Activism

Virtual Murrell, Black Panther Party Member, to Speak at Merritt College on Sept. 16

The Barbara Lee and Elihu Harris Lecture Series presents a conversation with Virtual Murrell on Saturday, Sept. 16, at 7 p.m. in the Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale Student Lounge at Merritt College in Oakland. Murrell is a former member of the Black Panther Party, a dynamic leader, political figure, advisor and author who has been active for six decades organizing and helping protect and preserve democracy. He has been celebrated by Black Panther Party members and founders for his organizing skills and compelling public speaking talent.

Published

2 years ago

October 11, 2023

Oakland Post

Virtual Murrell, Black Panther Party Member

The Activist and Author is part of the Barbara Lee and Elihu Harris lecture series

Special to The Post

Murrell is a former member of the Black Panther Party, a dynamic leader, political figure, advisor and author who has been active for six decades organizing and helping protect and preserve democracy. He has been celebrated by Black Panther Party members and founders for his organizing skills and compelling public speaking talent.

Murrell began his life’s work as an organizer while a student at Merritt College in the 1960s and his book, “In Pursuit of America’s Promise: Memoirs of a Black Panther,” has recently been published.

The event is co-produced by the Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Center and the Peralta Community College District. To reserve free tickets, call the Freedom Center office at (510) 434-3988.

“Virtual Murrell has been a personal friend of me and my family since 1962,” Bobby Seale has written. “He and I were the leaders and founders of one of the first Black student activist organizations in the country. Moreover, we also co-founded one of the first Black history and Black Studies programs. It could not have been done without the leadership abilities and roles of Virtual Murrell.”

Rodney Carlisle, professor emeritus, Rutgers University, wrote in the forward to Murrell’s book, “This memoir is a remarkable achievement for several reasons. It is a fascinating first-person account by an African American leader and political figure whose personal career and observations span the decades from the 1960s to the first decade of the 21st century. As a young student leader at Merritt College in Oakland, California, Virtual Murrell knew and worked with Bobby Seale and Huey Newton, and others associated with the formation of the Black Panther Party.

“Later, as a political adviser and activist, he worked with a wide variety of Black leaders in the Democratic Party, throughout the state of California, and in Washington D.C. with a long career spanning the 20th century and the first years of the 21st century. For readers familiar or unfamiliar with the story of ‘Black Radicalism’ as well as the more centrist positions of Black leadership in those decades, his book provides an intimate first-hand account.

“More broadly, however, Murrell’s comments on the situation of African Americans in the late 20th century and early 21st century will be interesting not only to contemporary readers who seek to understand the interplay of race issues and politics, but as an historical document for later generations. Rather than presenting these complex issues ‘from the outside’ as a sociologist or a historian, the issues and developments are described by an active, perceptive, and interesting participant.’”

About the Barbara Lee and Elihu Harris Lecture Series and the Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Center

The Barbara Lee and Elihu Harris Lecture Series promotes an ample exchange of ideas to help inspire and move forward new leadership and servantship. The Lecture Series is a longstanding public forum that invites civic leaders from all sectors to respond to Dr. King’s still-pressing question, “Where do we go from here: chaos or community?”

Broad East Bay audiences of all ages are exposed to some of our nation’s most courageous and exemplary civil and human rights figures, engaging in creative solutions and challenges to some of the most perplexing issues facing our communities today: economic inequity, voter disenfranchisement, systemic racism, violence in schools and neighborhoods, police brutality, and the contradictions and ramifications of extreme poverty.

Lectures are organized by the youth and staff at the Freedom Center, with a focus on promoting ideas and actions rooted in principles of nonviolence, and lessons from some of our nation’s most significant civil rights struggles.

Civic engagement at the Martin Luther King Jr Freedom Center brings together individuals and organizations of diverse ages, races and socioeconomic backgrounds, working side-by-side for a healthy democracy.

The Freedom Center brings best practices from the nation’s Civil Rights Movement to the forefront in community education, training, and practice, building strong community partnerships with proven results.

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Activism

Chase Oakland Community Center Hosts Alley-Oop Accelerator Building Community and Opportunity for Bay Area Entrepreneurs

Over the past three years, the Alley-Oop Accelerator has helped more than 20 Bay Area businesses grow, connect, and gain meaningful exposure. The program combines hands-on training, mentorship, and community-building to help participants navigate the legal, financial, and marketing challenges of small business ownership.

Published

1 week ago

February 21, 2026

Oakland Post

Bay Area entrepreneurs attend the Alley-Oop Accelerator, a small business incubation program at Chase Oakland Community Center. Photo by Carla Thomas.

By Carla Thomas

The Golden State Warriors and Chase bank hosted the third annual Alley-Oop Accelerator this month, an empowering eight-week program designed to help Bay Area entrepreneurs bring their visions for business to life.

The initiative kicked off on Feb. 12 at Chase’s Oakland Community Center on Broadway Street, welcoming 15 small business owners who joined a growing network of local innovators working to strengthen the region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.

At its core, the accelerator is designed to create an ecosystem of collaboration, where local entrepreneurs can learn from one another while accessing the resources of a global financial institution.

“This is our third year in a row working with the Golden State Warriors on the Alley-Oop Accelerator,” said Jaime Garcia, executive director of Chase’s Coaching for Impact team for the West Division. “We’ve already had 20-plus businesses graduate from the program, and we have 15 enrolled this year. The biggest thing about the program is really the community that’s built amongst the business owners — plus the exposure they’re able to get through Chase and the Golden State Warriors.”

According to Garcia, several graduates have gone on to receive vendor contracts with the Warriors and have gained broader recognition through collaborations with JPMorgan Chase.

“A lot of what Chase is trying to do,” Garcia added, “is bring businesses together because what they’ve asked for is an ecosystem, a network where they can connect, grow, and thrive organically.”

This year’s Alley-Oop Accelerator reflects that vision through its comprehensive curriculum and emphasis on practical learning. Participants explore the full spectrum of business essentials including financial management, marketing strategy, and legal compliance, while also preparing for real-world experiences such as pop-up market events.

Each entrepreneur benefits from one-on-one mentoring sessions through Chase’s Coaching for Impact program, which provides complimentary, personalized business consulting.

Garcia described the impact this hands-on approach has had on local small business owners. He recalled one candlemaker, who, after participating in the program, was invited to provide candles as gifts at Chase events.

“We were able to help give that business exposure,” he explained. “But then our team also worked with them on how to access capital to buy inventory and manage operations once those orders started coming in. It’s about preparation. When a hiccup happens, are you ready to handle it?”

The Coaching for Impact initiative, which launched in 2020 in just four cities, has since expanded to 46 nationwide.

“Every business is different,” Garcia said. “That’s why personal coaching matters so much. It’s life-changing.”

Participants in the 2026 program will each receive a $2,500 stipend, funding that Garcia said can make an outsized difference. “It’s amazing what some people can do with just $2,500,” he noted. “It sounds small, but it goes a long way when you have a plan for how to use it.”

For Chase and the Warriors, the Alley-Oop Accelerator represents more than an educational initiative, it’s a pathway to empowerment and economic inclusion. The program continues to foster lasting relationships among the entrepreneurs who, as Garcia put it, “build each other up” through shared growth and opportunity.

“Starting a business is never easy, but with the right support, it becomes possible, and even exhilarating,” said Oscar Lopez, the senior business consultant for Chase in Oakland.