Bay Area

Carroll Fife Helped Moms4Housing Win on Housing, Now She’s Looking to Win over District 3

Published

4 years ago

July 22, 2020

A campaign launching caravan called the People’s Procession made its way through West Oakland neighborhoods on Saturday, July 18 to officially announce Carroll Fife’s candidacy for City Council District 3.

Greeted by a group of motorcyclists at Defremery Park waiting for the procession’s arrival at the final destination, the caravan worked its way around the park with signs of support while one vehicle played a message from Fife over a loudspeaker.

“Are you tired of waiting for progressive action from City Council? Are you sick of begging your elected leaders to house those without shelter, end police violence, and protect working-class families from gentrification and displacement? So am I,” was the message broadcast in a continual loop.

Once the procession stopped at the entrance of the park, Fife exited her vehicle to stand on the flatbed of a truck with speakers for a final speech for the day. Starting with a request to talk to community members to find solutions, Fife said, “I want to know what you all think, how should we govern out of City Hall, what should it look like?”

Known for being the mastermind behind Moms4Housing, where four unhoused women attempted to take over a house owned by an absentee, corporate landlord, Fife is the regional director of Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE). She is also a mother and a long time advocate.

According to creatingfreedommovements.org, she served as a co-founder and co-chair of the Oakland Alliance, Oakland Justice Coalition, and the Community Ready Corps working to create racial justice, increase access to quality jobs, housing, and education. Fife founded Black Women in Elected Leadership PAC and became an elected member of the Oakland NAACP’s Executive Committee.

Fife expressed her own experience living in Oakland for over two decades witnessing the changes the city has undergone, understanding the connectivity of struggles, saying legislation should come from a place of love and compassion for everyone.

“We are in a moment in time when each one of us is so critical in the fight,” Fife said. Mentioning the recent street mural at Lake Merritt that is painted with the words “All Black trans queer nonbinary women disabled imprisoned lives matter” Fife said, “why that is important is because we are the canaries in the coal mine.”

Citing the current situation in Portland, OR, where white protesters protesting for BLM are being taken off the streets in unmarked vans by federal officers, Fife said if there had been an outcry for Black lives in recent history then situations like these would not have gone so far. “The canaries have been a signal for what is to happen to all of us inside of a state where we don’t matter. When someone’s life doesn’t matter, then anything can be done to them and it be justified,” Fife said.

Fife said it’s in the same manner homelessness can be justified because their lives don’t matter to so many people. “It’s time to change that,” Fife said. “There are folks who are going on strike, there are workers who are begging for just common decency in pay and working conditions.”

“There are teachers who cannot afford to live in the cities where they teach,” she said. “And now we are talking about re-opening them [schools] inside of a pandemic? It’s because the children who go to Oakland public schools’ lives don’t matter to someone. We have got to unite and change that.”

Fife said she also wants to hear

from the community on what they want for the Oakland A’s baseball team and its proposal to locate at the Howard Terminal in West Oakland.

“City Council is not the magic bullet,” she said. “This system is rotten from its core…we may just need to tear it down, perhaps. Or extract every piece, grain, iota of worth that we can extract from this position.”

To contact Fife’s campaign go to https://www.carrollfife.org/.

Michelle Snider

Associate Editor for The Post News Group. Writer, Photographer, Videographer, Copy Editor, and website editor documenting local events in the Oakland-Bay Area California area.

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Michelle Snider

Associate Editor for The Post News Group. Writer, Photographer, Videographer, Copy Editor, and website editor documenting local events in the Oakland-Bay Area California area.

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Activism

U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries Speaks on Democracy at Commonwealth Club

Based on his first speech as House minority leader, “The ABCs of Democracy” by Grand Central Publishing is an illustrated children’s book for people of all ages. Each letter contrasts what democracy is and isn’t, as in: “American Values over Autocracy”, “Benevolence over Bigotry” and “The Constitution over the Cult.”

Published

5 hours ago

December 22, 2024

Oakland Post

: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries at the Commonwealth Club World Affairs Council on Dec. 2. Photo by Johnnie Burrell. Book cover: "The ABCs of Democracy" by Hakeem Jeffries.

By Linda Parker Pennington
Special to The Post

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries addressed an enthusiastic overflow audience on Monday at San Francisco’s Commonwealth Club, launching his first book, “The ABCs of Democracy.”

Based on his first speech as House minority leader, “The ABCs of Democracy” by Grand Central Publishing is an illustrated children’s book for people of all ages.

Each letter contrasts what democracy is and isn’t, as in: “American Values over Autocracy”, “Benevolence over Bigotry” and “The Constitution over the Cult.”

Less than a month after the election that will return Donald Trump to the White House, Rep. Jeffries also gave a sobering assessment of what the Democrats learned.

