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Oakland Seeks More Community Chaplains; New Classes to Start in June

Pastors of Oakland President Phyllis Scott and OPD Chief LeRonne Armstrong are hoping to have 30 community chaplains by the end of the year. New classes are scheduled to start in June. For more information on how to become a volunteer chaplain, please call Pastor Phyllis Scott at (510) 688-7437 or send an e-mail to tolemsecretary@gmail.com

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Christin Dale, Esq. and Rev. Antoné Hicks.
Christin Dale, Esq. and Rev. Antoné Hicks.

Two weeks ago, the Pastors of Oakland completed training of 11 Community Chaplains to assist the Oakland Police Department in helping families in the first throes of trauma after life-changing incidents ranging from car accidents to assault and battery, domestic violence and sudden, tragic death.

Pastors of Oakland President Phyllis Scott and OPD Chief LeRonne Armstrong are hoping to have 30 community chaplains by the end of the year.

New classes are scheduled to start in June. For more information on how to become a volunteer chaplain, please call Pastor Phyllis Scott at (510) 688-7437 or send an e-mail to tolemsecretary@gmail.com

Below, in their own words, the new graduates share their reasons for becoming community chaplains.

Christin Dale, Esq.

I am a California-based attorney. My reasons to pursue Pastor Phyllis Scott’s chaplaincy training are three-fold. My first reason stems from my childhood. I grew up in a predominantly African American neighborhood in Davenport, Iowa. My neighborhood was a low-income, high crime area. Like many of my neighbors, I regularly attended the local church where its community gave me an incredible sense of inclusion, support, and sense of belonging to something greater than myself. When I moved to the East Bay, I felt a similar sense of community.

My second reason for pursuing the chaplaincy program is service. I have been gifted with the tools to serve this community, both as a chaplain and an attorney. As a lawyer, I assist those overcoming various legal challenges. As a chaplain, I help those who are forced to deal with overwhelming trauma while making an effort to prevent others from enduring such pain. In both of these capacities, I provide my services to those I feel most connected to and identify with, the marginalized Oakland community.

Finally, I believe in Pastor Scott’s vision of hope for advancing and healing the Oakland community. Pastor Scott has made it her mission to uplift Oakland, to be on the front lines in responding to violent crimes so the community knows there are people offering support and actively taking actions to prevent violent crimes from reoccurring, not just from one day to the next but from one generation to the next. Pastor Scott’s chaplaincy program couldn’t come soon enough for Oakland. I couldn’t be more grateful for this opportunity to serve and promote this vision for the people of Oakland.

Rev. Antoné Hicks

I became an Oakland Chaplain because I want to serve the Oakland community. I was born and raised in Oakland and currently serve as a City of Oakland employee.

Violence was prevalent in the neighborhood where I grew up and resources were scarce. I know firsthand some of the difficulties families face in their daily lives. I also know firsthand the community bond that exists in Oakland. I am forever grateful for the people in my community who shared their time, love, and resources with me. I want to be a resource for someone else in need.

Serving as an Oakland Community Chaplain allows me the opportunity to be present for people who need help and might not know how to ask or don’t believe they are worthy of receiving. When I was struggling, I didn’t know how to ask for help, but members of my community saw my need and helped me.

Lastly, I want to share my faith by way of service. I want to fellowship with my community not just in the good times but in the difficult times as well. It is my honor and privilege to serve as an Oakland Community Chaplain.

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Oakland Post: Week of June 4 – 10, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of June 4-10, 2025

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Remembering George Floyd

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Minnesota State Attorney General Keith Ellison acknowledges that the Floyd case five years ago involved a situation in which due process was denied, and five years later, the president is currently dismissing “due process. “The Minnesota Atty General also says, “Trump is trying to attack constitutional rule, attacking congressional authority and judicial decision-making.” George Floyd was an African American man killed by police who knocked on his neck and on his back, preventing him from breathing.

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Mural showing the portrait of George Floyd in Mauerpark in Berlin. To the left of the portrait the lettering "I can't Breathe" was added, on the right side the three hashtags #GeorgeFloyd, #Icantbreathe and #Sayhisname. The mural was completed by Eme Street Art (facebook name) / Eme Free Thinker (signature) on 29 May 2020. (Wikimedia Commons)
Mural showing the portrait of George Floyd in Mauerpark in Berlin. To the left of the portrait the lettering "I can't Breathe" was added, on the right side the three hashtags #GeorgeFloyd, #Icantbreathe and #Sayhisname. The mural was completed by Eme Street Art (facebook name) / Eme Free Thinker (signature) on 29 May 2020. (Wikimedia Commons)

By April Ryan
BlackPressUSA Newswire

“The president’s been very clear he has no intentions of pardoning Derek Chauvin, and it’s not a request that we’re looking at,” confirms a senior staffer at the Trump White House. That White House response results from public hope, including from a close Trump ally, Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene. The timing of Greene’s hopes coincides with the Justice Department’s recent decision to end oversight of local police accused of abuse. It also falls on the fifth anniversary of the police-involved death of George Floyd on May 25th. The death sparked national and worldwide outrage and became a transitional moment politically and culturally, although the outcry for laws on police accountability failed.

The death forced then-Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden to focus on deadly police force and accountability. His efforts while president to pass the George Floyd Justice in policing act failed. The death of George Floyd also put a spotlight on the Black community, forcing then-candidate Biden to choose a Black woman running mate. Kamala Harris ultimately became vice president of the United States alongside Joe Biden. Minnesota State Attorney General Keith Ellison prosecuted the cases against the officers involved in the death of Floyd. He remembers,” Trump was in office when George Floyd was killed, and I would blame Trump for creating a negative environment for police-community relations. Remember, it was him who said when the looting starts, the shooting starts, it was him who got rid of all the consent decrees that were in place by the Obama administration.”

In 2025, Police-involved civilian deaths are up by “about 100 to about 11 hundred,” according to Ellison. Ellison acknowledges that the Floyd case five years ago involved a situation in which due process was denied, and five years later, the president is currently dismissing “due process. “The Minnesota Atty General also says, “Trump is trying to attack constitutional rule, attacking congressional authority and judicial decision-making.” George Floyd was an African-American man killed by police who knocked on his neck and on his back, preventing him from breathing. During those minutes on the ground, Floyd cried out for his late mother several times. Police subdued Floyd for an alleged counterfeit $20 bill.

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Oakland Post: Week of May 28 – June 30, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of May 28 – June 3, 2025

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