Neighbor Newspaper Volume 45

Tableof Contents

Poetry - 3

MXA Update - 4

Community & Events - 5

Shakur Scholarship - 6

Art & Culture - 8 Neighbor Series - 9

Politic & Acknowledgments - 10

Land Acknowledgement

WE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE NISENAN PEOPLE ARE STILL HERE AMONG US TODAY, THOUGH NEARLY INVISIBLE. WE UNDERSTAND THAT WE ARE ON NISENAN LAND THAT WAS NEVER CEDED AND THE ORIGINAL TRIBAL FAMILIES HAVE YET TO RECOVER FROM THE GENOCIDE OF THEIR PEOPLE. AS A RESIDENT OR VISITOR IN NISENAN LAND, WE SUPPORT THE NEVADA CITY RANCHERIA NISENAN TRIBE IN EFFORTS TO STABILIZE THEIR PEOPLE AS WELL AS THEIR CAMPAIGN TO RESTORE FEDERAL RECOGNITION.

February Updates

630 grocery boxes

2 breakfast distro’s

5 mindfulness classes

2 community learnings

12 people seen at the Dr. Mutulu Shakur Clinic

Thank You

we been survivin mel olugbala

if you don’t vote, they reason, then we are sure to end up worse off than before rights stripped away struggling to protect those whose numbers will be up just barely holding onto what is left trying to survive

i see the fear in their eyes hear the desperation that lies beneath their anger i want to bring them comfort a sense of ease with my response

but i’d be doing them no favors so to them i say,

we been survivin’ since they came to our lands and declared themselves kings since they brought us weapons, forcing us to turn our brothers into a few bucks since they had us build their evil monuments and trapped us inside them until it was time for us to become chattel since they packed us into the rusty bottoms of boats and shipped us thousands of miles away from home

we been survivin’ since they stripped us of our dignity of our names since they took away our right to knowledge and bastardized our meanings of love, family and relationship

since they forced us north in pursuit of freedom and then again when they pushed us west to keep ourselves safe since they forced us into broken communities and again, in lieu of food and decent housing, brought us weapons since they packed us into the rusty bottoms of prison cells and transferred us miles away from what we now call “home”

we been survivin’ see, we’ve had practice

the fear in their eyes tells me they don’t the angry desperation tells me they don’t want to have to try cause when the fire comes… when the right wing devil puts in motion the plan authorized by left wing lies when the earth implodes under the weight of our abuses…

they’ll have to learn how to keep surviving so maybe i can offer a bit of comfort some semblance of ease

as i stand here, a loving testimony that survival is possible

we been survivin’

pulling something out of grey and quicksand rawest forms

wretched children seek and destroy ideation and iterated freedom with no consequence for the colonizer waiting for days of doom familiar gray

smoke alarms do not save bloodied ears and eyes and mouths tongues bite back bring up blood one more time to make stomachs churn the other way

losing holds and patience four transactions

death life survival and death again

broken promises search through haze to salvage union with dirtied hands breaking thumbs under rubble trying to reach through concrete

for the stars carry martyrs names burnt away through deliberate fire sent back to chambers awaiting extermination behind screens and in front of machine guns

broken english signs away life applauding retweets and solidarity self congratulatory stillness holding livestreams to fulfill erotic desires to see you bleed behind barbed wire and shattered windows

strong hands reach through quicksand and mental fences just to be cut down again

during week 2 we learned about the Neocolonialism. We watched scenes from Black Panther 2: Wakanda Forever, and pointed out connections to neocolonialism We were visited again by Ms ljeoma who taught us more about fashion, taking measurements and helped prepare us for our upcoming showcase presentation With Valentine's Day taking place, we continued in our practice of love by talking about what Assata Shakur means in her poem R/evolution is Love by "Revolution means ending neocolonialism " We connected this to our lesson on and letter-writing to political prisoner, Kamau Sadiki whose 71st birthday is coming up! Mr Kachiside joined us with a photography lesson that allowed more of us to be both models and directors Finally we wrapped up the week continuing our commitment to community via our Grocery Program and showed out at our Art Exhibit in Del Paso!

we began February studying the Reconstruction Era We watched a couple of videos that helped us learn about what happend to Afrikans following the Civil War and how amerikkka made several promises that they never followed through on, including 40 acres and a mule and other reparations We talked about what reparations mean to us We tied in photography as we continued working on our school art project which was featured in The Gallery 916’s Black History Month Art Exhibit: Our History Makes The City! we continued our core skills and Swahili and spent time learning about and writing to former political prisoners and members of the New Orleans Black Panther Party Chapter, Malik Rahim & General Rico!

