• South County

    McKinley Elementary School Receives “Platinum Sneaker” Award

    by  • April 6, 2013 • Alameda County, Bay Area, Children, Education, Foundations, Geneology, News Articles, South County, Special Interests Articles

    From left to right: San Leandro City Councilmember, Pauline Cutter; TransForm Safe Routes to School Coordinator, Jessica Cruz; McKinley Elementary’s Golden Sneaker Parent Champion, Darlene Lee; Principal of McKinley Elementary, Cher Situm; San Leandro Vice Mayor, Michael Gregory.

    Eight San Leandro schools participated in the Alameda County Golden Sneaker Contest during the month of March for healthy and greener transportation to and from school. The contest challenged students and teachers to walk, bike, carpool, or take transit to schools. Families who could not walk or bike to school still joined in the...

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    Velma Ewing, 88, Widow of Tuskegee Airman

    by  • March 22, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Obituaries, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles, Vallejo News

    Velma Ewing on Mother’s Day last year..

    By Janice Ewing and Lateefa Ali The Tuskegee Airmen earned their place in history as they bravely defied convention and fought for what they loved.  We remember these men. But we seem to forget their wives who have also earned their place in history, defying convention and fighting for what, and who they loved....

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    Africans In America

    by  • March 22, 2013 • Africans in America, Bay Area, Berkeley, Featured, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles, Vallejo News

    AIA 2

    Part 3 Propitiation honoring Ancestors According to the Odu Osa Meji, in the Yoruba belief system, Odu (female oracle) established all the sacred groves (places) and maintained secrets of the sacred shrines of the Orisas (belief of the Yoruba, divine system) after descent. Women were not excluded from performing rituals at any sacred grove....

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    “Daddy Date” Offers Fun for Young Fathers and Their Children

    by  • March 22, 2013 • Article Archives, Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Andre Fikes and daughter Autumn (left) and Dante Toomer and daughter Kennedy .

    By Kia Croom, Contributing Writer Local extent organizer Dante Toomer recently held “Daddy Day,” an afternoon of activities for fathers to share with their children. The event, held on the afternoon of March 16 at Marina Park, took place in conjunction with a carnival sponsored by the City of Emeryville. Fathers and their children...

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    Tax Preparer Robin Swarn: “Whatever Is Going On, We Can Fix It”

    by  • March 22, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Robin Swarn

    By David Scott You don’t have to be rich or a movie star to find good help to do your taxes, according to Robin Swarn, a tax preparer with Jackson Hewitt. “We have news for everyday people seeking a tax refund or needing help with tax issues,” she said.  ‘’Whatever is going on, we...

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    Oakland’s James Meeks in NFL Draft

    by  • March 22, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Education, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    James Meeks, Jr. (center), with his parents James Meeks, Sr. (left) and Nina Meeks (right) at his graduation from Central Washington University.

    By Ashley Chambers Oakland native James Meeks  Jr. will get the chance to live out his dream, taking the opportunity of a lifetime in the NFL Draft next month. Towering at 6’5”, he will compete in the regional combine on March 23 with the Seattle Seahawks in Washington. A graduate of Central Washington University...

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    Breast Cancer and African Americans Bay Area Conference

    by  • March 22, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Health, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    The Stanford Cancer Institute’s Community Partnership Program is hosting the second annual conference, Breast Cancer and African Americans, on Saturday, May 4, 8 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. at the South San Francisco Conference Center, 255 South Airport Boulevard, S. San Francisco. The purpose of this event is provide culturally tailored breast health and cancer...

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    Sickle Cell Advisory Council Offers Scholarships

    by  • March 22, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Education, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    The Sickle Cell Community Advisory Council of Northern California  is offering the Samuel Wallace Scholarship Award to high school seniors and college students living with the Sickle Cell disease. The advisory council was started in 1999 as a collaboration between patients of the former Alta Bates Sickle Cell program, administrators at Children’s Hospital of...

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    Youth UpRising Hosts Arts Open House, March 29

    by  • March 22, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, General Articles, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Youth Uprising at 8711 MacArthur Blvd. in East Oakland.

