APRIL 24, 2024 on Zoom 1:30 to 3:30 - All Welcome! 

RSVP below to receive link and monthly reminders

 EARTH - WATER - CLIMATE EMERGENCY 

1:30 Welcomes and Introductions 

Featured Panel of Speakers followed by Q&A and Discussion

• Bonnie Borucki, Transition Berkeley - Butterflies, Bees, Gardens and more
• Cheryl Davila, former Berkeley Councilmember, and founder of Climate Emergency Mobilization Task Force  (CEMTF)
• Helen Ojha, CEO, Sumatics - Rising Tides and Toxics at the Bay's Edge

     Q&A, and discusssion

3PM  Gray Panther Reports and Action Alerts, Community Announcements as time permits

3:30 ADJOURN 

www.eastbaygraypanthers.org

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Public Speaker Meetings are regular gatherings on the Fourth Wednesday of most months, mostly on Zoom

Gray Panthers East Bay has small in-person SOCIAL TIME once a month. 
Call Co-Convenor Carol Crooks 510-712-4668 for more details

(long video below includes Cheryl speaking on this topic, on behalf of the Climate Emergency Mobilization Task Force)

(short video from Bonnie Borucki of Transition Berkeley, making an appeal a few years ago)

Gray Panthers of Berkeley is a proud part of this coalition and encourages members to join us in person this Thursday at the Ed Roberts Campus (atop Ashby BART) to support our partners and speak out on this issue.

Press Release  

 Press Conference Thursday, April 25th @ 2:00 p.m. at the Ed Roberts Campus, 3075 Adeline Street, Berkeley, CA

Berkeley Coalition Advocates Demand Urgent Action

Inaccessible Homeless Shelters Fail Disabled, Seniors, and People with Mental Health Disabilities

Berkeley, California, April, 2024 — As a coalition of concerned citizens, community leaders, and advocates for social and disability justice, we raise our voices to address the dire situation faced by disabled and chronically ill people, seniors, and people with mental health disabilities experiencing homelessness in Berkeley and the Bay Area. The lack of accessible housing shelters in our local and regional areas, including Pathways STAIR Center in Berkeley, is a grave injustice to unhoused people with disabilities that, for too long, have been ignored.  

The Crisis: A System Failing Our Most Vulnerable 

Homelessness is a crisis affecting our entire community, but it disproportionately impacts Black and Brown people with physical or cognitive disabilities. These vulnerable individuals face immense challenges in securing safe shelter due to outdated and inaccessible facilities. The current state of our shelter system needs change. We call for the end to: 

1. Inaccessible Shelters: Most shelters lack appropriate space or accommodations for people with disabilities—if they have them at all. The layout and structure of these buildings often have inaccessible bathrooms and living spaces, People with mobility impairments are especially impacted. It has been reported people with disabilities have to relieve themselves outside or remain in their own waste due to inaccessible bathroom facilities. For instance, the Pathway STAIRS Shelter in Berkeley, the City of Berkeley acknowledges, has 98 ADA violations. 
2. Criminalization of Homelessness: Making it a crime for unhoused individuals to sleep in public places when there's insufficient accessible shelter space is inhumane.  Many have nowhere else to go due to overcrowded or inaccessible shelters⁵. 
3. Health Impacts: Denied access to shelters, people with disabilities often resort to dangerous locations like sidewalks or under bridges. Shelter staff may lack proper training to assist them effectively. 

Our Call to Action 

We demand immediate action to rectify this crisis:

1. Accessibility Survey: Local and regional authorities must conduct a comprehensive accessibility survey of all shelters. The survey should assess physical accessibility, accommodations for various disabilities, and adherence to ADA and 504 guidelines. We demand that a cross-disability coalition of people with disabilities with lived experience vet non-conforming facilities for safety and ease of use. The lack of access to accessible bathrooms has forced many out during inclement weather and resulted in others being trapped in bed in their own waste. This condition is inhumane and displays willfully indifference to the basic needs of unhoused people with disabilities needing to use shelters.
   
   
2. Retrofitting and Upgrades: Funds need to be allocated to retrofit existing shelters and build new ones with universal design principles. This includes ramps, wider doorways, accessible bathrooms, and sensory-friendly spaces.
   
   
3. Training and Sensitization: Shelter staff must receive training on disability awareness, communication, and best practices for assisting disabled individuals. 
   
