Casey Smith

Looking back at the 2018 Women’s March Oakland

Over 40,000 women and their allies spent Saturday, January 20, marching in Oakland to support the cause of women. Women’s March Oakland organizers will focus on registering voters throughout the year leading up to midterm elections in November as well as helping more women run for public office.  Around the rest of the country, protests drew more than a million people. 

Birthing inequities: Combatting racial disparities in the health of newborns

This article is part of “Birthing Inequity,” an Oakland North project on maternal and infant health disparities in Oakland. See the full multimedia report here. In 2003, while she was carrying her third child, Tanisha Fuller had to convince her hospital caretakers that something was really wrong. Six months pregnant, and unsure of what was happening to her, she’d rushed to the emergency room with pain in her back, feeling like she couldn’t breathe. At the hospital, she was told that…

Emergency preparedness courses double in attendance after fires

Dena Gunning, the coordinator for the Oakland Fire Department’s emergency preparedness program, usually plans for 20 to 25 people to attend a training. Around 50 people registered for last Wednesday’s class. “We have a full house tonight,” said Gunning as she carried in chairs and tried to squeeze them into a kindergarten classroom at the Redwood Heights Recreational Center. She placed a few chairs at the edge of the door. “This is a tight room,” she said scanning the room…

Wine country wildfires create hazardous air conditions for Bay Area residents

Wildfires raging throughout California’s wine country have ravaged more than 170,000 acres and killed 21 people so far, with hundreds missing. The blazes are sending a cloud of ash and smoke over the bay, threatening residents with polluted air. On Tuesday, air quality officials issued health and smoke advisories for all nine Bay Area counties, the second such warning issued this fall wildfire season. Residents should avoid outdoor activities, close windows and doors, and avoid using air-conditioning units, according to…