By Dr. Y’Anad Burrell

“Fashion vs. Fascism” (FVF) is a visually immersive evening of fashion, music and political theater exposing the rise of fascism in the U.S. and the need to resist. Democracy is under siege, and culture is one of our most potent defenses, organizers say.

Called a live “runway revolution,” FvF premieres Oct. 3 at The Rotunda, 300 Frank Ogawa Plaza in downtown Oakland.

A play that is part fashion show, part protest, part performance art, FvF stages five runway collections spotlighting the pillars of contemporary fascist politics and the urgent need to resist: the myth of a “glorious past,” the manufactured emergencies used to justify surveillance and crackdowns, and the oligarchs and grifters profiting from it all. Runway fashion shares the stage with political theater and live music, with a closing call to action.

“We need lawsuits, ballots and mass protests, but none of it lands if we’re not also fighting for people’s imagination,” says Linda Burnham, co-producer of the show. “People are exhausted and scared. FvF will expose the absurdities of fascist mythology and ideology in ways a news headline cannot and spark new ideas about how to resist.”

“Fascism doesn’t win by policy alone. It wins by telling a story. A myth about a ‘Golden Age.’ A permanent emergency that makes cruelty seem necessary. That’s not an accident, it’s a strategy, and it works on the same terrain as culture: image, spectacle, emotion,” says Aya De León, the show’s playwright.

“Every piece on this runway translates what is happening under fascism into a feeling,” explains Erica Furlong, the FVF creative director. “One designer’s trench coat is covered in pockets stamped ‘TRUTH,’ ‘MEMORY,’ ‘HOPE,’ ‘VOTE,’ ‘FUTURE,’ because that’s literally what gets seized first, pocket by pocket, under fascist decline. Fashion can hold grief and hope in the same silhouette, and that tension is exactly what this moment needs.”

At its best, fashion is about creativity, diversity, innovation, experimentation and the free exchange of ideas. Fascism, by contrast, demands conformity and control, while suppressing dissent.

FVF was created, organizers say, because democracy should always be in style.

Featured designers include Erica Varize, Rickie Lee, Tianna Charity, Julie Wong, and Maria Flores. The evening features a script by lead playwright Aya De León, musical performances by Mindeullae Project and DJ Emancipation, and other special guests.

FvF is designed to travel. Following the Oakland premiere, FvF will extend its reach through a documentary short, a curriculum on contemporary fascism in the U.S., and a full replication playbook — design templates, script, and curriculum — so organizers in other cities can stage their own version of the show.

Get more details at www.fashionvfascism.org.

“Fashion vs. Fascism” (FVF) is a visually immersive evening of fashion, music and political theater exposing the rise of fascism in the U.S. and the need to resist. Democracy is under siege, and culture is one of our most potent defenses, organizers say.

Called a live “runway revolution,” FvF premieres Oct. 3 at The Rotunda, 300 Frank Ogawa Plaza in downtown Oakland.

A play that is part fashion show, part protest, part performance art, FvF stages five runway collections spotlighting the pillars of contemporary fascist politics and the urgent need to resist: the myth of a “glorious past,” the manufactured emergencies used to justify surveillance and crackdowns, and the oligarchs and grifters profiting from it all. Runway fashion shares the stage with political theater and live music, with a closing call to action.

“We need lawsuits, ballots and mass protests, but none of it lands if we’re not also fighting for people’s imagination,” says Linda Burnham, co-producer of the show. “People are exhausted and scared. FvF will expose the absurdities of fascist mythology and ideology in ways a news headline cannot and spark new ideas about how to resist.”

“Fascism doesn’t win by policy alone. It wins by telling a story. A myth about a ‘Golden Age.’ A permanent emergency that makes cruelty seem necessary. That’s not an accident, it’s a strategy, and it works on the same terrain as culture: image, spectacle, emotion,” says Aya De León, the show’s playwright.

“Every piece on this runway translates what is happening under fascism into a feeling,” explains Erica Furlong, the FVF creative director. “One designer’s trench coat is covered in pockets stamped ‘TRUTH,’ ‘MEMORY,’ ‘HOPE,’ ‘VOTE,’ ‘FUTURE,’ because that’s literally what gets seized first, pocket by pocket, under fascist decline. Fashion can hold grief and hope in the same silhouette, and that tension is exactly what this moment needs.”