    In the wake of a year of unprecedented violence, which ultimately led to the murder of four Youth UpRising youth members, the agency is showcasing young artists who will display their artwork focused on community violence. The open house will be held Friday, March 29 from 3 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at Youth Uprising...

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    Small Business Administration to Expand Access to Loans

    by  • March 22, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, News Articles, Oakland News Articles, Post News Feature Story, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Karen Mills

    Borrowers and lenders of loans backed by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) will have greater access to capital and less paperwork as a result of a proposed regulation aimed at streamlining the SBA application process. “Streamlining and simplifying has been a key focus of our agency over the last few years. The changes...

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    Painter Keli J. Walker Depicts “The Albino,” A Child with a Hard Life

    by  • March 22, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Painter Keli J. Walker stands next to her painting “The Albino” on display at Joyce Gordon Gallery in downtown Oakland through Apr. 28. Photo by Babatunde Harrison.

    By Keli Walker I paint faces that hold stories. I paint them to understand their histories, emotions, and dreams. My process is dialectic; conversing with the face through every brush stroke. The more time I spend painting faces, the more the face tells me about who they are and how to render their appearance....

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    KDYA/KDIA Praise in the Pavilion

    by  • March 22, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, News Articles, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Lady Kelly Harris (middle) and the Motions That Minister praise dancers performing at Praise in the Pavilion. Photo by Timothy-the photographer-Powell.

    By Ashley Chambers Gospel radio stations KDIA 1640 AM, “The Light at the Top of the Dial,” and KDYA 1190 AM, “The Light,” put on their first Praise in the Pavilion gospel concert on March 16 at Richmond’s Craneway Pavilion. Featuring praise dancers, gospel recording artists, children’s activities and vendors, the event appealed to...

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    Babatunde Harrison, Journalist Griot in the Diaspora

    by  • March 15, 2013 • Africans in America, Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County

    The Ancestress, Alice Ewurafua Baoye Arthur, at home with her great grandchildren in Hayward: Anthony Adeyinka DaSilva, JR., (far Left), Miles DaSilva, next to the Ancestress, Christiana Folarinde DaSilva and Malik DaSilva. Photo by Kenneth Walker.

    Part II By Babatunde Harrison In the ancient African empires of West Africa, the Griot was the custodian of the histories and genealogies of the people of West Africa. Through epic songs and poetry, the Griot told and preserved the traditions and memories of ancient Mali, Songhai and Ghana.. Since the arrival of the...

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    Africans In America

    by  • March 15, 2013 • Africans in America, Bay Area, Berkeley, Featured, News Group Publisher, Oakland News Articles, Rev. Hunter, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    A Veneration Ceremony often has dancing, singing ,drumming, and spiritual chants to honor the ancestors. A  Yoruba Mythology saying:” As a spirit in heaven before taking a body, we each are given assignments tasks from our ancestors to achieve then we are sent to earth through selected parents.  which leads to the chant - It is the errand of my ancestors that I run, or it is the path of my ancestors that I walk. Photos by Kayode Gbadebo and graphic design by Adam L. Turner

    Part II By Kayode Gbadebo According to historian John Ridpath, “Observers of traditional African culture, so inevitably influenced by Western style of thought and intellectual traditions, failed to understand and interpret the culture.” This may be because, according to writer John Bascom. “The Yoruba way of life is traditional, dating back well before the...

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    Kaiser Security Officers Rally

    by  • March 15, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Nancy Skinner

    Security officers who work at Kaiser rallied this week in Oakland and Los Angeles calling on the state’s largest health care provider to provide more sick days and family medical benefits. The workers are members of SEIU USWW, which represents more than 1,800 contracted security officers at Kaiser facilities throughout California. The officers are...

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    Nubian Academy for Girls Set to Open

    by  • March 15, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Faith, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Nubian Academy students participate in a science lab. Left to right are: Cierra Suarez, Empress Shalom, Meisha Butcher. The girl in back is Imari Fernandez.

