Blog Posts - Piedmont Appreciating Diversity Committee

"And Then They Came For Us" to screen 9/27 and 10/1

9/24/2017

2 FREE Screenings
In Piedmont: Wednesday, September 27
Ellen Driscoll Playhouse 325 Highland Avenue, Piedmont
6:30 pm Free reception | 7 – 8:30 pm screening followed by discussion

In Oakland: Sunday, October 1
The New Parkway Theater, 474 24th Street Oakland 3:00 pm

Members of the Trump administration have raised the specter of a Muslim registry and instituted an immigration ban against people from Muslim majority countries, citing the unconstitutional incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II as precedent for its actions. Social Action Media As our opening film this fall, ADFS will present the powerful 2017 documentary And Then They Came for Us — a film that demonstrates that the registration and incarceration of Japanese Americans was one of the worst violations of constitutional rights in American history, and features survivors of that experience who are speaking out today.

Presented by the Appreciating Diversity Film Series, proudly celebrating 20 years of top-quality, diversity-related documentaries.

Community leaders invite you to The Force screening 9/16

9/15/2017

Piedmonters:
City Council Members Jen Cavenaugh and Teddy King, and School Board Members Cory Smegal, Sarah Pearson, and Andrea Swensen and Piedmont Appreciating Diversity Committee (PADC) invite you to come together for a screening of The Force, Pete Nicks' compelling documentary about the Oakland Police Department.

Harry Vaughn, Sundance Film Festival: Sprawling, immediate, and complex, Peter Nicks’s vérité documentary moves like a pulsing, timely thriller. In 2014, after over a decade of federal monitoring for misconduct and civil rights abuses, the Oakland Police Department hires Chief Sean Whent—a young, clear-eyed idealist—in hopes of bridging an historically tense divide between its officers and the community they serve. Whent’s intentions and calls for transparency are immediately met with enthusiasm, but as his tenure begins, the realities of his department’s scandal-plagued past coincide with fresh accusations of brutality and harassment.
The Force captures everything; it hovers over Oakland’s evening skies and rides inside speeding police vehicles, granting viewers breathless firsthand access to some of law enforcement’s most dangerous jobs. With fly-on-the-wall intimacy, we see a department trapped in transition, desperate to shed its corrupt image but also challenged by an increasingly organized and urgent Black Lives Matter movement erupting right outside its doorstep.

Date: Saturday Sept. 16
Meet-up: Cana Cuban @ 5:45-6:56 p.m. www.canaoakland.com
Film Screening: Grand Lake Theater, 3200 Grand Ave, Oakland @ 7:15 p.m.
We recommend that you purchase at the box office or online: http://www.renaissancerialto.com

Also, check out this KQED Forum piece on Tues. Sept. 12, 2017 featuring guests:

Peter Nicks, documentary filmmaker, "The Force"
Leronne Armstrong, deputy chief, Oakland Police Department
Ben McBride, pastor; co-director, PICO California
Alex Emslie, reporter, KQED news

Next meeting is on Thursday, September 14, 7-9pm

9/11/2017

You are cordially invited to PADC's September General Membership Meeting this Thursday the 14th, from 7:00pm to 9:00pm.

Shoot us an RSVP, and we'll save you a spot. Hope to see you Thursday.

A Call to Create Lasting Change in Piedmont

9/11/2017

We are at a crucial juncture in our city’s history. Piedmont has seen an increase in in hate speech and bigotry over the last year, including the harmful posts and comments made by our now former mayor. The community was outraged by this, and clearly expressed their expectations that our leaders promote inclusiveness and diversity, and that they be accountable for their actions and speech.

While it might be a relief to see one issue addressed, the reality is that there have been persistent problems with diversity and inclusion in Piedmont that will not go away without further action. This is the time to capture our public swell of support for tolerance and diversity and direct it toward lasting change, rather than only responding to individual issues that arise.

