Oakland Freedom Summer Project

 

Denika Chatman, mother of Kenneth Harding speaks at Court for Black Justice 5/5/12 from INPDUM Oakland on Vimeo.

Enjoli Mixon, sister of Lovelle Mixon speaks at Court for Black Justice 5/5/12 from INPDUM Oakland on Vimeo.

Mike King of Occupy Oakland, speaks at Court for Black Justice 5/5/12 from INPDUM Oakland on Vimeo.

Occupation of East Oakland Intensifies! So Does African Resistance!

Forward to the Oakland Freedom Summer Project:

On the night of Wednesday, May 9 - the Oakland Police Department had the block on which the

Uhuru House is located on lock down for over 10 hours. While organizers of the Oakland Freedom Summer Project were in the middle of our political action meeting the pigs vamped on the community.

The pigs had the entire Macarthur Blvd. from 78th to 79th St. (the same block as the Uhuru House) completely blocked off. There were pigs brandishing AR 15's (Assault rifles) walking up and down the block and they were inspecting everybody's car who attempted to leave the block (ie our forces). They didn't appear to be allowing anyone entry to the block.

Later on, the news channel 2 claimed that the pigs had stopped an African couple in their vehicle on 79th and MacArthur and that the man pulled a gun on the pigs as he ran away. Since that incident allegedly occurred they have had the helicopters flying around and the pigs have occupied this block. However, we saw no vehicle pulled over. The news also claimed that they found "the gun".

Background on the Martial Law:

This most recent form of resistance should not be seen in isolation from the overall relationship that the police have with the African community in Oakland, nor should it be seen in isolation from the political reality that pervades the city right now.

The resistance that occurred on Wednesday night when the cop was shot at was part of the African community's response to the ongoing colonial police violence that is inflicted on us. From Oscar Grant, to Gary King to Casper Banjo - Oakland, with a relatively small population, has a high rate of police murder - and the victims are always African men. The most recent incident of police murder happened early Sunday morning, May 6 - when the pigs killed a young brother named Alan Blueford, just blocks away from the Uhuru House.

Therefore, it is only natural for the same people who are being hunted in the streets like animals to begin to fight back. That is what happened on Wednesday night. Moreover, the presence of InPDUM and the African Peoples Socialist Party in East Oakland represents the highest expression of the will of the people to resist the police occupation of our community.

It was through InPDUM and the Party that the African community held the March and Court for Black Justice through which we put the OPD on trial for colonial genocide of the African community. Both the march and the court happened just hours before young Alan Blueford was murdered.

Leading up to the march we canvased the community with posters raising up the resistance of Lovelle Mixon, a 26 year old African man who killed 4 OPD officers who were part of a death squad who assassinated him in East Oakland. InPDUM has always held up the resistance of Lovelle Mixon. The fliers and posters announcing the Court for Black Justice did so as well, stating that the resistance of Lovelle Mixon must part of the struggle for African community control of courts and police.

Apparently, the most recent young African who fired shots at the OPD heard the call to resist. However, the martial law that came down subsequent to the shooting was evident of the need for the resistance to be tied to revolutionary organization.

Without organization of the masses the state is able to carry out a collective punishment of the African community in the form of the road blocks, home invasions and other counterinsurgent tactics employed by the police under the guise of "finding the suspect".

The need for such organization is becoming clearer and more urgent with every police and white vigilante murder of our people. From Trayvon to Alan Blueford.

The International Peoples Democratic Uhuru Movement is building revolutionary organization in the streets of Oakland and worldwide to resist the colonial police occupation of our community and Africa itself. Currently, we are engaged in a worldwide campaign for African community self defense through which we are bringing the masses into organized struggle - carrying out such work to undermine police occupation such as cop watches, tribunals (courts) and know your rights forums and leaflet distribution. The ultimate goal of this work, as stated in INPDUM's Revolutionary National Democratic Program, is African community control of police.

Readers Supplement:

INPDUM organizers have recorded and edited footage of the police searching the cars (including the Uhuru Foods truck) as they were leaving the meeting. We have posted this footage on YouTube and uhurunews.com as we believe it is our primary task to make the people aware of the situation.