Arts and Culture

McElhaney Advances Legislation Protecting Black Arts Movement and Businesses

Published

9 years ago

January 8, 2016

City Council President Lynette Gibson McElhaney will ask the city council’s Community and Economic Development (CED) committee next Tuesday to approve a resolution to designate the downtown 14^th Street corridor as the Black Arts Movement and Business District (BAMBD).

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“This legislation will make it clear that the City of Oakland values the historic and current contributions of Black arts, artists and business leaders,” said McElhaney, who began working with community members on this proposal in 2014.

This resolution calls for the city to preserve and support Black arts and culture in Oakland creates to recognize movements and leaders that have placed Oakland on the national stage.

From the Pullman Porters union to the Black Panther Party, Oakland’s Black communities have played a significant role in advancing equity and inclusion for Blacks in American society.

“It’s a history that is known to some, but up until now hasn’t been formally acknowledged,” said McElhaney. “Highlighting African American contributions on 14^th Street simply extends the theme of International Boulevard (E. 14^th Street) to the spine west of Lake Merritt and includes Black contributions to arts, culture and business in the celebration of Oakland’s rich diversity.”

McElhaney held formal meetings with a diverse group of stakeholders of prominent Black leaders to shape this proposal to create a Black cultural and business district. The designation is timely in light of the Red Moon incident last year when African drummers were detained at Lake Merritt and Black churches have had to address potential fines when new residents complain.

McElhaney’s legislation will create the district on the 14^th street corridor west of Lake Merritt in order to recognize institutions of long standing artistic and cultural importance to the Black community such as the African American Museum and Library, the Malonga Casquelourd Center for the Arts, Joyce Gordon Gallery, the Oakland Post, Geoffrey’s Inner Circle and Uncle Willies BBQ.

The inclusion of “Black Arts Movement” in the name draws direct connections to the national and global movement for Black empowerment centered on artistic expression. Oakland’s own Marvin X Jackmon, an author, playwright and lecturer, was a co-founder of the Black Arts Movement, who has championed the institutionalization of support for Black cultural and business activities over the past 10 years.

The creation of this district also sets the stage for bringing resources and government support to preserve existing institutions and support a new generation of Black artists and culture makers.

Official designation by Oakland allows for future applications to the state for funding as well as creates a means for funneling arts and culture grants to the Black community.

“This is just step one,” said McElhaney. “We will need to back up this resolution in the future with dedicated funding and creating institutional oversight. But this is a solid beginning to affirm our intention to make sure that the contributions of Black people are valued.”

Anyka Barber, owner of Betti Ono Gallery said the proposed 14th street corridor arts and business district program model can be applied to neighborhoods throughout the city, recognizing Oakland as a culturally diverse and vibrant arts and small business focused city.

Barber urged McElhaney to involve staff from the Mayor’s Office-Director of Equity and Strategic Partnerships, City Budget Office, Department of Race and Equity, Cultural Arts Department, Oakland Arts and Culture Commission, Cultural Funding , Real Estate Department, Planning and community stakeholders.

If approved by the CED committee, the legislation is expected to go to the City Council in February.

McElhaney says arts groups and members of the public who support this proposal can send letters to members of the City Council by email at council@oaklandnet.com.

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Arts and Culture

BOOK REVIEW: Love, Rita: An American Story of Sisterhood, Joy, Loss, and Legacy

When Bridgett M. Davis was in college, her sister Rita was diagnosed with lupus, a disease of the immune system that often left her constantly tired and sore. Davis was a bit unfazed, but sympathetic to Rita’s suffering and also annoyed that the disease sometimes came between them. By that time, they needed one another more than ever.

Published

2 hours ago

April 28, 2025

Oakland Post

Love Rita Book Cover. Courtesy of Harper.

By Terri Schlichenmeyer

Author: Bridgett M. Davis, c.2025, Harper, $29.99, 367 Pages

Take care.

Do it because you want to stay well, upright, and away from illness. Eat right, swallow your vitamins and hydrate, keep good habits and hygiene, and cross your fingers. Take care as much as you can because, as in the new book, “Love, Rita” by Bridgett M. Davis, your well-being is sometimes out of your hands.

It was a family story told often: when Davis was born, her sister, Rita, then four years old, stormed up to her crying newborn sibling and said, ‘Shut your … mouth!’

Rita, says Davis, didn’t want a little sister then. She already had two big sisters and a neighbor who was somewhat of a “sister,” and this baby was an irritation. As Davis grew, the feeling was mutual, although she always knew that Rita loved her.

Over the years, the sisters tried many times not to fight — on their own and at the urging of their mother — and though division was ever present, it eased when Rita went to college. Davis was still in high school then, and she admired her big sister.

