People Over Profit: Acorn Tenants Fight Back

This piece is by the people of Acorn for the people of Acorn, and other poor and working-class people who find themselves being exploited by federal, state, and local institutions. By any means necessary, we will be heard...by any means necessary, we will be free! Tenants and working class people of the world will be familiar with our cause because there is a common thread we are all experiencing: exploitation at hands of the 1%, who are committed to putting profit over The People! We are here to correct this wrong and put the power where it rightfully belongs - in the hands of the masses!

Picture shows lifted carpet revealing mold throughout the floor.

These deliberate displacement strategies and genocidal living conditions are stripping the community of resources until it becomes uninhabitable and hopeless-- resulting in the slow push-out and continuing turnover control of Oakland to the elite.

Now, the history of Acorn to the present day is not one that has happened by chance. Since its development in the 1960s, the leadership and ownership of the public housing units have passed through many different hands, but despite the turnover, the outright disrespect and neglect for the Acorn tenants have continued to grow. Today, the federal government, the City of Oakland, the Oakland Housing Authority (OHA), and some “non-profit” partners (Bridge Housing) work together to exploit Acorn tenants by neglecting the property and residents' needs for healthy living conditions.

Just a few years later, in 2016, site management actually responded to some of our complaints by physically attacking tenants! This pattern of discrimination (and repression) prioritizes real estate profits over our quality of life. But this discrimination will come to an end!

Acorn tenants, organized under the title of Resident Management Corporation (RMC), are making three demands as follows. One: official recognition and negotiation with our tenant association (RMC), returning the power to the tenants who are already stewarding the property. Two: fulfillment of our original “Disposition and Demolition” contract, which is currently in breach (we’ll discuss this in more detail later). Three: an independent audit of all institutions currently receiving funding from/associated with Acorn.

Urban Renewal, Systemic Racism, and the War on Black Self-Determination in West Oakland

Before we go any further-we'd like to give y'all a little Black History lesson on what this area of West Oakland was like before it was the Acorn as we've come to know it and as we're presenting it to you. Once known as the Harlem of the West,” 7th Street and West Oakland became a sanctuary for tens of thousands of Black refugees escaping the racial violence of the Jim Crow South. Known as the “Second Great Migration (1940s-1970s),” this large influx of the Black community gave rise to a vibrant business and cultural corridor on 7th Street. As a result, it also made the area a target for racist attacks on Black political, social, and economic self-determination. People talk a lot about Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Black Wall Street. What happened in West Oakland was the same kind of racist war. Just instead of bombs (like Tulsa), 7th Street was hit with urban renewal policies designed to eradicate the way of life Black people had created for themselves. Urban Renewal Projects covered up racially motivated displacement under the guise of removing blight and “revitalizing” urban areas. In reality, these “redevelopment” projects have served real estate profits, while at the same time removing a strong Black community from this area of West Oakland. For example, the Oakland Planning Department estimates that between 5,100 and 9,700 housing units were lost in West Oakland in the 1960s alone to build Acorn Complex, the BART Station (Bay Area train system), and US Post Office). This led to Black folks shifting from homeowners to renters and to segregated housing throughout Oakland.

Another reason for targeting this community for “redevelopment” was its role as the birthplace of radical activism and resistance. West Oakland has been the source of a multitude of liberation movements that have empowered community cooperation for generations. Whether you’re talking about the ILWU Local 10 (our longshoremen and warehouse workers union) or the Black Panther Party, which was formed in 1966 in response to police brutality and other oppressive conditions imposed upon the Black people of Oakland. Point #4 of the Panthers' 10-point program states, “We want decent housing fit for the shelter of human beings. We believe that if the white landlords will not give decent housing to our Black community, then the housing and the land should be made into cooperatives so that our community, with government aid, can build and make decent housing for its people.” The Party supported tenants throughout Oakland in their fight against slumlords who allowed substandard and inhumane living conditions. The aim of urban renewal policies was to wipe out Black Power by physically removing and separating Black folks from continuing to build together.

The Acorn Complex was constructed as part of this “redevelopment” effort. Built in the 1960s, the Acorn Complex was developed to incentivize white working-class people to move to Oakland for blue-collar jobs at the Oakland Port to replace Black home and business owners. Black residents fought back against losing their homes; however, in the end, they were forcibly displaced, ushering in the “new” residents of West Oakland.

Most Black residents relocated to East Oakland, and in the 1990s (after another epoch of white flight from West Oakland), the City of Oakland, in collaboration with HUD and Bridge, took over the property to designate it as low-income public housing. This shift resulted in another demographic change, with the majority of residents in the Acorn area once again being working-class Black individuals. However, unlike the historical precedent of Black ownership in the area, these residents are now renters dependent on private and government institutions.

Picture shows collapsed wall and floor between units due to neglect and inefficiency rebuilding the property.

