By Diana Wear

Diana Wear and City Council candidate for D4 Jamin Pursell getting ready to canvass.

People often ask me why I'm such an avid canvasser. I’ve been an RPA member for seven years, and each year I get new enthusiasm for walking Richmond's streets and speaking with our community. In fact, at the end of each campaign season, I’ve mentioned to our strategy teams that we ought to do this year-round and not just during campaigns.

The organizers have often smiled at that idea, haggard from the tremendous hours of scheduling, planning, recruiting, publicizing, and arranging all the on-the-ground efforts during the campaign. They just want to rest and recuperate. I get it—it’s a huge endeavor.

So, what is it about canvassing that I find so compelling?

By Shiva Mishek

Photos courtesy of Sarah Ramani (Instagram: @sarahrmni).

Sometime last week, I spoke to my mother on the phone about the protests happening in Iran. Major unrest has spread across the country since the police murder of Jîna Amini, a Kurdish woman who was arrested in Tehran in mid-September for wearing her hijab too loosely. My mom had a lot to say, but a particular sliver of our conversation stood out to me.

By Daniel Barth, Executive Director of Safe Organized Spaces Richmond

Ramon Quintana from Collaborising and O’Neill Fernandez from SOS. Integral partnerships are created when funds are shared among organizations large and small, such as Collaborising and LifeLong Medical Care. Photo Credit: Maurice Tierney

Safe Organized Spaces Richmond (SOS) continues to fulfill its commitments to the city in our first year of funding, delivering on promises of jobs, encampment services, and working toward safe living spaces.

Our most recent accomplishment was helping clear the Rydin Road encampment. After residents were provided alternative temporary housing, the city had the task of making sure the street was properly cleared of debris and cleaned.

Here are upcoming RPA meetings and events. Note, most meetings are only open to RPA members, although allies and guests are often welcome. If you are interested in becoming a member, you may do so here. Dues may be waived if they are a barrier to you joining the RPA. If you have questions about joining the RPA, or are interested in attending a meeting as a non-member, please contact  [email protected]

By Pam Stello

For over two decades, thousands of Richmond residents have supported a regional park at Point Molate and opposed the sale and destruction of Point Molate’s public land for gambling and luxury housing. And wisely — soon after the casino plan was defeated by Richmond voters, 58 - 42%, similar schemes in other locations collapsed, and financial consultants showed that the most recent luxury housing scheme would have cost Richmond millions. Fortunately, East Bay voters had approved Measure WW in 2008 by over 71% (with 75% of Richmond voters in support), which included funding for a shoreline park at Point Molate. But during this lengthy and contentious historical debate, Point Molate has never undergone an open and inclusive public planning process about the actual park itself, since the previous efforts were centered on sale of the land for upscale housing or casinos.

Andrés Soto interviews Sue Wilson about politics and more on El Show de Andrés Soto.

https://kpfa.org/program/elshowdeandressoto/ - August 12th recording

By Reimagine Richmond

On Sept 10, 2022 from 6-9 pm, loved ones will gather to honor Pedie Perez, and acknowledge eight years since losing him to police violence. The vigil will be held outside of Uncle Sam’s Liquors, 3322 Cutting Blvd, Richmond. 

By Reimagine Richmond

The city of Richmond’s Office of Neighborhood Safety (ONS) will receive $6 million from the California Violence Intervention and Prevention (CalVIP) Program. This money is to be used by ONS to continue its violence prevention efforts in the community. The 2021 budgetary allocation recommended by Reimagine Public Safety Community Task Force and approved by a majority of City Council members enabled ONS to apply for the $6 million in state funds.

By Laura Mangels

On the morning of Saturday, August 8th, ten years after the Chevron fire that put thousands of Richmond residents in danger and in the ER, a few dozen of us gathered at Brickyard Cove. Kayaks, a support crew, months of preparatory training, and uncounted hours of planning, banner-making, sweating, and stressing all came together on this day to launch our official first action as a group—our very own homegrown Bay Area kayaktivism group. In coordination with a land-based march organized by Richmond Our Power Coalition, we paddled together as a sign-festooned flotilla to Keller Beach in order to highlight the harm Chevron causes to folks living on the front lines of fossil fuel, and to demand an end to the poisoning of our land, air, water, bodies, and future. Despite the grim anniversary, the mood among my fellow kayaktivists as we circled up that morning was decidedly elated. We knew what a special day this was.

Bridge Storage and Artspace are celebrating LatinX heritage month by hosting their very first LatinX art show. The exhibition runs from August 10th  to October 28th in the main gallery located at 23 Maine Ave, Richmond, CA 94804.