Community
Oakland City Council Votes to Save Head Start Centers On the Verge of Closure
Vice Mayor Rebecca Kaplan, Council President Nikki Fortunato Bas, President Pro Tempore Sheng Thao, and Councilmember Carroll Fife coordinated with community members who called in to support the funding of the Head Start centers.
The Oakland City Council passed a budget amendment to equitably reopen Head Start childcare centers in Oakland’s most underserved communities at a special meeting on September 1.
The amendment was prompted by grass roots organizations that last month put out an urgent statement demanding the protection of vitally needed services provided by the Head Start Centers.
Vice Mayor Rebecca Kaplan, Council President Nikki Fortunato Bas, President Pro Tempore Sheng Thao, and Councilmember Carroll Fife coordinated with community members who called in to support the funding of the Head Start centers.
The Council members immediately went into action releasing an action plan to stop the planned closures of the Head Start programs, which if allowed to close, will disproportionately impact some of the most under-resourced communities in Oakland.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, working mothers have been the most impacted by cuts to the workforce resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The closures of schools and childcare centers created a scarcity in childcare providers causing childcare costs to reach an all-time high in 2020. As California is reopening, mothers are finding it harder to rejoin the workforce due to the lack of affordable childcare.
The City Administration planned to close the Arroyo Viejo, Franklin, and Tassafaronga centers, all located in Oakland’s most underserved communities, which would have disproportionately aimed cuts at Black people, and worsen suffering in Oakland’s hardest-hit communities, low-income families, and people of color.
The planned cuts also involve inequitable layoffs of the workers and undermine the community’s economic recovery at a precarious time.
The councilmembers’ proposal will allocate funding from an excess fund to prevent the complete closure of the three Head Start Centers.
Rev. Phyllis Scott, the first female president of the Pastors of Oakland, said her organization will work with the councilmembers who want to find the funds to restore all Head Start centers to full strength.
She said, “our underserved mothers and children, which includes my granddaughter — who was born at less than two pounds — were helped by the Head Start program. Many other families need this program that our doctors also prescribe as being supportive of early childhood development.”
Vice Mayor and Councilmember At-Large Rebecca Kaplan stated, “We must prioritize equity in our city’s COVID-19 recovery plan, and allowing our most impacted communities to have vitally needed services is a high priority.
“Head Start is an important program which helps children, with lifelong positive impacts on their future, and ensures access to economic recovery for struggling working parents. The Administration’s plan to close these needed centers and lay off these essential workers, while hiding the information from the Council and the public for months, is inappropriate.”
Nikki Fortunato Bas, Council President and District 2 Representative said that most vulnerable children and families in Oakland must be supported. The Franklin Head Start Center serves a diverse community in District 2, from the Chinatown to Eastlake to San Antonio neighborhoods, and I am fighting to protect the services for these families and the jobs for the workers caring for our children.”
“Robust investment in Head Start is investment in our future; it is long-term public safety planning; it is the right thing to do,” said District 3 Councilmember Carroll Fife. “Our local government cannot allow Head Start to fail. To do so would be to continue the practice of State-sanctioned discrimination that creates new racialized disparities and perpetuates existing ones… I am disheartened to find out that this urgent matter has been brewing for months and has only now come to the attention of the city’s elected leaders as a crisis to fix. As a working-class Black woman, like many of our Head Start providers, I have lived experience in needing access to affordable childcare. And as an elected official, I am committed to doing what it takes to keep our centers open, funded and accessible to the families who need them most.”
Sheng Thao, Council President Pro Tempore and District 4 Representative said that every parent knows the first five years of a child’s development have an enormous impact on the adult they will become. “Head Start is a vital resource to the children and parents that need support. One of my top priorities is making sure every child in Oakland has a chance to succeed. I will continue to fight to make sure Oakland Head Start is fully funded, and Oakland children are not forgotten.”
Kimberly Jones, chief of staff for Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan, provided this report.
The Oakland Post’s coverage of local news in Alameda County is supported by the Ethnic Media Sustainability Initiative, a program created by California Black Media and Ethnic Media Services to support community newspapers across California.
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of December 18 – 24, 2024
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of December 18 – 24, 2024
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.
Activism
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.”
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.”
“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.”
“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
Activism
Biden’s Legacy Secured with Record-Setting Black Judicial Appointments
His record surpasses previous efforts by his predecessors. President Jimmy Carter appointed 37 Black judges, including seven Black women. In stark contrast, Donald Trump’s first term resulted in only two Black women appointed out of 234 lifetime judicial nominations. The White House said Biden’s efforts show a broader commitment to racial equity and justice.
By Stacy M. Brown
WI Senior Writer
President Joe Biden’s commitment to diversifying the federal judiciary has culminated in a historic achievement: appointing 40 Black women to lifetime judgeships, the most of any president in U.S. history.
Biden has appointed 62 Black judges, cementing his presidency as one focused on promoting equity and representation on the federal bench.
His record surpasses previous efforts by his predecessors. President Jimmy Carter appointed 37 Black judges, including seven Black women. In stark contrast, Donald Trump’s first term resulted in only two Black women appointed out of 234 lifetime judicial nominations.
The White House said Biden’s efforts show a broader commitment to racial equity and justice.
Meanwhile, Trump has vowed to dismantle key civil rights protections, including the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.
“Having the Black woman’s experience on the federal bench is extremely important because there is a different kind of voice that can come from the Black female from the bench,” Delores Jones-Brown, professor emeritus at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, told reporters.
Lena Zwarensteyn of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights told reporters that these district court judges are often the first and sometimes the final arbiters in cases affecting healthcare access, education equity, fair hiring practices, and voting rights.
“Those decisions are often the very final decisions because very few cases actually get heard by the U.S. Supreme Court,” Zwarensteyn explained.
Biden’s nomination of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court further reflects his commitment to judicial diversity. Jackson became the first Black woman to serve on the nation’s highest court.
Patrick McNeil, spokesperson for the Leadership Conference, pointed out that over half of Biden’s Black female judicial appointees have backgrounds as civil rights attorneys and public defenders, experience advocates consider essential for a balanced judiciary.
Meanwhile, Congress remains divided over the expansion of federal judgeships. Legislation to add 66 new judgeships—approved unanimously by the Senate in August—stalled in the GOP-controlled House until after the election. House Republicans proposed distributing the new judgeships over the next decade, giving three administrations a say in appointments. President Biden, however, signaled he would veto the bill if it reached his desk.
Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., argued the delay was a strategic move to benefit Trump’s potential return to office. “Donald Trump has made clear that he intends to expand the power of the presidency and giving him 25 new judges to appoint gives him one more tool at his disposal,” Nadler said.
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