The Bay

Boats are being stolen and stripped of precious metals in the Oakland Estuary, in a crime spree that has divided the community of traditional boat …

Sea level rise threatens communities along the Bay and some iconic cultural heritage sites along the San Francisco shoreline.

So when the water comes …

San Jose city leaders are looking for a new site for the nearly 500 vendors at the Berryessa Flea Market, which will be moved to make way for the new Berryessa BART Urban Village. 

The Singleton Road landfill has risen …

California might become the first state in the nation to ban discrimination based on caste, a hierarchical system based on birth that affects South Asians all over the world. Senate Bill 403, which was introduced by …

On Monday, BART rolled out a new schedule and changes to its system. They’re calling it a ’reimagined’ service plan. Combine that with increased …

On Friday's episode, we’re going to talk BART and discuss some of the big changes the agency has made, including the new scheduled that began this …

On Friday, Nancy Pelosi — former Speaker, minority leader, and representative in Congress since 1987 — announced plans to run again. KQED’s Marisa Lagos breaks down what this means for San Francisco amid debate over …

California faces a big problem in labor law enforcement: when businesses are found to have committed wage theft, many still don’t pay workers what they’re owed. KQED’s Farida Jhabvala Romero tells us how Santa Clara …

A full transcript will be available 1–2 workdays after the episode’s publication.

COVID-19 cases are on the rise (again). But this isn’t the surge of …

This episode contains explicit language.

Banko Brown was a Black trans man who was shot and killed by a Walgreens security guard in late April. Today, …

On this Labor Day weekend, we're sharing an episode from KQED's Bay Curious podcast about what's happening to our state's iconic redwood trees, and how we can support them.

This episode originally published on June 22, …

Some of the richest, most outspoken investors in the tech world are behind a company that has bought nearly 60,000 acres of mostly farmland in Solano …

Under what circumstances should San Francisco be able to clear homeless encampments? Last week, protesters and counter-protesters went head-to-head …

In 2021, students at Carlmont High School in Belmont were shocked when 17-year-old senior Colin Walker died of a fentanyl overdose. In this episode …

We bring you 3 stories a week, but there’s so much more that’s happening in the Bay Area than we can get to. Today, Ericka, Maria and Alan each bring …

Hollywood is no stranger to changes brought on by technology. But KQED’s Rachael Myrow says that for writers and actors currently on strike, this …

Oakland is looking for a new police chief after Mayor Sheng Thao fired LeRonne Armstrong back in mid-February. Whoever takes the job next will …

An often-overlooked moment in Bay Area activism took place in the 1980s and 90s, when a broad coalition of activists targeted San Francisco’s coffee industry to protest the civil war in El Salvador. KQED’s Sebastian …

This episode contains explicit language.

San Franciscans can expect to see more driverless cars on the road after California regulators approved a …

I’laysia Vital is about to leave Oakland to start college in Texas, where she’s excited to attend a historically Black college. But Texas is also one …

This episode contains explicit language.

Hip-hop turns 50 years old today, and it’s no secret that the Bay Area gets overlooked.

Today, Eric Arnold and …

Next Tuesday, nearly 4,500 San Jose city workers are planning to walk off the job for 3 days. Garbage, fire, and police won’t be affected, but many …

On the morning after Thanksgiving last year, Martinez residents woke up and found a strange, white powder coating their neighborhoods. It came from the nearby refinery. 

Will McCarthy from the Mercury News tells us what …

For the first time since 2009, there is no salmon fishing season in California. This decision has hit fishers, coastal towns, and Native communities hard. 

But it wasn’t inevitable. KQED climate and science reporter …

A committee called Save Alameda For Everyone (SAFE) has filed documents for a recall campaign against progressive Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price. KQED’s Joe Fitzgerald Rodriguez explains why this is …

We hope you’re having a lovely Summer, Bay listeners.