Acorn Tenants’ Ongoing Resistance to Consistent Contract Breaches

In 1993, a “Disposition and Demolition” agreement was prepared behind closed doors and presented to tenants without consultation. All three Acorn lots were designated uninhabitable and, therefore, needed to be rebuilt. Acorn residents fought against the plan because they understood they would be displaced and not allowed to return to the updated housing units. They were successful and were able to scale back some of the plans on the complete demolition, among other issues such as HUD’s fulfillment of services and utilities. Despite promises, the relocation of displaced tenants into new buildings did not happen. Many former residents were displaced, some relocated to other Acorn units, and very few became homeowners as promised.

Since then, ownership of Acorn Town Center and Courtyards has been sold for one dollar to the so-called “non-profit” organizations Bridge Housing Corporation and Council of Acorn Residents Incorporated (CARI). These entities have continued the legacy of neglect and disrespect for Acorn tenants while maximizing their companies’ profits.

A closer look at Bridge demonstrates how defunct the situation is. Bridge Housing is one of California’s most prominent “non-profit” landlords, owning a whopping 130 properties, 13,769 units throughout the West Coast. The CEO of Bridge Housing received a $500k salary in 2023, with the entire executive suite racking in more than 2 million dollars in wages last year.

Bridge executives acquire lucrative salaries from multiple Acorn property income streams and invest nothing in return. Bridge claims altruistic intentions; the organization's mission statement reads “BRIDGE Housing strengthens communities and improves the lives of its residents, beginning—but not ending—with affordable housing,” while reaping profits from the OHA and Oakland’s working class. In other words, Bridge’s profits come directly at our expense.

THIS IS THE DEFINITION OF EXPLOITATION!

In 2003, the Council of Residents Acorn Incorporated (CARI) was established by residents of Acorn to serve as an organization that works in partnership with management and owners to represent the needs of the residents. Initially, it operated under the Acorn Resident Council (ARC) until 2007, when it was taken over by bad actors (self-appointed leadership in the pockets of the non-profit exploiters). That year, attorneys at Goldfarb Lipman revised the ARC bylaws for tax-exempt status, appointing a long-time Acorn resident with a paid position at BRIDGE Housing & Bridge Mutual Housing as president, creating a conflict of interest. Under the leadership of these residents, CARI faced significant financial issues, including a large government bill, and they dismissed consultants providing essential services. These leaders renamed the organization CARI, terminated elders for supporting the senior committee, and prevented new elections and other tenant groups from utilizing community spaces. Despite the original agreement's aim to provide job training, needs assessments, and partnerships, CARI and Bridge have failed to deliver any benefits to the residents or property.

RMC was developed by residents to rebuild the economic infrastructure of the Acorn community because RMC provides access to more programs than tenant associations. In September 2023, Acorn Resident Management Corporation (RMC) drafted a petition outlining tenants' grievances. Acorn residents are fed up with abject neglect from all the entities responsible for environmentally dangerous and socially harmful living conditions, from the local and state governments to the non-profit institutions.

In addition to general negligence, Acorn tenants are denied access to contractually promised community and public spaces, safe living conditions, and contractual amenities, all while our rents continue to rise! Our buildings continue to fall apart, our kids don’t have any activities or safe learning environments, and our elders are live in mold-infested housing units. We don’t have access to healthy grocery stores, no community business, evictions of tenants move forward, and executive compensation skyrockets. We will not let this continue!

How Acorn Residents Will Win!

As residents of Acorn, we know our history, which means we must get organized to win. That is why we have formed Acorn RMC. We are tenants from all walks of life. We already serve as caretakers, educators, pest control, and resource navigators for our community. We do the work that the other entities are getting paid not to do, and we also continue to pay rent without reaping the benefits that our money should afford us. The profits from rent should be reinvested to improve the property and support the community that dedicates countless hours to making Acorn what it claims to be. We demand an end to the cycle of transferring the property from one profiteer to another. We demand that Acorn be controlled by the community—we want community ownership, self-governance, and self-determination. We want housing fit for human beings!

What brings us together is our shared commitment to beating back our exploitation at the hands of non-profit exploiters (Bridge/CARI) and their government allies. As organized tenants, we are prepared to not only voice our demands but to take decisive action. Knowing the importance of solidarity, RMC has teamed up with People’s Programs and Tenant And Neighborhood Councils (TANC), to build and sustain our collective power. We believe that housing is a human right, not a commodity! We are fighting for community control of housing through the building of popular power.

We know we are not the only ones in this position, and we ask all parties that are interested in fighting against Bay Area slumlords to reach out to us! Join our door-knocking efforts, attend our tenant meetings, volunteer in our grocery program- however you can participate. Take the first steps to fight back!

If you are interested in working with us, please contact acornrmc@gmail.com