Elise Craig

Reimagining the Oakland Museum of California

The Oakland Museum of California reopened May 1 after a two-year, $58 million renovation—the first major renovation since it was founded in 1969. The art and history galleries have both been remodeled and reinstalled with new artifacts, arrangements, themes and interactive exhibits.

4.13.2010

Good morning, Oakland. In Oakland, four men have been shot to death in less than 48 hours, in four unrelated incidents. So far this year, 27 people have been killed in Oakland. Last year at this time, 30 had been killed. The American Civil Liberties Union and the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights filed a brief challenging the gang injunction that City Attorney John Russo requested in February. A hearing on the issue will take place on April 22. More…

4.12.2010

And, another rainy day in Oakland… In two separate incidents, two Oakland men were shot and killed Sunday, while a third remains hospitalized. Careful, commuters. The CHP put out a high wind advisory for Bay Area bridges. The Chron is reporting that El Nino is sticking around, even in this, the fourth week of Spring. The Bay Area News Group  profiles a former OPD deputy who spent three years of his childhood in POW camps in the Philippines. And President…

4.11.2010

Hello, Oakland. In the East Bay, the bad economy is ushering in a new wave of police recruits–college educated and career-shifting folks who don’t have the backing of specific agencies. East Bay cities are encouraging their citizens to respond to the census because of fears that a lower head count would mean the area could lose “economic and political clout. Good luck staying out of the rain.

4.10.2010

Morning, North Oakland. A former East Bay priest is at the center of the Vatican clergy abuse scandal. The AP has the text of a 1985 letter from Pope Benedict. Mayor Ron Dellums announced that a new state grant go towards helping two high schools cut down on gang violence and increase graduation rates. The idea of the grant is to help students at Freemont and Castlemont high schools become teachers and social workers. The U.S. Commerce department is doling…

4.9.2010

Happy Friday, Oakland. San Jose is hoping that a pending $20 million land deal could help the city lure the Oakland A’s to the South Bay. Now, the city is just two parcels short of putting together a fourteen acre site between Diridon Station and the HP Pavilion. But it’s not a done deal. The owner of the A’s, Lew Wolff, has expressed interest in moving the team, but the move would first have to be cleared by Major League…

4.7.2010

The former Oakland homicide detective who led the investigation into the Chauncey Bailey case filed suit against the city Wednesday, the Trib reports. Sgt. Derwin Longmire is claiming that the higher-ups at the police department slandered him. “I want to restore my good name,” Longmire said. Eighth graders at West Oakland’s St. Martin de Porres Catholic School are taking part in a three-year study at St. Mary’s college–“a study of students who dream of being the first in their families…

Bargain hunters descend on Oakland Museum’s White Elephant sale

By 9 a.m. on Saturday, dozens of people were in line outside a warehouse in East Oakland, waiting for the people inside to lift the heavy metal door to the building. They had been there—in some cases for hours—waiting for the mother of all rummage sales: the Oakland Museum Women’s Board’s 51st White Elephant Sale.

In Sacramento, protesters lobby for lawmakers’ attention

As California lawmakers debated budget fixes on the Senate floor, hundreds of students, teachers and parents from California school systems—K-12 through the University of California—gathered on the Capitol’s north steps to protest cuts to public education.

California’s education budget crisis: The story so far

In California, a faltering economy, a burst housing bubble and dwindling tax revenues are adding to a growing budget deficit that is projected to reach $18.9 billion in the 2010-2011 fiscal year. To combat the growing deficit, lawmakers have enacted sharp cuts across the state budget, including public education at all levels, from K-12 to the University of California. School systems trying to fill budget gaps have employed stimulus money, furloughed employees, deferred hiring, cut enrollment and increased fees. Over…

February 1, 2010

Hello, Oakland! Koreatown may change its name. Under “pressure from non-Koreans”, the merchants association will meet to discuss “more inclusive” definitions for the area between Uptown and Temescal. Eyewitnesses to the killing of Oscar Grant may back up statements made by ex-BART police Officer Johannes Mehserle. A friend of Grant’s corroborated the former officer’s claim that he warned Grant he was going to Taze him just before he shot him. The Warriors lose to Oklahoma City, 112-104. Hey, Raider Nation. The…

January 31, 2010

Teenagers, their families and adult students seeking a key to higher education attended the Black College Expo in Oakland Saturday. “While African-Americans and Latinos graduate high school at just over a 50 percent rate, the biggest challenge to college cited by black, Latino and Asian-American students gathered at the expo was paying for college,” reports the Bay Area News Group. On Thursday, Montrera Middle School will mark the 50th anniversary of its wood shop program, the oldest in California. The…

January 30, 2010

Happy Saturday, Oakland! Construction on the new Tidewater Aquatic Center is making it tough for cyclists to access the Bay Trail. The trail has been closed since last summer, and will likely not be open again until the fall. A defunct Oakland cotton mill and three other Bay Area structures have just received historic status. The Warriors fell to the Charlotte Bobcats last night,

January 29, 2010

Good Morning, North Oakland! The assault trial of four members of the now-defunct Your Black Muslim Bakery begins today in Oakland. They are charged with badly beating a 42-year-old man on Dec. 31, 2008. Oakland police have identified the seventeen-year old killed in last night’s drive-by shooting on the 3500 block of Allendale Avenue. Two other men were also shot, and one remains in critical condition. The City of Oakland is suing a local company, claiming that the company was…