A recent California judicial ruling suspends cash bail for some defendants and halts most evictions during the Covid-19 state of emergency. But we can’t rely on court orders to deal with the ongoing social crisis.

Highland Hospital nurse Saber Alaoui made the news when he wore a garbage bag as a gown to protect himself from Covid-19. His employer didn’t like the attention — and fired him soon after.

Healthcare workers across the state are putting their lives on the line to battle Covid-19. They are demanding that Gov. Gavin Newsom take immediate action to equip them to fight the pandemic — and to rein in a public health catastrophe.

Oakland’s unhoused residents are especially vulnerable to the coronavirus. Elected officials must go beyond small gestures and take drastic action to protect our houseless population.

As the Covid-19 crisis looms, Alameda County considers beefing up Sheriff Ahern’s militarized police force while starving Highland Hospital.

The CEO of Alameda County’s public health authority prioritizes the bottom line over the lives of workers and patients. That’s just a symptom of a deeper problem: public hospitals and clinics have been starved of the resources healthcare workers need to do their jobs well.

Forced to treat Covid-19 patients without adequate staffing or supplies, Alameda County healthcare workers are fighting back to demand safe conditions for themselves and their patients.

Years of underfunding and mismanagement have crippled the Alameda Health System. Without immediate and massive emergency funding, COVID-19 will overwhelm county hospitals, possibly resulting in thousands of unnecessary deaths.

Workers must organize now to demand a response to COVID-19 that puts people over profit.

Workers around the world are organizing to demand paid time off and safe work conditions during the coronavirus outbreak.