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Notes from the Oakland Greens meeting of January 25, 2007
Audiovisual presentation before the meeting started; We watched a few minutes from the KTOP tape of the Dellums inauguration event at the Paramount on January 8, thanks to Leslie Bonett. That event’s City Council meeting, which has been widely reported and debated in the local media, had 19 speakers signed up to speak on the agenda item in which the President of the City Council was elected. Leslie was the first speaker and called on the five women on the City Council to exercise their power and elect Nancy Nadel as Council president. We also watched the second speaker, head of the Oakland Black Caucus, and the third speaker, Rebecca Kaplan, who both also called for a change in the Council President. (As readers know, despite widespread audience support for calls for change, the Council voted to reelect Ignacio de la Fuente to the post.)
Jan Arnold, Michael Rubin, Laura Wells, Pam Spevack, Leslie Bonett, Don MacLeay, Wilson Riles, Greg Jan, Suzanne Baker, and Jonathan Nack were present. (Jan took notes.)
Tonight’s major discussion, introduced by Wilson, was Oakland politics. Wilson reported that many people have made many proposals but it isn’t clear yet exactly what the Dellums administration will emphasize as time goes on. One clear priority is Public Safety, including some “gang legislation†being considered in Sacramento.
Wilson located Oakland’s problems and opportunities in the State, Federal, and land-use context. The statewide debate over Schwarzenegger’s health care proposal will impact Dellums’ plan to find a way to see that all Oaklanders have access to health care. Barbara Lee’s appointment to the Congressional Appropriations Committee could mean more money for the Port, while community criticism of Port-connected pollution has been an issue for years. (Technological improvements exist, but will the Port insist in them?) Land-use issues include the Oakland Army Base (some favor moving auto dealers there, for the sales tax revenue; others want the land used for green technology enterprises). The community around the Train Station also wants sustainable (green) industry located there. Other industrial land issues remain unresolved.
Looking ahead to the 2008 elections, people are talking about the At-Large seat on the City Council. This seat is a leftover from the days when all Council members were elected At-Large. Businessmen have an advantage in At-Large elections because money is more useful the larger the electorate that must be reached. (The rationale is that those who could not relate to their District Councilmember would have another person to approach who is supposed to represent all Oaklanders.) There is talk of attempting to eliminate the At-Large seat, which would end the current situation where a 4-4 tie vote is possible, and also save almost $1 million yearly. Along with savings expected from the switch to IRV elections, this money could be used to finance public financing of local elections. There is talk of those two items being placed on the Primary 2008 ballot. (Readers will understand that not all information presented aloud is considered appropriate for notes which will be available widely.)
Mayor Dellums is expected to make appointments to the Commissions, in contrast to ex-mayor Brown. Dellums has emphasized his plan to appoint youth to all City Boards and Commissions. We discussed the Commissions we would like to see exist, such as Environmental Commission, Peace and Justice Commission, Human Rights Commission Leslie plans to apply for appointment to the Measure Z commission.
We talked about organizing a group of Greens who “watchdog†the City Council by attending meetings and keeping track of Councilmembers’ actions. We also talked about advancing our own agenda, not just analyzing and reacting to steps initiated by Councilmembers.
Don sent out a proposal (to this list) concerning looking ahead to 2008 with a plan to register voters, get more people involved, find candidates, decide on our message, relate to the art and music communities, use the internet more, and involve people who have run good campaigns in recent years in our planning. Don suggests that a slate could share resources which would mean candidates would gain impact by being part of the slate. We plan to have this discussion at the February Oakland Greens meeting. Someone asked to see the Progressive Dane (Wisconsin) candidates’ pledge regarding candidate accountability. Michael said he can locate it.
Greg has talked to Aimee about being part of the Green Sunday (February 11, 5:00 PM, Niebyl-Proctor Library, 6501 Telegraph, Oakland) discussion of local Green Party activities for the coming year. We decided to ask Aimee to come to the February Oakland Greens meeting (February 22) to participate in the “Oakland 2008†discussion. Michael commented that there have been debriefings with various groups of supporters, and that Aimee is planning some kind of ongoing organization or network. Wilson and Aimee are planning to meet to review the details of the voting pattern for various precincts in District 2.
Listserv problem; Leslie mentioned that she has not been able to become “owner†of the Oakland Greens yahoogroup so she cannot screen new people joining the list, which she is willing to do, and which an earlier meeting authorized. Don offered to help.
