San Francisco, Oakland Cafés Join Nationwide ACLU Fundraiser

Andytown Coffee Roasters. (Photo: Fiona Lee/Hoodline)

Today through Sunday, coffee shops around Oakland and San Francisco will donate a portion of their proceeds to the American Civil Liberties Union to combat the Trump administration's recent immigration ban.

The fundraiser began when when Sprudge, a website for coffee-related news, issued the call.

“Not all heroes wear capes, but all lawyers need coffee,” Sprudge wrote on its page calling for the fundraiser. Though not an expressly political publication, Sprudge editors felt the need to speak out after the sweeping limits on refugees and immigrants from seven majority-Muslim nations were rolled out.

“Since the election, we've really asked ourselves how our vision of using our business as a force for good could apply to something as daunting as national level issues,” said Robert Myers, co-founder of Oakland’s Highwire Coffee Roasters. “When we saw Sprudge post their campaign, it was an easy choice for us to join.”

“The executive orders of the current administration are unconstitutional and anti-American,” said Cortt Dunlap, owner and manager of Awaken Café. “With Congress and the White House controlled by the Republicans, legal action might be the only check we have.”

Awaken Café owner Cortt Dunlap. | **Photo: Talia Frank**

Since Sprudge first issued the call, 530 cafés have signed on, including ones as far flung as Mexico City and North Berwick, Scotland. Many cafés have also agreed to offer matching amounts to customer donations.

Awaken Café will match at least $250 of customer donations to the fundraiser; so far, customer response has been positive, said Dunlap. “As of 11:16am, we’ve raised $602.07, plus our $250.00, for a total of $852.07."

These Oakland cafés are participating in the fundraiser: