In 2018, when a white woman (who became known in the media as “Barbecue Becky”) called the police on a Black family for barbecuing at Lake Merritt, the youth of Urban Peace Movement led a march with over 100 young people around Lake Merritt ending up with a large block party they organized for an annual event called “510 Day” to celebrate Oakland’s culture, history, and legacy in the face of gentrification. The UPM youth’s “510 Day” block party became the first community response to the racist incident and over 500 community members attended. Videos of the block party went viral and received national and international coverage in both online blogs and mainstream press outlets. This spawned UPM’s youth leaders and allies to create the #WeStillHere Community Anti-Gentrification Platform: http://WeStillHereOakland.org
The event takes place at Lake Merritt near the Cleveland Cascade. In 2020, due to COVID-19, it was held as a virtual event.
510 Day in the news
CBS Interviews include Anita De Asis Miralle of Right to Exist Curbside Communities/The Village and Nicole Lee of Urban Peace Movement.