We’re spending this month gaming out the next year of our show, and we need your help! It’s important to us to hear from you and what you want to hear more (or less) …

Breaking news from the Bay Team: we are taking our annual break from making new episodes for the month of July. We’re using this time to reset, rest, …

California’s Reparations Task Force, the first of its kind in the nation, wrapped up 2 years of work studying reparations for Black Californians on …

One of the longest running pride celebrations in the country, SF pride has brought generations of queer communities together to march, celebrate, grieve, and organize. For this episode we hear from Gwenn Craig, a queer …

A generation of young people has been traumatized by gun violence. Mass shootings year after year, especially at schools, draw international …

You’ve probably seen and heard the stories about downtown San Francisco. Fears about crime and safety, as well as low foot traffic because of the …

Fear of crime and blight in some of California’s biggest cities is increasing pressure on mayors to reduce visible street homelessness fast — even if it means not putting everyone into permanent affordable housing.

To do …

If you have ever driven down Sacramento Street in South Berkeley, you have probably seen the statue of William Byron Rumford Sr that is prominently displayed on the median just off of Ashby Ave. Rumford was a civil …

A spate of deadly shootings across the Bay are highlighting an ongoing surge in gun violence in the region, especially since the pandemic, which in …

The recent killing of Banko Brown by an armed Walgreens security guard has put a focus on the work of these employees. While they often take on …

Designated “the fastest-growing sport in America” by the Sports and Fitness Industry Association in the last three years, pickleball is blowing up here in the Bay Area, too. Local enthusiasts say the sport has helped …

So much of life is online these days, but barriers to internet access remain, especially for folks who are unhoused. Resources at public libraries, …

San Francisco’s Tenderloin neighborhood has been at the forefront of the opioid epidemic, amassing a reputation as a place of open air drug dealing, crime, and homelessness. Viral images and videos of open-air drug use …

Caste is a hierarchical system, based on birth, that affects South Asians on the subcontinent and around the world. 

Many hesitate to discuss it out in the open. But over the years, people from marginalized caste …

San Francisco is re-upping a program to make catalytic converters more traceable, in hopes of slowing down the theft of the highly sought-out car part containing highly valuable metals.

The program comes months after …

Gov. Gavin Newsom has been talking a big game about CARE (Community Assistance, Recovery and Empowerment) Court, the state’s new plan for treating people with severe mental illness. CARE Court, which every county in …

In Santa Clara County, the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band is fighting for one of their most sacred sites, known as Juristac. Beginning In the late 1700s, …

It’s a bad time to be an Oakland Athletics fan.

First off, they're just having an awful season. But the A's are also the latest pro sports team to …

Two 17-year old girls working at a Popeye’s in East Oakland have filed labor complaints, alleging harassment and potential violations of child labor …

With the end of a pandemic-era immigration policy known as Title 42, Bay Area cities and nonprofits in Santa Clara County have been preparing for the …

Cleo Moore has been waiting for justice for years. On Jan. 6, 2017, SFPD Officer Kenneth Cha shot her son, Sean Moore, outside of his home after responding to a noise complaint. Moore died in 2020 from complications …

The Oakland teacher’s strike ended on Monday, when the teachers union reached a tentative agreement with the district. Classes were canceled for tens of thousands of students for seven days. The deal not only includes …

Child care is too expensive and inaccessible for kids and families. That’s why in 2018, San Francisco voters approved Baby Prop. C, a tax on …

In late April, a 24-year old transgender Black man named Banko Brown was shot and killed by an armed Walgreens security guard on San Francisco’s …

For the last 100 years, the Hetch Hetchy reservoir in Yosemite has supplied millions of Bay Area residents with some of the cleanest water in the country. A feat of human engineering, Hetch Hetchy has both an impressive …

The federal COVID emergency will officially end on Thursday. But for those living with long COVID, the end of the pandemic couldn’t feel farther from …

On Thursday morning, nearly 3,000 educators and staff at the Oakland Unified School District went on strike in a push for higher wages and better …

San José Mayor Matt Mahan has been pushing to build more emergency interim housing as a cost-effective approach to get unhoused residents off the streets more quickly. It’s intended to be a temporary step toward more …

BART Board Director Lateefah Simon is running to replace East Bay Rep. Barbara Lee in Congress, who herself is running to replace Sen. Dianne …

Alameda County’s eviction moratorium helped keep hundreds, potentially thousands of people housed during the pandemic.

But after increased pressure …

Eastwind Books, one of the nation’s first Asian American bookstores, has closed its doors after more than four decades in business.

