Activism

Domestic Abuse Discussed During a Paint & Sip Event at Marin City Gallery

The group briefly discussed how abuse and violence impacts women and men in their relationships, and about the eight types of abuse: They are physical, emotional, economic, verbal, sexual, spiritual, stalking/cyber, and choking/strangulation.

Published

3 years ago

November 7, 2022

Oakland Post

Top: The group displaying their finished tulip paintings. The man, in the lower right, displays his portrait of two of the participants. Bottom left: Starr Lamare before she was burned. (nydailynews.com) Bottom right: Olubori Babaoye, Cynthia Williams, and Starr Lamare. (Photo by Godfrey Lee)

By Godfrey Lee

Domestic Violence and its signs were discussed at a Paint & Sip event held at the Marin City Art Gallery on Sunday, October 30.

The Paint & Sip instructor, Olubori Babaoye, a Nigerian-American artist from Oakland who works as a classical painter and digital illustrator, directed the group in painting a drawing of a tulip on a small canvas, encouraging each person to render work in their own individual style as they sipped wine. Domestic violence survivor Starr Lamare shared experience while they painted.

Physical abuse is physical violence done to the victim such as hitting, or around the victim such as breaking their possessions, which sends the message that “You’re next!”
Emotional abuse is deliberately withholding the 4 A’s: acceptance, appreciation, attention and affection in order to control and coerce the victim. This will include negative name calling to demean the victim’s spirit.
Economic abuse occurs when the abuser controls the victim’s financial resources, such as keeping the victim from getting a job or going to school, or unjustly taking their money.
Verbal abuse is when the abuser threatens, teases, taunts, trivializes, or “Thingifies” (being called a name that makes the victim feel like an object) their victim.
Sexual abuse is sexual behavior that crosses the victim’s boundaries without their permission.
Spiritual abuse includes putting down the victim’s spiritual beliefs and customs. It can also include using improper interpretation of spiritual doctrines to control the victim.
Stalking/Cyber abuse includes excessive following and repeated contacting, threatening the victim through a variety of means, or to monitor and harm the victim though computer technology.
Strangulation is the squeezing of the victim’s neck, which cuts off blood flow and oxygen from the brain, resulting in loss of consciousness or death within a few minutes.

Lamare, a mother of three, described how she was burned in January of 2013 by her boyfriend, Dexter Oliver, in San Francisco, when they were arguing whether or not they should leave her wash clothes at the laundromat. Oliver then ran home, got some gasoline, ran back to the laundromat, threw the gasoline on Lamare, then lit the gasoline and setting Lamare on fire, according to the news reports.

Oliver was soon arrested in Oakland and is still serving his 27 years prison term for attempted murder, along with a prior strike on his record.

Lamare says that life is hard for her, and she has her ups and downs. Still, as someone in the Paint & pointed out, that she is lucky to be alive, and that her children still have their mother to care for them.

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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.