Community

Volunteers rolled up their sleeves to clear trash, weed, plant, and restore creek beds at Oakland’s 20th Annual Earth Day event on Saturday. They joined more than a billion people worldwide in what environmentalists call the largest civic observance in the world.

Two U.S. Congresswomen stood shoulder-to-shoulder with sexual assault survivors on the U.C. Berkeley campus on Tuesday to call for federal legislation that would toughen laws on sexual harassment and violence on college campuses.

Banjoko once lived in Oakland and was a part of the ‘90s Bay Area Hip Hop music scene. Currently, he is teaching chess and life strategies to students at Encinal High School in Alameda through a partnership with his friend John Fuentes, who oversees the after school high school program for Bay Area Community Resources (BACR). From now to the end of this school year, Fuentes’ goal is to have Banjoko teach chess at several Oakland high schools as well.

Peer mediators serve as “Mr. Kyle” McClerkins’ eyes and ears around school. They listen to fellow students, help them take responsibility for their actions and decide on appropriate consequences. McClerkins’ peer mediator program is part of a larger framework called the Restorative Justice Whole School Model, implemented in Oakland since 2005, and existing in various forms around the country, from Chicago to New Orleans.

In a tightly-moderated discussion Thursday evening at Temple Sinai in Oakland, mayoral candidates took questions from journalists, querying one another and making closing statements. Many aimed shots at Mayor Jean Quan, but most refrained from taking jabs at one another.

When Oakland’s century-old wholesale produce market opens around 1:00 a.m. near Jack London Square, a world of family fruit and vegetable sellers comes alive to supply cafes and taco trucks with ingredients for the day’s menu, long before diners are awake.

Runners of all ages and abilities from 31 states and three countries gathered at Snow Park near Lake Merritt Sunday to compete in a marathon, half marathon, four-person team relay race, 5K run, and kids’ fun run.

An Iraq war veteran who was struck in the head by a police bean bag during an Occupy Oakland protest in 2011 received a settlement of $4.5 million Friday from the city.

More than 90 percent of needle-drug users in Oakland have been exposed to Hepatitis C, according to literature distributed by Oasis Clinic, but the disease is not exclusive to one group.