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Wanda’s Picks for October 2016
October 10, 2016
This Maafa Commemoration Month we continue to lift “A Love Supreme” as we organize a defense against state violence. Congratulations to Professor Aaliyah Dunn-Salahuddin, whose community vigil and program honored the lives of the Bayview Hunters Point revolutionaries killed 50 years ago when the community rose up after SFPD killed Matthew “Peanut” Johnson and more recently when the community turned out after SFPD killed Mario Woods.
First Tuesdays Spoken Word at Radio Africa Kitchen tonight: ‘Bringing Ideas to Life’
October 4, 2016
Big Mouth Productions is presenting a cultural event for everyone in the community to come together and have a pleasurable time. A recent First Tuesdays Spoken Word event I attended was filled with an abundance of positive energy and great people. The event takes place this evening and every first Tuesday of the month at 7:30 p.m. at the Radio Africa Kitchen restaurant, located on the corner of Third and Oakdale in the heart of Bayview Hunters Point.
Further Hunters Point Shipyard land transfers halted while Tetra Tech’s radiation cleanup fraud investigated
September 17, 2016
In response to the escalating community outcry over the falsification of radioactive soil samples and concerns about reports of possible illegal dumping of radioactive soils by the U.S. Navy’s contractor Tetra Tech at the Hunters Point Naval Shipyard Superfund Site in Bayview Hunters Point, San Francisco, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, California Department of Toxic Substances Control and the U.S. Navy have agreed to put on hold any further transfers of Navy property at the Shipyard.
Breaking historical silence to heal from historical wounds: Remembering the 1966 Hunters Point Uprising
August 31, 2016
During the fall of 1966, racial and economic disparity exploded into a violent three-day conflict between local and state law enforcement, the National Guard and the Black community of Bayview Hunters Point after the fatal killing of 16 year-old African-American youth Matthew Johnson by white police officer Alvin Johnson. This left a deep wound adding to the historical trauma experienced by African-Americans. Now more than ever it is time for us to tell our stories. Join the conversation at the Linda Brooks Burton Library on the 50th anniversary of the BVHP Uprising.
Rebuilt Bayview Opera House opens to community concerns
August 1, 2016
The hub of Hunters Point at Third and Oakdale was buzzing with traffic and throngs of people as they assembled outside of the Bayview Opera House. The Moon Candy soul band was on the stage as people began to sit in the new seats in the outside auditorium. The Opera House had been closed for remodeling for four years. Finally, on July 20, the new Opera House was unveiled to the public.
Dr. Raymond Tompkins: How and why does pollution poison Bayview Hunters Point? Conclusion
June 30, 2016
The air has gotten worse, not better. So these are some of the things that are caused by the dust, the construction and the latent chemicals they have not cleaned up since World War II – plus the current concentration of light industry just outside our neighborhood that all blows into our neighborhood. Yet currently less than 1 percent of African Americans who live in Bayview work in that area and reap the economic benefits. All we get is the pollution and death.
Dr. Davis’ dream comes true: Grand opening of the George W. Davis Senior Center
June 30, 2016
A 20-year vision became reality when Bayview Senior Services invited the people of Bayview Hunters Point to the grand opening of the Dr. George W. Davis Senior Center and Residence on Saturday, June 25. The celebration marked the victory of a dream over despair. As we all gain inspiration from his memory, his wife, Cathy Davis, has captained the project to a successful completion with last Saturday’s unforgettable grand opening.
TKO! Raquel ‘Pretty Beast’ Miller deflates Sara ‘Mac Tire’ Flores in an outstanding pro debut
May 23, 2016
One minute and 14 seconds into the first round, the professional boxing middleweight fight debut of Raquel “Pretty Beast” Miller and Sara “Mac Tire” Flores was over, and Raquel Miller had scored the win via TKO after the center referee stopped the bout. The fight was part of promoter Michael Bazan and Square Vision Entertainment’s “Night of Glory III – Battle for the Golden State” on a card of nine scheduled bouts, held at the Richmond Memorial Auditorium on May 21, 2016.
Will the Southeast Campus of City College at 1800 Oakdale become a PUC office building?
April 27, 2016
The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission is proposing to relocate the Southeast Community Facility Commission building at 1800 Oakdale Ave., the decades-long home of the Southeast Campus of City College, to the corner of Third Street and Evans Avenue. On April 19, SFPUC hosted a Taco Tuesday for neighborhood residents to view two different proposals, plans for what the new Evans building could look like and another of a remodeled 1800 Oakdale Ave. building.
Breathing new life into Dr. Coleman’s dream and the Arthur Coleman Medical Center
April 2, 2016
On March 1, medical services returned to the historic Arthur H. Coleman Medical Center at Third and Ingerson. As a community healthcare clinic, we are honored to reopen a place that is special to this community – and to me, personally. I spent part of my life in Bayview Hunters Point. These new services carry forward the spirit of Dr. Arthur H. Coleman, who campaigned for better service for African American patients.
