Open forum commenting is not working so putting my comment here. I know there was a relaxing of the sunshine laws due to COVID but it is being abused. Mid-cycle budget review is not a surprise that came upon us due to COVID. There was no reason regular noticing processes should not have applied. Given the duration of this pandemic there must be a revisiting of noticing requirements. Everything should default back to sunshine law noticing requirements with clear guidelines on what items could possibly be exempted. A minimum 24 hour notice must be required.
I am a resident of District 3 and I demand that City Council reopen the budget vote. City Council has received tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of messages in the past month in support of defunding the Oakland Police Department. I support defunding the police immediately by at least $150 million in this mid-cycle budget review, on the way to fully defunding and abolishing OPD. This will immediately make up for the budget shortfall due to COVID-19. I demand that the $330 million spent on policing from the city's general fund each year go instead to supporting a multitude of services that actually benefit communities in Oakland, ranging from housing, to job creation, youth services, mental healthcare, etc. The OPD has endangered Black and Latinx communities in Oakland for too long and must be immediately defunded today, and quickly dismantled in the next 2 years to instead support public services that contribute to the well-being and flourishing of Oaklanders. The Mayor has reported there were 100,000 911calls made within Oakland last year; it is thus even more urgent to shift budget priorities toward crisis counsellors, and mental health and de-escalation specialists, NOT police. "#8Can'tWait" is extremely weak guidance, and frankly insulting that the Mayor thinks this is enough. I demand that City Council adopt the "#8toAbolition" recommendations and work in the service of the people of Oakland. Policing does not make us safe and it is your duty to defund OPD.
I’m in district 3, council person McElhaney. I am asking for you to put our city’s resources into the things our community needs most, like violence prevention, housing, resources for youth, and social services instead of funding $330 Million to the Oakland Police Department. If you took that 330 million dollars and didn't use it on the police and simply just flushed it down the toilet it would be better spent as well. If you do not vote to defund the police, I will actively campaign to remove you from office this November so we can have someone who will.
Open forum commenting is not working so putting my comment here. I know there was a relaxing of the sunshine laws due to COVID but it is being abused. Mid-cycle budget review is not a surprise that came upon us due to COVID. There was no reason regular noticing processes should not have applied. Given the duration of this pandemic there must be a revisiting of noticing requirements. Everything should default back to sunshine law noticing requirements with clear guidelines on what items could possibly be exempted. A minimum 24 hour notice must be required.
I am a resident of District 3 and I demand that City Council reopen the budget vote. City Council has received tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of messages in the past month in support of defunding the Oakland Police Department. I support defunding the police immediately by at least $150 million in this mid-cycle budget review, on the way to fully defunding and abolishing OPD. This will immediately make up for the budget shortfall due to COVID-19. I demand that the $330 million spent on policing from the city's general fund each year go instead to supporting a multitude of services that actually benefit communities in Oakland, ranging from housing, to job creation, youth services, mental healthcare, etc. The OPD has endangered Black and Latinx communities in Oakland for too long and must be immediately defunded today, and quickly dismantled in the next 2 years to instead support public services that contribute to the well-being and flourishing of Oaklanders. The Mayor has reported there were 100,000 911calls made within Oakland last year; it is thus even more urgent to shift budget priorities toward crisis counsellors, and mental health and de-escalation specialists, NOT police. "#8Can'tWait" is extremely weak guidance, and frankly insulting that the Mayor thinks this is enough. I demand that City Council adopt the "#8toAbolition" recommendations and work in the service of the people of Oakland. Policing does not make us safe and it is your duty to defund OPD.
I’m in district 3, council person McElhaney. I am asking for you to put our city’s resources into the things our community needs most, like violence prevention, housing, resources for youth, and social services instead of funding $330 Million to the Oakland Police Department. If you took that 330 million dollars and didn't use it on the police and simply just flushed it down the toilet it would be better spent as well. If you do not vote to defund the police, I will actively campaign to remove you from office this November so we can have someone who will.