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My Brother’s Keeper: Rev. Phillip Lawson Reflects on Civil Rights Movement

Published

13 years ago

February 15, 2013

Oakland Post

Rev. Phil Lawson. Photo by Joe L. Fisher, Black American Political Action Committee.

By Kia Croom

It’s Black History Month, a time to celebrate the achievements of African-Americans and remember their struggles.

Rev. Phil Lawson, a lifetime social justice advocate and Pastor Emeritus of Easter Hill United Methodist Church, reflected on his involvement in the Civil Rights era.

Rev. Lawson recently retired from the East Bay Housing Organization and travels the country championing immigration and economic justice for low-wage workers. His brother Rev. James Lawson travels the country promoting non-violence and lives in Los Angeles.

Rev. Phil Lawson traveled to the March on Selma/Montgomery to protest the savage beating and brutal murder thattook place on March 7, 1965—infamously known as “Bloody Sunday.”

“Dr. King issued a call to action asking people to come to Selma. It was one of the greatest experiences of the beloved community I’ve ever known,” Lawson said.
“The night before the march, there was a massive rally in which Nina Simone and Harry Belafonte performed. My group and I had to leave before the march, but we were blown away by the love, hospitality and sense of community shared among our brothers and sisters that one day,” he said Lawson also talked about the experiences in the Civil Rights Movement of his brother Rev. James Lawson who worked with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

“My brother spent time in India studying non-violent resistance. He returned to Ohio and attended Oberlin Theological School. There he met Dr. King, who was fascinated with [James Lawson’s] knowledge of non-violence and invited him to come to Tennessee to teach students,” Lawson said. James Lawson held several non-violence workshops for students who would one day become prominent leaders, such as Congressman John Lewis.

James Lawson became the spiritual advisor for the Black Sanitation Workers and participated in the Memphis Sanitation Strike, a lengthy campaign for justice and union recognition.

According to Phil Lawson, “Dr. King joined James Lawson and the Black Sanitation Workers in a march on March 28, 1968, which erupted into violence leaving 60 demonstrators injured and one dead. My brother quickly hustled Dr. King to his car and urged him to leave, as things had really gotten out of hand.”

Dr. King, Ambassador Andrew Young and SCLC members returned to Memphis on April 3, 1968 prepared to march with sanitation workers again on April 8. Dr. King was assassinated on April 4, 1968.

Today, Rev. Phil Lawson and Rev. James Lawson continue to be champions for justice and peace.

Kia Croom is a contributing writer for the Richmond Post.

Oakland Post

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Oakland Housing and Community Development Department Awards $80.5 Million to Affordable Housing Developments

Published

7 months ago

June 17, 2025

Oakland Post

Special to The Post

The City of Oakland’s Housing and Community Development Department (Oakland HCD) announced its awardees for the 2024-2025 New Construction of Multifamily Affordable Housing Notice of Funding Availability (New Construction NOFA) today Five permanently affordable housing developments received awards out of 24 applications received by the Department, with award amounts ranging from $7 million to $28 million.

In a statement released on Jan. 16, Oakland’s HCD stated, “Five New Construction Multifamily Affordable Housing Development projects awarded a total of $80.5 million to develop 583 affordable rental homes throughout Oakland. Awardees will leverage the City’s investments to apply for funding from the state and private entities.”

In December, the office of Rebecca Kaplan, interim District 2 City Councilmember, worked with HCD to allocate an additional $10 Million from Measure U to the funding pool. The legislation also readopted various capital improvement projects including street paving and upgrades to public facilities.

The following Oakland affordable housing developments have been awarded in the current round:

Mandela Station Affordable

238 Affordable Units including 60 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $15 million + previously awarded $18 million
Developer: Mandela Station LP (Pacific West Communities, Inc. and Strategic Urban Development Alliance, LLC)
City Council District: 3
Address: 1451 7th St.

Liberation Park Residences

118 Affordable Units including 30 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $28 million
Developer: Eden Housing and Black Cultural Zone
City Council District: 6
Address: 7101 Foothill Blvd.

34th & San Pablo

59 Affordable Units including 30 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $7 million
Developer: 34SP Development LP (EBALDC)
City Council District: 3
Address: 3419-3431 San Pablo Ave.

The Eliza

96 Affordable Units including 20 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $20 million
Developer: Mercy Housing California
City Council District: 3
Address: 2125 Telegraph Ave.

3135 San Pablo

72 Affordable Units including 36 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $10.5 million
Developer: SAHA and St. Mary’s Center
City Council District: 3
Address: 3515 San Pablo Ave.

The source of this story is the media reltations office of District 2 City Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan.

Oakland Post

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Activism

Oakland Housing and Community Development Department Awards $80.5 Million to Affordable Housing Developments

Published

11 months ago

January 30, 2025

Oakland Post

Rebecca Kaplan, interim District 2 city councilmember. File photo.

Special to The Post

The following Oakland affordable housing developments have been awarded in the current round:

Mandela Station Affordable

238 Affordable Units including 60 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $15 million + previously awarded $18 million
Developer: Mandela Station LP (Pacific West Communities, Inc. and Strategic Urban Development Alliance, LLC)
City Council District: 3
Address: 1451 7th St.

Liberation Park Residences

118 Affordable Units including 30 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $28 million
Developer: Eden Housing and Black Cultural Zone
City Council District: 6
Address: 7101 Foothill Blvd.

34th & San Pablo

59 Affordable Units including 30 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $7 million
Developer: 34SP Development LP (EBALDC)
City Council District: 3
Address: 3419-3431 San Pablo Ave.

The Eliza

96 Affordable Units, including 20 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $20 million
Developer: Mercy Housing California
City Council District: 3
Address: 2125 Telegraph Ave.

3135 San Pablo

72 Affordable Units including 36 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $10.5 million
Developer: SAHA and St. Mary’s Center
City Council District: 3
Address: 3515 San Pablo Ave.

The source of this story is media reltations office of District 2 City Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan.

Oakland Post

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Alameda County

Oakland Acquisition Company’s Acquisition of County’s Interest in Coliseum Property on the Verge of Completion

The Board of Supervisors is committed to closing the deal expeditiously, and County staff have worked tirelessly to move the deal forward on mutually agreeable terms. The parties are down to the final details and, with the cooperation of OAC and Coliseum Way Partners, LLC, the Board will take a public vote at an upcoming meeting to seal this transaction.

Published

12 months ago

January 11, 2025

Oakland Post

Alameda County Board of Supervisors Chairman David Haubert. Official photo.

Special to The Post

The County of Alameda announced this week that a deal allowing the Oakland Acquisition Company, LLC, (“OAC”) to acquire the County’s 50% undivided interest in the Oakland- Alameda County Coliseum complex is in the final stages of completion.

Oakland has already finalized a purchase and sale agreement with OAC for its interest in the property. OAC’s acquisition of the County’s property interest will achieve two longstanding goals of the County:

The Oakland-Alameda Coliseum complex will finally be under the control of a sole owner with capacity to make unilateral decisions regarding the property; and
The County will be out of the sports and entertainment business, free to focus and rededicate resources to its core safety net

In an October 2024 press release from the City of Oakland, the former Oakland mayor described the sale of its 50% interest in the property as an “historic achievement” stating that the transaction will “continue to pay dividends for generations to come.”

The Board of Supervisors is pleased to facilitate single-entity ownership of this property uniquely centered in a corridor of East Oakland that has amazing potential.

“The County is committed to bringing its negotiations with OAC to a close,” said Board President David Haubert.