IRV/Clean money; Laura reported that IRV won in Oakland, Davis, and other places around the country. The new Registrar of Voters (ROV), Dave McDonald, is meeting tomorrow with IRV supporters from Oakland, Berkeley, and San Leandro. McDonald is in favor of IRV and is tech-savvy, unlike our previous County ROV. Laura reports that the new Secretary of State, Debra Bowen, is also pro-IRV. The Sequoia machines can be ready by November 2007. the timeline to turn this possibility into reality will be discussed tomorrow. Steven Hill (author of “10 Steps to Repair American Democracyâ€) continues to advise our IRV activists.
Oakland already has partial public financing of local elections. Laura went to a meeting about Prop 89, the statewide “Clean Money’ proposal which was badly defeated at the ballot box in November. A local campaign could be a good next step. Michael commented that labor organizations should not be treated the same way as corporations by a campaign finance proposal, as that makes it less appealing to unions and their supporters. Laura commented that the two-tier system (making it much harder for “minor parties†to get financing, as compared to “major partiesâ€) also decreases public support for the proposal, as many voters have become disgusted at the self-serving behavior of the “major parties.â€
Oakland Progressive Empowerment Network (OPEN) was formed in 2006, with Wilson among the early planners, and Wilson and Jan represented the Oakland Greens in the 2006 round of organizations arriving at a common platform for local government. In 2007, committees are meeting to score local officials on their 2006 performance (Wilson and Jan are on that committee) and to invite additional organizations into the 2007 round of activities (meetings will be in March through July). We agreed that we will continue to participate in OPEN. (Readers wishing more details can find the website at www.progressiveoakland.net.)
Oak to Ninth report; Michael, Jan, and Wilson reported that the lawsuit our (referendum) coalition filed because our referendum petitions were rejected by the City without being counted is in the “deposition†stage. (Amusing gossip related to this stage is not available by reading these minutes--you have to come to the meetings to get all the good stories.) The City was unsuccessful in their effort to get a judge to throw our case out based on the City’s allegations alone. In addition, two other lawsuits by critics of the developer’s plan are in process. Further, the land swap that would be required because land is being taken out of the Tidelands Trust is stalled because the State Lans Commission has not yet managed to propose any suitable land for the swap. In short, there are numerous obstacles to the developer’s plan proceeding as currently written.
Housing Coalition; Wilson reported that some housing advocacy groups are forming a coalition to formulate alternate proposals on Inclusionary Zoning (IZ) and condo conversion, the subjects of the Blue-Ribbon Commission that the pro-business Councilmembers (and Jerry Brown) formed rather than actually pass the IZ proposal. Wilson’s involved; we agree to participate. Pamela volunteered to join Wilson in representing us.
GPCA/GPUS; Leslie is a delegate, and Greg, Jan, and Michael are alternates, from the Green Party of California (GPCA) to the Green Party of the United States (GPUS). Between annual in-person gatherings of the GPUS National Committee (NC), the NC discusses proposals online and votes online. (Forrest Hill and Fred Hosea are Oakland Greens who are also on the delegation.) Leslie reported on the proposal (currently under discussion with voting starting in a few days) by the Delegate Apportionment Committee (DAC) to change the way states are allocated delegates, that is, change the voting strength of various states. The committee which came up with this proposal was elected (by the NC) to do so and has spent many long months of work. Our interest in this (in addition to general considerations of fairness) is that California is greatly underrepresented at present, which became especially contentious because of the 2004 Presidential Nominating Convention’s process and results. While the current proposal does not directly affect the 2008 Presidential Nominating Convention rules and delegate proportions, the NC is the body whose committees will plan those details, so changing California’s representation on the NC would have important effects both on the ongoing conduct of GPUS business and on the 2008 convention. Leslie supports the proposal, which will increase California’s voting strength from about 11% to 20%. Michael is inclined to oppose it as New York State apparently loses representation. Jan is still deciding. Greg has talked in detail to Cat Woods (from Marin County, one of the DAC members) and favors the proposal, which will be for a four-year period after which it will be looked at again. Laura commented that it’s unfortunate that the way the vote will happen (the proposal will be voted yes, no, or abstain) conveys the impression that the status quo is acceptable. Laura feels it would be better to have an IRV vote between the status quo and the proposal.
Jonathan raised the question of the antiwar movement in Oakland. After a major Saturday march and then a Monday-morning demonstration at the Port of Oakland (in 2003), the police violence against demonstrators (and Port workers and their union representatives) at the Port, followed by years of court cases, has had the effect that we have not gone to the Port again to demonstrate our opposition to the role of the Port in assisting the war effort. But now the majority of the American public opposes the war in Iraq, and we have a new Mayor. Suzanne invited us to a meeting Tuesday evening to brainstorm issues relating to the antiwar movement.
