Activism
Frontline Healers East Oakland Collective ‘Protectors of the Last Frontier’ Extend Food Service During COVID-19 Pandemic

Oakland has experienced high rates of displacement and gentrification of Black neighborhoods, and deep East Oakland is where the largest population of Black residents reside.
According to the 2010 U.S Census data, approximately 109,862 people live in deep East Oakland that encompasses city districts 6, 7, and part of 5, an area severely underserved, and one that suffers from long-standing disinvestment and lack of resources.
East Oakland Collective’s purpose is to get ahead of the curve of gentrification, prevent further displacement, and stabilize Black neighborhoods.
East Oakland Collective (EOC) is a member-based community organization, which is part of a consortium of more than 25 agencies called Frontline Healers, which serves communities of deep East Oakland by working towards racial and economic equity.
“Prior to COVID-19 we were already a front line rapid response agency, providing food, supplies and advocacy primarily in East Oakland,” said EOC Founder and Executive Director Candice Elder. “Since COVID-19, we had to re-imagine our programs. People throughout Oakland now need our service.”
Unfortunately, at a time when the need is greatest, EOC lost its food source, Elder explained.
“We relied on food donation from Silicon Valley caterers whose businesses have been impacted. Their loss of business caused us the loss of access to those caterers.”
EOC could no longer do its Feed the Hood and weekly hot meal distribution programs where hundreds of volunteers provided 3,000 bag lunches every six weeks and 400 hot meals every week.
“COVID-19 changed that paradigm, so we started over with one restaurant making donations — Aburaya, Japanese Fried Chicken — then more restaurants starting donating until EOC was invited to pick up food from the Community Food Kitchen program started by Lucas Tap Room. For Gov. Newsom’s first 45-day, shelter-in-place orders, we were picking up and serving food every day.
“We are now extending our services across Oakland by providing thousands of hot lunches in addition to (Personal Protection Equipment) kits,” Elder said.
EOC has expanded its service base and now serves people with compromised immune systems, low-income families of color and seniors.
EOC provides over 1,000 meals a week to over 500 residents. They deliver Monday through Friday to unhoused brothers and sisters and do door-front delivery Monday, Tuesdays and Thursdays to seniors and families that don’t have transportation.
If people wish to pick up at the EOC office they may do so from 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday at 7800 MacArthur Blvd.
EOC also provides diapers, baby food, hygiene and household supplies.
EOC is supporting an emergency shelter program that is currently providing hotel rooms for over 30 seniors and families.
Elder says “We hope the community will join us in stabilizing Oakland’s most vulnerable populations, our no-to-low income brothers and sisters.”
Oaklanders who wish to assist EOC can visit the main page of their website at www.eastoaklandcollective.com for donation options. For more information Email info@eastoaklandcollective.com or call 510-990-0775.
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of June 18 – 24, 2025
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of June 18 – 24, 2025

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Activism
Juneteenth: Celebrating Our History, Honoring Our Shared Spaces
It’s been empowering to watch Juneteenth blossom into a widely celebrated holiday, filled with vibrant outdoor events like cookouts, festivals, parades, and more. It’s inspiring to see the community embrace our history—showing up in droves to celebrate freedom, a freedom delayed for some enslaved Americans more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed.

