Tomorrow may be the Biggest Event of the Year.  JOIN US at the Oakland Candidate Forum.

One of the central tenets of this blog, and our organization overall, lies within our unwavering conviction that representative authenticity matters.  This may sound like a loaded term, but inherent within it are a few critical concepts:

• Representation isn’t token, and it certainly isn’t transactional.  Intentions matter.  A seat at the table is not enough.  We are the table, and we are the air in the room.  We are not the people you talk about.  We are the people who decide.
• Representation isn’t simply about a person.  It’s about the possibilities, ideas, and the lived experiences of those in our midst.  Those we choose to represent us inherit a sacred duty to honor that.  You don’t speak for us.  You speak with us.

Oakland’s policies and schools become ours when those who live in the community act, arm everyone with the information and tools to ask questions, and demand accountability.  This is when school voices become great.

Our longtime partners FIA Oakland have been doing that work with conviction and grace.  For years, they have elevated parent, teacher, and youth voices to be great through their Parent Leadership Institutes and Fellowships.  They know, as we all do, that no one can stop engaged, informed families acting in lockstep for a quality education.

Tomorrow represents their culminating event of this election, where at 5:30 PM, they co-host with Oakland public schools their Oakland Candidate Forum. 

And we invite you, members of the Oakland community, to take part in this unrivaled opportunity to be the air in the room.

Join us in-person tomorrow at Castlemont High School, where you will have the opportunity to meet the candidates for Mayor and the OUSD School Board in Districts 2, 4, and 6.  They will answer the questions of students and families about the issues that matter to you.  Expect it to be huge, as we have over 1,000 RSVPs, so secure your seat here or by snapping the QR code above.

If you have not yet begun your research about the candidates yet, FIA has assembled the bios every candidate for Oakland Mayor and the OUSD Board to help you as you prepare your ballot.   Each candidate was invited to answer a candidate questionnaire and their answers are posted.  Feel free to start there, but most certainly, tomorrow’s forum is an unprecedented opportunity to participate directly and evaluate for yourself those who you feel with represent you with authenticity.  

As Dirk would say, “It’s going to be dope” and “more to come.” Well, that “more” is tomorrow.  5:30 PM.  Castlemont High. See you there.

PS: To our high school students who expected to vote thanks to Measure QQ, we heard you and share in your frustration that you weren’t able to even register to vote.  Stay tuned.  There will definitely be “more to come” on that score.