Economy
On Sunday, Occupy Oakland’s feminist and queer bloc hosted an “Occupy Patriarchy” event that drew at least 200 people over the course of the day at the lot at 19th Street and Telegraph Avenue.
The Rent-a-Relic sign—a green-and-purple spiked dinosaur on wheels that sits smiling on top of the office building—is what first catches the eye when driving past the rental auto lot Telegraph Avenue. It was designed by Oakland muralist Alan Leon, who comes back to the car rental shop to touch it up every year.
Relations between Occupy Oakland and Oakland officials have had a tumultuous two weeks that included a number of raids and arrests, but culminated Thursday in an unprecedented meeting between city officials and protesters. The last two weeks got off to a sour start after a total of 40 people were arrested and a number of others cited and released after a string of incidents that have left protesters feeling that they are targets for harassment. These included campers being dislodged from…
City of Oakland officials and Occupy Oakland protesters laid the groundwork for building trust at a meeting at City Hall on Thursday afternoon, following weeks of contentious incidents in West Oakland and on Frank Ogawa Plaza that have led to 40 arrests.
The bell rings— a prolonged buzzing signaling the end of class. Attention students: lunch is being served in the cafeteria, announces a female voice over the intercom. Lunch is being served in the cafeteria. There’s chicken wings and fries, pizza and fries, and salad bar. Within moments, hordes of students come rushing into the Oakland Tech cafeteria, sidling up in line in front of the kitchen and dropping their backpacks and jackets off at one of the circular red tables….
Pioneer Bicycles is littered with bikes and bike parts. Most of them aren’t for sale. Near the front door of the shop, which is located on Rio Vista Avenue right off of Piedmont Avenue, there are dozens of bikes lined up in cluttered rows near the front door. Only two are new; the rest have been repaired and are waiting to be picked up by their owners. In the middle of the shop, there are boxes of new, unopened bikes…
With a price tag of at least $100,000 and the lead investigator having previous ties to Oakland, some critics are wondering whether the city’s newly-formed independent investigation team will be effective in figuring out just what happened between police and Occupy Oakland protesters.
The New Parkway Speakeasy Theater has a new home, on 24th Street and Telegraph Avenue.
As the news events of 2011 unfolded, Oakland North photographers were there to capture the year’s most striking images. Click through the slideshow above to see the photography.