Pecolia Manigo

06/04/2026

Finally coming up from the election get out the vote push. I know that most of us are holding our heads down wondering what lies ahead for California.

Usually, I am excited post election because Oakland Rising would have wrapped up talking to voters and heard a positive amount of “I have a vote plan”. This year, we didn’t hear any enthusiasm from voters in Oakland about voting… and frankly that’s should alarm everybody.

The apathy for voting has always been the challenge. The fact that everyday people do not believe voting will change anything is the most pressing issue for any future ahead where working families and communities have a chance of designing the future of this city, the Bay Area, California or the country.

Voting is not the only solution. However, it is a significant step towards the solutions working families and communities need to utilize every election…

For those who voted, thank you.
For those who didn’t, let’s talk. Life is definitely lifin. Trust me, I get it. I had my baby in the car and dropped ballots at 6:15pm last night. I’m not ashamed to say that with everything going on in my life. Yet, I had a plan to vote.
For those who have already decided voting is not something you will do, let’s talk.

At this point, dialogue is urgently needed across regular voters and inconsistent voters to get together a strategy that everyone can participate in and stand behind to protect our communities for what lies ahead. And what lies ahead is more aggressive and massive rerouting of resources to the wealthy.

05/23/2026

It’s really not complicated to understand that the revenue in Oakland provides for all Oaklanders.
From the hills to the flatlands, all service improvements, including ensuring the city core services are maintained, come from parcel taxes.
There are other options like major corporations paying way more in taxes and the wealthy paying more in taxes. However, that’s a statewide ballot measure coming in November.

This primary, I’m voting Yes on Measure E. I definitely will not be on side with realtors and a coalition of folks who have done little to put up solutions that help Oakland.

05/16/2026

Hey Oakland!
Let’s keep it real. Voting is one way we resist.
And, we need to resist the MAGA agenda everyday.
So, join us on May 23rd to vote EARLY and bring some joy to our families and community!

05/02/2026

I was trying to think about what is the way to say how I feel in this moment. I have a grandmother who is alive who voted for the first time because of the Voting Rights Act. Sit with that. In her lifetime, she has watched this country grant and take away the right of black people to vote. The amount of furious energy flowing through me is astonishing.

04/29/2026

I'm feeling so much right now...
The injustice of the days before, today and in the future.
Yet, the clarity of the fight...

Here's the thing:
We got too comfortable believing that democracy didn't need protecting.
We got too comfortable believing that racism doesn't shape everything in this country...
Now, as we watch these decisions and more that THEY TOLD US THEY WOULD DO happen, we better be prepared to do more than just march in the streets.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday tossed out Louisiana’s long-contested congressional map as an unconstitutional gerrymander.

04/06/2026

In the richest state in the US, funding education through a mandatory law is still a fight. Prop 98 is the statewide law of how to fund public schools and some of our college system. The law lays out three equations for the Governor to use to create the minimum Prop 98 funding for the fiscal year budget. California’s fiscal year starts July 1 and ends June 30. This is why districts, citywide, counties and statewide departments must submit a budget by June 30. It aligns with the state budget.

And, every year, you have to really track what is being proposed in Prop 98 funding, across party lines. It is consistent advocacy lead by students, parents and educators that push the Legislature and Governor into negotiations to fund our education system at the middle or highest Prop 98 funding equation. This year is particularly critical because of inflation and expected national funding reductions.

Governor Newsom proposed the average Prop 98 equation. This means the state funding is slightly similar to prior years funding that were on average done with the middle Prop 98 equation. Additionally, the Governor’s proposed budget funds a COLA and postpones some ‘commited’ funding until 2027. In other words, some funding is not going to be received and districts have to plan for those reductions. Lastly, these reductions are combined with federal reductions in spending, creating massive deficits in multiple school districts.

I understand that our local and national news cannot be relied on for coverage of everything our government is doing at every level. However, it then becomes critical for us to know where to find information. I’m putting some links here that anyone can access to track what our state is doing to fund public education and other critical safety net systems.

Office of the Governor
https://www.gov.ca.gov/2026/01/08/as-part-of-the-2026-27-budget-proposal-governor-newsom-proposes-improving-state-education-governance/

Legislative Analyst Office
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5165

Cal Matters
https://calmatters.org/commentary/2026/02/california-school-systems-education-spending/

State of California

04/03/2026

Some of the loudest voices are not always the right voices.
AND
Some of the wisest voices are often the most ignored voices because wise people only repeat themselves once or twice.

An elder once shared this with me. And it has stuck with me in my organizing in Oakland. And frankly, a lot is just starting to come to the surface.

First, not a bad move for OUSD to shift from a crisis every year model to a wholistic review of investments of funding. The main funding source for the district is generated from attendance which fuels almost every state funding source. So, it’s good to see the Board’s Budget and Finance Committee finally be called and take a deeper look at what are the challenges facing schools, students and families.

This is particularly important because environmental racism impacts almost 50% of OUSD’s student population living in Districts 5, 6, and 7 aka as East Oakland and District 3 aka West Oakland. From asthma to long COVID to many other health factors, including mental illness, students and their families in the east and west are often out of school more than children in other parts of the town due to these health factors. Added to this are transportation and economic costs associated with getting to school and or work. And I’m sure there are unique situations that require deeper, individual care. In other words, these are factors that impact the attendance rates at schools.

