Dellums fundraiser attracts hundreds

By Globe Staff

Vowing to tackle the city’s toughest problems, Oakland mayoral candidate Ronald V. Dellums electrified a $125-a-plate fundraiser at the downtown Marriott Hotel, putting his campaign for the June election into high gear.

    “We can’t keep singing 40-year old (civil rights) chants,” said Dellums. “We have to go forward. I came home to stand for ideals and unite this community.”
    A trio of youths came on stage to pledge their support as hundreds from across the East Bay applauded.
    Rev. J. Alfred Smith, Sr. of Allen Temple Baptist Church called the 27-year former Congressman “a light that has come to the darkness... a warrior for social justice.” And Smith urged residents to “get out of the rocking chair of apathy.”
    San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris said Dellums represents “the spirit and future of Oakland” and she recalled him as a speaker at her elementary school when she was a student there. “I looked up to him,” Harris said.
    Congresswoman Barbara Lee, who had just landed at Oakland International Airport after a visit to New Orleans, noted “(Dellums) has never given up on his dream for a better world.” She praised him for bringing needed resources to local schools, the Chabot Space and Science Center, the Federal Building, and the Port of Oakland.
    During his remarks, Dellums said he was “inspired” by Martin Luther King, Jr.
    He also said young people should join the campaign “to have a voice.” And Dellums added: “Come close to me and help me understand your hopes and dreams.”
    He recalled his days working as a playground director in 1960 while enrolled at San Francisco State, and kids would come to his apartment on Grove Street (now Martin Luther King, Jr. Way) Saturday mornings. “Something is wrong when our children do not come first,” he said.
    Part of making Oakland a “model city” for other cities to emulate, Dellums said, is making sure police officers, fire fighters, teachers and nurses can afford to live in a city where they work and serve. “Let’s lead and show America the way... when we talk development, I want to see all of us at the table.”