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Monday 9am - 5pm Tuesday 9am - 5pm Wednesday 9am - 5pm Thursday 9am - 5pm Friday 9am - 5pm

Ella Baker Center

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Oakland, CA
Ella Baker Center

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Ella Baker Center is named for an unsung civil rights hero who inspired and guided emerging leaders. Thank you for your patience.

We live her legacy by advancing racial and economic justice to ensure dignity and opportunity for low-income people and people of color. We believe that every person has the right to safety, to dignity, to equality, and to self-determination. Our work aims to defend and advance these rights in the United States. For almost 18 years, we have formed unlikely coalitions and won positive change that breaks the cycle of disinvestment and incarceration in communities of color. Among our successes, we have:

- Closed 5 of 8 abusive youth prisons in California and reduced prison populations by 80%
- Built California’s first statewide network for families of incarcerated youth to advocate for change
- Partnered with the California Teachers Association to defeat the “dumb on crime” Proposition 6
- Jump started the green collar jobs movement and passed the federal 2007 Green Jobs Act

Now we’re bringing all our past experience and success to bear on one of the most urgent issues of our time: mass incarceration.

* Due to COVID-19 our staff is working from home and are not accessing the office phone-line. If you need to get a hold of us please send us a message and someone will get back to you.

10/09/2026

3 of our sponsored bills have been signed into law by 🎉

We are so proud of the ways we came together & pushed this work forward! A major thank you to every survivor, organizer, advocate, and community member, as well as the bill authors & team + our co-sponsors 🤎

09/29/2026

We’re still beaming from our 30th Anniversary celebration. The love and joy in that room was truly something special. Y’all really showed up & out 🥹🤎

We called out our ancestors’ names and grounded ourselves in remembrance with Baba Greg. We got DOWN on the dance floor with LadyRyan and sang our hearts out with goapele while also celebrating 25 years of “Closer”🎶

We were moved by youth poet Aisha, and by our very own Ayah, who shared a piece from Jose Contreras. Just seeing Mara home also moved us 🥹 Chaney Turner aka Social Life held us down as our incredible host, and our board member Marquise helped us reflect on the people and purpose behind this work. And we ate GOOD, thanks to Renee, Lucy, Shana & team. 🥰

To our sponsors who helped make this celebration possible, our amazing photographer ANGÈLICA who captured these beautiful moments, our folks inside, our team, our volunteers? everyone who donated, everyone who supported from near and far, and every person who has organized, fought, dreamed, built, and grown alongside us, from@the bottom of our heart: THANK YOU!!!

30 years doesn’t happen alone. We are very much so Rooted in Community and Rising Collectively. Cheers to the next 30🥂

09/23/2026

Thank you to everyone who joined us this September to write, connect and show love to our community inside. Another Mail Night in the books!📫✊🏾

If you missed this one, there’s always more opportunities to get involved! Our next Prison Mail Night will be virtual on Monday, November 16 from 5:30–7:30 PM. Tap in!

& if you need resources please send us an email at [email protected]. We got you!

09/22/2026

Today, we join Jalani’s loved ones and community in holding his memory close while continuing the call for truth, accountability, and justice.

Join us as we come together to honor Jalani’s life and support one another.

📅 Tuesday, September 22
⏰ 12 PM
📍 1515 Clay St., Oakland, CA

Rest in Power Jalani 🕯️🕊️

09/21/2026

Join us virtually or in-person TONIGHT Monday, September 21st from 5:30–7:30 PM for Mail Night! 📩

This is a community gathering where we respond to letters from incarcerated people across California and beyond. We’ll be sending back legal resources, parole prep packets, reentry info, and responses to folks questions. ✊🏾📬

✨ New to Mail Night? We’ve got you. There’ll be an intro space to get you grounded, plus a one-on-one support room to help troubleshoot anything that comes up.

✨Joining us in-person? Meet us at 1419 34th Ave., Oakland, CA

RSVP: http://bit.ly/EBCPMN26

09/18/2026

SHOW UP FOR DORTELL! ✊🏾❤️‍🔥

Wednesday, September 23 at 5:30 PM, we’re coming together virtually for a FREE DORTELL Power Hour to push for the commutation of EBC Inside Policy Fellow alum Dortell Williams and help bring him HOME.

Dortell has spent more than 36 years incarcerated and throughout those decades, he has continued to learn, grow, mentor, advocate, and pour into community both inside and outside the walls... now it’s our turn to pour into him. 🫶🏾

We need our community to take action and show our strength in numbers. One hour. Collective action. Let’s get busy for Dortell’s freedom!

📅 Wednesday, September 23
⏰ 5:30 PM PT
💻 Virtual
🔗 https://actionnetwork.org/events/free-dortell-power-hour

Please repost & spread the word.

09/15/2026

Our 30th Anniversary Rooted & Rising celebration is officially SOLD OUT! 🥹💛

Thank you to everyone who grabbed a ticket, invited a friend, spread the word, and supported us along the way!! Tomorrow, we get to come together and celebrate three decades of organizing, movement building, people power, and fighting for freedom. ✊🏾 We can’t wait to be in community with y’all!

30 years rooted in community and we’re still rising!

09/11/2026

As we celebrate 30 years of the Ella Baker Center next Wednesday, you know we couldn’t do it without taking time to honor the ancestors, elders, and generations of movement work that made these 30 years possible. 💛🕯️

We’re honored to have Baba Gregory Hodge lead us in a drumming circle and libation ceremony as we open our Rooted & Rising celebration.

Baba Greg is a longtime Oakland social change activist, facilitator, strategist, and elder whose work has centered racial equity and creating spaces where Black boys, young men and our communities can flourish & heal.

Together, we’ll open the evening in rhythm & remembrance, honoring those who came before us. We can't wait to see y'all!

📅 September 16
📍 Oakstop, Oakland
🎟️ bit.ly/EBC30AC
Grab your tickets at the link in our bio. If ticket cost is a barrier, community pricing is available, send us a DM for more info.

09/08/2026

Lady Ryan will be on the ones and twos for Rooted & Rising, EBC’s 30th Anniversary Celebration! 🎧✨

On September 16th, we’re coming together in Oakland to celebrate three decades of community, movement building and freedom fighting. There'll be an open bar, amazing food, special guest performance and you already know… Lady Ryan is gonna have us MOVING!! 💃🏾🕺🏾

🎟️ bit.ly/EBC30AC
Grab your tickets at the link in our bio. If ticket cost is a barrier, community pricing is available, send us a DM for more info.

We can't wait to celebrate with y’all 💛

Address

1419 34th Avenue
Oakland, CA
94601

Opening Hours

Monday	9am - 5pm
Tuesday	9am - 5pm
Wednesday	9am - 5pm
Thursday	9am - 5pm
Friday	9am - 5pm

Telephone

+15104283939

Website

http://www.ellabakercenter.org/

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