Even for me, as a parent, I hate receiving the truancy letter every year. However, excused and unexcused absences happen for our family that exceed 5 days a school year. Do I want OUSD to lose funding as a result? No. Thus, there are real problems to resolve even for the average student and family. Let alone that these problems are statewide challenges.

Second, I was also pleased to see some progress on how finances are managed in the district by shifting from out-dated models. OUSD has long needed a Financial Officer that has experience managing billions of dollars across multiple funding sources. The last time I was on The Budget Advisor Committee to the Superintendent many years ago, there were at minimum over 15 sources of funding for OUSD on the restricted side of the budget. Most public conversations are about the general fund which also has multiple funding sources. My point is that it has long been known that basic checks and balances on how funds are used needed deep evaluation AND system wide shifts in management.

Since I have been unexpectedly involved in my SSC recently, this is the first year that I have heard a firm deadline and process for locking site budgets. While it’s a massive shift in culture, it’s just the beginning of what is needed to ensure fidelity to the approved budget district wide. Central office cuts are going to hurt. I’ve heard of a lot of people going back into the classroom next year. Good.

Next, a deep evaluation of all contracts is necessary. While there are many afterschool contracts for expanded learning, that’s not the only contracts in the budget.

03/21/2026

is a demand, way of life and a vision for the world we are trying to create. Thanks Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice for the reminder that our collective work is to live by our words

03/18/2026

As a survivor of domestic violence, I understand how hard it is to balance between your truth and the perception people have about a person. I stand with Dolores Huerta. I hope the women who spoke out feel supported for their courageous act and that other women who may not have come forward, feel able to.

March 18, 2026

Today, civil rights leader Dolores Huerta issued the following statement:

“I am nearly 96 years old, and for the last 60 years have kept a secret because I believed that exposing the truth would hurt the farmworker movement I have spent my entire life fighting for.

I have encouraged people to always use their voice. Following the New York Times’ multi-year investigation into s*xual misconduct by Cesar Chavez, I can no longer stay silent and must share my own experiences.

As a young mother in the 1960s, I experienced two separate s*xual encounters with Cesar. The first time I was manipulated and pressured into having s*x with him, and I didn’t feel I could say no because he was someone that I admired, my boss and the leader of the movement I had already devoted years of my life to. The second time I was forced, against my will, and in an environment where I felt trapped.

I had experienced abuse and s*xual violence before, and I convinced myself these were incidents that I had to endure alone and in secret. Both s*xual encounters with Cesar led to pregnancies. I chose to keep my pregnancies secret and, after the children were born, I arranged for them to be raised by other families that could give them stable lives.

Over the years, I have been fortunate to develop a deep relationship with these children, who are now close to my other children, their siblings. But even then, no one knew the full truth about how they were conceived until just a few weeks ago.

I carried this secret for as long as I did because building the movement and securing farmworker rights was my life’s work. The formation of a union was the only vehicle to accomplish and secure those rights and I wasn’t going to let Cesar or anyone else get in the way. I channeled everything I had into advocating on behalf of millions of farmworkers and others who were suffering and deserved equal rights.

I have never identified myself as a victim, but I now understand that I am a survivor — of violence, of s*xual abuse, of domineering men who saw me, and other women, as property, or things to control.

I am telling my story because the New York Times has indicated that I was not the only one — there were others. Women are coming forward, sharing that they were s*xually abused and assaulted by Cesar when they were girls and teenagers.

The knowledge that he hurt young girls sickens me. My heart aches for everyone who suffered alone and in silence for years. There are no words strong enough to condemn those deplorable actions that he did. Cesar’s actions do not reflect the values of our community and our movement.

The farmworker movement has always been bigger and far more important than any one individual. Cesar’s actions do not diminish the permanent improvements achieved for farmworkers with the help of thousands of people. We must continue to engage and support our community, which needs advocacy and activism now more than ever.

I will continue my commitments to workers, as well as my commitment to women’s rights, to make sure we have a voice and that our communities are treated with dignity and given the equity that they have so long been denied.

I have kept this secret long enough. My silence ends here."

If you are a survivor or if you have been impacted by any type of s*xual violence, please visit the Dolores Huerta Foundation website, where you will find a list of resources for support. https://doloreshuerta.org/s*xual_assault_resources/

Read the full statement and Spanish-language version here: https://medium.com/p/e74c20430555?postPublishedType=initial

MEDIA CONTACT

Fenton Chief of Issue Advocacy & Crisis Management Lead Erik Olvera | [email protected] | 415-994-3242

Lara Berthold | [email protected]

03/13/2026

It’s really crazy watching this administration fight to postpone relief for working families on student loans. I was grateful for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness. However, I, like many parents, financed college education through Parent Plus Loans. Thus far, the SAVE program and income based repayment plans are all being challenged by Missouri State and this administration. And frankly, it’s just heartbreaking to wait for every court case to bring some validation to our collective right to afford paying monthly payments we can actually afford. Ultimately, I think a radical reset of college education needs to happen and every student loan should be forgiven immediately. But, apparently that’s way too socialist to happen…

A court declined to approve Trump's move to end the SAVE student-loan repayment plan ahead of schedule. It ignited calls for prompt debt relief.