The space provided discounted meals to children, staged concerts for Nina Simone and held book signings for Maya Angelou and Alice Walker.
The center thrummed with life: Its bustling bar-restaurant served up soul food seven days a week, and the walls of its program hall were always hung with new art exhibitions.
Rentable conference rooms in the back were put to use by all manner of community groups, and any night of the week there was some cultural event to take advantage of—a Bobby Hutcherson concert, a screening of a film smuggled out of South Africa, a trailblazing work of choreo-theater, a book party with Rosa Guy or Maya Angelou.
"[6] Rainbow Sign was the site of a 1971 gathering that led to the founding of Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA).
"[8] Kamala Harris, who was elected to be Vice President of the United States in November 2020, has mentioned that Rainbow Sign was influential on her as a child.
Reporting on her 2019 announcement in Oakland, California of her campaign for president, The Washington Post stated that "Harris infused her speech with her biography....