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Caregiver Support Through the Alameda County Care Alliance

Published

8 years ago

October 6, 2017

Providing care for someone with an advanced illness can be incredibly difficult. For many the pressure to assess medical needs, monitor medication, assist with basic needs and provide companionship to a loved one can quickly lead to overwhelm, loneliness and isolation.

Thankfully, due to a new faith-based initiative, Bay Area caregivers no longer need to navigate these challenges alone. The Alameda County Care Alliance, ACCA pairs families coping with advanced illness with a healthcare navigator. Care Navigators and Care Liaisons assist families by empowering them to advocate for their loved ones, prepare for physician visits with questions concerning their prescriptions, connect to resources, and plan for the future.

One ACCA Care Liaison, Rev. Barbara Galloway-Lee, describes her role, saying, “One of the best parts of the ACCA is being able to connect people to resources. For example, I was working with a gentleman who had suffered through a terrible accident and really needed advanced-care support. Through this program, we were able to provide him with prayer, a wheelchair and also discussed his long-term directives. Our program seeks to assist people with their mental health and emotional challenges as well. We’ve established a caregiver support group where I’ve coached caregivers on self-care as they take care of others.”

Before connecting to the ACCA, Galloway-Lee describes the responses of many in her caseload, saying, “Before the program, they express isolation, they feel they need help navigating doctor’s visits and basically we come in and serve as advocates for them. We’ve found out that through our program, families are less likely to go to the emergency room so I’m very passionate about this work.”

To date, the program has been incredibly well received. Considering their success so far, the program’s Executive Director, Rev. Cynthia Carter-Perrilliat, is most proud for their integrative body, mind and spirit model.

“We know that dealing with illness is something that impacts not just the body. In our work, we focus on Five Cornerstones – health and physical needs, planning for advance care, social needs, caregiving needs, and spiritual needs. As a faith and community-based initiative, we honor spirituality and pray with families. If there is no spiritual emphasis, we honor that as well.”

Carter-Perrilliat continues, “We also have the challenge of thinking about the social determinants of health – lack of housing, food issues, lack of transportation…all of these issues affect health and so our navigators connect families to these kinds of resources as well.”

Currently the ACCA operates in Oakland, Hayward, Berkeley, San Leandro, Newark, Livermore, Richmond and quickly is expanding to include more cities throughout Alameda and Contra Costa counties. The ACCA initiative began as a collaboration between Bay Area healthcare partners, Kaiser Permanente Community Benefits, Alameda Health System, Allen Temple Baptist Church, Glad Tidings Church of God in Christ, Center of Hope Community Church, Greater St. John Missionary Baptist Church, and now several expansion churches.

In the works, the ACCA is producing an inspirational music album to encourage caregivers and those they care for, and hosting a Caregiver’s Recognition Celebration at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, October 8th at Greater St. John Missionary Baptist Church in Oakland.

What more could a caregiver need? If you or someone you love could benefit from connecting with the Alameda County Care Alliance and a Care Navigator/Liaison near you, visit accarealliance.org or attend the Caregiver’s Recognition Celebration.

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Remembering George Floyd

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Minnesota State Attorney General Keith Ellison acknowledges that the Floyd case five years ago involved a situation in which due process was denied, and five years later, the president is currently dismissing “due process. “The Minnesota Atty General also says, “Trump is trying to attack constitutional rule, attacking congressional authority and judicial decision-making.” George Floyd was an African American man killed by police who knocked on his neck and on his back, preventing him from breathing.

Published

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June 2, 2025

Oakland Post

Mural showing the portrait of George Floyd in Mauerpark in Berlin. To the left of the portrait the lettering "I can't Breathe" was added, on the right side the three hashtags #GeorgeFloyd, #Icantbreathe and #Sayhisname. The mural was completed by Eme Street Art (facebook name) / Eme Free Thinker (signature) on 29 May 2020. (Wikimedia Commons)

By April Ryan
BlackPressUSA Newswire

“The president’s been very clear he has no intentions of pardoning Derek Chauvin, and it’s not a request that we’re looking at,” confirms a senior staffer at the Trump White House. That White House response results from public hope, including from a close Trump ally, Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene. The timing of Greene’s hopes coincides with the Justice Department’s recent decision to end oversight of local police accused of abuse. It also falls on the fifth anniversary of the police-involved death of George Floyd on May 25th. The death sparked national and worldwide outrage and became a transitional moment politically and culturally, although the outcry for laws on police accountability failed.

