Culture
The sounds of piano notes, falsettos, and string instruments echo through the empty hallways at McClymonds High School in West Oakland. The campus that once housed over 800 students has had a steady and rapid decline in enrollment in the past few years. Currently, one-fourth of the original population attends the school—putting the enrollment at around 250 students, the majority of whom come from disadvantaged backgrounds. This school year, 2014-2015, is the first time in 12 years that a music…
In early January, Eileen Alden and Supreet Singh Manchanda sat in front of a computer, opened a Kickstarter account and wrote: “Have you ever asked yourself why there are no Sikh superheroes? Isn’t it time to see a hero in a turban for a change?” They set an ambitious goal for their project: to raise $5,000 to produce a comic book with a Sikh hero. The campaign took off and was even selected as a KickStarter staff pick. In 27…
The 2014 season for the Oakland Athletics was full of ups and downs. The A’s got off to a great start, achieving a 59-36 record, which was the best in baseball by the All-Star break. Oakland also had the best run differential in all of baseball and had six players selected to the All-Star game, more than any other club. However, A’s general manager Billy Beane made a blockbuster trade on July 31, sending Cuban slugger Yoenis Cespedes to the…
Children of all ages swarmed in and out of planetarium theaters at the Chabot Space and Science Center this weekend for the 7th annual Bay Area International Children’s Film Festival. With two full days of short films from all over the world geared for different age groups, co-founder Jim Capobianco said the festival was meant to inspire kids and their families to be creative, and to expose them to other cultures and filmmaking. “I wanted to find films that were…
Here are some of our favorite and most-read stories from 2014. We’ll be back in 2015!
Photo Essay about the life of Kiflay Habte, an Eritrean barber living in North Oakland.
“What is happening in there?” This is the question that Aubrey Vora, who has an unusual job title in a brand-new Oakland communal living setup, hopes people will ask as they walk by “The Canopy,” a tall building with barred windows four blocks from the Lake Merritt BART station. Vora has been designated one of two “House Catalysts” for The Canopy, meaning that she will help steer the house culture and select its 7-10 new residents, who will move in…
Annual program aims to keep shopping dollars in local communities and independent businesses.
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.