    The Nubian Academy for Girls, which is opening on April 6, will host a Saturday school every weekend until the summer. The Saturday school will serve up to 50 girls from sixth through eleventh grades and will be hosted by several community centers, churches, public schools and colleges. Activities will include homework help, cultural...

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    Wells Fargo to Lend $55 Billion to Women-Owned Businesses

    by  • March 15, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Lisa Stevens

    Wells Fargo Bank has announced it will lend a total of $55 billion to women-owned businesses by the year 2020. The announcement was made recently by Lisa Stevens, Wells Fargo lead executive for Small Business and West Coast Regional Banking president, at the Hispanas Organized for Political Equality (HOPE) 22nd Annual Latina History Day...

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    Baby Born With HIV Cured, Say Scientists

    by  • March 15, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Health, HIV, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    This image shows Dr. Deborah Persaud of Johns Hopkins’ Children’s Center in Baltimore. A baby born with HIV appears to have been cured, scientists announced Sunday, Mar. 3. AP Photo/Johns Hopkins Medicine.

    By Lauran Neergaard, Associated Press A baby born with the virus that causes AIDS appears to have been cured, scientists announced Sunday, describing the case of a child from Mississippi who is now 2 1/2 and has been off medication for about a year with no signs of infection. There is no guarantee the...

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    Terralyn Mosby, Advocate for HIV/AIDS Awareness

    by  • March 15, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Health, HIV, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Terralyn and her older brother Quincey Mosby, who often uses his poetry to express himself.

    By Jesse Brooks National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day is a time to share knowledge and shed light on the often-overlooked impact of the disease on women and families in our communities. The official commemoration was March 10, but events happen all month. Often buried within the data on the general AIDS population...

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    “One Man’s Battle: An African American Journey”

    by  • March 15, 2013 • Africans in America, Bay Area, Berkeley, Featured, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County

    The Africana and African American Studies and Friends of the Library group at Contra Costa College presented a book signing this week with Rufus Battle, author of “One Man’s Battle: An African American Journey.” The book, a tale of struggle and redemption, tells his story of living in a “sharecropper’s shack near a Louisiana...

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    State of Emergency” Conference on Under-Performing Children

    by  • March 15, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County

    Contra Costa College and Community Engagement Initiatives (CEI) are presenting a “State of Emergency” conference Saturday, April 6 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. to “discuss challenges and issues facing under-performing children, their families and communities.” The conference, which will be held at Contra Costa College at 2600 Mission Bell Drive in San Pablo,...

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    Africans In America

    by  • March 8, 2013 • Africans in America, Bay Area, Berkeley, Featured, Marin County News, News Articles, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Elebiti (in green) and Egungun masquerader is being led from the temple beginning the procession.  The man in Blue is the head of Egungun worshippers in the Ile-Ife city of Nigerian.

    Egungun Festival of Nigeria’s Yoruba Ancestors The Egungun is a secret society among the Yoruba people of Ibadan, Oyo, and Modakeke, Gbongan Osun State, Nigeria. The major Egungun festival takes place in June, when members of the society come to the market place and perform masked dances. The masks represent ancestral spirits. It is...

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    True Vine Ministries’ “Men of Iron” Program Helps Youth

    by  • March 8, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County

    Back row, from left to right: Bryce Manuel, Darius Falcon, Armani Wright, Jovonni Temple, Dennis McCinton; Front row, left to right:  Kamal Frazier, Asante Dunn, Jacari Ward, Balall Nasher, Christopher Grigsby, Ajani Patillo.

    By Ashley Chambers Men of Iron (MOI) is an organization that seeks to provide  a positive influence for young boys in Oakland, Seeing the lives of young Black men taken away by countless homicides and incarceration, six deputy sheriffs started the program in 2007 in response to the lack of positive male role models...

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    Hugo Chavez Aided Hurricane Katrina Victims

    by  • March 8, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    hugo Chavez

    By Post Staff As millions of Venezuelans mourn the death of 58-year-old President Hugo Chavez, a number of local residents remember the controversial leader’s efforts on behalf of the poor in his country and the U.S. Under Chavez, the CITGO – Venezuela Heating Oil Program has provided low-cost heating oil to 1.7 million people...

