Politics

New school lunch waiver seen as hurdle for hungry kids

For the first time in the Oakland Unified School District’s history, parents of all low-income children eligible to receive a free or reduced lunch must apply for the program by February 6 — or the system could lose government subsidies for the next school year.

In the face of criticism, OPD’s Ceasefire strives to move forward

Pastor Billy Dixon Jr. leaned forward in his seat. “Do you know what 26 seconds of solid gunfire sounds like?” he asked. He placed his cell phone on the table, and started a timer. “Bang bang bang … !” he cried repeatedly, as a table full of Oakland North reporters, students at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, looked on in silence. Dixon wasn’t joking. As co-chair of the Oakland Ceasefire program and a longtime resident of Oakland, he…

Oakland passes ban on “tools of violence” at protests

Councilmember Noel Gallo’s ordinance prohibiting demonstrators from carrying “tools of violence” went through final passage at Tuesday night’s Oakland City Council meeting, effectively banning items such as hammers, shields and knives from protests. The ordinance was brought up again before the council in light of the protests against George Zimmerman’s acquittal this summer in the Trayvon Martin case in Florida; specifically, after Drew Cribley, a waiter at Flora, was struck in the head with a hammer during the protests. “Hammer”…

Energy innovators shine at Solar Hackathon ’13

Amid the clacking of keys and the slurping of Red Bull energy drinks, about 30 computer hackers recently gathered in Oakland. Their goal: to make solar energy easier, cheaper and more fun to use. The hackers –- mostly web developers, engineers and solar energy entrepreneurs –- descended last weekend on the sprawling 12,000-square-foot headquarters of SfunCube LLC in Jack London Square.  The solar energy incubator and accelerator nurtures enterprising young solar ventures and shelters startups in the industry. Its mission…