• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
WRAP

WRAP

Western Regional Advocacy Project

  • Donate Now
  • Get Email Updates
  • Contact Us
  • Home
  • About
    • 20 Years of Unhoused People Fighting for Dignity + Respect
    • 40 Years of Fighting
    • History
    • Mission
    • Strategy
    • Members
    • Board / Staff
  • Campaigns
    • Business Improvement Districts
    • House Keys Not Sweeps
      • TARGETED, BANISHED, DISPLACED & SWEPT
    • Legal Defense Clinics Project
    • Homeless Bill of Rights
    • Without Housing
    • Street Outreach
  • Organizing Tools
    • Without Housing Organizing Toolkit
    • Homeless Bill of Rights Campaign Manual
    • WRAP Organizers Manual
    • WRAP Artwork
  • Resources
    • Pipe Dreams and Picket Fences Report
    • Art in Action Power Point Slide Show
    • Hobos to Street People
    • House Keys Book
    • Political Education
    • Legal Research
  • Media
    • Newsletters
    • Blog
    • Hobos to Street People Art Show
    • Street Newspapers
    • Sweeps Gallery Videos
    • Videos
  • Support Us
    • Donate
    • Become a Monthly Sustainer
    • Volunteer
    • Support WRAP
    • WRAP Newsletters & Updates Sign Up

Oakland, CA. Developers Lobby Local Politicians to Deny Black Unhoused Residents Covid19 Intervention

July 13, 2020 by Jonathan Leave a Comment

THE PANDEMIC AND DRIVER’S PLAZA
SHHP Fighting 10 Years of Attacks on North Oakland’s Black Community
Racist Newcomers Lobby To Remove Portapotty During Covid19

WHOSE PARK? OUR PARK! SAVE DRIVER’S PLAZA!
Speak Out and Day of Healing From The Trauma at Driver’s Plaza
11:30 am 61st @ Adeline/Stanford/Genoa

 

OAKLAND CA, July 9, 2020 – Where North Oakland, West Oakland and Berkeley meet, there is a little sliver of land known as Driver’s Plaza. For years this piece of land has been a hang out spot for older African American working class and low income residents – both housed and unhoused.

For a decade, the Black working class neighborhood has been subject to racist and classist conflicts as affluent newcomers with anti-Black and anti-poor values have bought up the neighborhood and moved in. What’s been happening at Driver’s Plaza is reflective of what has been happening to the neighborhood overall.

“They’re newcomers who don’t know they moved in a Black community. They don’t know that this community has been experiencing relentless threats to existence. This is Oakland. This is the Black community,” said Auntie Francis who runs the Self Help Hunger Program “Supporters! Please come through once again to fight racist displacement. Spread this message: Whose Plaza? Our Plaza! Hands Off Drivers Plaza!”

As long-time Black residents have been displaced from their family homes, many have relocated to living on the streets. Driver’s Plaza has been a place where many have parked their vehicles. Driver’s Plaza has also been a place where many formerly housed residents of this neighborhood have come to continue to congregate and hold on to what is left of their community.

Over the years, community based grassroots organizations have stepped up to support this resilient community. Aunty Frances Moore, a member of the Black Panther Party for Self Defense, initiated this culture of mutual aid with a foundational program of food distribution for the hungry and food insecure, both housed and unhoused.

Several events have been held to maintain and beautify the Drive Plaza. These have been squashed, tokenly supported or demolished by the City of Oakland and Oakland Police Department. Here’s an example of the contention between the Black community and District One city councilman, Dan Kalb:

2015: Aunty Frances put portapotty at Driver’s Plaza. Portapotty removed by the City of Oakland after complaints from racist newcomers
2016: Phat Beets constructs a cob oven at Driver’s Plaza which was destroyed by the City of Oakland.
2016 to present day: SHHP distributes hot meals, produce and clean drinking water to unhoused.
May 2020: Portapotty delivered via community donations from The Village in Oakland. Hand sanitizers, masks, produce and meals distributed. SHHP joins efforts to house seniors and mothers with children into transitional and permanent placement conjunction with Omuwale of Manna from Heaven. Landowners lobby city and harass Honey Bucket.
June 2020: Landowners lie and complain that portapotty is sitting on the bike lane.
City proposes to move port apottie to Manila street- 2 miles away.
July 2020: Councilman Dan Kalb and the City of Oakland Administration claims no unhoused people exist at Driver’s Plaza and plans to remove portapotty this coming week. Honey Bucket stands with community and will not remove their receptacle until The Village instructs them to do so.

For more details on the sequence of events, check out the SHHP FACEBOOK PAGE .