   
4. Collaboration and Advocacy: We call upon the City of Berkeley, Coordinated Care Entry Centers, and Alameda County officials to meet with us to address and end inaccessible shelters. Our coalition consists of advocates, tradespersons, community-based organizations, and persons with disabilities who have experienced homelessness. Our perspective is essential and valuable—nothing about us without us.
   
   

Join Us At Our Press Conference 

We aren’t going anywhere! We ask all compassionate individuals to join us in creating accessible, safe shelters where everyone, regardless of ability, has a warm place to rest their head. Join community advocates on Thursday, April 25th at 2:00 p.m. at the Ed Roberts Campus, at 3075 Adeline Street, Berkeley, CA, 94703 in asserting enough is enough!

Contact: Pathway STAIRS Coalition and Michai Freeman, Systems Change Advocate at The Center for Independent Living 

Email: [email protected] Phone: (510) 330-5625 

About Us: The Berkeley Coalition for Shelter Accessibility is a grassroots organization committed to advocating for accessible and dignified shelter options for all.

¹: Shelterforce: Why Aren't Homeless Shelters Accommodating People Who Have Disabilities? ⁵: Justice Department Files Brief to Address the Criminalization of Homelessness 

Source(s) 

1. Why Aren't Homeless Shelters Accommodating People Who Have Disabilities ...
2. Justice Department Files Brief to Address the Criminalization of ...
3. Homelessness Among Individuals with Disabilities: Influential Factors ...
4. The Cost to Criminalize Homelessness - Homeless Voice
5. No solutions: Shelter has limited resources and city has no plan to ...
6. Residents protest potential Salt Lake homeless shelters | AP News
7. Hundreds protest planned homeless shelter - The Brooklyn Home Reporter
8. Elk Grove City Council Expected To Hear Extensive Comments On Oak Rose ...
9. Worcester homeless advocates decry lack of shelter space as winter ...

The March East Bay Gray Panthers Speaker Meeting!

Purely virtual - from your home via Zoom

Video is below.

Women’s History Month

with Jovanka Beckles and Tiny Gray-Garcia

1:30 Welcome:

... and more action updates from members and the community.

www.eastbaygraypanthers.org

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Join or renew your voting membership ($35/year) DONATE at:

www.eastbaygraypanthers.org

Call 510-842-6224

Follow us on Facebook!

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Speaker Meetings are regular gatherings on the Fourth Wednesday of most months. We focus on special topics with guest speakers as well as highlighting Gray Panther and partner activities

For many Berkeley events of interest, see Kelly Hammargren's Activist Diary in the Berkeley Daily Planet, at https://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com/ - click Current Issue for the latest updates. 

Currently the Monthly Meeting and Board Meetings are by zoom or phone-in but we are scheduling occasional outdoor and safe in-person gatherings in 2024! 

Get in touch with any questions: 510-842-6224 voice or text

The January East Bay Gray Panthers Speaker Meeting!

Purely virtual - from your home via Zoom

TOPIC:  Alameda County D.A. - what does the office do for seniors and what would a recall mean?

1:30 Welcome and slide show:

2023 Gray Panthers in pictures

Featured Speaker: Who wants to recall District Attorney Pamela Price and Why?

Our newly elected DA is now the target of a smear campaign. Rivka Polanchick, retired political science professor Berkeley City College and San Jose State is a member of the East Bay Wellstone Club’s Berkeley Racial and Criminal Justice Committee

Stop the State Utility Tax in 2024! We’ll talk about what’s happening, why, who is affected, and what we can do about it.

Updates: Rent Board/2024 Renters Convention and the People Powered – Matt Lewis, BTU member, East Bay Democratic Socialists of America

and more action updates from members and the community.

Click RSVP for zoom link and a reminder email of time + location of hybrid meetings. 

Upcoming Events TBA

www.eastbaygraypanthers.org

*******************

Join or renew your voting membership ($35/year) DONATE at: www.eastbaygraypanthers.org

Call 510-842-6224

Follow us on Facebook!

**************

Speaker Meetings are regular gatherings on the Fourth Wednesday of most months. We focus on special topics with guest speakers as well as highlighting Gray Panther and partner activities

For many Berkeley events of interest, see Kelly Hammargren's Activist Diary in the Berkeley Daily Planet, at https://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com/ - click Current Issue for the latest updates. 

Currently the Monthly Meeting and Board Meetings are by zoom or phone-in but we are scheduling occasional outdoor and safe in-person gatherings in 2024! 

Get in touch with any questions: 510-842-6224 voice or text