encampments, protesters clashed with police. Two officers and three protesters were injured and more than a hundred people were arrested. On November 2, thousands marched upon and shut down the Port of Oakland.  At least two Iraqi war veterans were injured in the demonstrations, by police action.  By November 14, the encampment at the plaza in front of City Hall had been cleared, and it was announced by city officials the continued protests had cost the city $2.4 million. A January 28, 2012 attempt by Occupy Oakland protesters to overtake the vacant Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center resulted in hundreds of arrests by police, and that evening a break-in by vandals to Oakland City Hall resulted in damage to artwork and the building itself. Throughout the 2010s, the city's Oakland Medical Center, the first HMO and first Kaiser Permanente hospital, underwent a $2 billion retrofit including numerous new buildings. 

 

On April 2, 2012, seven people were killed in a shooting at Oikos University, located in East Oakland near the airport and Coliseum Complex. Suspect One L. Goh surrendered an hour later to police in Alameda.   The shooting was considered the deadliest mass killing in the city's history. In July 2013, after the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the Trayvon Martin Trials, there were protests. A small group of the protesters were organized in cities including San Francisco, Philadelphia, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Atlanta. On December 2, 2016, a fire at a Fruitvale District warehouse, which was hosting a music event, killed at least 36 people. It was the deadliest fire in the city's history. Oakland teachers went on strike in February 2019. In 2020, protests in Oakland fought injustice involving the deaths of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, etc. In 2021, the struggle continues, but our cause for human liberation is just. 

  


 

The Culture of Oakland

 

There is always a diverse culture in Oakland, California. Back in 2018, 35.0.6% of the people in Oakland are white, 23.18% are African Americans, 0.87% are Native Americans, 15.32 percent are Asian Americans, and 226.5 percent are Hispanic Americans. Oakland is one of the most ethnically diverse major cities in America. That is why a 2019 analysis by WalletHub showed that Oakland was the most ethnocracially diverse city in the United States of America. Oakland became a destination for African Americans in the Great Migration during and after World War II as they gained high-paying jobs in the defense industry. With gentrification and raising housing prices, many black people have relocated to other housing in the Bay Area suburbs or moving to the Southern United States via the Reverse Great Migration. There are many immigrants in the city too. Oakland is known for having a large art scene. Tons of art communities are found in Downtown, Chinatown, Old Oakland, and Jack London Square. The city is a renowned culinary hotbed, offering both a wide variety and innovative approaches to diverse cuisines in restaurants and markets, often featuring locally grown produce and international styles such as French, Italian, Portuguese/Spanish, Ethiopian, Asian, Latin American, as well as Caribbean, Southern United States/Louisiana Creole, etc., all of which reflects the culinary traditions of the city's ethnically diverse population. Historically a focal point of the West Coast blues and jazz scenes, Oakland is also home to musicians representing such genres as rhythm and blues, gospel, funk, punk, heavy metal, Rap/Gangsta rap, and hip hop. There is the African American Museum and Library at Oakland, California. The National Register of Historic Places have Fox Oakland Theater (opening in 1928) was a historic landmark. 


 










 

The Legacy of Oakland

 

Oakland, California has been a city filled with a long history and outstanding culture. It is a city with over 430,000 people. For long decades, Oakland has been a city of activism. During the Civil Rights Movement, supporters of ending Jim Crow apartheid and those who disagreed with the Vietnam War were in full force to stand up for justice. The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense with its 10 Point Program was founded in the city of Oakland by Bobby Seale and Huey P. Newton. The Black Panthers courageously stoop up against police terrorism. They promoted community-based programs to help feed children breakfast, send transportation for people, and organized rallies to support revolutionaries. The Black Panthers created health clinics to give medicine to the sick and other human beings who desired assistance on their human needs. Today, Oakland has changed in many ways. Yet, the concept of diversity and human tolerance are all part of the ethos of the inspiring legacy of the city of Oakland, California. Libby Schaaf is the mayor of Oakland now. Congresswoman Barbara Lee (who is a lifelong progressive) represents Oakland from the United States House of Representatives. Tons of people travel to Oakland for business, tourism, and other reasons. It has a huge arts culture. African American culture, Asian culture, Latino culture, and other cultures are celebrated all over the city. The city is home to United States Vice President Kamala Harris, Fred Koresmatsu, one founder of BLM Alicia Garza, C. L. Dellums, Jerry Brown, Keyshia Cole, En Vogue, MC Hammer, Goapele, The Pointer Sister, Perri Reid, Raphael Saadiq, and other human beings who have changed history forever. Oakland is America filled with the dreams of a justice amidst a multicultural country. America is the most diverse nation  culturally in human history, and that diversity ultimately represents our strength. 

 

By Timothy