At Vision 980 block party, old-school West Oaklanders hold forth on redlining

"The future of the I-980 highway won't arrive without a reckoning with the harms inflicted on West Oakland's Black community when it was built. That was the message from the Black old-schoolers from West Oakland who showed up at what was dubbed an I-980 Block Party on Saturday. They came to participate in the Vision 980, an effort by Caltrans, the state transit agency, to reimagine the freeway by either capping it, removing it, or doing some safety upgrades but leaving it as is."

"Hosted by Evoak!, an Oakland nonprofit dedicated to advancing equity and sustainability, the event took place on a rainy Saturday afternoon at Preservation Park, the stately, landscaped neighborhood created from the relocated Victorian homes of Black residents displaced by the highway between the 1960s and the 1980s. Randolph Belle, whom Caltrans contracted to run Vision 980's community-building and outreach, worked for months with local colleges, community groups, and survivors of the displacement to put the event together. Together they created interactive stations where people could learn about the history of the I-980's construction, including how it led to the loss of housing for some 500 Black families."

"The highway dates back to the years after World War II, when President Dwight Eisenhower launched a nationwide program to build highways, often through taking possession of the properties of low-income communities of color through eminent domain. That undertaking devastated West Oakland, where the majority of the households were Black. "The plans that have come before this were really talking about freeway fighting, decreasing vehicle miles, travel, environment, and open space," Belle said to a small group gathered under a tent canopy to avoid the rain. "We're talking about first prioritizing harm repair for the legacy residents of West Oakland.""

A community event in West Oakland focused attention on Vision 980, Caltrans' effort to reimagine the I-980 freeway through capping, removal, or safety upgrades. Evoak! hosted the gathering at Preservation Park, a neighborhood formed from Victorian homes relocated after freeway-driven displacement. Outreach lead Randolph Belle collaborated with colleges, community groups, and survivors to create interactive stations documenting the highway's history and the loss of housing for about 500 Black families. The highway traces to the post‑World War II federal interstate program and eminent domain takings that devastated majority-Black neighborhoods. Participants urged prioritizing harm repair for legacy residents.

Read at The Oaklandside