The death forced then-Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden to focus on deadly police force and accountability. His efforts while president to pass the George Floyd Justice in policing act failed. The death of George Floyd also put a spotlight on the Black community, forcing then-candidate Biden to choose a Black woman running mate. Kamala Harris ultimately became vice president of the United States alongside Joe Biden. Minnesota State Attorney General Keith Ellison prosecuted the cases against the officers involved in the death of Floyd. He remembers,” Trump was in office when George Floyd was killed, and I would blame Trump for creating a negative environment for police-community relations. Remember, it was him who said when the looting starts, the shooting starts, it was him who got rid of all the consent decrees that were in place by the Obama administration.”

In 2025, Police-involved civilian deaths are up by “about 100 to about 11 hundred,” according to Ellison. Ellison acknowledges that the Floyd case five years ago involved a situation in which due process was denied, and five years later, the president is currently dismissing “due process. “The Minnesota Atty General also says, “Trump is trying to attack constitutional rule, attacking congressional authority and judicial decision-making.” George Floyd was an African-American man killed by police who knocked on his neck and on his back, preventing him from breathing. During those minutes on the ground, Floyd cried out for his late mother several times. Police subdued Floyd for an alleged counterfeit $20 bill.

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Oakland Post: Week of May 28 – June 30, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of May 28 – June 3, 2025

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May 30, 2025

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Black Feminist Movement Mobilizes in Response to National Threats

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — More than 500 Black feminists will convene in New Orleans from June 5 through 7 for what organizers are calling the largest Black feminist gathering in the United States.

Published

1 week ago

May 30, 2025

Stacy M. Brown

By Stacy M. Brown
Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent

More than 500 Black feminists will convene in New Orleans from June 5 through 7 for what organizers are calling the largest Black feminist gathering in the United States. The event, led by the organization Black Feminist Future, is headlined by activist and scholar Angela Y. Davis. Paris Hatcher, executive director of Black Feminist Future, joined Black Press USA’s Let It Be Known to outline the mission and urgency behind the gathering, titled “Get Free.” “This is not just a conference to dress up and have a good time,” Hatcher said. “We’re building power to address the conditions that are putting our lives at risk—whether that’s policing, reproductive injustice, or economic inequality.” Hatcher pointed to issues such as rising evictions among Black families, the rollback of bodily autonomy laws, and the high cost of living as key drivers of the event’s agenda. “Our communities are facing premature death,” she said.

Workshops and plenaries will focus on direct action, policy advocacy, and practical organizing skills. Attendees will participate in training sessions that include how to resist evictions, organize around immigration enforcement, and disrupt systemic policies contributing to poverty and incarceration. “This is about fighting back,” Hatcher said. “We’re not conceding anything.” Hatcher addressed the persistent misconceptions about Black feminism, including the idea that it is a movement against men or families. “Black feminism is not a rejection of men,” she said. “It’s a rejection of patriarchy. Black men must be part of this struggle because patriarchy harms them too.” She also responded to claims that organizing around Black women’s issues weakens broader coalitions. “We don’t live single-issue lives,” Hatcher said. “Our blueprint is one that lifts all Black people.”

The conference will not be streamed virtually, but recaps and updates will be posted daily on Black Feminist Future’s YouTube channel and Instagram account. The event includes performances by Tank and the Bangas and honors longtime activists including Billy Avery, Erica Huggins, and Alexis Pauline Gumbs. When asked how Black feminism helps families, Hatcher said the real threat to family stability is systemic oppression. “If we want to talk about strong Black families, we have to talk about mass incarceration, the income gap, and the systems that tear our families apart,” Hatcher said. “Black feminism gives us the tools to build and sustain healthy families—not just survive but thrive.”