In her first appearance as Oakland’s mayor-elect, Libby Schaaf held a press conference wearing a striking red dress, a necklace of the Oakland tree, a bamboo earrings and riding — unforgettably — in a fire-snorting snail-shaped chariot. All of these were made in Oakland, and all of them had a story.
The Jules Verne-ish, Dr. Doolittle-ish, 12’6 foot high, 18 foot long, 3000 pound, glow-in-the-dark, fire-blowing, motorized, iron snail, was built atop the skeleton of a 1966 VW Bug. But it came from a dream — literally.
Birdland Jazzista Social Club, a long-time Berkeley staple, moves into North Oakland. Its founder sees the opportunity to turn a stretch of Martin Luther King Jr. Way into a music and art district.
Mike Wang, an employee at California Canoe and Kayak, explains how he developed an affinity for water and how he continues to enjoy water sports with his work, including paddling into the office.
Oakland is feeling the effects of protests that swept the city after Monday night’s news from Ferguson. Vandalised businesses are boarded up, some closed. The police department announced that 43 were arrested during Monday’s protests.
A Sunday celebration at the Lakeside Garden Center celebrated the indigenous roots of restorative justice.
In an elated victory declaration that culminated with her departure inside a rolling, flame-snorting metal snail, the still-unofficial mayor-elect Libby Schaaf was all smiles at a Lake Merritt celebration this afternoon.
With fifteen mayoral candidates and more than a handful of measures on this year’s ballot, Oakland voters make their voices heard.
“This is Jose,” said Captain Steven Tull of Oakland’s Police Department (OPD) District 4. “He doesn’t think about himself — he thinks about others.” Jose Ortiz, a longtime community organizer in the Fruitvale district, smiled humbly as he was honored in many testimonies delivered by attendees at his appreciation event last Saturday evening inside the gym of the Manzanita Recreation Center. Ortiz’s business partner Big Lou Feliciano and members of his Street Inspiration Low Rider Car Club were joined by…
A photography and storytelling project shares the lives, now turned around, of 20 formerly incarcerated residents of Alameda County.
Two women rolled out a grass carpet on MLK, and then served free lemonade one sunny September morning. A year later this space has become a symbol of change and community.
Mayoral candidate Joe Tuman joined local business owners and residents to voice support for reducing parking meter costs and parking fines in Oakland.
Hiero Day was developed in 2012 and celebrates underground music, grassroots organizations and local businesses.