Posts Tagged ‘Oscar Grant’
Oakland residents lead the fight to rename and reclaim public spaces
At Oakland’s inner harbor near the water’s edge stands the bronze statue of Jack London—a famed 20th Century author, labor union advocate and racist who promoted eugenics and white supremacy. Communities of color make up 75% of the population in Oakland. This summer, Oakland residents petitioned to remove a monument dedicated to London and to…
Read MoreOrganizing for change: How some activists are responding to police violence
At a boarded up Oakland City Hall, 20-year-old Mara Coleman sits with paint, brushes, markers and white poster board. With a steady hand and careful strokes, Coleman concentrates as she paints the name Breonna Taylor in red paint. This is the location where Coleman met with fellow youth organizers from Abolitionist Movement SF to paint…
Read MoreOscar Grant’s family denied meeting with District Attorney after case is reopened
On Thursday, Oct. 8, family and friends of Oscar Grant entered the René C. Davidson Courthouse days after District Attorney Nancy O’Malley announced the reopening of the investigation of the Grant’s killing by a BART police officer more than a decade ago. The family planned to meet with the DA to discuss the decision. But instead they were told the meeting wouldn’t happen
Read MoreAdvocates skeptical new police use of force law will save lives
Some Oakland experts wonder if AB 392, a new law that will limit police use of lethal force, can actually save lives.
Read MoreLead to Life plants seeds for an Oakland without gun violence
Oakland activists Lead to Life melt guns into shovels and use them to plant trees.
Read MoreJohn Burris and Michael Rains: Justice is in the eyes of the beholder
Two of the Bay Area’s top lawyers often find themselves on opposite sides of high profile police misconduct cases. One is a plaintiff lawyer who often sues police departments, another defends officers in and out of court. Here’s a story of their battle told through a few cases.
Read MoreCephus Johnson and the men of Black Lives Matter
Cephus “Uncle Bobby” Johnson got the call in the afternoon. “You better get your butt down here,” Patrisse Cullors told him. She was standing on a corner of Oakland’s Frank Ogawa Plaza with five activists from London, each of whom had lost a family member to police violence. They were jetlagged and wearing matching T-shirts.…
Read MoreOakland greets the New Year with two protests
Oakland rang in the New Year with a pair of unauthorized protests; one organized by Occupy Oakland and the other by the Oscar Grant Foundation.
Read MoreLove Balm Project brings healing to mothers who have lost children to violence
Public testimonies give voice to mothers’ grief.
Read MoreOscar Grant family reaches out to mother of Kenneth Harding
On a Saturday afternoon in July, 2011, Kenneth Harding Jr., 19, lay stomach down in his own blood, fighting for his life on the corner of 3rd Street and Palou Avenue in the heart of the Bay View Hunters Point neighborhood in San Francisco. Some say San Francisco police officers shot Harding after he allegedly evaded…
Read MoreSaturday’s Oakland protestors filling the streets — video
After police served Occupy Oakland campers an eviction notice last night, demonstrators took to the streets, marching in a circuit around Lake Merritt this morning, October 22. The march lasted about three hours and remained peaceful. It appeared to span a wide range of age, race, religious and political differences. When asked about the possibility of eviction, one man, who only gave his first name Ethan, said, “I’m not going to fight them, but I’m definitely not going to leave.”
Read MoreBART strikes $1.3 million settlement with Oscar Grant’s mother
On Tuesday, BART settled a federal civil rights lawsuit filed by the mother of Oscar Grant for $1.3 million. Grant was shot and killed by former BART officer Johannes Mehserle on a train platform New Year’s Day 2009.
Read MoreJustice for Oscar Grant Coalition ponders next steps after Mehserle release
On Sunday, the Coalition for Justice for Oscar Grant met at Humanist Hall in Oakland to share ideas for advancing their overarching goal of preventing police abuse in their communities, and to discuss the group’s successes and failures.
Read MoreJohannes Mehserle released from jail
Former BART police Officer Johannes Mehserle was released from a Los Angeles jail shortly after midnight on Monday, after having served a total of 365 days in the Los Angeles Central Jail. This included his time served while incarcerated during his trial and while awaiting sentencing.
Read MoreHundreds peacefully protest Johannes Mehserle jail release
Oakland activists organized a peaceful march from the Fruitvale BART station to Frank Ogawa Plaza on Sunday night to protest the upcoming release of ex-BART police officer Johannes Mehserle from jail. Mehserle was convicted of involuntary manslaughter last July for the 2009 shooting death of Oscar Grant, and sentenced that November to two years in prison.
Read MoreOakland tribunal addresses officer-involved shootings, racial profiling
Oakland residents give testimony about officer-involved shootings and racial profiling in the community at the Oakland Tribunal: A People’s Hearing on Racism and Violence.
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