The regional park will be the first in Contra Costa County named after a Black person.
And it will feature a visitor center with information about the Port Chicago explosion in 1944 that killed 320 Navy sailors and servicemen — mostly Black men, because the military was segregated. The men were loading munitions onto a cargo vessel when they detonated.
“It’s horrifying what happened, and it’s horrifying that it’s not more broadly known,” Elizabeth Echols, a board member, said at Tuesday’s meeting. “And I think it’s so important to have this name the courage of these men who risked their lives to protest an unjust and racist system.”from local groups and agencies, including Black labor collectives and chapters of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, as well as the Concord City Council.
Port Chicago, built on the banks of Suisun Bay in Contra Costa County, was decommissioned in the late 1960s. The Navyin 2019 and plans to transfer thousands more acres to the city of Concord for development of a large housing community. Echols said at the meeting that despite growing up in the Bay Area, she “never once” was taught in school or told about the Port Chicago disaster.
Alexander Wills, a board member with the local group Citizens for Historical Equity, said Marshall created and distributed pamphlets that called attention to the Port Chicago explosion and unjust treatment of workers that followed — an important example of how to keep people informed.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
East Bay engineer dedicates himself to cleaning up the Bay AreaDuring a time when there is a lot of uncertainty about the future of Oakland, one local engineer has been trying to spread some civic pride in his hometown and across the rest of the Bay Area.
Read more »
East Bay to still see triple-digit temps, but Bay Area to begin cooling offWith the peak of the heat wave over, the Bay Area will begin to see temperatures cooling off, but some inland areas will still be experiencing triple-digit temps.
Read more »
Bikes & bites: Three iconic Bay Area bike trails and where to eat along the wayEat your way along the East Bay, Peninsula and South Bay’s top bike routes.
Read more »
Curry Pizza House expands to Foster City, eyes new East Bay venuesHayward, Mountain House eateries in the works
Read more »
Berkeley, a Look Back: Manufacturers group holds annual picnic in 1924Nate is an East Bay community papers editor for the East Bay Times and Bay Area News Group.
Read more »
AUSD Notes: Several Alameda school projects ongoing over summer breakNate is an East Bay community papers editor for the East Bay Times and Bay Area News Group.
Read more »