The Community Democracy Project is an all-volunteer campaign.
We work to turn the power structure right-side up by putting the people of Oakland in charge of the city budget. We are a group of teachers, service workers, union members, cooperative worker-owners, parents, and fighters for a more just and equitable Oakland.
Noni Session
2022 ballot initiative signatory, advisor
Noni’s priorities include increasing self-determination in historically disenfranchised communities. She is the Executive Director of the East Bay Permanent Real Estate Cooperative.
Shawn McDougal
member
Shawn McDougal is an educator and change-maker who is committed to creating a more just and humane world. When he is not being a math professor or CDP co-director, he likes to ride his bike, dance, and gaze at beautiful skies.
Victoria Yu
member
Victoria graduated with an MFA in creative writing for the same reason she joined CDP—because that’s where the money is (or should be). When she’s not copywriting at her job, she’s volunteering around SF and Oakland, reading, journaling, and searching for new productivity tools to play with.
Neil Thapar
member
Tia Taruc-Myers
member
Tia is a lawyer at the Sustainable Economies Law Center and works part-time at the East Bay Permanent Real Estate Cooperative to help out with digital comms. She is a mother of 5-10 plants, depending on how many plants are dead today.
Kyle Donnelly
member
Kyle’s background in philosophy and the arts has led to a conviction that solidarity created by communities working together is the path to justice. He is a founding member of Cooperative 4 Community, a worker-owned signature gathering cooperative.
Chris Chew
2022 ballot initiative signatory, member
Chris joined CDP in 2017. They are a founding member of Cooperative 4 Community, a worker-owned signature gathering cooperative.
Devo O’Rourke
member
Devo teaches math in community college. During the summer months, they work as a park ranger!
Blake Hihara
2022 ballot initiative signatory, member
Emily Peterson
member
Emily joined CDP mid-campaign to help us gather signatures!