With speeches, signs reading “Make Big Oil Pay,” and lessons on useful protest tactics, Frank H. Ogawa Plaza was converted into a training ground Sunday afternoon for 50 environmental activists and organizers.
Politics
Carla Perez, program coordinator with Movement Generation, teaches a workshop on how to respond to a natural disaster in Sunday in Downtown Oakland. Photo by Terria Smith.
Activists prepare for demonstration to “make big oil pay”
Nine candidates have their say at forum
After public complaints about a plan to include only the front-running candidates for Oakland mayor, the Sierra Club Wednesday hosted nine of the ten candidates at a forum on the environment and the upcoming election.
Disabled parking placards in downtown Oakland; are they legit?
Placard fraud costs the city income in meters and parking tickets. Furthermore, because cars bearing placards have unlimited time and don’t need to be moved every hour or two, fraud prevents parking turnover; that can severely limit parking options for everyone, disabled or not.
The same-sex marriage seesaw
When Chief Judge Vaughn R. Walker ruled to strike down Proposition 8 on August 4, saying that the same-sex marriage ban was discriminatory and unconstitutional, gay couple Teresa Rowe and Kristin Orbin were elated. But, on August 16, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals imposed a stay on same-sex marriage that will last until at least the end of the year–and now their marriage must wait.
The future mayor of Oakland: a rundown of the options
Oakland’s gearing up for mayoral election season again, with thirteen – strike that – ten candidates competing for Mayor Ron Dellums’ spot. Who are they?
Breaking: Proposition 8 stay to be lifted; same-sex couples can marry in California Aug. 18
United States District Chief Judge Vaughn Walker has ruled that he will lift the stay on his ruling overturning Proposition 8, allowing same-sex couples to marry in California starting at 5 pm on August 18.
Oakland’s own currency? Mayoral candidates aren’t buying it, yet
In front of City Hall, six candidates for Oakland mayor and their respective entourages arrived to participate in the Oakland Community Action Network event to discuss a local currency. Most had different agendas, however.
Eight Childhood Development Centers set to close Friday
Judy Lee has already begun packing her boxes. Full of art supplies and Shel Silverstein books, the boxes sat neatly stacked near the wall of her spacious classroom at the Piedmont Avenue Early Childhood Development Center on Wednesday, a telltale sign of the center’s imminent closure.
Council approves four initiatives for November city ballot
On Monday night the Oakland City Council approved the addition of four initiatives to the city’s November ballot, all geared towards bringing revenue into the cash-strapped city.
With fewer officers, Oakland’s policing strategy changes
Since the layoff of 80 police officers, Oakland’s policing strategy has changed, and neighborhood safety groups are grappling with how to react. The Oakland Police Department plans to focus more on emergencies and less on community problem-solving and the investigation of non-violent crimes.
Hashing it out with marijuana activist and educator Richard Lee
Richard Lee is president of Oaksterdam University, a cannabis trade school located in downtown Oakland. He’s also a driving force behind the November state ballot initiative to legalize, tax and regulate marijuana in California.
Green energy financing faces federal roadblock
An innovative financing scheme designed to help homeowners afford to make their homes greener and more energy efficient could be in trouble. The Federal Housing Finance Agency recently announced that it would not support Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) finance programs, like one set to launch for Oakland residents later this year.
Oakland city council approves large-scale production of medical marijuana
In a lively, standing room only meeting, the Oakland city council voted Tuesday night to approve on first reading a city-wide plan for the cultivation of medical marijuana in four new large-scale factories.
Kaplan gathers signatures for fall ballot
As the fog burned away into sunshine Saturday morning, campaign volunteers manned a table on the Lakeview Branch Library lawn and gathered signatures to officially put Rebecca Kaplan on the ballot for this fall’s mayoral election.