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    Math Streaming at St. Andrew School Helps Bridge the Gap

    by  • March 8, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County

    Rev. Robert Lacy, Jr. of St. Andrew Private School in Oakland.

    By Ashley Chambers Students across the nation can boost their math and science scores from the comfort of their computer screens by tuning in to live stream sessions conducted by Rev. Robert Lacy Jr. of St. Andrew Private School in Oakland. As a teacher of math and science for the past 15 years, Lacy...

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    Gigi Crowder Wins Mental Health Association Award

    by  • March 8, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, South County

    Gigi Crowder

    Gigi Crowder has received the Mental Health Association of Alameda County’s Distinguished Achievement Award for her work as ethnic services manager in the county’s Behavioral Health program. Crowder received the award for her “commitment to cultural diversity in mental health” and  “the outstanding work she does to honor the consumer and family voice regarding...

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    Celebrate Harriet Tubman at Peralta Colleges

    by  • March 8, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, News Articles, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Harriet Tubman

      History, says Wanda Ravernell of Omnira Institute, is not a subject you study. It is something you live with. Day in and day out, we live with the choices made in the past, choices that continue to affect us. “It is important to know that history,” said Ravernell,  “because it frames the choices...

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    Senior Travel Troupe Meeting

    by  • March 8, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, News Articles, South County

    The Senior Travel Troupe will discuss upcoming excursions for adults 50+ Monday, April 1, 10 a.m. to noon at the Senior Community Center, 13909 East 14th St. in San Leandro. Learn the affordable, exciting and fun way to travel. Preregistration is required to attend this free meeting. Priority registration for all trips  will be...

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    Teens Walk and Ride to Win a Bicycle at Bancroft Middle School

    by  • March 8, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, News Articles, South County

    Pictured left to right:  SLUSD Boardmember Diana Prola, Safe Routes to School Coordinator Lisa Jackson, Bancroft Middle School Principal Jonathan Ferrer, Isaac Silva, Vice Principal Fabiola Fernandez, Vice Mayor Michael Gregory.

    Bancroft Middle School sixth grader Isaac Silva won a brand new 24-inch mountain bike this week as part San Leandro’s Safe Routes to School Program. The bicycle was presented Monday by Vice-Mayor Michael Gregory, along with San Leandro School Board Trustee Diana Prola and Safe Moves Coordinator Lisa Jackson. Bancroft Middle School students took...

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    Dr. E.N. Crawford Celebrates 40 Years of Preaching the Gospel

    by  • March 1, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, Secretaries and Clerks, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Dr. E.N. Crawford

    Raised in Oakland, Dr. E.N. Crawford accepted Christ at the age of 13. He acknowledged his call to the Gospel ministry in 1973, making him the youngest  preacher in the California State Baptist Convention. Crawford took on an active role as part of the ministerial staff at the Union Baptist Church, where he became...

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    Cramer’s “I Design” HIV Education

    by  • March 1, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, News Articles, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Mondo Guerra

    By Jesse Brooks Acclaimed photographer and HIV advocate Duane Cramer is partnering with Project Runway star Mondo Guerra on the national HIV education campaign “I Design,” which encourages people with HIV to become personally involved in their treatment. “I Design” kicked off the second year of its initiative on National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day,...

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    Voting Rights Needed Now More Than Ever

    by  • March 1, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, News Articles, Oakland News Articles, Politics and Government, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Congressman John Lewis discussed the need to resurrect the civil rights activism of the 60’s and 70’s when he visited with Congresswoman Barbara Lee, Gay Plair Cobb and Paul Cobb on a recent trip to Oakland. Gay Cobb,a former NAACP student leader at Queen’s College, who corresponded with Malcolm X, was also an original freedom rider and attended the March on Washington where she heard Lewis speak.  Paul Cobb was at Howard University when he helped organize a bus boycott with Marion Barry and worked with John Lewis, Jesse Jackson and Julian Bond when he directed the Southern Elections Fund in Atlanta.  Photo by Stephen V. Brooks.

