Oakland North’s 2014 year in review — our top stories and photos
on December 22, 2014
2014 was a year of big changes for the city of Oakland, as the public school system welcomed a new superintendent and voters headed to the polls to select a new mayor from a pool of 14 candidates. It was also a year of heavy street protesting, beginning with demonstrations to mark the fifth anniversary of the shooting death of Oscar Grant, and ending with protests against the decisions of grand juries not to indict the police officers responsible for the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner. Throughout the year, Oakland North reporters were there to cover the news as it happened, from truly local stories, like Oakland going six weeks without a murder this summer, the longest stretch since the late 1990s, to getting the East Bay’s take on international stories like the Ebola outbreak in Africa. Here are some of our favorite and most-read stories from 2014. We’ll be back in 2015!
Oakland greets the New Year with two protests
By Yolanda Martinez
Therapists, Role Models, Spies: An Oakland school trains students to help mediate campus conflict
By Max Levenson
Female tattoo artists make their mark on Oakland
By Beatrice Katcher
Dalai Lama visits East Bay, gives advice on achieving happiness
By Sukey Lewis and Nausheen Husain
Concussed: East Bay high school athletes battle concussions
By Juan Martinez
Early candidates for Oakland’s fall mayoral race outline platforms
By Oakland North Staff
Hip Hop Chess Federation creates partnership with East Bay schools
By Juan Martinez
Oakland goes six weeks without a murder, the longest stretch in 15 years
By Molly Pierce
Oakland Black Cowboys parade celebrates 40 years
By Alissa Greenberg and Gabriela Arvizu
Report shows “chronic absence” down in Oakland, but still a problem
By Laura Klivans
On the 25th anniversary of Loma Prieta, paramedics remember
By Gina Pollack
By Deana Mitchell
MLK parklet becomes the seed for a neighborhood’s dreams
by Jacqueline Ipp
Ebola reaction among African community in the East Bay
By Alsanosi Adam
Bike heist spotlights thieves’ evolving modus operandi
By Alex Kekauoha
Life on the trail: A day campaigning with Oakland’s mayoral candidates
By Joshua Escobar, Alissa Greenberg, Sasha Lekach and Justin Whiteman
On the money: How much Oakland’s mayoral candidates have spent and raised
By Molly Pierce and Nigel Manuel
Libby Schaaf celebrates Oakland mayoral victory: “an awesome city”
By Sasha Lekach, Molly Pierce, Jacqui Ipp and Hanna Qassis
Registrar’s map gives nuanced glimpse into Oakland mayoral results
By Joshua Escobar and Alissa Greenberg
Oakland reacts to Ferguson grand jury decision
By Deana Mitchell, James Pace-Cornsilk and Alyssa Jeong Perry
Peaceful Tuesday night Ferguson support march erupts into vandalism in the Temescal area
By Joshua Escobar, Alissa Greenberg, Molly Pierce and Brett Murphy
Oakland protesters respond to decision not to indict in Eric Garner’s death
By Brett Murphy and Tom Goulding
OUSD study finds link between lack of Internet, computer access and poverty level
By Melina Tupa
Friends and family gather to remember shooting victim Isaiah Sudan: “The violence needs to stop”
By Gina Pollack
Six months in, new schools head Antwan Wilson is pushing his “roadmap” for a challenged district
By Laura Klivans
Animal advocates debate a No Kill Policy for Oakland Animal Services
By Molly Pierce
Two cultures–Mexican and Vietnamese– come together in one Oakland kitchen
by Justin Whiteman
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- Protesters from Occupy Oakland and the Oscar Grant Foundation came together on the fifth anniversary of Grant’s death.
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- Erika S., a Peer Restorative Justice Youth Leader, hones her listening skills during a two-day session at Edna Brewer Middle School.
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- Melissa Taylor of Sacred Tattoo discusses her experiences as a tattooist in the Bay Area.
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- The Dalai Lama greets fans on his visit to the East Bay.
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- The first of the candidates to declare their interest in the Oakland mayoral race discuss their platforms.
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- OBCA President Wilbert McAlister at the organization’s 2014 parade. Photo by Gabriela Arvizu.
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- Rebecca Brown, Principal Nima Tahai, and Hedy Chang discuss a new report about attendance in Oakland Schools. Photo by Ryan Phillips.
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- 1989 newspaper clippings are exhibited at Cypress Memorial Park, as part of the 25th Anniversary of the Loma Prieta Earthquake.
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- A shrine in on an Oakland corner changed an entire a black once troubled by graffiti and illegal dumping.
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- The 2014 rendition of Longfellow neighbours’ improvised lemonade stand “parklet” on Oakland’s MLK Way.
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- University student James Tayali gives his opinion on the Ebola outbreak.
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- New bikes for sale at Bay Area Bikes after burglars made off with dozens of high-end bikes.
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- Parker, Tuman and Quan pose with other Oakland mayoral candidates, including fellow frontrunners Rebecca Kaplan and Dan Siegel plus a few write-in hopefuls, for a photo taken by blogger and event moderator Zennie Abraham, moments before the Giants win the World Series. Photo by Sasha Lekach.
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- Oakland North examines the fundraising results — and the spending — of the Oakland mayoral candidates.
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- Libby Schaaf, declaring victory and thanking supporters at a news conference Wednesday. Photo by Jacqui Ipp.
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- A screenshot of the Alameda County Registrar of Voter’s map of the recent mayoral election in Oakland.
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- At the McDonald’s on Telegraph Avenue, protesters broke a glass window. Photo by Brett Murphy.
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- Though the crowd was of mixed race, “Black lives matter” was the most common rallying cry.
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- A map showing the digital divide in Internet and computer access for Oakland public school students.
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- Abria Shankle, 21, was dating Isaiah Sudan at the time of his death. The couple was planning to move out of Oakland in the coming months. Photo by Gina Pollack.
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- Kindergarteners Kimani and Quinn tell Oakland’s superintendent Antwan Wilson about their studies. Wilson visited their classroom at Hillcrest Elementary School.
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- A rescued pit bull is fed by a shelter volunteer in Oakland. Photo by Romin Lee Johnson.
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- Co-owners Dieu Thi Ngo and Tony Torres pose before Saigon Deli (& Taco Valparaiso), a Vietnamese and Mexican restaurant they opened more than three years ago.
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Oakland North
Oakland North is an online news service produced by students at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism and covering Oakland, California. Our goals are to improve local coverage, innovate with digital media, and listen to you–about the issues that concern you and the reporting you’d like to see in your community. Please send news tips to: oaklandnorthstaff@gmail.com.
[…] is out of session. Regular Oakland coverage will return in late January. Please enjoy some of our top stories of 2014 here in our Year in Review. You can also learn more about our school and coverage here, and learn how members of the public […]