The store has been run by Harvey and Beatrice Dong, two activists who were part of civil …

There were more than 2,700 incidents of antisemitic harassment, vandalism, and assault in 2021, the highest count since the Anti-Defamation League’s …

To commemorate National Poetry Month, producer Maria Esquinca talks to Bay Area-based poet Antmen Pimentel Mendoza about his Chapbook collection, “My …

On Wednesday night, the Oakland A's announced that they have signed an agreement to buy land for a stadium in Las Vegas. This news doesn't mean the move is complete, but it does make it even more likely that yet another …

An estimated 1.1 million undocumented immigrants work in California, with large numbers laboring in low-wage jobs like agriculture, construction, and …

This episode contains explicit, racist and offensive language, as well as descriptions of violence.

For years, police officers in the city of Antioch …

The last time the Sacramento Kings made the NBA playoffs, the iPhone hadn't been invented yet. For 17 years, Sacramento-area sports fans have endured losing season after losing season. 

But not this year. The Kings …

This episode contains descriptions of drug addiction and attempted suicide. The national crisis and suicide hotline is 988.

In 2021, about 1 in 5 deaths among people ages 15-24 were from fentanyl overdoses in California. …

From extra unemployment assistance to free COVID testing and eviction moratoriums, pandemic-era assistance is fading away. 

The latest to fall are extra payments for recipients of CalFresh, the state’s version of the …

Nearly 320,000 Cambodians live in the US, with about a third living in California. Many are survivors or descendants of those who fled the country during the Cambodian genocide. An estimated 2 million people died under …

The city of Oakland plans to evict the 60 remaining residents of the Wood Street encampment on Monday, April 10. This comes after months of ramping up sweeps in order to move forward with plans to build 171 affordable …

We’ve delayed action on climate change for so long that scientists say eliminating greenhouse gas emissions isn’t enough anymore — we also need to explore ways of removing carbon from the atmosphere.

One potential method …

The iconic Castro Theatre faces an uncertain future. Historically operated as a movie palace, the building’s new managers want to renovate the space for more events — like concerts, performances and weddings.

The plans …

Anti-trans hate is on the rise. Republicans have introduced more than 400 anti-trans bills in state legislatures around the country. 1 in California …

This episode contains mentions of suicide.

Too often, psychosis isn’t treated until it’s too late. But studies from early psychosis clinics show that patients see a greater reduction of symptoms, like voices or …

Residents of Pajaro in Monterey County were finally allowed to return home Thursday after destructive flooding from last week’s storms. When the levee broke, causing the town to flood, it wasn’t a huge surprise; …

Silicon Valley Bank is best known for its relationships with the tech industry. But the bank also had billions out in loans to developers working on affordable housing projects in the Bay Area.

Unlike larger banks, …

California is in the middle of rolling out a plan to make preschool universal across the state. Also known as “transitional kindergarten,” it’s all …

The U.S. ranks 55th in the world in maternal mortality rates. Those rates are even worse for Black women, whose maternal mortality rate is more than two times higher than any other racial or ethnic group. Patients and …

As residents across California continue to cope with heavy wind and rain, perhaps no community has been hit harder than Pajaro, where thousands of residents have evacuated after a levee broke late last Friday, flooding …

San Francisco’s mobile opioid treatment clinics popped up as a way to address overcrowding at San Francisco General Hospital during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. These vans distribute methadone, a medication …

A potential dynasty is building at Oakland Technical High School, where the girls’ basketball team is on its way to clutching its 3rd state …

Two men who worked at an auto shop in Napa have been sentenced to federal prison for plotting to blow up the California Democratic Party headquarters in Sacramento in 2021. Ian Benjamin Rogers, of Napa, was sentenced to …

Sen. Dianne Feinstein is retiring after more than 30 years in Washington. Her retirement has gotten many people talking about her legacy and career in the U.S. Senate.

But before that, Feinstein was a local official in …

People just aren’t taking public transit like they used to.

BART’s ridership is still less than 40% of what it was before March 2020. On top of that, …

If you’ve been to the City of Alameda, you’ve probably noticed its beautiful Victorian homes lining the shore of the San Francisco Bay. This has been …

In early February, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit southeastern Turkey and northern Syria.