At its best, fashion is about creativity, diversity, innovation, experimentation and the free exchange of ideas. Fascism, by contrast, demands conformity and control, while suppressing dissent.

FVF was created, organizers say, because democracy should always be in style.

Featured designers include Erica Varize, Rickie Lee, Tianna Charity, Julie Wong, and Maria Flores. The evening features a script by lead playwright Aya De León, musical performances by Mindeullae Project and DJ Emancipation, and other special guests.

FvF is designed to travel. Following the Oakland premiere, FvF will extend its reach through a documentary short, a curriculum on contemporary fascism in the U.S., and a full replication playbook — design templates, script, and curriculum — so organizers in other cities can stage their own version of the show.

Get more details at www.fashionvfascism.org.

By Tanya Dennis

Alameda County elders are urged to attend the Elder Justice Symposium at Oakland City Hall on Sept. 25, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., for information that could profoundly affect both their health care and the legacy they hope to leave their families.

For many older adults, a lifetime of hard work has produced two things they understandably want to protect: access to health care while they are living and the home, savings, and other assets they hope to pass to loved ones when they die.

Changes already underway in California make understanding how to protect both increasingly urgent.

The first threat involves Medi-Cal.

Federal changes enacted under H.R. 1 are bringing new eligibility, reporting, and coverage rules beginning in 2027. Although Californians age 65 and older and people with disabilities are exempt from the new 80-hour-per-month work requirement and will continue with annual rather than six-month renewals, that does not mean elders can ignore the coming changes.

California has already reinstated an asset test for certain Medi-Cal recipients age 65 and older, people with disabilities and those needing long-term care. Assets must be reported when applying or renewing coverage.

And another significant change is coming.

Beginning July 1, 2027, California says the Medi-Cal asset limit for affected beneficiaries will fall from $130,000 for one person to just $21,000, and to $31,000 for two people, with certain assets excluded and special rules applying in some circumstances.

There is more. Beginning Jan. 1, 2027, Medi-Cal’s retroactive coverage period will also shrink. For most beneficiaries outside the ACA expansion adult group, coverage of qualifying medical expenses incurred before application will be reduced from three months to two.

For an elder facing hospitalization, long-term care or an unexpected medical crisis, misunderstanding these rules could have enormous financial consequences.

The second threat concerns what happens to everything you worked so hard to acquire.

Many people believe, “I have a will and a living trust, so my family is protected.”

It may not be that simple.

An estate plan is only as effective as the way it has been structured, maintained and implemented. How assets are titled, whether a trust has actually been funded, beneficiary designations, Medi-Cal eligibility and long-term-care planning can all affect whether a person’s wishes are ultimately carried out.

A will by itself does not automatically avoid probate, and simply possessing trust documents does not mean every asset has been properly protected or positioned to pass as intended.

That is why elders should learn the rules before a medical crisis, incapacity or death makes planning far more difficult.

At the Elder Justice Symposium, experts will explain these changes in understandable language and discuss steps that elders and their families should consider now.

Attendees will have an opportunity to learn what questions to ask about Medi-Cal eligibility and renewals, asset limits, estate planning and protecting the legacy they intend for their families.

Do not assume the rules you learned years ago are still the rules governing you today.

Come to Oakland City Hall on Sept. 25, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Bring your questions. Bring your family. Most importantly, bring a willingness to prepare.

The decisions you make before these changes take full effect could profoundly affect your health care, your financial security, and what remains for the people you love.

By Barbara Bauer, Special to The Post

Floating bubbles greeted families on arrival at the Bookout Block Party held on Sat. Sept. 12 at 39th and MLK Blvd. in Oakland.

Sponsored by Marcus Books and Storyland Collective, a wonderland of activity for children stretched to Longfellow School while live music filled the air, courtesy of KWC Complex Jazz Group.

Booths lined the street with arts and crafts, and children participated in hands-on art projects. A large display of books was on display and each child chose his/her free book to take home. Food and snacks were available, and free water was encouraged to keep all hydrated.

A large area of turf was filled with huge bean bags for jumping, rolling, and sitting to listen as families crowded close to listen to Oakland Mayor Barbara Mayor Barbara Lee read a book out loud.

Of the numerous booths present were, “Claim Your Scholarship,” a program for Oakland Public School students and “VOLUNTEER NOW,” a program encouraging volunteers to help boost reading proficiency. Individuals sold their art and products. Free gifts were at many tables and a raffle was held.