“Our message just wasn’t connecting with the real struggles of the American people,” Jeffries said. “The party in power is the one that will always pay the price.”

On dealing with Trump, Jeffries warned, “We can’t fall into the trap of being outraged every day at what Trump does. That’s just part of his strategy. Remaining calm in the face of turmoil is a choice.”

He pointed out that the razor-thin margin that Republicans now hold in the House is the lowest since the Civil War.

Asked what the public can do, Jeffries spoke about the importance of being “appropriately engaged. Democracy is not on autopilot. It takes a citizenry to hold politicians accountable and a new generation of young people to come forward and serve in public office.”

With a Republican-led White House, Senate, House and Supreme Court, Democrats must “work to find bi-partisan common ground and push back against far-right extremism.”

He also described how he is shaping his own leadership style while his mentor, Speaker-Emeritus Nancy Pelosi, continues to represent San Francisco in Congress. “She says she is not hanging around to be like the mother-in-law in the kitchen, saying ‘my son likes his spaghetti sauce this way, not that way.’”

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Oakland Post: Week of December 18 – 24, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of December 18 – 24, 2024

Published

2 days ago

December 20, 2024

Oakland Post

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.

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City of Oakland Celebrates Reopening of Main Library

“Libraries are such critical facilities for all Oaklanders, whether it’s children coming to story-time, adults reading the newspapers or borrowing the latest novels, and people engaging with a range of services and programs that the library hosts,” said Council President and District 2 Councilmember Nikki Fortunato Bas. “Such library services and programs are only possible when the facility’s electricity, heating, roof, and lighting are fixed and running efficiently. I’m proud to join this re-opening of our Main Public Library.”

Published

4 days ago

December 18, 2024

Oakland Post

Left to Right- Jamie Turbak, Director of Library Services, LaTonda Simmons, Assistant City Administrator, Nikki Bas, President Oakland City Council, Shen Thao, Mayor of Oakland, Carroll Fife, Oakland City Councilmember District 3, Harold Duffey, Assistant City Administrator, Sean Maher, Projects Coordinator. Photo by Kevin Hicks.

The branch had been closed since May for critical infrastructure upgrades

Special to the Post

The City of Oakland leadership and community partners gathered to celebrate the reopening of the Main Library after completion of critical infrastructure upgrades to enhance the library’s facilities and provide a better experience for patrons.

Renovations include new roof installation, skylight repair, critical electrical system upgrades, new boiler control system installation, auditorium heating and cooling system installation, and improvements to lighting, flooring and ceilings throughout the building.

“This is truly something to celebrate, the reopening of our wonderful Main Library! I congratulate the staff and our partners for this important project to make the Main Library a more comfortable place for everyone for years to come, said Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao. “Thank you to Oakland voters and the California State Library for making these crucial improvements possible.”

“Public libraries are a wonderful resource for our residents, offering a safe space for learning and being,” said District 3 Councilmember Carroll Fife. “It is critical to improve and modernize our libraries so more members of our community can utilize and enjoy them. I’m excited that the necessary renovations to the Main Library have been completed successfully and thank everyone involved, particularly the City team, who helped secured the necessary grant funds for this work.”

“I am proud of the City staff and project partners who kept this important project on schedule and under budget,” said Assistant City Administrator G. Harold Duffey. “The library is an incredibly important resource for our community members, and this project is an investment into the library’s future.”

“December 2nd was a momentous occasion for Oakland Public Library as we proudly reopened the doors of the Main Library following extensive infrastructure repairs,” said Director of Library Services Jamie Turbak. “Closing the Main Library for six months was no easy decision, as it serves as the central hub for our library system and is truly the heart of Oakland. Yet, this renovation was essential, representing more than just physical upgrades—it reflects our ongoing commitment to creating a safe, welcoming space for everyone.”

The City Administrator Jestin Johnson also attended the press conference and signalled his support for the completion of the record-setting completion of the renovations. Gay Plair Cobb, a newly appointed Library Commissioner said the Library represents the soul and brains of our community.

The Oakland Public Library secured funding for these crititcal repairs through a variety of sources. The California State Library’s Building Forward Library Facilities Improvement Program awarded the Main Branch $4.2 million. To comply with the grant terms, the City of Oakland provided matching funds through Measures KK, as approved by the Oakland City Council in October 2023.

The Main Library will host an Open House to celebrate the reopening on February 22, 2025, 10 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

About the Oakland Public Library

The Oakland Public Library is a part of the City of Oakland in California and has been in existence since 1878. Locations include 16 neighborhood branches, a Main Library, a Second Start Adult Literacy Program, the Oakland Tool Lending Library, and the African American Museum and Library at Oakland (AAMLO). The Oakland Public Library empowers all people to explore, connect, and grow. Oaklandlibrary.org