We moved into learning about Imperialism. We came to a collective definition that imperialism is when one country take's another country’s resources We honored the martyr (our namesake), Malcolm X and talked about Malcolm’s anti-imperialist politic We were joined by documentarian Brittani Sensabaugh where we had the chance to learn more about storytelling and participate in interviews! We've began learning our colors and days of the week in Swahili and continued to increase our math skills with all of our learners starting to master division Our weekly Political Prisoner lesson was on Mumia AbuJamal and we took time to write him letters of gratitude and health Also MXA Student Justice Committee continued to find ways to hold ourselves accountable to our community agreements

To close out February we learned about Systems of Oppression We spent time thinking about our own personal social identities and how different systems of oppression impact us based on our race, gender, religion, attractions, income level, physical and emotional ability and more We connected these learnings to what it means for us to "show love and respect to our friends " We drew art with a focus on self-portraits and poetry to talk about ourselves We continued making great progress in our group reading and math skills Finally, we learned about Native warrior, Oso Blanco, whose work continues to financially support the Zapatistas community schools which are similar to our own! we will begin wra ith a review of what Socialism is while engaging in our ter world for Afrikan people he Shakurs’

If you are interested in learning more about MXA fill out the interest form through the QR code

I (Andrew Miller) was in the door of my vehicle trying to get my phone charger working to charge my phone A few minutes later, Officer Colvin with Sac PD walked up to me and asked me what was I doing and I explained to her that I was trying to get my phone charger working to charge my phone and as she walked up, she observed what appeared to her as a pipe and she asked me to step out of the door of my vehicle and close the door because she seen what she automatically assumed was a paraphernalia pipe I told her that it was an oil burner, and she proceeded to ask me if I was on parole or probation and I told her I wasn’t She asked if I was lying and asked again Then she asked for my name and and I said “why because I had the oil burner?” and that she did not have consent to search my car I reached in the window of my car and got the oil burner and asked “is this was what you were talking about?” At this, she got upset because she said she told me not to go back into my car; I was kind of upset so I threw it back into the car and gave her my name and told her that I stayed at the shelter; then she ran my name, after having already called for back up

My car was also tagged with a 72 hour notice by the police, but multiple other cars were not two days after a phone call to sac pd officials regarding the incident, officer Colvin returned to tag other vehicles, which seemed like retaliation to the phone call

Community learning

Mindfulness

While I was talking to the sergeant who had arrived on scene, another car arrived with two more officers; Perez and Shoke The sergeant left shortly after speaking with me, and I began talking to Officer Perez Officer Colvin came back and she wanted to get my oil burner to test it for drugs, and I told her that she could but not to open my door I explained that she could reach through the window and get it off the floor She got it and took it and gave it to Shoke to test, and he came back and said that it tested positive Colvin came back and told me that I was going to be arrested to sit on the front of the police car, I told her I wasn’t going anywhere. this is where I lived and I have no reason to run, so I wasn’t going to sit on her car and she said either sit on the car or sit in the car and I said I don’t feel I should have to if it’s just a citation. she said “you are under arrest” and tried to grab me to handcuff me. I had already explained to the responding officers about my health conditions and that I currently had a fractured shoulder and a fractured spine Despite that knowledge, Perez and Shoke grabbed me and shoved me to the ground While on the ground, I was yelling them to get off my legs, and I would be able to comply and put my good arm behind my back When another officer arrived I repeatedly told him I had a fracture, shoulder and spine, and I couldn’t put my arm behind my back He then cut my shoulder strap to my sling and straps to my brace, and forced my left arm behind my back while officer colvin was on my back On the ground, I re-injured my arm and back, as well as my knee I was talking to sutter hospital, where I felt I received inadequate care and then to the county jail