The good news is that community leaders have already begun taking steps to promote anti-bias and inclusiveness. City Council members approved a resolution reaffirming Piedmont’s Commitment to Inclusivity and Opposing Actions of Hate Groups. The Piedmont Unified School District offered anti-bias training and classroom curriculum to the administration, faculty and staff; and opened the training up to city staff and community leaders as well. However, if we want lasting change to occur, we all need to take action at the community level. Our leaders speak for us at times, but we must also speak for ourselves, and to each other. Here are a few steps you can take, which we at the PADC believe can help our community directly:

Join PADC, and donate to our campaign #PiedmontStandsUp to provide community programming, including anti-bias, diversity and conflict resolution training for school leadership and staff; as well as general diversity and inclusion programs for civic staff, parent leaders, and the general community. Our General Meetings are usually on the 2nd Thursdays of the month; drop us a line to RSVP.
Talk to your kids openly and often about issues of race, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, and how those issues are addressed in our community and schools. Help them understand the importance of speaking up when someone says something hurtful or ignorant.
Continue to be involved civically; the City Council is listening, and they want your input. The City Council meets on the 1st and 3rd Mondays of each month at 7:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers at 120 Vista Avenue. Attend those meetings, bring your kids, and voice your opinions.
Get involved in a parent group -- and speak up as these issues come up in our community -- especially in our schools. In what ways are we welcoming (or not) people to our city and our schools?
Engage in conversations and actions in social, faith or community groups you already participate in -- civic engagement is a continuum that extends beyond our public spaces.
Attend & support the Appreciating Diversity Film Series (which screens films in both Piedmont and Oakland), and join in post-film conversations.
Join and donate to other parent groups that promote diversity and inclusion, including the Piedmont Asian American Club (PAAC), Piedmonters for Resources, Advocacy & Information in Special Education (PRAISE), and others.
Look for upcoming opportunities to participate in community programming that supports and promotes diversity, inclusion and anti-bias.

Standing Together, Saturday August 26, 2017, 4:00pm

8/23/2017

Standing Together
An Interfaith Prayer Service of Peace
Saturday, August 26 4 PM
Temple Beth Abraham 327 MacArthur Blvd Oakland, California

Come together as a community of peace and love in response to the hate marches occurring in our nation. Following a traditional Jewish "Mincha" (Afternoon) service, various local clergy members will be asked to present a brief offering of prayer from their traditions. The service will include musical selections by Benjamin Mertz of the Joyful Noise! Gospel Singers. Benjamin is also the Music Director at Skyline UCC.

Free child care will be provided
Refreshments will be served
Any questions, please call Rabbi Mark Bloom at 510-832-0936

PADC Remarks at 8/21/2017 City Council Meeting

8/22/2017

On Monday, August 21 PADC City Liaisons David Gard and Mahvash Hassan presented remarks to the City Council during the public comments section.

Good Evening, my name is David Gard and I am here along with Mahvash Hassan representing the Piedmont Appreciating Diversity Committee as city liaisons . It’s just the two of us here from PADC as the rest of the committee is at our first member meeting of the academic year. As you know, PADC works to promote inclusiveness, foster an appreciation of differences, and raise global awareness within Piedmont and surrounding communities.

We were reminded last week of the importance of our work with the events in Charlottesville, Virginia. Heather Heyer, before she was killed by an alleged Nazi sympathizer, posted on Facebook, “If you’re not outraged, you’re not paying attention”,. This past week, that is the sentiment we continue to hear from our community members. We know, and you know, that here in Piedmont, we are not immune to hate and bias - it was just 3 months ago that the school district responded to anti-Semitism and racism on campus. And this coming weekend, there are at least 2 white supremacist events planned within miles of these city council chambers.

This past week Charlottesville’s mayor Michael Signer wrote, “The people who visited terror on us were using the mechanics of the Constitution — freedom of speech, freedom of assembly — to attack its soul, to set fire to the pillars of civility, deliberation, compromise, tolerance and reconciliation that underwrite our system of government….it is this soul — the norms and values, that enable us to collectively solve problems without force, violence and intimidation.”

So here in Piedmont, how do we channel our community’s soul our norms and values that underwrite our system of government to collectively address the reality of hate and bias?