Audiovisual presentation before the meeting started; We watched a few minutes from the KTOP tape of the Dellums inauguration event at the Paramount on January 8, thanks to Leslie Bonett. That event’s City Council meeting, which has been widely reported and debated in the local media, had 19 speakers signed up to speak on the agenda item in which the President of the City Council was elected. Leslie was the first speaker and called on the five women on the City Council to exercise their power and elect Nancy Nadel as Council president. We also watched the second speaker, head of the Oakland Black Caucus, and the third speaker, Rebecca Kaplan, who both also called for a change in the Council President. (As readers know, despite widespread audience support for calls for change, the Council voted to reelect Ignacio de la Fuente to the post.)
Jan Arnold, Michael Rubin, Laura Wells, Pam Spevack, Leslie Bonett, Don MacLeay, Wilson Riles, Greg Jan, Suzanne Baker, and Jonathan Nack were present. (Jan took notes.)
Tonight’s major discussion, introduced by Wilson, was Oakland politics. Wilson reported that many people have made many proposals but it isn’t clear yet exactly what the Dellums administration will emphasize as time goes on. One clear priority is Public Safety, including some “gang legislation†being considered in Sacramento.
Wilson located Oakland’s problems and opportunities in the State, Federal, and land-use context. The statewide debate over Schwarzenegger’s health care proposal will impact Dellums’ plan to find a way to see that all Oaklanders have access to health care. Barbara Lee’s appointment to the Congressional Appropriations Committee could mean more money for the Port, while community criticism of Port-connected pollution has been an issue for years. (Technological improvements exist, but will the Port insist in them?) Land-use issues include the Oakland Army Base (some favor moving auto dealers there, for the sales tax revenue; others want the land used for green technology enterprises). The community around the Train Station also wants sustainable (green) industry located there. Other industrial land issues remain unresolved.
Looking ahead to the 2008 elections, people are talking about the At-Large seat on the City Council. This seat is a leftover from the days when all Council members were elected At-Large. Businessmen have an advantage in At-Large elections because money is more useful the larger the electorate that must be reached. (The rationale is that those who could not relate to their District Councilmember would have another person to approach who is supposed to represent all Oaklanders.) There is talk of attempting to eliminate the At-Large seat, which would end the current situation where a 4-4 tie vote is possible, and also save almost $1 million yearly. Along with savings expected from the switch to IRV elections, this money could be used to finance public financing of local elections. There is talk of those two items being placed on the Primary 2008 ballot. (Readers will understand that not all information presented aloud is considered appropriate for notes which will be available widely.)
Mayor Dellums is expected to make appointments to the Commissions, in contrast to ex-mayor Brown. Dellums has emphasized his plan to appoint youth to all City Boards and Commissions. We discussed the Commissions we would like to see exist, such as Environmental Commission, Peace and Justice Commission, Human Rights Commission Leslie plans to apply for appointment to the Measure Z commission.
We talked about organizing a group of Greens who “watchdog†the City Council by attending meetings and keeping track of Councilmembers’ actions. We also talked about advancing our own agenda, not just analyzing and reacting to steps initiated by Councilmembers.
Don sent out a proposal (to this list) concerning looking ahead to 2008 with a plan to register voters, get more people involved, find candidates, decide on our message, relate to the art and music communities, use the internet more, and involve people who have run good campaigns in recent years in our planning. Don suggests that a slate could share resources which would mean candidates would gain impact by being part of the slate. We plan to have this discussion at the February Oakland Greens meeting. Someone asked to see the Progressive Dane (Wisconsin) candidates’ pledge regarding candidate accountability. Michael said he can locate it.
Greg has talked to Aimee about being part of the Green Sunday (February 11, 5:00 PM, Niebyl-Proctor Library, 6501 Telegraph, Oakland) discussion of local Green Party activities for the coming year. We decided to ask Aimee to come to the February Oakland Greens meeting (February 22) to participate in the “Oakland 2008†discussion. Michael commented that there have been debriefings with various groups of supporters, and that Aimee is planning some kind of ongoing organization or network. Wilson and Aimee are planning to meet to review the details of the voting pattern for various precincts in District 2.
Listserv problem; Leslie mentioned that she has not been able to become “owner†of the Oakland Greens yahoogroup so she cannot screen new people joining the list, which she is willing to do, and which an earlier meeting authorized. Don offered to help.
