EBALDC targets African-American tenant protester with restraining order and eviction

EBALDC targets African-American tenant protester with restraining order and eviction

By Lynda Carson - September 21, 2014

Oakland - The East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC) has targeted African-American, Hugh Taylor House tenant Mark Johnson with a restraining order and eviction proceedings for protesting against their policies, poor living conditions, and for protesting in front of their downtown office located at 1825 San Pablo BLVD, Suite 200. EBALDC is accusing Mark Johnson of being a threat as a direct result of his protests, and picket signs in front of their office.

Janice Yan, age 54, is high in the upper ranks of EBALDC staff, and is seeking protection from Mark Johnson an EBALDC tenant protester at the Hugh Taylor House. According to court documents, Janice Yan has been complaining that African-American, Hugh Taylor House tenant Mark Johnson has been protesting in front of EBALDC's corporate office downtown Oakland, and she has demanded a restraining order from the court to be placed on Mark Johnson, in an effort to end his "first amendment right" to free speech. EBALDC does not want Mark Johnson protesting in front of their office anymore.

Additionally, according to court documents, from August 20 through August 25, and according to Mark Johnson, he has been protesting in front of EBALDC's main corporate office, and has been holding up various picket signs during his five days of protesting against EBALDC's policies, poor living conditions, harassment and mistreatment. The restraining order requested to protect Janis Yan also lists Joshua Simon, Charise Fong, and Gustavo Fernandez as those also needing protection.

Mark Johnson claims that the restraining order is pure harassment on EBALDC's part, and is intended to be a way to stop him from protesting in front of their office, and to deprive him of his free speech rights. The TRO was signed by Charise Fong of EBALDC, and the lawyer for the petitioner is Franciso Torres out of San Francisco, an attorney who represents landlords against tenants.

In the court documents requesting a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO), Janice Yan is complaining that on 8/26/2014, Mark Johnson was standing in front of the EBALDC office accusing EBALDC of being "slumlords and stealing money." Janice Yan also claims that Mark Johnson has been holding a picket sign in front of EBALDC's office that says, "Stand Up Against Racism At EBALDC." Yan has also been claiming that Johnson has been saying that Asian people are racist, that EBALDC's director Joshua Simon is a crook, and that these people at EBALDC are crooks and gangsters. Yan has been complaining to the court that Johnson has been chanting, "Stand Against racist for the blacks, white, and latinos."

According to court documents, on 8/20/2014, at approximately 7:30 am, Mark Johnson came to the EBALDC office to protest on the sidewalk with a picket sign that said, "Janice Yan was a racist" and "slumlord." Allegedly, he shouted and used a squeaky toy until mid afternoon, according to the complaint.

Further allegations according to documents are that on 8/21/2014, Johnson returned to the front of the EBALDC office with a squeaky toy that he would make noise with and shout "slumlords" and "false leaders" and "they don't care about blacks, white, or latinos, they only care about themselves."

On 8/22/2014, he allegedly returned and protested most of the day while chanting and shouting.

On 8/25/2014 at approximately 8:00 am, Mark Johnson was allegedly protesting on the sidewalk in front of EBALDC's office calling EBALDC staff crooks and liars and false leaders, and accusing EBALDC of being "slumlords" and accusing staff of stealing money.

This is not the first time that people have been outspoken about the activities of Janice Yan and others at EBALDC. In a letter dated 8/4/2014 an EBALDC employee wrote: "Associated Director, Janis Yan yells, intimidates, screams, and harasses the African-American staff at EBALDC."

The 8/4/2014 letter by an EBALDC employee states: "Racism is alive and well at East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation also known as EBALDC. I am an employee of EBALDC and I have read your blogs on tenant relations and for that reason I am reaching out to you to bring awareness to our situation here. We don't have anyone that cares about us here at EBALDC and it is obvious by what they have said and done that they do not want us African Americans here. It needs to be brought to the attention of someone that EBALDC practices harassment, favoritism, deception, bullying and retaliation towards African American employees. EBALDC wants its culture of Asian and Pacific Islanders to be the only staff at EBALDC. Let me tell you why?"

Additionally, during August of 2011, Effie's House building manager Danny Chen blew the whistle on Janis Yan and stated that it was Janis Yan who filled out some notices threatening around 6 residents with eviction for posting "Do Not Disturb" signs on their doors in response to some faulty notices to enter their apartments, by EBALDC.

Asides from the complaints of racism with EBALDC, and complaints against EBALDC of wrong doing by it's employees and tenants, EBALDC itself as an organization is very open about it's policies that favor Asians and Asian Pacific Islanders over other races, creating an emotional discriminatory impact on it's employees, tenants and buildings, that are often being segregated by race.

African-American employees at EBALDC have been complaining that higher job positions are mostly being filled by Asians or Asian Pacific Islanders, and that African-American employees are being passed over for job promotions, and for higher positions in the organization.

Recently EBALDC replaced the face of numerous Asians on their website with African--Americans after facing complaints of racism by employees and tenants in their buildings, but on a different page of their website (in the about section) it still clearly says: "Emphasizing our historic and continuing commitment to Asian and Pacific Islander Communities." For years, in their job recruiting messages and on it's website, EBALDC claims to be focusing it's efforts on Asians and Asian Pacific Islanders, leaving people that are not Asian or Asian Pacific Islanders feeling as though they are facing discrimination by EBALDC.