She eagerly devoured frequent letters sent to her in the mail, signed, “Love, Rita.”

When Davis was in college herself, Rita was diagnosed with lupus, a disease of the immune system that often left her constantly tired and sore. Davis was a bit unfazed, but sympathetic to Rita’s suffering and also annoyed that the disease sometimes came between them. By that time, they needed one another more than ever.

First, they lost their father. Drugs then invaded the family and addiction stole two siblings. A sister and a young nephew were murdered in a domestic violence incident. Their mother was devastated; Rita’s lupus was an “added weight of her sorrow.”

After their mother died of colon cancer, Rita’s lupus took a turn for the worse.

“Did she even stand a chance?” Davis wrote in her journal.

“It just didn’t seem possible that she, someone so full of life, could die.”

Let’s start here: once you get past the prologue in “Love, Rita,” you may lose interest. Maybe.

Most of the stories that author Bridgett M. Davis shares are mildly interesting, nothing rare, mostly commonplace tales of growing up in the 1960s and ’70s with a sibling. There are a lot of these kinds of stories, and they tend to generally melt together. After about fifty pages of them, you might start to think about putting the book aside.

But don’t. Not quite yet.

In between those everyday tales, Davis occasionally writes about being an ailing Black woman in America, the incorrect assumptions made by doctors, the history of medical treatment for Black people (women in particular), attitudes, and mythologies. Those passages are now and then, interspersed, but worth scanning for.

This book is perhaps best for anyone with the patience for a slow-paced memoir, or anyone who loves a Black woman who’s ill or might be ill someday. If that’s you and you can read between the lines, then “Love, Rita” is a book to take in carefully.

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Faces Around the Bay: Author Karen Lewis Took the ‘Detour to Straight Street’

“My life has been a roller-coaster with an unlimited ride wristband! I was raised in Berkeley during the time of Ron Dellums, the Black Panthers, and People’s Park. I was a Hippie kid, my Auntie cut off all our hair so we could wear the natural styles like her and Angela Davis.

Published

3 hours ago

April 28, 2025

Oakland Post

Karen Lewis. Courtesy photo.

By Barbara Fluhrer

I met Karen Lewis on a park bench in Berkeley. She wrote her story on the spot.

I got married young, then ended up getting divorced, raising two boys into men. After my divorce, I had a stroke that left me blind and paralyzed. I was homeless, lost in a fog with blurred vision.

Jesus healed me! I now have two beautiful grandkids. At 61, this age and this stage, I am finally free indeed. Our Lord Jesus Christ saved my soul. I now know how to be still. I lay at his feet. I surrender and just rest. My life and every step on my path have already been ordered. So, I have learned in this life…it’s nice to be nice. No stressing, just blessings. Pray for the best and deal with the rest.

Nobody is perfect, so forgive quickly and love easily!”

Lewis’ book “Detour to Straight Street” is available on Amazon.

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Activism

Golden State Warriors Program Is Inspiring Next Generation of Female Engineers

Breaking down barriers and biases that deter young girls from pursuing STEAM subjects is essential for creating a level playing field and ensuring equal opportunities for all. By challenging stereotypes and promoting a culture of inclusivity and diversity in STEAM fields, experts believe young girls can be empowered to pursue their interests and aspirations without limitations confidently. Encouraging mentorship, providing access to resources, and celebrating girls’ achievements in STEAM are all crucial steps in creating a supportive environment that fosters success.

Published

1 month ago

March 23, 2025

Oakland Post

Front Row: UC Berkeley Steel Bridge Team Back Row: Girls, Inc. Participants. Photo courtesy of the Golden State Warriors.

By Y’Anad Burrell

The Golden State Warriors and e-commerce giant Rakuten are joining forces to inspire the next generation of female engineers through Building STEAM Futures, part of The City Calls campaign.

Organizers say the initiative is founded on the idea that science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM) are crucial fields for innovation and progress, and empowering young girls to pursue careers in these areas is more important than ever. Studies consistently show that girls are underrepresented in STEAM fields, resulting in a gender disparity that limits potential and hinders diversity.

On Saturday, March 8, International Women’s Day, the Warriors and Rakuten hosted 20 middle school girls from Girls Inc. of Alameda County at Chase Center’s Above the Rim for a hands-on bridge-building experience. The young girls from Girls, Inc. of Alameda County had an opportunity to design, build and test their own bridge prototypes and learn the fundamentals of bridge construction from the Engineering Alliance and the UC Berkeley Steel Bridge Team.

This STEAM experience for the girls followed the first session in January, where they took a behind-the-scenes tour of the Golden Gate Bridge, learning about its design and construction from industry experts. The City Calls campaign, tipped off with the unveiling the Warriors’ new bridge-themed City Edition jerseys and court design earlier this year.