Here in California, we know the Big One is coming someday. …

Workers at nonprofits like the Felton Institute are on the front lines of our region’s biggest problems, like poverty, homelessness, and addiction. …

For many members of the public, COVID-19 is in the rearview mirror. People are tired. Governments have dropped things like mask and vaccine mandates. And the virus isn’t as lethal as it once was.

On the other hand, this …

Originally from The Bronx, New York, Dave “Davey D” Cook was there when this thing we call hip-hop was in its nascent form, before it even had a name. When he arrived in the Bay Area in the early ’80s, one of his …

Crisis pregnancy centers, or anti-abortion centers, are designed to look like community health clinics. But the vast majority of them don’t have a medical license, and all of them have an explicit goal: to persuade …

In November 2020, then-San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin filed criminal charges against former SFPD officer Christopher Samayoa. In 2017, Samayoa, who had been on the force for just 4 days, shot and killed …

Last spring, workers at Chevron’s Richmond refinery went on strike for 10 weeks, demanding higher pay, better health benefits, and safer working conditions. When the strike ended, union leaders say that Chevron …

The Here/There homeless encampment was familiar to anybody who drove between Oakland and Berkeley. The camp had its roots in the Bay Area’s Occupy movements in the early 2010s, and was founded in 2017 to highlight the …

Oakland Police Chief LeRonne Armstrong was placed on administrative leave last month, after an external investigation into the handling of two police …

Sandra Castañeda was convicted for a murder she didn’t commit and was sentenced to 40 years to life. She thought she was going to spend the rest of …

The mass shooting last Monday in Half Moon Bay that left 7 farmworkers dead has brought renewed attention to the living conditions of California farmworkers. State and local officials say they plan to investigate …

You’ve seen the news by now: tech companies are laying people off in droves. Nearly 60,000 people have been laid off from Bay Area-based tech companies since November 2022, according to the latest estimates from …

An estimated 62 million gallons of sewage — or about 94 Olympic-sized swimming pools — spilled into the San Francisco Bay during the storms in late …

Organizers of Oakland’s Lunar New Year Parade hope it marks a new start for Chinatown and the city’s Asian communities. Over the past few years, the …

7 people were killed and 1 injured in a mass shooting in Half Moon Bay on Monday afternoon. The suspect, 66-year old Chunli Zhao, is in police …

The sun is back, and it’s a huge relief. And while the state largely avoided widespread, catastrophic disaster, communities all over California were …

Pamela Price has been sworn in as Alameda County District Attorney. In the 2022 Election, Price won the seat with 53% of the vote, defeating her more tough-on-crime opponent, Terry Wiley. 

She is the first Black woman …

When the rain storms first started to hit Hannah Hagemann’s community in the Santa Cruz mountains, she was lucky enough to evacuate before landslides …

Etta James, Ray Charles and John Lee Hooker all played in Russell City, a once thriving blues town located in Hayward. The town was home to Black and …

A rare showcase of archives and memorabilia from the life of Angela Davis is on display at the Oakland Museum of California. The exhibit includes …

California’s temperate weather is one reason why homelessness is so visible. But with climate change, warmer and wetter weather are making the emergency on the streets even more dire. 

At what remains of the Wood Street …

On Monday, Oakland will swear in Sheng Thao as the city’s new mayor and now one of the most prominent Hmong-American politicians in the country. Last …

Storms caused by back-to-back atmospheric rivers pummeled the Bay Area this week;, prompting evacuation orders, heavy flooding on roads and in rivers, and bringing down power for 100 thousand PG&E customers Thursday.

The new mayor of the Bay Area’s biggest city started his new job this week, and he has to work fast. Matt Mahan’s first job is to address a winter …

It’s our last episode of the year! Today, host Ericka Cruz Guevarra, producer Maria Esquinca, and senior editor Alan Montecillo unpack 2022 and share their favorite episodes. We’ll have new episodes for you starting …

It’s been a bad few months for people in Vallejo who are fighting for police accountability. The police chief who promised reforms abruptly stepped …

Teenagers like Elise Muchowski aspired to the “Clean Girl Aesthetic,” a trend that blew up on TikTok and that prioritizes looking clean and effortless, with videos of skincare, makeup routines, and a minimalist wardrobe.

