Bread and Thorns Mutual Aid Collective (or BaTMAC) is beginning a series of zines aimed at helping our unhoused and housing insecure community members have a voice in Oakland’s policies that directly affect them. Much of Oakland’s policies regarding homelessness and encampments come from a fantasy world where homelessness is a choice, the problem is one of aesthetics, and the solution is to “sweep” the “detritus” off the streets. This heartless and inhumane worldview results in policies that make the problems worse for everyone, housed or not.
The squeaky wheel gets the grease, and anyone who’s dealt with members of the outspoken anti-homeless movement in Oakland knows just how squeaky they are. It’s crucial we in turn make our voices heard—that we squeak at least as loud as the gentrifiers and haters trying to disappear us and our comrades. It is especially important to make our voices heard because we don’t have the funding for advertisements and bribery that the anti-homeless movement does.
The two main ways you can make your voice heard by the Oakland city government is by:
1. Contacting your city council member, and
2. Speaking at an Oakland city council meeting.
The first zine in the series, Get the Grease, aims to be a quick guide to squeaking loudly and “getting the grease.” The second, Stop the Ken Houston Project 2025, provides a number of talking points to consider when calling city council members or speaking during public comment.
We will hand out these zines at our regular food distro. Anyone is welcome to contact us to obtain a printable PDF if they would like to distribute it, or download web and print versions below.
BaTMAC can be contacted via email or Signal:
Email: kathodus@protonmail.com
Signal: kathodus.13
Bread and Thorns is an Oakland-based mutual aid collective. Food distribution, homeless advocacy.