The good news is that we have a lot to build on, and we are moving in the right direction. Over the years, the institutions in our community – the city, schools and faith leaders have stood up and collaborated with PADC to build an inclusive Piedmont.

For example, at a city council meeting in 2010, after several wrenching testimonials from residents about mistreatment by the police, then-City Administrator Geoff Grote admonished the council to instruct the City to act. That pivotal moment, inspired and stimulated a multi-year process of introspection, action and the transformation of policing in Piedmont.
Last fall, November 2016, in a letter sent jointly by the Board of Education and City Council, you as Council members committed to:

Stand united to promote acceptance and kindness.
Stand up to bigotry, hatred, intolerance, and violence.
Stand up for each individual in our diverse community.

The school district began acting on this commitment with steps that included two-day trainings for teachers, admin and staff on the Social Justice Standards developed by Teaching Tolerance. In addition, there was a community workshop where parent leaders including PADC members joined city council and board of education members, the chief of police, city and school district staff, PUSD students, teachers, and parents.
We encourage City Council members to also continue acting and speaking on their stated commitments from the November letter, and to work in ways that reflects the norms and values of a welcoming and inclusive Piedmont:

A Piedmont where we speak up against every biased remark.
A Piedmont where we continue to educate ourselves on why a phrase or action is offensive.
A Piedmont where we appreciate and reiterate anti-bias messages to build on the powerful start of one person’s voice to create change.

We hope that as our elected leaders you will lead this work with your constituents. And we as PADC invite you to engage with us as a resource and a community partner as we plan for community wide workshops and other community capacity building work this year. PADC is in conversations with PUSD to plan similar community-wide workshops so please stay tuned for details on that.

Update: Notes from the PUSD May 24th Board Meeting

5/25/2017

On May 24th, 2017, Kobi Eshun, PADC Co-President, along with some administrators and community members, addressed and discussed with the PUSD Board concerns, progress and how to move forward in managing the latest incidents at PHS, MHS and PMS.

Please also view recommendations for curriculum, by Shannon Fierro, VP Administration at Berkeley High School, in details on our "Resources" page on this website.

Below are Kobi's remarks:

On Monday, May 8, Randy Booker invited me and fellow PADC co-president Alison Feldman to inform us about a special assembly planned for that day. Since then the Piedmont Appreciating Diversity Committee has been in ongoing conversations with the school district, parent support groups and community members to determine how best to be a resource for students, staff and community members. PADC has also heard from dozens of concerned residents, young and old, sharing their stories and feelings. Here are some of the themes that have emerged:

As a community we are deeply hurt and angry about the series of anti-semitic incidents. Certainly, Alison and I walked out of that first meeting with Randy feeling shocked and dismayed at what we learned. And there is a range of opinions on the discipline that followed; as well on as the focus these incidents brought on school climate in general.

We heard that some members of the Jewish community felt indignant that black kids complaining about being treated like a curiosity by their peers (e.g. constantly having their hair messed with) was somehow equivalent to the pain of The Holocaust. The takeaway here is that
there are factions forming within our community, at a time when we need to come together.

This is a community-wide issue not just a school issue, and we have to figure out how best to build community resilience to support and nurture our young people given the shifts in the broader social context, the nature of still forming youth and the need for all of us - adults and youth to learn from our mistakes. And to continue to build community. While some members of the community see the events as an opportunity to build alliances, students and adults are feeling quite polarized.

Many of our youth simply don't find this charged language (or these acts) to be offensive. It's unclear whether they're unaware of the historical genesis and implications of these slurs, or whether they choose to interpret them as benign. This is a complex and important observation to dig into.

We recognize that the news coverage of the anti-semitic incidents was sensational and inflammatory, but we have also continued to hear that it did give voice to the reality that students of color have been putting up with this crap for ever, and feel that their pleas for support have gone unheard by the school district.

Some kids experienced varying degrees of backlash after the special assembly, and after the KTVU news segment aired. Some of these actions are being investigated by the police department as potential hate crimes. These developments were astonishing and deeply saddening for all of our active members.