“The City is literally denying the existence of some of their most vulnerable citizens,” said Max Cadji from Phat Beets Produce and North Oakland Restorative Justice Council. “This isn’t just about a portapotty. This about acknowledging and treating humans in need and with nowhere to go with dignity, respect and safety. This is about standing up to racist and classist newcomers who have no regard for our Black elders and families who have used that plaza for decades.”

EMAIL TODAY!! Tell these City of Oakland employees to stop the attacks on and displacement of unhoused Black residents. Black Lives Matter!

City Administrator, Ed Reskin, ereiskin@oaklandca.gov
Assistant City Administrator, Jason Mitchell, jwmitchell@oaklandca.gov
Assistant City Administrator, Latonda Simmons, lsimmons@oaklandca.gov
Homelessness “Czar”, Daryel Dunston, drdunston@oaklandca.gov
Councilmember Dan Kalb, dkalb@oaklandca.gov
Chief of Staff to Dan Kalb, Seth Steward, ssteward@oaklandca.gov

Download PDF Copy Here >>>>>>

Filed Under: #StopTheSweeps, Feed The People & The Village, gentrification

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Footer

Instagram Feed

Instagram post 18073374346940611 Instagram post 18073374346940611
City Council Vote on Salvation Army Shelter Contra City Council Vote on Salvation Army Shelter Contract TODAY Monday 

The City Council is set to vote on renewing the Salvation Army’s contract to run Crossroads shelter today (Monday), and then set to discuss renewing their contract to run the Doubletree on Wednesday. 

Read More: https://wraphome.org/2025/06/16/denver-co-city-council-vote-on-salvation-army-shelter-contract-today-monday/
Since SCOTUS allowed cities to arrest and ticket p Since SCOTUS allowed cities to arrest and ticket people for experiencing homelessness a year ago, 250+ anti-homeless bills have been introduced across the US.
Join us June 17 w/ to discuss how we're fighting back. RSVP: https://buff.ly/1NFKz9F
For more information: wraphome.org or https://wrap For more information: wraphome.org
or
https://wraphome.org/2025/06/11/san-francisco-ca-for-immediate-release-mayor-luries-rv-plan-proposes-displacement-and-criminalization-amidst-burgeoning-housing-crisis/
"La Caballeria" San Francsico 16th & Mission Stree "La Caballeria" San Francsico 16th & Mission Street
The fight against the criminalization of houseless The fight against the criminalization of houselessness continues. Stand with us for justice. #HousingIsAHumanRight #StopTheSweeps
https://conta.cc/3FQ7Mud
repost @lacanetwork_official @adamofthesmiths When repost @lacanetwork_official @adamofthesmiths When they arrest our community, we don’t stay silent. We show up.

LAPD arrested LA CAN organizer Adam Smith inside City Hall while he was attempting to attend a public meeting — a clear attempt to intimidate and silence community voices.

Adam is facing a trespassing charge for simply showing up. Join us for court support and stick around after for some live music and to help film a music video.

When: June 4th, 2025 8:30 AM
Where: Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center, Dept 40, 210 W Temple St in Los Angeles
For more info, go to: tinyurl.com/Adam6425
L.A.’s mayor declared a homelessness emergency. L.A.’s mayor declared a homelessness emergency. Now, some at City Hall want to move past it https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-05-29/l-a-s-mayor-declared-a-homelessness-emergency-now-some-want-to-end-it
🔥 Hot off the presses! WRAP's got a new shirt 👕 with an inspiring message...We have nothing to lose but our ⛓️ chains! Available now https://givebutter.com/WRAPdonate
LACAN, Los Angeles Community Action Network https: LACAN, Los Angeles Community Action Network https://www.instagram.com/p/DJpwYq2S8Me/
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Facebook Icon

Facebook Feed

Comments Box SVG iconsUsed for the like, share, comment, and reaction icons
15 hours ago
Sacramento, CA. Time sensitive action alert: Tell Senate Public Safety Committee members to vote NO on AB 630 before Tuesday hearing https://wraphome.org/2025/06/23/sacramento-ca-time-sensitive-action-alert-tell-senate-public-safety-committee-members-to-vote-no-on-ab-630-before-tuesday-hearing/
View on Facebook
· Share
Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linked In Share by Email
View Comments
  • likes 2
  • Shares: 1
  • Comments: 0

0 CommentsComment on Facebook

Twitter Icon

Twitter Feed

Twitter feed is not available at the moment.

YouTube icon

Youtube Code

Our Channel

Copyright © 2025 Western Regional Advocacy Project WRAP · Log in