    By Jesse Jackson The Supreme Court this week heard a challenge to the Voting Rights Act in the case of Shelby v. Holder. On the same day, across the street in the congressional rotunda, a statue honoring Rosa Parks was unveiled. And one week later, the nation will celebrate the 48th anniversary of Bloody...

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    Jazz Talent Competition for Teens and Adults

    by  • March 1, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Jazz Search West 2013, a Bay Area’s Jazz talent search for adults and teens 15 and up, is holding four competitions at Jazz venues in San Francisco and Oakland during the month of March. Contestants will perform at the venue of their choice in front of a panel of judges chosen from Bay Area...

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    500 Attend African American Organizations Making Connections

    by  • March 1, 2013 • Africans in America, Bay Area, Berkeley, General Articles, Marin County News, News Articles, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    From  left to right: Congresswoman Barbara Lee, founding Black Panther Party Chairman Bobby Seale, and Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson at the 2nd African American Organizations Making Connections at Laney College on Feb. 23. Photo credit: Reginald James.

    In celebration of Black History Month, Supervisor Keith Carson and community leaders held the African American Organizations Making Connections 2013 conference, “Strategies and Outcomes for Our Black Community,” Feb. 23 at Laney College in Oakland.  More than 500 people attended. “The Black community faces many challenges, including high unemployment, Black-on-Black violence and poor health...

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    Problem Gambling Summit Tackles Cultural Barriers

    by  • March 1, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Terri Sue Canale

    Problem gambling crosses the lines of culture, race and economic status—impacting more than a million people in California. The 2013 Problem Gambling Training Summit, hosted by the California Office of Problem Gambling (OPG) on March 4-5 in San Diego, will focus on prevention and treatment approaches tailored for the state’s diverse populations. “There is...

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    Deborah Ale-Flint Leads Port of Oakland

    by  • March 1, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, News Articles, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Deborah Ale-Flint

    By Tanya Dennis Acting Executive Director Deborah Ale-Flint has become the first African-American woman to serve at the helm of the Port of Oakland, the fifth busiest container port in the country. She had previously worked since 2010 as aviation director at the Oakland International Airport, another first for an African-American woman. A resident...

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    Celebrate Women’s History Month with City Attorney Jayne Williams

    by  • March 1, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, News Articles, South County

    San Leandro City Attorney Jayne Williams

    The San Leandro Public Library is hosting a talk with San Leandro City Attorney Jayne Williams in celebration of Women’s History Month. Williams was recently selected by the legal periodical The Recorder for its 2012 “Women Leaders in Law” list. She heads the law firm Meyers Nave’s Crisis Management Practice. Her prominence in the...

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    Students “Reaching Back, Moving Forward”

    by  • March 1, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, News Articles, Oakland News Articles, South County

    Black History in SoCo

    The Black Student Union (BSU) at San Leandro High School hosted a Black History Month program on Monday, Feb. 25 with the theme “Reaching Back, Moving Forward”. The event was  supported by parents LuTillian Hudson and Angelia Foxall, and donors   included Starbucks, Piccadilly Restaurants, D.R. Roberts Event Management, Best Burgers, Rock & Roll Japanese...

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    Oakland Housing Assistance for Tenants and Homeowners

    by  • February 23, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    Tanya Dennis is fighting to save her home.

    By Tanya Dennis The Oakland Housing Assistance Office, which will help homeowners and tenants in fear of losing their homes, held a grand opening at its new office at 250 Frank Ogawa Plaza on the 5th floor in Oakland. Supported by Oakland officials, grass root organizations and legal assistance groups, the office will provide...

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    Writer-Activist in New Fight to Save Home

    by  • February 23, 2013 • Bay Area, Berkeley, Marin County News, Oakland News Articles, Richmond News, Sacred Sounds, San Francisco, South County, Special Interests Articles

    By Tanya Dennis Two years ago in 2011, I broke the locks on my foreclosed house in Berkeley and repossessed my home. By the time the sheriff was due to arrive a month later to evict me again, I had begun working with the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE), and with the...

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