The event with Marcus books culminated a summer-long program organized by Storyland Collective, a literacy arts organization bringing children’s ‘storytime,’ local authors, and art activities to Bay Area neighborhoods. Marcus Books is the oldest, independent Black-owned book store in the U.S., featuring books by and about Black people here and abroad.

By Post Staff

Mayor Barbara Lee stops by to support vendors, Winky Dinky Dogs owner Tyranny Allen

A streamlined Oakland Black-Eyed Pea Festival took place on Sat. Sept. 12 in the lower Temescal neighborhood on the blocked off street that connect Shattuck and Telegraph avenues.

An early start brought together vendor regulars from festival partner, the Freedom Farmers’ Market, and vendors who have supported the festival at its previous location at Marston Campbell Park.

Wanda Ravernell, the festival producer/director was on the verge of cancelling the festival because of funding limitations in May before reaching out to Elaine Smith, president of Farms to grow, Inc., which supervisors the market.

From its start in 2014, the festival has focused on the traditions of African American culture through music, food and art. That emphasis included fresh food vendors, particularly growers of African American legacy crops like black-eyed peas, yams, watermelon, collard greens and okra, which all originate in Africa.

To Fresno farmer Will Scott of Scott Family Farms, the Freedom Farmers’ Market allows him to bring those crops to the inner city – and support the nutrition of African Americans.

Shortly after the festival opened Saturday morning with prayers and salutes to the ancestors by Wakan Wiya Two-Spirit Drum and Awon Ohun Omnira, led M. Zamora and Otobaji Stewart respectively, 86-year-old Scott, the son of a sharecropper, announced that he will put other endeavors aside to dedicate the rest of his life to raise those foods.

Smith shared that Farms to Grow assists Black farmers in helping them overcome one of their main impediments to success – distribution – while creating alliances to help Black people maintain farmland and make it prosperous for younger generations to keep farming and farmland in the family.

As the morning progressed to afternoon, a steady stream of visitors drifted from booth to booth, chatting with vendors and each other.

Scott noted that a market day like this was what he was accustomed to in his youth, where the market was not just about buying things but also a place for valuable social exchange.

The social aspect became even pronounced shortly after midday when Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee stopped by to shop and visit with some of the vendors, including Ellen Bimpeh of Sankofa, and Ravernell who was selling T-shirts designed by Stewart.

Lee is also a fan of Winky Dinky Dogs, an eatery owned by Tyranny Allen whose second brick-and-mortar venture further anchors a hub of businesses at that corner.

As he has in previous years, Andre Thierry of Accordion Soul, closed the festival with a 90-minute set that brought young and the young-at-heart on their feet to dance in a line or as impromptu couples.

And, surprisingly, the man Allen refers to as the mayor of 45th Street, came out on cane and chair to sit by the curb in the sun and listen to music reminiscent of his Louisiana roots. His appearance seemed to echo Scott’s observance about the market: to bring people together.

The Freedom Farmers’ Market is located at 4521 Telegraph Avenue in Oakland and is open on the second and fourth Saturdays of each month until Nov. 14. For more information and to apply to be a vendor, go to https://www.farmstogrow.org/freedomfarmersmarket

By Post Staff

California Attorney General Rob Bonta, as part of a coalition of 25 states, filed an amicus brief in the Court of International Trade in Learning Resources v. Trump, a case challenging President Trump’s latest “unlawful” attempt to tax the states and American consumers through illegal tariffs, according to a media release issued by the California Department of Justice.

In the brief, Bonta argues the latest round of tariffs levied under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 are pretextual and are not targeted to address the purported harms of forced labor, as that statute requires, but instead are designed to re-create the tariffs already declared illegal by various courts.

Last month, Bonta and the coalition filed a lawsuit challenging the administration’s decision to impose these tariffs on over 80 countries that together account for 99.4% of all U.S. imports — costs that will be passed along to Americans already struggling with affordability.

“President Trump is so intent on raising the cost of living for Americans that he is willing to break law after law to continue his tariff regime,” said Bonta.

“Imposing these tariffs under Section 301 has nothing to do with forced labor and everything to do with continuing the President’s failed economic policy and reimposing the global tariffs that the Supreme Court invalidated,” he continued.

“We urge the Court of International Trade to declare the president’s tariffs under Section 301 illegal. Tariffs are taxes, and the American people cannot and should not shoulder the extra costs that come from the president’s illegal tariffs.”