Cannabis Community Rises in Support to Help Victims of Oakland Ghost Ship Fire

After the horrific warehouse fire in Oakland on Friday night, many locals are reaching out to try and help in any way they can. The building, the “Ghost Ship” in Oakland was an arts hub for the area, where many artists worked and spent time, so naturally, the arts community in Oakland has come out in masses to support the victims and families of victims, survived and deceased. In addition to the outreach from the local arts community, the mayor and concerned local citizens, help is also coming from unexpected areas, such as the local sport alliances and the cannabis community.

In the world of sports, the NBA Golden State Warriors are donating $50,000 to help families affected by the fires. According to ABC, the money will go to the Unity Council in the Fruitvale District of Oakland. Before the Warriors played the Phoenix Suns on Saturday night, Golden State head coach Steve Kerr spoke about the travesty, and held a moment in silence for the victims of the fire.

Following the incident, one crowdfunding campaign arose to support the families of the victims. Those who want to help can donate to the “Fire Relief Fund for Victims of Ghostship Oakland Fire” on YouCaring, which currently has already raised $416,659 out of its $500,000 goal, as of December 6. The organizers of this crowdfunding campaign, the Gray Area Foundation for the Arts, has been an important part of the Bay Area art community for 10 years, is working with the Oakland Mayor’s Office, Red Cross and other fundraisers to help in any way possible.

The Oakland Raiders also stated that they have joined forces with Major League Baseball’s Oakland A’s to provide aid to the victims of the fire. They have pledged up to $30,000 in contributions to YouCaring.com, the fund set up by the A’s to provide relief to victims.

An organization called TAP (Trans Assistance Project) is also hosting a fundraiser that will go directly towards funeral services and costs for “for the trans women who lost their lives” in the fire. Three trans women victims were identified: Feral Pines, Cash Askew and Em Bohlka. The organization plans to present the money to a trans woman who survived the fire to help with her medical care (but the name of that individual was kept anonymous). Once that is taken care of, all further donations will be given to TAP in Feral Pines’ name.

Additionally, a GoFundMe fundraiser is raising money to help the residents who lost their home and belongings in the fire. As of December 6, they have gathered $15,208 and have surpassed their original $10,000 goal.

The local cannabis community is also rising up in support for this tragic accident. Two different collectives in the area, CBCB (Cannabis Buyers of Club of Berkeley) in Berkeley and PHYTOLOGIE in Oakland, are stepping up to the plate and giving back to those who have nothing left because of the devastation of the fire. There are survivors, and those who were living in the warehouse illegally have been left with absolutely nothing, and are in dire need of help and supplies—simple things like food and clothing. Both collectives are collecting money to support victims and families of the victims of the fires, and also taking clothing, food, toiletries, and other simple human essentials, to help provide the injured, the displaced and survivors with clothing, blankets, food and canned goods.

CULTURE spoke to Aundre Speciale of Phytologie about their efforts to give back and help with the tragedy. “We talked to the people that live there that lost everything. We are looking for backpacks, jacket socks, and if you bring them by we will bring them directly to the people that have been displaced,” she told CULTURE. “And for every house cone [specialized house joint] that we sell, we are doing a hundred percent of proceeds to the victim funds.”