San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood has a reputation for drug addiction, poverty, and homelessness — all big problems that have not been solved …

Before the pandemic, there were a few ways to endure the traffic into downtown San Francisco. One very Bay Area method was the casual carpool, a …

Silicon Valley companies rely on thousands of H-1B visa holders who have come to the Bay Area from all over the world. H-1B visas grant temporary …

Even in the Bay Area, it’s a big risk for Chinese residents to protest against the Chinese Communist Party. Many fear retaliation against themselves and their loved ones in China. 

But over the past week, hundreds of …

Leaders from nearly 200 countries recently met during COP27, the 27th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. While some gains were made, like the creation of a “loss and …

Oakland is on the verge of returning 5 acres of Joaquin Miller Park to the Sogorea Te’ Land Trust and the Confederated Villages of Lisjan. This would …

Universities across the country rely on students and academic workers to grade papers, run classes, conduct research, and provide student support. It’s demanding work, often for little pay. 

But now, the unions …

Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter has led to complete chaos: layoffs, advertiser panic, and concerns all around the world about what this means for speech on the internet.

But here in the Bay, what happens at Twitter has …

The city of Vallejo is notorious for being forced to pay out millions in legal settlements to victims of police violence. In the latest example, The …

Votes are still being counted, but the races for all 7 statewide propositions have been called. Californians approved Prop. 1 (abortion rights), Prop. 28 (arts education funding), and Prop. 31 (ban flavored tobacco), …

The last day to vote in the 2022 election has come and gone. Californians overwhelmingly approved an amendment to enshrine reproductive rights in the state constitution, and both Gov. Gavin Newsom and Sen. Alex Padilla …

In the past few years, a handful of California cities have explored allowing noncitizens to vote in various local elections. The most famous example …

Oakland voters will decide on a new mayor this month. It’s a packed race; 10 candidates are vying for the seat, including 4 current and former members of Oakland City Council. The issue taking center stage in this …

On Tuesday, San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins announced charges against David DePape, the 42-year-old man accused of breaking into House …

The roots of Día de los Muertos celebrations in San Francisco can be traced back to 1972, when a collective of Chicano artists formed the first day …

In the Bay’s most populous county, Laurie Smith has served as sheriff since 1998. But in this election, amid a wave of scandals and an ongoing …

21 states have attempted to limit, ban, or criminalize access to medical care for transgender and nonbinary youth. 

California is going in the opposite direction. In September, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law that ensures …

On Sunday afternoon, incumbent Governor Gavin Newsom debated his Republican challenger, State Senator Brian Dahle. This was their first and only debate, which was held at KQED's headquarters in San Francisco. The …

Back in June, San Francisco voters recalled Chesa Boudin from the office of District Attorney. In his place, Mayor London Breed appointed Brooke Jenkins, who once worked in Boudin’s office and became a paid spokesperson …

Benicia is home to an oil refinery operated by Valero, which employs hundreds of people and contributes tax revenue totaling an estimated 20% of the …

This November, San Jose residents will make a big decision about the future of the nation’s 10th largest city. The San Jose’s mayor’s race is between two candidates: Santa Clara County Supervisor Cindy Chavez and San …

Unless you work on cars for a living, you probably weren’t very familiar with catalytic converters until the last few years, when reported thefts of …

After protests erupted in Iran over the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22 year old Kurdish Iranian woman who died in police custody after being arrested for …

Several Bay Area cities, including Oakland, are dealing with increased levels of gun violence. In Oakland, the city has hit triple-digit homicides …

In 2020, California lawmakers passed SB 793, which banned the retail sale of flavored tobacco products that can be smoked, vaped, or eaten statewide.

But shortly after that, tobacco companies worked to put Prop. 31 on …

We need to spend a lot of money on green infrastructure if we want to lower emissions and adapt to the climate crisis. Supporters of Proposition 30 …

Launched for a third time by the Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West, Prop. 29 would add new rules on dialysis …

Studies show that arts and music education benefit students, reducing things like depression and truancy. However, when budgets are slashed, they’re the first programs to go. The problem is exacerbated in low-income …

There’s a pair of dueling ballot measures in California that would affect whether we have legalized sports betting in the state, and what form it …

For the next 2 weeks, we’re teaming up with our friends at Bay Curious to bring you Prop Fest, where we’ll break down the 7 statewide ballot propositions in the November election.

