“There is no Town without the fabric of the people that make it.” -Leon Sykes, Co-Founder of 510 Day
For this Monday Meals discussion, we feature cofounders and organizer of the annual 510 Day celebration of Oakland’s culture and history of culture. Mark your calendars for the 10th annual celebration this Saturday, May 10th, 2025!
Needa Bee is an activist, advocate, educator, mentor, chef, artist and entrepreneur who has started and runs several business, projects and organizations in Oakland and across the Bay Area including The Lumpia Ladies, The Village in Oakland, the Homeless Advocacy Working Group, the Landless People’s Alliance, Ital Pinay, and Healthy Hoodz. She was a co-founder of several Bay Area wide organizations including Critical Resistance Youth Force, Mandela Arts Center/Raparations Records, League of Filipino Students, Committee for Human Rights in the Philippines, Young Oakland, and Oakland First Fridays/ Art Murmur. She is also a co-founder and producer of 510Day.
Leon Sykes is a media educator, community organizer, and proud Oakland native dedicated to preserving and uplifting Black and Brown stories through audio production, storytelling, and education. With over 20 years of experience in radio broadcasting, podcasting, and teaching, Leon works at the intersection of media, history, and community empowerment. He currently teaches media production at Fremont High School and serves as a co-advisor for the Black Student Union, helping students amplify their voices through creative projects rooted in social justice. Leon is passionate about Oakland’s history and culture, and is committed to ensuring that the next generation knows and protects the legacy of their city.
Nicole Lee is the founding Executive Director of Urban Peace Movement , a grassroots racial justice organization in Oakland that builds youth leadership to transform the social conditions that drive community violence and mass incarceration. Lee is a fourth-generation Oakland resident of Chinese American heritage and has spent the past 25 years leading critical social justice work through coalition-building and youth organizing campaigns. In 2009 Lee founded UPM, an organization which has been instrumental in pushing for an end to youth incarceration and mass incarceration in Alameda County. In 2018 Lee was named on EBONY Magazine’s prestigious Power 100 List as a “Community Crusader.”
“They may love the flavor of Oakland, but they don’t want Oakland. They don’t want Black folk here. They don’t want working class here. If we fail to maintain the political stance of 510 Day, we’re falling into the trap of getting culture commodified.” – Needa Bee, Co-Founder of 510 Day