Culture

After the raid: First Oaksterdam, then legal battles for Harborside Health Center

He might direct the largest medical marijuana dispensary in the country, but Steve DeAngelo isn’t scared of the government’s attempts to shut it down.

“The federal government has thrown everything they had at us and we met them and we pushed back,” DeAngelo said, referring to Harborside Health Center, where he serves as founder and executive director. “It’s a drug war machine that’s bound for extinction.”

Oakland Veg week offers advice on eating meat-free

Vegetarian and vegan meals can be just as tasty as meals that contain meat and dairy—that’s what the organizers of the second annual Oakland Veg week, a celebration of vegetarian eating, want to prove. The event runs from April 22 to 28, and visitors will get to experience cooking demonstrations and film screenings about vegetarian and vegan cooking and eating.

Women veterans find peace in Alameda community group

When former Staff Sergeant Starlyn Lara joined the Army fresh out of high school in Roswell, New Mexico, it was a time of peace for those who were serving in the military. Then came September 11. Suddenly, for many who joined the armed forces in search of serving their country—what Lara calls a desire to “be a bigger person than I was”—that peacetime was no more. “I sat there for about an hour, just dazed and confused, in awe of…