IRV/Clean money; Laura reported that IRV won in Oakland, Davis, and other places around the country. The new Registrar of Voters (ROV), Dave McDonald, is meeting tomorrow with IRV supporters from Oakland, Berkeley, and San Leandro. McDonald is in favor of IRV and is tech-savvy, unlike our previous County ROV. Laura reports that the new Secretary of State, Debra Bowen, is also pro-IRV. The Sequoia machines can be ready by November 2007. the timeline to turn this possibility into reality will be discussed tomorrow. Steven Hill (author of “10 Steps to Repair American Democracyâ€) continues to advise our IRV activists.
Oakland already has partial public financing of local elections. Laura went to a meeting about Prop 89, the statewide “Clean Money’ proposal which was badly defeated at the ballot box in November. A local campaign could be a good next step. Michael commented that labor organizations should not be treated the same way as corporations by a campaign finance proposal, as that makes it less appealing to unions and their supporters. Laura commented that the two-tier system (making it much harder for “minor parties†to get financing, as compared to “major partiesâ€) also decreases public support for the proposal, as many voters have become disgusted at the self-serving behavior of the “major parties.â€
Oakland Progressive Empowerment Network (OPEN) was formed in 2006, with Wilson among the early planners, and Wilson and Jan represented the Oakland Greens in the 2006 round of organizations arriving at a common platform for local government. In 2007, committees are meeting to score local officials on their 2006 performance (Wilson and Jan are on that committee) and to invite additional organizations into the 2007 round of activities (meetings will be in March through July). We agreed that we will continue to participate in OPEN. (Readers wishing more details can find the website at www.progressiveoakland.net.)
Oak to Ninth report; Michael, Jan, and Wilson reported that the lawsuit our (referendum) coalition filed because our referendum petitions were rejected by the City without being counted is in the “deposition†stage. (Amusing gossip related to this stage is not available by reading these minutes--you have to come to the meetings to get all the good stories.) The City was unsuccessful in their effort to get a judge to throw our case out based on the City’s allegations alone. In addition, two other lawsuits by critics of the developer’s plan are in process. Further, the land swap that would be required because land is being taken out of the Tidelands Trust is stalled because the State Lans Commission has not yet managed to propose any suitable land for the swap. In short, there are numerous obstacles to the developer’s plan proceeding as currently written.
Housing Coalition; Wilson reported that some housing advocacy groups are forming a coalition to formulate alternate proposals on Inclusionary Zoning (IZ) and condo conversion, the subjects of the Blue-Ribbon Commission that the pro-business Councilmembers (and Jerry Brown) formed rather than actually pass the IZ proposal. Wilson’s involved; we agree to participate. Pamela volunteered to join Wilson in representing us.
GPCA/GPUS; Leslie is a delegate, and Greg, Jan, and Michael are alternates, from the Green Party of California (GPCA) to the Green Party of the United States (GPUS). Between annual in-person gatherings of the GPUS National Committee (NC), the NC discusses proposals online and votes online. (Forrest Hill and Fred Hosea are Oakland Greens who are also on the delegation.) Leslie reported on the proposal (currently under discussion with voting starting in a few days) by the Delegate Apportionment Committee (DAC) to change the way states are allocated delegates, that is, change the voting strength of various states. The committee which came up with this proposal was elected (by the NC) to do so and has spent many long months of work. Our interest in this (in addition to general considerations of fairness) is that California is greatly underrepresented at present, which became especially contentious because of the 2004 Presidential Nominating Convention’s process and results. While the current proposal does not directly affect the 2008 Presidential Nominating Convention rules and delegate proportions, the NC is the body whose committees will plan those details, so changing California’s representation on the NC would have important effects both on the ongoing conduct of GPUS business and on the 2008 convention. Leslie supports the proposal, which will increase California’s voting strength from about 11% to 20%. Michael is inclined to oppose it as New York State apparently loses representation. Jan is still deciding. Greg has talked in detail to Cat Woods (from Marin County, one of the DAC members) and favors the proposal, which will be for a four-year period after which it will be looked at again. Laura commented that it’s unfortunate that the way the vote will happen (the proposal will be voted yes, no, or abstain) conveys the impression that the status quo is acceptable. Laura feels it would be better to have an IRV vote between the status quo and the proposal.
Jonathan raised the question of the antiwar movement in Oakland. After a major Saturday march and then a Monday-morning demonstration at the Port of Oakland (in 2003), the police violence against demonstrators (and Port workers and their union representatives) at the Port, followed by years of court cases, has had the effect that we have not gone to the Port again to demonstrate our opposition to the role of the Port in assisting the war effort. But now the majority of the American public opposes the war in Iraq, and we have a new Mayor. Suzanne invited us to a meeting Tuesday evening to brainstorm issues relating to the antiwar movement.
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