Groups speak out against alleged harassment of Black women political leaders

By Antonio‌ ‌Ray‌ ‌Harvey‌

Contributing Writer

OAKLAND — The Oakland branch of the NAACP and the Oakland/Berkeley chapter of Black Women Organized for Political Action have issued a joint statement condemning what they describe as harassment, intimidation and discrimination targeting Black women in politics.

Founded in 1968, Black Women Organized for Political Action is a California-based nonprofit advocacy and membership organization that is focused on increasing Black women’s participation and influence in the political process.

Danielle Motley-Lewis, president of the group’s Oakland/Berkeley chapter, told California Black Media that the statement reflects growing concerns about online hostility and political attacks directed at Black women candidates, elected officials and public servants.

“These allegations deserve serious attention and should not be dismissed as ordinary political disagreements,” the organizations said in their statement.

The concerns have surfaced amid a contentious race for the Oakland Unified School District Board of Education’s District 6 seat, where candidate LeAna Powell has reported experiencing harassment during her campaign.

Powell is running against Alexandra Williams and incumbent Valarie Bachelor, the school board’s vice president. All three candidates are Black women.

Motley-Lewis said the organizations’ statement addresses concerns extending beyond the school board contest, although Powell’s experiences helped bring the issue into focus.

“I could only speak to what I witnessed on social media. There were various types of harassment online,” Motley-Lewis said of the back-and-forth about the candidates online.

“It was unnerving. So, I wanted to broaden the statement, which I believe we achieved. And then I folded in one of the things that came to my attention that is this particular race involving LeAna Powell.”

Powell, a former aide to former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao, previously filed an informal complaint with the Oakland Public Ethics Commission alleging that Thao, then a City Council member, pressured city employees to work on her mayoral campaign.

Thao was recalled in November 2024 and left office Dec. 17 of that year. She subsequently faced federal charges related to an alleged bribery scheme. The criminal proceedings are separate from the dispute involving Powell’s school board campaign.

Powell also filed a complaint with the NAACP concerning what she described as harassment during her campaign.

Among those publicly criticizing Powell is Brandon Harami, a former Oakland mayoral staffer and LGBT advocate who said he previously worked with Powell in Thao’s office.

In a Sept. 27 Facebook post, Harami questioned Powell’s qualifications, judgment and political associations.

“District 6 candidate for school board LeAna Powell does not have the maturity nor spine required to be on the school board,” Harami wrote.

The criticism became part of a broader dispute over whether public commentary about candidates had crossed the line from legitimate political disagreement into harassment.

Motley-Lewis said the organizations had documented or witnessed conduct they considered troubling, although she emphasized that their concerns were not limited to Harami or Powell.

Harami has denied the allegations and accused the organizations of misrepresenting his conduct.

In an Oct. 11 Instagram post, he called the joint statement a political smear and demanded that BWOPA and the Oakland NAACP retract it.

“I have to address a fairly slanderous press release issued by the Oakland NAACP and BWOPA yesterday and asked both organizations to retract this statement as it is false and provides cover for real harassment and homophobia. I hope you can join me in speaking out against this attempt to silence queer people who are trying to make our voices heard,” Harami stated.

He argued that the organizations’ characterization of his actions unfairly portrayed him as having a history of harassment and discrimination. He also contended that the allegations were being used to silence LGBT voices.

Motley-Lewis said she declined Harami’s request for a retraction because the statement addressed a broader pattern of conduct affecting Black women in politics.

“I was open to brokering that conversation. However, (Harami) was unwilling,” Motley-Lewis said. “He did reach out to BWOPA to retract our statement, and I advised him that I would not be doing that. The statement that he was included in (addressed) a broader problem that is experienced by various women.”

She said BWOPA would not participate in additional actions the NAACP might pursue but remained willing to help facilitate dialogue between the parties.

“The NAACP has a laundry list of things, and they are taking further actions,” Motley-Lewis said of the allegations. “Now, BWOPA California and BWOPA Oakland/Berkeley won’t be involved in that. (The public statement) was something we were comfortable doing.

“If there is some type of restorative justice or reconciliation, we will be happy to help facilitate that,” Motley-Lewis said.

Motley-Lewis also clarified that Powell participated in BWOPA’s candidate endorsement process but did not receive the organization’s endorsement.

She said the decision not to endorse Powell did not diminish BWOPA’s commitment to addressing conduct it considers harassment or intimidation of Black women seeking public office.

“But that doesn’t mean that we don’t come and try to protect and stand up for Black women, which was our only objective,” Motley-Lewis said. “We are like, ‘Please allow this woman to run her race and not be harassed and bullied online.’”

Antonio‌ ‌Ray‌ ‌Harvey‌ writes for California‌ ‌Black‌ ‌Media‌.