Dr. Raymond Tompkins: How and why does pollution poison Bayview Hunters Point? Part 1
March 31, 2016
Although Bayview Hunters Point is one of the most beautiful Black communities in California, it is also one of the most toxic places in the country due to the radiation experiments that took place on the Hunters Point Naval Shipyard in the ‘40s and many other generators of deadly toxins, most of them government owned. Dr. Ray Tompkins, a historian and a scientific expert on the pollution in Bayview Hunters Point, gives an in-depth interview. Check him out in his own words.
Keep the St. John Coltrane Church in San Francisco
March 29, 2016
The Saint John Coltrane Church is a historical fixture in the San Francisco Black community and a direct descendant of the work of the late great Marcus Mosiah Garvey and his Universal Negro Improvement Association. One reason the Coltrane Church is important is that it defines for itself who are the saints that are worthy of our praise, instead of basing its doctrine on the philosophy and understanding of god that came out of the Council of Nicea.
Black and Brown unity against police impunity
March 27, 2016
San Francisco’s Black and Latino/a communities came together March 18 on the steps of City Hall to launch a united campaign to end police impunity in the officer-involved murders of Mario Woods, Alex Nieto and Amilcar Pérez López. The new Black and Brown United Coalition coalesced after the shocking March 10 exoneration of police in a federal civil trial in the killing of Alex Nieto, 28, by a jury on which no Blacks or Latinas or Latinos had been selected to serve.
36th Annual Black Cuisine Festival coming March 5
March 2, 2016
Come enjoy the soulful sounds of Lenny Williams and other artists from around the Bay Area as we celebrate the 36th Annual Black Cuisine. The Black Cuisine Festival honors the cultural contributions of African Americans and their tradition of sharing delectable food and bringing people together. We will continue to honor the memory of Dr. Davis and his many Black Cuisine cooks at the Dr. George W. Davis Senior Center, Saturday, March 5, 2016, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
SFPD gets away with murder(s); Department of Justice comes to town
February 26, 2016
San Francisco is touted by conservative detractors and liberal boosters alike as the nation’s most progressive city. This is still true in many ways, even amidst towering symbols of gentrification. But, in particular, when it comes to holding police accountable for use of excessive force against communities of color, the City by the Bay is no different from the New Yorks, Chicagos, Baltimores or Fergusons of this country, where cops literally get away with murder. Think this is an exaggeration? Read on.
Celebrate Marin City Health & Wellness Center’s new satellite clinic in Coleman Medical Center for better health in Bayview Hunters Point – Open House March 3
February 26, 2016
On Thursday, March 3, 2016, at 6:30 p.m., Marin City Health & Wellness Center (MCHWC) welcomes the Bayview Hunters Point community to an Open House in its newly expanded health clinic in the Arthur H. Coleman Medical Center. The event is free to the public and hors d’oeuvres will be served. The center was founded in 1960 by local leader and San Francisco community health pioneer Dr. Arthur Coleman to provide quality healthcare to the community.
San Francisco salutes Dr. Espanola Jackson at her homegoing services
February 26, 2016
Providence Baptist Church was packed for the second homegoing service for Dr. Espanola Jackson, a legendary icon to the people of Bayview Hunters Point and citywide. Her family and friends and city and state officials who have felt her pressure to do the right thing came to honor her so as to make sure, despite her transition, that justice prevails like a mighty stream – pure, powerful and calm.
From mean streets to mansions: The Denise Smith story
February 3, 2016
It has often been said that one who has never known the pain of struggle can never truly appreciate the sweet taste of success. Denise Smith knows that struggle. Born in the San Francisco General Hospital and reared in Bayview-Hunters Point, the real estate entrepreneur has certainly experienced her share of ups and downs. Her new autobiography, “Rags to Real Estate: One Woman’s Journey to Empowerment,” inspired many.
In celebration of the charismatic life of Sister Espanola Jackson, a born leader and chosen woman
January 27, 2016
Mama “E” was a well-loved woman who changed California, San Francisco and Bayview Hunters Point forever. With Bible scriptures, fearlessness, faith and divine love planted in her huge heart, chosen and powerfully guided from above, she set out to make changes, for justice and equality. A memorial service will be held on Thursday, Feb. 4, 5:30-7:30 p.m., at Grace Tabernacle Community Church, 1121 Oakdale Ave., and a homegoing service on Friday, Feb. 5, 12 noon, at Providence Baptist Church, 1601 McKinnon, off Third Street, both in Hunters Point, San Francisco.
Black homes matter: San Francisco’s vanishing Black population
January 11, 2016
Among the crowd of 150 activists were four young people holding a sign that simply read, “Last 3 Percent.” The words refer not directly to police violence but to the broader problem of the mass exodus of African Americans from San Francisco. Thousands have left their city of birth not because of any personal preference but because of political decisions and economic policies, many set into motion several decades ago.
