With the sun setting over West Oakland, Reena Valvani picked up her phone to send a message to the Urban Peace Movement team. 

Just hours before, she and her family visited UPM’s ‘That’s Oakland, Baby!’ community block party on Brockhurst Street. Valvani captured her reflections in a voice memo, and clicked send. 

“Oh, my God, y’all,” the message began. “Bless you for such a beautiful, amazing event.”

Valvani was among several hundred community members who attended UPM’s final ‘That’s Oakland, Baby!’ block party of the Summer. In the Saturday sunshine, she met up with friends from West Oakland and beyond to enjoy free wellness services, fun activities for kids, and live entertainment from renowned Oakland artists. 

Joining them earlier that day in the district she represents, Congresswoman Lateefah Simon (CA-12), took the stage to rally families and community members. 

“Let’s show people across the country how Oakland does it,“ Simon urged. “We do it through peace, we do it through love, and we do it through community.”

Urban Peace Movement’s West Oakland block party wrapped a summer season of local, community-rooted programming that UPM offers “as a reminder of why we should be proud to be from Oakland,” said Nicole Lee, UPM’s founding Executive Director.

“These events strengthen relationships, foster a sense of belonging, and bring people out into the community because that’s how we build real community safety,” Lee said.

Simon echoed Lee’s vision, reminding onlookers about the true purpose and long-term impact of healing-centered youth organizing. 

 “The movement work in this town everyday,” Simon said, “is to make sure that our babies can laugh, and love, and dream, and be the stewards of Oakland that we need in the world.”

In 2024, UPM launched the ‘That’s Oakland, Baby!’ event series to honor and celebrate Oakland’s unique culture, civic engagement, and creative energy, according to Lee. 

“Oakland is a city that is rich with history, culture, and a legacy of resistance. Our ‘That’s Oakland, Baby!’ events are a celebration of what makes Oakland so special,” Lee said. 

Community leader Annette Miller, who mobilized neighbors and city officials to help coordinate the West Oakland event, said opportunities to connect wellness experiences with neighborhood pride are limited in the Hoover-Foster district. 

“Looking at folks relaxing under warm blankets and getting acupuncture treatments is less common where we live,” she said. 

Miller leads the Hoover-Foster Resident Action Council, which works to connect city and county leaders with West Oakland residents. She ensured that everyone in her network would take advantage of free massage, manicures, acupuncture, reiki, and haircuts that UPM brought to the block. 

“It was nice to see families, kids young and old, and a range of people from our community show up and enjoy these things, ” she said. 

In 2024, the inaugural ‘That’s Oakland, Baby!’ event brought together Oakland icons Too Short, D’Wayne Wiggins (Tony! Tone! Toné!), and acclaimed journalist Danyel Smith to share conversation about Oakland’s rich and interconnected history of entertainment, activism, and cultural creativity. 

This summer, UPM hosted two ‘That’s Oakland, Baby!’ block parties, one in East Oakland’s Millsmont / Seminary neighborhood, and another on Brockhurst Street in West Oakland. The two events featured up-and-coming artists Seiji Oda, 3Lise, Lana Caz, and Paris Nights alongside Town legends J. Stalin, DJ Fuze (Digital Underground), and others. 

Oakland City Council members Kevin Jenkins (D6) and Carroll Fife (D3), Alameda County Supervisor Nikki Fortunato Bas, Public Defender Brendon Woods, and Congresswoman Simon all lent strong support. 

Their enthusiastic energy was more than matched by the hundreds of community members who joined the block parties. Across all these events, Lee said, the vision to promote community unity and connection remains the same. 

“We’re made up of so many different kinds of people from so many different backgrounds, living together in our neighborhoods, making it work, doing our best even in the face of difficult times,” Lee said. 

“That’s what makes this place so special. We’re strongest when we all pull together.”

After a sunny Saturday, Reena Valvani felt the strength of community pride and collective joy all around her. As evening approached, she couldn’t pass up the chance to give a bit of that energy back. 

“Good job, y’all,” Valvani said. “That was such a vibe!” 

About Urban Peace Movement

Urban Peace Movement (UPM) is an Oakland based nonprofit organization that leads campaigns and programs throughout Alameda County. UPM builds youth leadership to transform the culture and social conditions that lead to community violence & mass incarceration in communities of color. UPM leads with a “Healing-Centered Youth Organizing” model because we believe that organizing is healing and healing is organizing.