Rebecca Kaplan Calls for Action to Stop Coronavirus Spread in Vulnerable and Homeless Communities

To help provide emergency relief to the Oakland community, Council President Rebecca Kaplan has called a special City Council meeting Friday, March 27, via Teleconference to...

City Will Maintain Essential Government Functions

Interim City Administrator Steven Falk today announced temporary changes to city government functions this week in accordance with the Alameda County Health Officer’s order for all...

Oakland Coronavirus Resources for Unhoused, Disabled, Elderly, and Poor Residents

 As the COVID-19 pandemic spreads to the Bay Area,  resources are being made available to provide help to the most vulnerable populations, which include the unhoused,...

Oakland City Council Authorizes Handwashing Stations, Seeks to Halt Evictions as Pandemic Spreads

Responding to community concerns, the Oakland City Council took a series of emergency actions, including the purchase of handwashing stations and proposing a moratorium on renters’...

New California Bill Aims to Eliminate Racial And Other Biases in Hiring

Imagine applying for a job online. But instead of a hiring manager or some pre-screening software reviewing your application and pushing it along — or eliminating...

Fired Police Chief Kirkpatrick Was “Backsliding” on OPD Reforms, Say Poice Accountability Leaders

The seemingly sudden firing of Oakland Police Dept. Chief Anne Kirkpatrick on Feb. 20, 2020, without a publicly stated reason initially left some Oaklanders wondering how...

Kaplan Urges Yes Vote on Measure R & Measure C

Please Vote for Measure R. The City of Oakland, like many local governments, has public notices that are required to be published in a newspaper, to...

Former California Assemblymember Sandré R. Swanson Endorses Mike Bloomberg

Kaplan Proposes Law to Protect Police Commissioners From Official ‘Intimidation and Harassment’

Reacting to reports that the City Administration secretly spent $50,000 to hire an outside contractor to investigate a member of the Oakland Police Commission, City President...

Tangie Leverett Becomes First Black President of Contra Costa Realtors Association

The Contra Costa Association of Realtors held its annual inaugural celebration at the Blackhawk Auto Museum in Danville on Jan. 11, 2020. Tangie Leverett was sworn...

After Forcible, Armed Eviction by Local Law Enforcement, Moms 4 Housing Win a Victory

Homeless moms who were forcibly evicted from a vacant Oakland house where they lived for two months without permission from the home’s corporate owner, announced on...

Sixth Annual MLK March Led by Oakland Youth

  Thousands of people gathered at Frank Ogawa Plaza on Jan. 20 to participate in Oakland’s  6th annual March and Rally to Reclaim Martin Luther King...

Supervisor Wilma Chan: County Adopts Tobacco Retail License Ordinance

Supervisor Wilma Chan announced the adoption of an ordinance that bans certain tobacco products that encourage youth consumption in the County’s unincorporated areas and requires all...

Lynette McElhaney to Serve as New President of Black Elected Officials of the East Bay

Black Elected Officials (BEO) of the East Bay announced the election of Lynette Gibson McElhaney as the new President of the Board of Directors. The Oakland...

Assemblymember Wicks’ Bill to Allow Faith Communities to Help Alleviate the Housing Crisis

Assemblymember Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland) introduced a bill last week that would allow communities of faith to help alleviate the housing crisis. The bill, AB 1851, would...

Howard Terminal Ballpark Discussions Continue

The City Council passed a resolution this week to work collaboratively with the Port of Oakland to authorize a new A’s stadium at Howard Terminal on...

Oakland Moves to Prohibit Landlords from Considering Criminal Histories in Rental Housing

Members of the City Council’s Community and Economic Development (CED) Committee this week unanimously adopted a proposed Fair Chance Housing Ordinance that would ban landlords from ...

California Firms Boost Contracting With Diverse Businesses, Cable Companies Lag

Utility, telecommunications and water companies regulated by the California Public Utilities Commission continue to report overall growth in contracting with suppliers owned by people of color,...

Lee and Her Groom ‘Jump the Broom’ on New Year’s Eve

Rep. Barbara Lee married Rev. Dr. Clyde Oden Jr., a pastor on New Year’s Eve in Santa Monica, Calif. with many Bay Area constituents and leaders...

Rebecca Kaplan’s Statement on Housing Crisis Addresses Wedgewood, Contributions to Oakland Community Land Trust

For the past several weeks, a group of homeless mothers and their children have been residing in a formerly-vacant home in West Oakland.  A large investment corporation,...

African American or Other? Selecting Your Race and Ethnicity on the U.S. 2020 Census Form

Kim Kardashian West will likely check “Black or African American” on the U.S. 2020 Census form when marking the race of her children. The famous media...

Parent Group Launches Campaign to Recall Oakland School Board President Jody London

Oakland Not for Sale — a coalition of community members and educators against public school closures — is moving ahead with a campaign to recall Jody...

California Writers, Photogs Sue State Over New Law That Chokes Freelance Journalism

When he’s not studying, Aldon Thomas Stiles, 25, a senior at Cal State Bernardino, writes freelance articles to help pay his way through college and assist...