It’s been a tough year in Oakland. Local government faced financial strain, community leaders grappled with how to move forward after the racial reckoning spurred by George Floyd’s murder, and the pandemic exacerbated chronic issues across the city.
But Oakland is not the sum of its problems. It is a rich community filled with resilient people. So as 2021 came to an end, Oakland North reporters spoke with some of the passionate people and organizations who are striving to make the city a better place for all of us.
We found Oaklanders growing food for their neighbors, supporting each other through homelessness and providing support for families grieving in the wake of gun violence. They are working on rooftop farms, in city schools and everywhere in between.
Below you can find our collection of stories. Click on each story’s link to read the full piece.
‘A school library is so important’: Community effort to reopen and staff more OUSD libraries
Every day Samantha Solomon opens the Calvin Simmons Library to students at United Success Academy and Life Academy in Oakland. She greets each child by name as they file in read more…
‘This isn’t false hope, this is real hope.’ Oakland community groups meet growing food need during pandemic
Every Tuesday, Maria Rodriguez waits in a line that stretches down the block on MacArthur Boulevard in East Oakland, her 5-year-old daughter sitting patiently beside her. Rodriguez chats with other read more…
With city support lacking, mutual aid groups step up to help unhoused people
Unhoused Oakland residents have turned to mutual aid organizations, which exchange and redistribute food, provide harm-reduction supplies, create housing opportunities, and serve as a voice in the media. To meet read more…
As overdoses hit crisis point, groups respond with free tests, Narcan and other life-saving help
Jesse Foley-Tapia and Andrew Lopez As the sun set on a November day, Blue and her friend Seb prepared to go to a Mission district club in San Francisco. Blue read more…
Oakland’s high homicide rate moves residents to do something about it
Marilyn Washington Harris knew something was up when her son, Khadafy Washington, didn’t respond to her calls and texts. She was upset that he hadn’t told her where he was going. read more…
Rooftop farm partners with Oakland nonprofits to address food insecurity
Six-foot-tall sunflowers, planted in between rows of peas and fenugreek, turn their heavy heads towards the late-morning sun. Three farmers methodically till the soil for garlic and vital cover crops read more…
Five years after Ghost Ship: How local organizations are fighting artist displacement
In the 19th and 20th centuries, Oakland’s industrial zone bustled with canneries, metal works and warehouses. As the global economy changed, industries moved out and artists moved in. The low-rent read more…