Community
Jakada Imani has had to battle his entire life. As a child, he said, he was diagnosed with dyslexia, lived in a home with parents addicted to drugs, and was homeless for a brief period of time. He fought the odds to become a well-respected community leader, and strived to find ways to protect the rights of the disenfranchised. He said that was why he wanted to be a port commissioner – to fight for the people of West Oakland.
Oakland North is continuing with our feature. Every Tuesday, Oakland Animal Services will spotlight an “Animal of the Week” that’s up for adoption at their facility. This week it’s Ruby.
Tamales, a Mexican dish of wrapped cornmeal dough filled with meat or vegetables, are a traditional favorite for holidays, especially Christmas. At La Borinquena Mexi-catessen and Specialty Shop, a family-owned business that has been open since 1944, tamales are a regular feature on the menu, but it is during the holidays that they sell out the most.
As the era of a storied Oakland Chinatown restaurant comes to an end, a new stage will be ushered in for the community’s access to healthcare. Silver Dragon, the banquet hall and restaurant at 9th and Webster Streets, is set to close in the coming months. The iconic building will become home to a brand new, state-of-the-art medical clinic run by community organization Asian Health Services.
Powell’s Sweet Shoppe on College Avenue caters to every candy lover’s dreams. With over 6,000 confections in stock that range from the chewy, taffy, peanut butter-centered Abba-Zabas to all varieties of creamy gelato, this local business carries treats from every era.
The Nightcap is a series that features a favorite Oakland drinking establishment every Friday afternoon. This week, it’s Lounge 3411, a “pub club” in the Laurel/Diamond District.
Oakland police late Thursday night confiscated the SS Don’t Let the Banks Punk You Out, a raft launched onto Lake Merritt less than a week ago in order to advertise for the West Coast port shutdown and Occupy the lake — or Aquapy it, rather.
More than a hundred parents and teachers packed the Oakland Unified School District’s boardroom for Wednesday night’s meeting, with dozens more watching from the 4th floor overflow room, following a march from Laney College earlier that afternoon. The topic of contention: school closures.
For more than 60 years, the Chinese Exclusion Act legally prevented Chinese people from legally immigrating to the United States. On Wednesday evening, Mayor Jean Quan hosted an event celebrating the contributions of immigrants to the United States on the anniversary of the day the exclusion act was repealed.