A Place We Call Home: Malcolm X Academy’s Opening Day

Dejay Bilal

We need a r/evolution of the mind We need a r/evolution of the heart We need a r/evolution of the spirit It’s not enough just to change the system We need to change ourselves R/evolution means respecting and learning from your children R/evolution is love

Assata Shakur

On the morning of October 3rd, 2022, Malcolm X Academy for Afrikan Education opened its doors to the public for the first time One could here the nonstop sound of children’s laughter during the Oak Park school's groundbreaking ceremony as they planted spinach, kale, and purple cabbage in the Assata Shakur Freedom Farm; made food for a weekly meal distribution program; and played pick-up basketball on a baby blue court with a life-size mural of the Black Panther Party’s rendition of a black panther (Salanga, 2022) That morning the MXA team arrived at the Shakur Center in Oak Park filled with nerves I was lucky enough to be invited into the school as the Minister of Pedagogy Our team of educators started off the day by embracing each other, joining hands in a grounding ceremony, and then we quickly separated ourselves into three different teams so we could get the Shakur Center ready for the opening day ceremony One group was in charge of setting up the front of the building for the welcoming ceremony The group I was in was tasked with setting up the Assata Shakur Freedom Farm with tools, seedlings, and other farming materials for our planting ceremony The farm was named after Assata Shakur, the Black Liberation freedom fighter seeking asylum in Cuba since 1984 The farm is just one example of how African history is embedded into names of places at the Shakur Center The building also housed the Tupac Performing Arts Center, the Mutulu Shakur Health Clinic, and obviously Malcolm X Academy There was another group inside of the Center getting the classroom space, play room, and library all set up for the babies first day For the MXA team and the rest of the community, this day was historic. Neighbor Program, a Pan-African community organization, was finally carrying out its promise to open up a liberation school that was modeled after the Oakland Community School developed by the founding chapter of the Black Panther Party They believed they were finally answering Malcolm X’s call and the call of so many Black Liberation Movement elders that urged people to take control of the education of our youth.

The opening day ceremony did not officially start until Mama Kimberly Cox Marshall pulled up in front of the school Mama Cox is the daughter of veteran Black Panther Field Marshall Don Cox she grew up as a Panther cub of the San Francisco chapter. When she arrived, she was immediately met with a loving hug by the founder of Neighbor Program (NP) Jordan McGown the Minister of Programs for both the organization and Malcolm X Academy “It’s like going back in time,” Mama Cox said “This is what my daddy wanted,” (Childress, 2022) She believed that NP was providing the community with a school where “young people are not only getting a meal, but getting knowledge to help them deal with life,” (Childress, 2022)

Mama Cox was not the only person that day who had family ties to the Party, in fact, two members of NP’s core organizing team had relatives who were members of the BPP and three of the students enrolled in MXA had grandparents who organized with the BPP chapter in Atlanta Jordan’s father, Phineas, “was a Vietnam vet who was court-martialed for treason after associating himself with the Panthers,” (Childress, 2022) In my many conversations with Jordan, someone who I consider family, he has explained the different ways his father was one of the many reasons he continues to answer the call put forth by the elders and martyrs of the Black Liberation Movement When Jordan first told his Auntie about the school she reminded him that “his father is in this,” (Bilal, 2022) I’ve seen this reality in the dozens of hours I’ve spent talking, building, and organizing with McGowan over the past four years The revolutionary spirit of his father Phineas lives on through him through his children and McGowan has made it his duty to continue the struggle his father introduced him to

The other member of Neighbor Program with family ties to the Panthers is our Minister of Arts and Culture, Dre T, whose father, aunties, and uncles used to play up and down the 4th avenue block that MXA now calls home. Dre is a third generation baby of Oak Park. His grandmother benefited from the services of the Sacramento Chapter of the Black Panther Party In fact, his Grandma used to attend Sunday School in the same exact building that now houses the Shakur Center and Malcolm X Academy This day was so much more than just the opening day of a school. Not only were we making history, we were carrying out the dreams of our elders and ancestors. We were finally answering their calls.

