Grantee Database

BUILDING OPPORTUNITIES FOR SELF- SUFFICIENCY

Grant Year

2023-24

Grant Program

Impact Projects

Award Amount

$21,250.00

Project Description

With support from the California Arts Council, Building Opportunities for Self-Sufficiency (BOSS) work with award-winning local filmmaker LeJon Loggins to empower violence-impacted community members served in BOSS programs in Oakland to tell their stories and through storytelling, to enhance healing, empowerment, and self-agency while raising awareness about the realities of violence and entrenched inequity in local neighborhoods. The project will center on a three-month cohort-based training series that will teach storytelling, filmmaking, outreach, and public education skills, resulting in a film that will be shown in the local community and more widely. Funds will be used to pay the filmmaker, for stipends paid to participating violence-impacted community members, and for program supplies and related costs (food, transportation, venue rental for film showing).

Organization Summary

BOSS fights for health, wellness, opportunity, and equity for our most vulnerable community members using 3 core strategies :

HOUSING SECURITY: Lifting people out of homelessness and promoting housing retention using as many housing resources as possible, e.g. emergency and interim housing programs (shelters, Safe Parking, Tiny Homes), permanent supportive housing programs (for homeless, Transition Age Youth, people with disabilities), reentry housing, housing search and placement services, and rental assistance.

WELLNESS & EMPOWERMENT: Multidisciplinary services for very low income and justice system-involved individuals, families and communities impacted by trauma and inequity – services include trauma recovery, violence intervention, restorative justice/community healing, education/training/employment, benefits advocacy and basic needs assistance, housing assistance, and more. Services are located in highly distressed neighborhoods (East and West Oakland) and are provided by individuals with lived experience.

SOCIAL JUSTICE: Fighting against the root causes of inequity and injustice through leadership development (paid trainings and civic engagement for impacted individuals), collaborative planning (participating in local, regional, state and national needs analysis and planning forums), and policy advocacy (grassroots organizing, public education, direct actions) in partnership with key social change groups (Californians for Safety and Justice, Alliance for Justice, Time Done, Re-Entry Providers Association of California, California Black Power Network).

Organization

BOSS

Address

1918 UNIVERSITY AVE STE 2A

BERKELEY

94704-3263

County

Alameda

Region

Bay Area – Other

Phone

(510) 649-1930

Congressional District

12th Congressional District of California

State Assembly District

District 14

State Senate District

District 7

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