As an example, EBALDC's huge downtown residential housing complex called the Frank G. Mar apartments is mostly filled with Asians and Asian Pacific Islanders, as well as Hismen Hin-Nu Terrace and some of their other residential buildings. For some reason, not many blacks, whites and latinos are being offered residential apartments in some of EBALDC's buildings, and Asians and Asian Pacific Islanders get preferential treatment in those locations.

Another example is Effie's House in East Oakland. It has mostly African-American tenants passing through the 21 unit residential building through the years, with barely as few as five white residents being allowed to move in during the past 14 years or more, and very few latinos during the same period. It appears that whites and Latinos face discrimination at Effie's House by EBALDC.

In addition, EBALDC replaced past African-American managers and maintenance men at Effie's House with Chinese immigrants that speak in Cantonese to one another on a daily basis at the building, a language most tenants do not speak at the residential building. Additionally, crews of Chinese immigrant workers have also mostly been involved in a massive $2.5 million dollar rehab project at Effie's House during the past three years. Oddly, the Chinese immigrant workers have been favored over Latino immigrant workers and African-American workers through the years during their lunch breaks at the massive rehab project. The Chinese immigrant workers were generally allowed to sit at the tables in the community room for their breaks and their lunch breaks with management at Effie's House (Chinese immigrants), while the Latino immigrant workers and African-American workers sat outside in the cold on the curb, or in their cars in front of the building for their breaks, and lunch breaks.

Mark Johnson is currently facing eviction and restraining orders sought by EBALDC for exercising his "first amendment right" to free speech by protesting in front of the office at EBALDC, and for protesting against poor living conditions in his apartment at the Hugh Taylor House. According to Mark Johnson, he moved his bed out into the hallway next to his apartment door because of a strong odor of raw sewage in his apartment, after some workmen did some repairs in his apartment that left the smell of sewage in the unit. He has not been able to get EBALDC to remedy the situatrion. After refusing to move his bed back into his apartment until EBALDC remedied the situation of the strong smell of sewage that left Mark Johnson with medical problems, including asthma for the first time in his adult life, EBALDC targeted him with eviction, and a restraining order.

A photo of a small bed in a huge hallway at the Hugh Taylor House in Oakland that is surrounded by police tape, reveals that there is enough room in the hallway for an adult elephant to pass through, if it was necessary.

Backing his claims, a notice dated August 8, 2014, from La Clinica in Oakland, states: "Mr. Johnson is a patient at La Clinica. In May of this year his apartment was overcome with sewage and then was cleaned out. After this incident Mr. Johnson returned to live in the same apartment and developed asthma for the first time in his life. This may be the result of an allergic reaction to something in his apartment. He is now on two asthma medications." Signed by Marianne Jensen, Family Nurse Practitioner.

Additionally, according to a "Notice To Quit" dated August 22, 2014, and signed by Cindy Norton of EBALDC, the notice accuses Johnson of committing a nuisance, and it reads: "You moved your bed into the common area of the hallway in the building. You were sleeping in the common area hallway, with yellow police barricade tape surrounding your bed. You and your bed and personal belongings blocked a portion of the common area hallway, blocking means of ingress and egress in case of an emergency, and created a fire safety hazard. The Fire Department declared your behavior to be a nuisance."

Furthermore, there is a slew of other accusations and complaints in the notice to quit, and EBALDC is claiming that it wants Mark Johnson to vacate his apartment no later than September 5, 2014.

On 8/27/2014, Mark Johnson filed a code compliance complaint with the City of Oakland due to a plumbing leak in his apartment, and due to a lack of heat, according to a document from the City of Oakland.

In another notice signed by Jeffrey Seal, MD., it states: "I am the treating psychiatrist for Mark Johnson. He suffers from depression and insomnia that I believe are in part due to unnecessary noise stressors in his home. Anything that can be done to assist in the decrease of this noise or assistance in moving him to a place that is more calm is greatly appreciated and would be hugely helpful in preventing the exacerbation of his mental state."

A July 13, 2012 notice from the Oakland Police Department states: Mark Johnson, you are listed as a victim of an attempted murder and attempted robbery that occurred on July 10, 2012. I presented the case to the Alameda county District Attorney's Office. The District Attorney's Office charged the suspect in the case. If you have any questions please call the Alameda County District Attorney's Office."

According to a March 19, 2014 notice from the Catholic Charities of the East Bay, Mark Johnson was shot by the stranger who tried to rob and murder him a few years ago, and the notice mentions that Mr. Johnson is a client of the Catholic Charities of the East Bay, and it mentions that it is essential for his mental health that he relocates to a new residence.

Facing eviction and restraining orders by EBALDC for protesting against poor living conditions at his apartment, and for protesting against EBALDC staff at their downtown office appears to be making life much more difficult for Mark Johnson at this point in life, as he is being forced into court to defend himself by a very wealthy nonprofit 501c3 charity organization that has repeatedly been accused of racism by some of it's employees, and tenants.

Mark Johnson is still presently residing in his apartment at the Hugh Taylor House, and is still fighting against the TRO and the "Notice To Quit" (eviction notice) that EBALDC has served him as a direct result of his protests, and his use of his "first amendment right" to free speech, in protest against EBALDC's practices, and policies.

The East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC) is one of Oakland's largest so-called nonprofit affordable housing developers, and in 2012 their gross receipts were $6,980,618, with a fund balance of $24,838,726 after subtracting their liabilities, from their assets.

Lynda Carson may be reached at tenantsrule [at] yahoo.com

Note: Lynda Carson is a longtime resident of Effie's House.