We heard, loud and clear, a need for forums for people to discuss and process these events. We heard from students, who organized a Share Your Voice gathering last week; and also from parent groups, who are exploring some options for adults. At a minimum, we at PADC would like to help create a safe space where our youth can share their stories without fear of retribution or judgement. We're also available to partner with other groups addressing this.

There is a sense that the school district was caught flat-footed with all of this. And many people felt left in the dark about what specifically had happened, and when. The second, district-wide letter did much to alleviate this, but some students wished they too had received additional clarifying information directly.

Unfortunately, these recent incidents of harassment and discrimination are not an aberration. Racist graffiti has been an ongoing problem. Brown kids in elementary school threatened with deportation, or vilified as terrorists, by peers on the playground. How can we forget the FSL insanity from 2012? It's clear that the social climate in our schools breeds this behavior. We need to take a hard look in the mirror and own that reality. We must, as a community, urgently address this issue. And not just because it's obviously the right thing to do. If we fail to act, we risk getting sued.

We are actually optimistic that Piedmont can figure this out, because we've done this before. At a city council meeting in 2010, after several wrenching testimonials from residents about mistreatment by the police, then-City Administrator Geoff Grote admonished the council to instruct the City to act, because if we do not act, we will get sued. That was a pivotal moment, and we now have a first rate, progressive police department that we can be proud of. We also know that you share our values -- for example, your forceful response to the Pig's Head incident and sidewalk graffiti last November was truly exemplary.

Tonight, on behalf of the community, we are asking the School Board to act swiftly and decisively. We know from this precedent that change will not come overnight -- it took years of training and renewal to transform PPD. But, with the coordinated and sustained support of school leadership, the city, and the community, we can do this.

Finally, we’d like to offer a specific recommendation for what Diversity Education could look like in PUSD. I’ll touch on highlights. Full document and additional resources will be available on our website.

Goal:

To support the development of the whole child in PUSD and improve the climate and culture of our schools and community by providing students with the language and tools to successfully navigate issues of diversity both interpersonally and within society.

Objectives:

- To integrate explicit diversity education into the K-12 curriculum including both student learning objectives and experiential objectives such as celebrations and events.

- To develop a K-12 scope and sequence of diversity education for PUSD. Curriculum should address the four following areas of diversity education:

Race/ Ethnicity
Religion
Gender
Sexual Orientation/ Identity
To partner with leaders in the field to provide guidance, support and professional development. Partners may include but are not limited to:
Restorative Justice
National Equity Project
Green Dot

- To identify lab classrooms in the 6th and 9th grades in which aspects of an explicit diversity curriculum can begin to take shape and be piloted in 17-18.

Recent Events at PHS/MHS/PMS and PADC’s Response:

5/18/2017

This is a review of events since early May at PHS, MHS and PMS. It outlines a series of extremely offensive actions by a number of students, along with efforts by PADC and PUSD to respond. While most of the offensive acts took place before May, some have occurred since then. Our intent is to collect and present the public knowledge at this time, and to add updates as more information is available.

In the months before between January and May, 2017, some students at Piedmont High School engaged in a series of insulting actions, including: arranging themselves on the floor into the shape of a swastika, making “Heil Hitler” salutes in the hallways, and making comments including “f***ing Jew”, “burn in Auschwitz”, “n**ger”, and “go back to the plantation” to other students.

Starting 5/3/17:

The PUSD Administration met with the parents of the offending students, and a total of 11 students were suspended for from 1 to 3 days for their part in the actions.

5/8/17:

Students and Randy Booker participated in a school assembly in which several students spoke, reading letters from other students. The letters were written by a Jewish student, an African-American student, an Asian-American student, and an LGBTQ student. The same day Randy Booker wrote a letter to all of the PHS/MHS parents about the incidents and assembly.

5/9/17:

KTVU aired a segment on these issues at PHS, in which several students were interviewed about the incidents and the assembly that addressed them: http://www.ktvu.com/news/253637631-story
Since the time of that report, students who have made complaints have been criticized and in some cases threatened.