By Wayne Wilson, Public Affairs Campaign Manager, Caltrans
Juneteenth marks an important moment in our shared history—a time to reflect on the legacy of our ancestors who, even in the face of injustice, chose freedom, unity, and community over fear, anger, and hopelessness. We honor their resilience and the paths they paved so future generations can continue to walk with pride.
It’s been empowering to watch Juneteenth blossom into a widely celebrated holiday, filled with vibrant outdoor events like cookouts, festivals, parades, and more. It’s inspiring to see the community embrace our history—showing up in droves to celebrate freedom, a freedom delayed for some enslaved Americans more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed.
As we head into the weekend full of festivities and summer celebrations, I want to offer a friendly reminder about who is not invited to the cookout: litter.
At Clean California, we believe the places where we gather—parks, parade routes, street corners, and church lots—should reflect the pride and beauty of the people who fill them. Our mission is to restore and beautify public spaces, transforming areas impacted by trash and neglect into spaces that reflect the strength and spirit of the communities who use them.
Too often, after the music fades and the grills cool, our public spaces are left littered with trash. Just as our ancestors took pride in their communities, we honor their legacy when we clean up after ourselves, teach our children to do the same, and care for our shared spaces.
Small acts can inspire big change. Since 2021, Clean California and its partners have collected and removed over 2.9 million cubic yards of litter. We did this by partnering with local nonprofits and community organizations to organize grassroots cleanup events and beautification projects across California.
Now, we invite all California communities to continue the incredible momentum and take the pledge toward building a cleaner community through our Clean California Community Designation Program. This recognizes cities and neighborhoods committed to long-term cleanliness and civic pride.
This Juneteenth, let’s not only celebrate our history—but also contribute to its legacy. By picking up after ourselves and by leaving no litter behind after celebrations, we have an opportunity to honor our past and shape a cleaner, safer, more vibrant future.
Visit CleanCA.com to learn more about Clean California.
Activism
OPINION: California’s Legislature Has the Wrong Prescription for the Affordability Crisis — Gov. Newsom’s Plan Hits the Mark
Last month, Gov. Newsom included measures in his budget that would encourage greater transparency, accountability, and affordability across the prescription drug supply chain. His plan would deliver real relief to struggling Californians. It would also help expose the hidden markups and practices by big drug companies that push the prices of prescription drugs higher and higher. The legislature should follow the Governor’s lead and embrace sensible, fair regulations that will not raise the cost of medications.

By Rev. Dr. Lawrence E. VanHook
As a pastor and East Bay resident, I see firsthand how my community struggles with the rising cost of everyday living. A fellow pastor in Oakland recently told me he cuts his pills in half to make them last longer because of the crushing costs of drugs.
Meanwhile, community members are contending with skyrocketing grocery prices and a lack of affordable healthcare options, while businesses are being forced to close their doors.
Our community is hurting. Things have to change.
The most pressing issue that demands our leaders’ attention is rising healthcare costs, and particularly the rising cost of medications. Annual prescription drug costs in California have spiked by nearly 50% since 2018, from $9.1 billion to $13.6 billion.
Last month, Gov. Newsom included measures in his budget that would encourage greater transparency, accountability, and affordability across the prescription drug supply chain. His plan would deliver real relief to struggling Californians. It would also help expose the hidden markups and practices by big drug companies that push the prices of prescription drugs higher and higher. The legislature should follow the Governor’s lead and embrace sensible, fair regulations that will not raise the cost of medications.
Some lawmakers, however, have advanced legislation that would drive up healthcare costs and set communities like mine back further.
I’m particularly concerned with Senate Bill (SB) 41, sponsored by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), a carbon copy of a 2024 bill that I strongly opposed and Gov. Newsom rightly vetoed. This bill would impose significant healthcare costs on patients, small businesses, and working families, while allowing big drug companies to increase their profits.
SB 41 would impose a new $10.05 pharmacy fee for every prescription filled in California. This new fee, which would apply to millions of Californians, is roughly five times higher than the current average of $2.
For example, a Bay Area family with five monthly prescriptions would be forced to shoulder about $500 more in annual health costs. If a small business covers 25 employees, each with four prescription fills per month (the national average), that would add nearly $10,000 per year in health care costs.
This bill would also restrict how health plan sponsors — like employers, unions, state plans, Medicare, and Medicaid — partner with pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to negotiate against big drug companies and deliver the lowest possible costs for employees and members. By mandating a flat fee for pharmacy benefit services, this misguided legislation would undercut your health plan’s ability to drive down costs while handing more profits to pharmaceutical manufacturers.
This bill would also endanger patients by eliminating safety requirements for pharmacies that dispense complex and costly specialty medications. Additionally, it would restrict home delivery for prescriptions, a convenient and affordable service that many families rely on.
Instead of repeating the same tired plan laid out in the big pharma-backed playbook, lawmakers should embrace Newsom’s transparency-first approach and prioritize our communities.
Let’s urge our state legislators to reject policies like SB 41 that would make a difficult situation even worse for communities like ours.
About the Author
Rev. Dr. VanHook is the founder and pastor of The Community Church in Oakland and the founder of The Charis House, a re-entry facility for men recovering from alcohol and drug abuse.
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