shakurscholarship

Several dozen people attended the academy's grand opening, including Dr Elysse Versher, a former vice principal of West Campus High School in so-called Sacramento She announced her resignation from the position in the spring, citing the so-called Sacramento City Unified School District's inaction in the face of sexual harassment and threats motivated by race Versher hopes that both African staff members and students will feel safe at Malcolm X Academy For Versher, “a safe space means [African] children and employees can show up, be who they are, be treated with respect, dignity, and leave feeling empowered that’s when curiosity for education grows,” (Childress, 2022) The former vice principal has seen African children pushed out of so-called Sacramento schools for decades Finally, she believes she’s found a school that can truly meet the needs of Africans in her community (Childress, 2022)

Reflecting on this day, NP’s Minister of Programs was speechless because “[Mama Cox was able] to see the school and know that someone is carrying on the work So many veteran Panthers feel like their work has been forgotten,” (Childress, 2022) Nearly fifty years later, Jordan, Dre, and the rest of our Neighbor Program team were carrying on the Panthers’ deep history in Oak Park Although the Sacramento chapter of the BPP was short-lived (1968-1971), they achieved great victories within the community and offered a number of programs aligned with the survival programs launched by other chapters: a free breakfast program for students, political education seminars, a local newspaper, legal aid, and tutoring (Salanga, 2022) On October 3rd, 2022, the Black Panther Flag officially returned to Oak Park and it was flying high above the opening ceremony for Malcolm X Academy less than one mile from where it once flew in the late 1960s (Childress, 2022) The flag is a centerpiece of the Center's courtyard that welcomes the community into the building Being in Oak Park is historically significant to Africans in so-called Sacramento and according to McGowan, the neighborhood has functioned as “a unifying space for Afrikans throughout the city of so-called Sacramento,”.

Let’s rewind our story a couple months Neighbor Program acquired the rights to the building that housed the Shakur Center in March of 2022 Within six months, we opened up a liberation school Let that sink in. This is the main difference between principled community organizations and city-backed non-profits Our community organizations get busy We do not spend hours filing paperwork and jumping through hoops just for decisions to get made More importantly, the money that comes into the organization actually goes directly into the community’s hands No time or money is wasted The Shakur Center was a demonstration of Pan-Africanism for the people of Oak Park and it provided the neighborhood with a variety of community programs powered by the strength of collective work The Shakur Center housed a total of twelve community decolonization programs: the Free Breakfast Program, the Free Food Program, the Neighbor Newspaper, Community Learning Classes, the Assata Shakur Freedom Farm, the Afeni Shakur Legal Clinic, the Dr Mutulu Shakur Health and Wellness Clinic, the Alfred Woodfox Political Prisoner of War Program, the Mindfulness and Meditation Program, the Tupac Shakur Arts and Culture Program, and, most notably, Malcolm X Academy for Afrikan Education There are no words that can capture the love, care, and safety that the Shakur Center offered to so many people within our community I am beyond grateful for the opportunity to have called it home The Shakur Center provided the people of Oak Park with a community center that was, according to Jordan, “a demonstration of Afrikan resistance against the empire ” For him, the Shakur Center was “a small battle for dignity, for land, for bread, for education, for health care, and for Afrikan Liberation ” Stay tapped in with as we continue this work in a smaller location within Oak Park: the Shakur House

If you are interested in signing your scholar up for MXA Afterschool on 2nd Thursdays during Spring fill out the registration link through the QR code

NEW MXA MERCH

order your MXA merch now to support all of our programs Order via IG message or email us at sacneighbor916@gmail.com

We would like to highlight Ms Shawntay Gorman and her beautiful painting of Ms Asali done at the Old Sugar Mill Shawntay also curated the Our History Makes The City, which as a Black History Art Exhibit at The Gallery 916, which featured 3 pieces highlighting our very own MXA babies. Ms. Asali is the only woman who was a graphic artist on the Black Panther Newspaper and was a educator at Oakland Community School. Her work inspires all of us and we are so thankful to have captured Shawntay’s piece giving Ms. Asali her flowers.

Events

check out a past Out The Way performance

join MXA at the African Caribbean Heritage Ball for a special performance!