First up: Proposition 1. It was added to …

The Not One More Girl campaign launched in 2020 after a survey of Bay Area youth found that women and girls feared for their safety when using public transportation. Spearheaded by youth, the campaign outlined ways to …

At its peak, an estimated 500 people lived in tents, vehicles, and camper vans at an encampment near San Jose’s airport. The city has tried to clear it for years, under pressure from the Federal Aviation Administration. …

Communities of color in California are the most affected by violent crime. But historically, they haven't had a seat at the table when it comes to …

Maria Esquinca is the newest producer for The Bay, taking over after Ericka Cruz Guevarra left the position to become the host of the show. 

In this episode we get to know Maria a little bit more. We talk about her …

The Bay Area experienced record-setting heat last week, with temperatures reaching up to 115 degrees in some parts, threatening to overload the state’s power grid. 

It won’t be the last. Climate change makes it even more …

In California, less than 1% of farmland is Black-owned, according to the 2017 Census of Agriculture. One such farm is in Sebastopol in Sonoma County. 

Naatak is one of the largest Indian American theater companies in the country. Started in 1995 out of a dorm room at UC Berkeley, Naatak is staging its 100th production this month. 

In that time, an estimated 1,000 …

Sonoma County is trying to set a trend for other cities in banning the construction of new gas stations. In 2021, Petaluma became the first city in …

You’ve probably seen pictures or even smelled them by now. This past week, thousands upon thousands of dead fish have washed up on shorelines all over the Bay Area. And there are way more beneath the surface. 

So, what's …

Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed a bill that would have allowed a trial run of safe injection sites in San Francisco, Oakland, and Los Angeles. These sites, …

More than 2 years since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, most emergency housing protections have expired. This means millions of renters are facing eviction.

Today, in an episode of The California Report Magazine, …

It’s official: by 2035, California will end the sale of new gas-powered vehicles. State air regulators approved the plan yesterday, but it started …

Over the weekend, protesters tore down a fence that had been put up around the 24th Street Mission BART plaza at the request of San Francisco Supervisor Hilary Ronen. 

Proponents of the fence said it was necessary to …

Noncitizen voting isn’t a brand new idea. White, landowning, noncitizen men were once allowed to vote in 40 states.

Today, a handful of cities have …

A heat wave that swept through the Bay Area this week made way for fires again. That, plus a slew of other fires burning across California sent smoke hovering over areas of the state. So we thought it’d be a good time …

It’s been one year since the Taliban took control of Kabul. Millions of Afghans have fled the country, in many cases becoming separated from their …

At elite high schools in Silicon Valley, the pressure to succeed is intense. And according to Sophia Shao, a senior at Los Altos High School, her …

School starts again at San Francisco Unified next week. But some teachers and staff still haven’t been fully paid what they’re owed for last year. 

…

Project Roomkey is coming to an end. Its goal was to temporarily house some of the state’s most vulnerable homeless people in hotel rooms during the …

Ericka here, bringing you all something different for today’s episode. 

Every week, our job here at The Bay is to tell stories about this place and the people in it. But recently, I got the chance to tell a different …

In 1969, a group of protesters took over a plot of land owned by UC Berkeley and turned it into a green, public space now known as People’s Park. Since then, it’s become a place synonymous with Berkeley’s history of …

A state of emergency over monkeypox has been declared in San Francisco and in the state of California. More than 5,800 cases have been confirmed …

If you talk to longtime residents of San Francisco's Bayview-Hunters Point neighborhood, you'll hear lots of stories about people getting sick from …

We work really hard to bring you three episodes a week. But we’ll admit: Sometimes, it's good to take a break from the news. The Bay is taking a …

We've known for a minute that, if Roe v. Wade was overturned, California would play a big role in helping Americans access abortion services.

Now, …

Here in California, abortion is still legal. And an overwhelming majority of Bay Area residents support the right to have one.

