Bay Area activists hold rally to call for end to political violence

HAYWARD, Calif. (KGO) -- An El Cerrito man is facing hate crime charges for allegedly sending racist and threatening emails to Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee, including threats to torture and kill her. He is currently being held at Santa Rita Jail.

Scenarios like this one led one group of Bay Area activists to rally for an end to political violence.

"Stop political violence! Stop political violence!" the crowd chanted in front of Hayward City on Tuesday. The call is to defend democracy and protect civic spaces, says activist Edward Escobar.

"There have been death threats against Mayor Barbara Lee of Oakland. And you remember Paul Pelosi, who was attacked by a hammer by individuals who are trying to make political statement," says Edward Escobar with the Coalition for Community Engagement, which organized the rally.

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Activists are concerned about rising political violence in the Bay Area. They argue this isn't about left versus right but right versus wrong. They are also concerned about stifling free speech, such as during City Council meetings.

"If you are frustrated and you're feeling that you need to commit violence, please don't. Just come back with better arguments, better facts, better things to support what you are saying," suggests Tom Wong, a mayoral candidate for the city of Hayward.

"When you have certain groups that start attacking you, your character, your character assassination, also saying things that are not true, this also has to stop," says Mayor Carmen Montano with city of Milpitas.

Montano is calling for more civility. She says police presence at city council meeting helps in her city, and she doesn't think it's over-policing, but rather serves as a deterrent.

"I think it would be a protection, an added protection, for both sides of the issue to make sure that our meetings are civil, we have civil discourse. And make sure our voices are being heard on both sides," says Mayor Montano.

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"I faced a lot of political violence and threats. In fact, the State Senate has actually purchased a bulletproof vest for me because of the amount threats that we were facing," shares California State Senator Aisha Wahab.

Senator Wahab, whose district includes the cities of Hayward, Union City, Newark, Fremont, Milpitas, Sunnyvale, San Jose and Santa Clara, says she has supported a lot of bills around social justice and women's rights, which makes her a target.

Another concern she has is that political violence pushes people away from seeking public office -- especially, she says, women of color.

Senator Wahab adds that raising awareness of what elected officials are dealing with will help law enforcement and lawmakers aware of the source of the threats.

"Our law enforcement is there for a reason. We should feel very comfortable knowing and sharing what is going on, and at the same time, educating them of why this is happening," explains Senator Wahab.