5/10/17:

See also www.eastbaytimes.com/2017/05/10/anti-semitic-behavior-racial-slurs-reported-at-piedmont-high-school/

5/11/17:

Suspensions of several students were announced. Booker is reported as telling press that over the summer, educators will come up with a curriculum to launch in the fall to curb bias and bigotry. http://www.ktvu.com/news/254020689-story
Mr. Mapes (PHS Principal) came to the English classes at PHS and introduced the students to the Title 9 supervisor, someone that students can reach out to for any discrimination issues. He also mentioned for next year an idea to form a student led coalition on discrimination/race/equality, a place for students to reach out to help appease discriminatory acts that take place at the school.
Booker and Wozniak did something similar at PHS/MHS
Booker letter to PUSD Families outlining more particulars and a link to a newly developed Highlander Hotline for reporting future incidents where students can make these reports directly from their Chromebooks.

5/14/17:

A letter signed by every member of the PUSD Board of Education regarding these incidents was sent to all PUSD families: Board’s letter

5/18/17:

Share Your Voice gathering, organized by students Hannah Marcus, Nina Adarkar and Maya Guzdar for students scheduled at PHS.

What PADC is doing:

Participating in meetings with PUSD, PPD and community members to help identify the concerns as well as approaches to respond to and prevent such incidents in the future.
Communicating ongoing concerns to the PUSD Board Members and Piedmont City Officials
Reaching out to parents of students who have been touched by the insults and the repercussions of speaking out.
Communicating with religious leaders
Supporting PHS students who have been working on these issues through a student-led effort called Share Your Voice.
Proposing a number of approaches to follow up, including Restorative Justice Circles
Working with the Appreciating Diversity Film Series Committee to identify films and speakers that might be helpful going forward.
We plan to be present at the 5/24 School Board meeting to present our observations and perspectives
We have agreed to partner with the Piedmont Recreation Department as they review and update their policies and procedures. They are committed to maintaining an emotionally safe environment for all the youth that pass through their programs.

2017 Community Nite Event Update

3/23/2017

A few more 2017 Community Nite tickets are still available here. Doors open at 7:00, and the music and poetry will start at 7:30:

7:00: Doors Open
7:30 - 8:15: First set
8:15 - 8:30: Intermission
8:30 - 9:20: Second Set

There will be some excellent appetizers and drinks available during the evening. However, if you would like to arrive in the area early and forage beforehand, may we recommend the following eateries:

Drake's Dealership Restaurant and Beer Garden, 2325 Broadway
Agave Uptown, authentic Oaxacan cuisine, 2135 Franklin St.
Calavera Mexican Kitchen & Agave Bar, 2337 Broadway
Mua Oakland Bar & Restaurant, 2442a Webster Street

Appetizers

Local cheese display featuring Cow girl creamery served with gluten free crackers and baguettes
Crostini with grilled chicken, onion marmalade and crème fraiche
Beet and goat cheese stack (GF)
Collard green Dolmas: collards stuffed with black beans and rice (vegan, GF)
Ahi tuna Poke served on crisp wontons
Grilled Tri-tip & bacon bites with horseradish sauce (GF)

Dessert

Chocolate pots de crème with vanilla whipped cream (GF)
Miso sugar cookies
Berry tartlets

PADC Community Night event scheduled for March 25th, in Oakland

3/6/2017

If you have never attended a PADC Community Night event, then you are missing out. On March 25th, PADC celebrates its 2017 Community Night with an all star line-up of musicians and performers. Come celebrate with us at the Impact Hub in Oakland.

This year's program will include performances by the all-star jazz band Mingus Amungus, led by Piedmont resident Miles Perkins; and the young Piedmont poets of Together We Slam (a truly soul raising experience).

Don’t miss this!

Concert proceeds benefit PADC’s Grants Program, which funds educational programming, events and materials supporting and promoting diversity in the Piedmont schools

Date/Time: SATURDAY MARCH 25 @ 7:00PM
Location: Impact Hub Oakland, 2323 Broadway

Purchase Tickets