Welcome to the EastSide Arts Alliance & Cultural Center!
We are an organization of Third World artists, cultural workers, and community organizers of color committed to working in the San Antonio and other Oakland neighborhoods to support a creative environment that improves the quality of life for our communities and advocates for progressive, systemic social change.
EVENTS CALENDAR
Raratoulimen presents...
RASANBLE!–Haitian Arts and Culture Festival
Friday, Sept 22, 2023
7pm
EastSide Cultural Center
2277 International Blvd, Oakland
RASANBLE! is not just a festival; it's a transformative journey. From the rhythmic beats of the Haitian drums to the graceful movements of the Folkloric Dance, every aspect is carefully curated to captivate your senses and nourish your soul.
Witness the captivating GODMAMA: Great Mother of Power Photo Exhibition that beautifully portrays the essence
of Haitian culture and history.
This festival is a celebration of heritage, creativity, and community. Whether you're a seasoned enthusiast or new to Haitian arts and culture, RASANBLE! offers something for everyone. It's a space where academia meets creativity, and tradition embraces innovation. Mark your calendars and get ready for an experience that will stay with you for a lifetime. Stay updated at raratoulimen.com, and let's come together to celebrate the richness of Haitian arts and culture at RASANBLE!
Writing Ourselves into Oakland Spaces
Sunday Sept 24, 2023
11am- 1pm
EastSide Cultural Center
2277 International Blvd, Oakland
FREE workshop •
Engage in this free writing workshop accessible to any age, ability, or experience level; preferably residents who identify as Black, indigenous or person of color, in reflecting on community histories, experiences, and hope for different regions of East Oakland. Tell your stories! Explore your voice! Bring a journal and something to write with.
Sarah Webster Fabio Center and EastSide Cultural Center's Final Fridays Films present...
A Rising Tide – A Look at Homelessness in Alameda County a Cheryl Fabio film
Friday, Sept 29, 2023
7pm
EastSide Cultural Center
2277 International Blvd, Oakland
FREE event • doors open 6:30pm • refreshments served
Discussion to follow with filmmaker, Cheryl Fabio and affordable housing developer Alan Dones
Through the eyes of children, their families, and the helping industry that has developed from the housing crisis, A Rising Tide follows the strategies of families and service providers struggleing with homelessness. The film results from a conversation between the filmmaker and Dr. Christine Ma. Dr. Ma is the Medical Director of two clinics working with houseless children and their families. At UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital, it’s the Encore Clinic.
RSVP on Eventbrite: https://tinyurl.com/risingtidefilm
https://vimeo.com/833775452?share=copy
EastSide Arts Alliance present...
Craig Harris THE BLUOCRACY
A masterwork, exploring the great democratic process that is essential to the music called “jazz”
Saturday, October 7, 2023
7-9pm
EastSide Cultural Center
2277 International Blvd, Oakland
The Bluocracy uses the platform of art as a healing balm to foster interaction between opposing forces, addressing the notion that we can come together to disagree; and examining the blues aesthetic, which is interwoven throughout our entire existence as a society. In small settings people can listen and observe one of the most democratic processes: an ensemble of improvising musicians navigating their way through musical compositions where all the members are active and essential in the shaping of that composition.
Craig Harris is a trombonist, composer, bandleader, and gifted sonic shaman. Seeking an inspired career, he skillfully navigated his musical journey that began when touring with the inimitable Sun Ra, onto a path affirming Craig’s place in performance with and among the ranks of creative music’s most progressive thought leaders.
The featured ensemble is Craig Harris and Harlem Nightsongs, a 9-member group of musicians Craig has worked with on various projects, in small and large iterations, for over twenty years. Craig composed the music of The Bluocracy and will provide musical direction for the performances. Craig Harris and Harlem Nightsongs meld intricate compositions driven by imaginative improvisation. Harris assembled this ensemble to explore extended compositions for a large group while maintaining the spontaneity and flexibility of a small group. The band’s complex arrangements supply broad choices for the improvisers within the band thus conveying a small group feel with a large group sound.
Regenerating Resistance: The Alliance Building Legacy of Greg Morozumi
August 21- September 16, 2023
Eastside Cultural Center
2277 International Blvd, Oakland
Join us in celebrating our beloved activist, archivist, mentor, educator and brother in the movement Greg Morozumi.
TURNING OUR HEARTS TO HAITI
A SHORT STATEMENT FROM EASTSIDE ARTS ALLIANCE ADDRESSING SECURITY & SAFETY IN OUR COMMUNITIES
We are a Third World Cultural Center in the Fruitvale/San Antonio District in the East Oakland community– meaning we serve the diverse Black, Brown & Asian neighborhoods that populate our city.
One of our priorities involves SECURITY and SAFETY for People of Color in our underserved, poor & struggling communities which we know they are all under pressure to survive.
Sometimes survival means committing fratricide in our desperate communities (like the spike of violence especially in east Oakland); Sometimes it overflows into other ethnic neighborhoods, like the recent muggings in Chinatown. We need a bold and smart solution to address this repeating history that cannot be solved by increasing the number of the repressive police forces. Oakland has been “investigated” for nearly 20 years from the Feds for corrupt rampant police brutality and “rogue” cops. But we understand the source and role of policing since the history of slavery!
Defunding the Police is first step to protect our communities with intelligent policies that understand the source of our oppression – We need active intervention with community voices, progressive cultural consciousness, mental health dialogue, and better social services that address our concerns and needs ... for a start ...
We need more cooperation between our communities to build solidarity because that is the only way we can truly solve this crisis and ultimately empower our community. As third world people we continue to fight and struggle collectively to end oppression and violence against all of us in our communities and the world.