Death gotta be easy, 'cause life is hard It'll leave you physically, mentally, and emotionally scarred - 50 Cent

Death has a funny way of relating to Afrikans suffering under global european kkkolonialism Death seems like that cousin we all hope won’t visit any time soon but we know will see us sooner or later Some of us avoid building meaningful intimate relationships with people and so we avoid with death; in hopes that through sheer avoidance and aversion our lives will be more joyful. Some of us fear or wonder what comes after this life and if there is another realm But as Afrikans we should remember that death is not the end, but allow death to serve as a reminder of our duty to live

Our team was visited by death recently, and it has shaken me in full transparency. On February 26th as we finished community learning I received a text message from our Tuesday grocery distro co-lead that our other tuesday distro co-lead Latesha Royster had passed away Our hearts broke our team met Latesha Royster during our breakfast program distribution back in 2020 Latesha was a mother staying in her car and our team felt it was unacceptable, the folx on our team at the time went to work, in collaboration with other local organizations Latesha was in contact with, to help coordinate hotel rooms and eventually assisted Latesha with finding assisted housing in The Greens on Stockton And when we began our free food program (groceries for families) Latesha was one of our first deliveries She ended up getting more permanent housing and The Sac Observer even ran a story on her in May of 2022 The Observer highlighted Latesha’s heart to give back to the unhoused and sex workers in her neighborhood

This was the beginning of Latesha’s work within our community. Latesha ran breakfast, meal and grocery distro out of her North Highlands apartment complex for us since 2021 Every week for the past two plus years, we have sent food, supplies and whatever else to Latesha to ensure we could help her keep neighbors safe/taken care of Latesha had a huge heart, always looking to help the folx in her neighborhood however she could, often requesting tents and tarps for unhoused folx in her neighborhood Latesha was able to give us insight on what was happening in the streets because she was in community with a different section of the city we weren’t able to touch as much We found out through Latesha that within her North Highlands apartment complex 35 people passed away in 2023 2023 also saw Latesha starting to build a team within her complex but when she lost her right hand, neighbor and best friend in the complex- Kali, to an overdose in the second-half of 2023, I could see the toll death was taking on her

We had asked Latesha to write something on Kali, but she struggled to feel confident with what she wrote She said “Kali just meant so much”, and she did; it was evident to see how much everyone loved Kali, especially Latesha But honestly that’s what made Latesha so special, was how she loved PEOPLE Latesha didn’t care who it was; and if I’m being honest I’m not sure Latesha was a Pan-Africanist, but what I do know is she operated out of LOVE Something that stuck with me that Tuesday morning as I left her complex and made me stop and take a picture but it said “you have no idea just how much you made a difference or how much you will be missed” Although we all are hurting there is no denying that Latesha lived a life that should be honored.

Death is not the end And really I am writing that for me, just as much as for you At MXA one of our community agreements is “we honor our ancestors” and so I know that Latesha will continue to be remembered and honored as we continue to do work in the community she loved and served. And I do know that love never dies Latesha’s love for the people lives on, her love for her daughters lives on, her love for the world lives on because love is ever-lasting and already has the victory

The Shakurs would like to extend our thoughts, prayers, condolences and any assistance and services to Latesha’s family during this time

amani & upendo (Peace & Love)

Acknowledgements

Special thanks to all who contributed their time, labor, effort and work to this February issue of Neighbor Newspaper

Thank you to Nicole Crawford, mel olugbala, RaiiN Ali, Dejay Bilal, Shane Williams, the MXA babies, Mama Kim, Community Movement Builders and EVERYONE working towards Afrikan Liberation!

Afrika WILL Unite!

We show love and respect to our friends - Tunaonyesha upendo na heshima kwa marafiki zetu

We communicate with our friends - Tunawasiliana na marafiki zetu

We know being here is enough - Tunajua kuwa hapa

We honor our ancestors - Sisi ni heshima ya mababu zetu

We are leaders - Sisi ni viongozi

We breathe when we have big feelings - Tunapumua tunapokuwa na hisia kubwa

We keep our space clean - Tunaweka nafasi yetu safi

We try hard things - Tunajaribu mambo magumu

We eat together - Tunakula pamoja

10 Point Program & Platform