Berkeley High senior is Oakland’s new Youth Poet Laureate
Nadia Elbgal, 18, will give voice to her community through poetry and public appearances.
Ricky Rodas
Ricky Rodas is a member of the 2020 graduating class of the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism and has spent the last two years reporting on immigrant communities in the Bay Area as a reporter for the hyperlocal news sites Oakland North, Mission Local and Richmond Confidential. Rodas, who is Salvadoran American and bilingual, joined The Oaklandside through a partnership with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists into local newsrooms to report on under-covered issues and communities. Rodas reports on businesses and immigration in Oakland.
Articles by Ricky Rodas
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This East Oakland vegetable garden nourishes a close-knit community
Oakland’s Iu Mien elders have been growing mustard greens, sugar cane stalks, and snap peas at Peralta Hacienda Historical Park since 2003.
Fruitvale restaurant owners meet with officials over public safety concerns
Wahpepahâs Kitchen and Red Bay Coffee say more should be done to curtail violence and sex trafficking in the area.
La Perla celebrates a year on Fruitvale Avenue
The Oakland Puerto Rican restaurant looks back on an intense first year.
This Queer Oakland cafe works to fight anti-immigrant sentiment
Cafe Gabriela serves up resistance and resilience alongside its menu of salads and sandwiches.
For these Oakland restaurants, popularity is a blessing and a curse
Your favorite restaurant might have a line out the door, but that doesn’t mean it’s not struggling to stay afloat
East Bay Afghan residents process grief amid rush to resettle refugees
In addition to transportation, immigration, and housing, mental health services are needed by many fleeing the Taliban.
Scarred but resilient: Telegraph Avenue emerges from the pandemic
Lines around the block for cupcakes and a boom year for a flower shop, but a shoe shop for the stars is calling it quits, one of several COVID-19 casualties.
East Bay biz owners can still apply for the Restaurant Revitalization Fund
The fund, signed into law by President Biden, will provide billions in relief to qualifying business owners. The application deadline is Monday, May 24.
Chef Reign Free launches the Black Culinary Collective to support entrepreneurs
The owner of Red Door Catering will be sharing a 5,000-square-foot commercial kitchen in West Oakland with other Black-owned food businesses.
Trader Joeâs reduces âthank youâ pay for some Oakland employees
City mandated grocery worker hazard pay laws donât cover TJâs Lakeshore location, but Rockridge and Berkeley workers will keep an extra $5 per hour.
McDonaldâs workers rally for better pay and safety in Fruitvale
Service workers in Oakland are part of a statewide campaign for better working conditions at fast food restaurants.
Could Oakland’s Flex Streets be here to stay?
Oakland’s policy director Warren Logan, who has overseen the outdoor dining program since its inception, speaks about its future.
Oakland has a new worker-owned supermarket
The DEEP Grocery Co-op was started to bring fresh and healthy food to deep East Oakland, a designated âfood desert.â But their new online grocery service is open to all.
Puerto Rican restaurant La Perla may not reopen because of building code issues
Health inspectors say La Perlaâs owner, Jose Ortiz, needs to fix the kitchen floor. Ortiz says he doesnât have the money to do it.
Oakland approves $5 hazard pay for grocery workers; Berkeley considers it
Oakland grocery workers are getting a substantial hazard pay raise starting immediately.