Which is why, over the weekend, many people marched in protest against the Supreme Court’s …

Before moving to the Bay Area from Jacksonville, Florida, friends told KQED Rightnowish production intern Corey Antonio Rose he was heading to ‘gay …

The National AIDS Memorial Grove in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park is the nation’s first and only federally designated memorial of those who have …

In California, the death penalty is in limbo. On the one hand, the state hasn’t executed anyone since 2006. On the other, the death penalty in still legal. In practice, this means that hundreds of incarcerated people …

The Golden State Warriors are one win away from another NBA championship, which would be their fourth since 2015. But as OG fans know, they haven’t …

This episode contains mentions of suicide.

On a weekend in early June, hundreds of San Mateo County residents drove to a courthouse parking lot in …

San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin has been recalled. This race has gotten a ton of attention both inside and outside the Bay Area, which is uncommon for a local DA race. And shortly after election night, …

In California, tens of thousands of workers aren’t getting paid what they’re owed by their employers. Many of these workers are low-wage earning immigrants in industries like construction, home care, and food service.

…

California’s mental health care system is a mess. And at the same time, unsheltered homelessness is increasing and voters want their leaders to do something about it.

Those are some of the reasons why Gov. Gavin Newsom …

There are so many horrifying incidents of attacks on Asians that have gone viral. Many of them took place in San Francisco. There’s a lot of fear, anxiety, and anger among Asian communities in the city. And many people …

For the first time since 2014, the race for mayor in San Jose has no incumbent running, since Mayor Sam Liccardo is term-limited. On June 7, San Jose voters will decide between 7 candidates, ranging from current elected …

In Solano County, two high-profile police killings loom large over the race for District Attorney on June 7. That’s because the incumbent, Krishna …

On Tuesday, an armed gunman killed at least 18 children and 3 adults at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas.

There’s still a lot of questions …

More than 35,000 people are living unhoused across the Bay Area – up 9 percent in the last three years, according to an annual count of folks living …

Just because COVID sick pay exists doesn't necessarily mean employees always feel comfortable using it. Between Americans’ unhealthy relationship with work and a sense that the world is opening back up again, employers …

The threat of domestic extremist violence is all over the country. Just last weekend, an 18-year old white man drove to a predominantly Black part of …

California’s new 8th Congressional district, which includes Vallejo, Fairfield, Richmond, Pittsburg, and part of Antioch, is the most diverse in the region. It’s the only district in the entire state with at least 15% …

Lots of high-profile jobs in San Francisco have opened up lately — whether it’s because of a recall, a corruption scandal, or a simple job promotion. …

Currently, the Bay Area is California’s COVID hot spot.

The good news? Fewer people are being hospitalized or dying from COVID, thanks to the vaccine and the increased availability of treatments. This wave might also be …

It’s election season again. On June 7, Californians have some big decisions to make in elections both locally and statewide. 

In San Francisco, voters will decide whether or not District Attorney Chesa Boudin will keep …

At West County High School in Sebastopol, there are way fewer students of color compared with schools in many Bay Area cities. And the students there …

A majority of the Supreme Court plans to strike down Roe v. Wade, according to leaked documents obtained by Politico. In California, most public …

Growing up, Katrina Ramos White helped her immigrant parents run a toy stand at the Berryessa Flea Market in San Jose. A few years ago, with hopes of buying her own home in SIlicon Valley, she took over the family …

Now a derelict building, the 16th street train station in West Oakland was once a thriving center of transportation during the golden age of rail …

Tell me memories mean something

and I will carve your face on a tree.

Never cut it down.

Guarded with what slaps and surprises

sage and old E-40 …

For many families waiting decades for the right to live and work permanently in the U.S. through the crazy, byzantine rules of America’s immigration …

A federal judge in Florida ruled on Monday that the federal mask mandate was unlawful. Hours later, the Transportation Security Administration lifted …

On Tuesday afternoon, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors approved an ordinance that would limit how police store and use DNA profiles obtained …

When a student makes an allegation of sexual assault, their options for redress are often unsatisfying. Few cases end up in the legal system, and …

Redistricting is a once-in-a-decade opportunity to redraw a city’s political map. It’s an important yet arcane process that should ultimately lead to …

The rise of Uber in San Francisco a decade ago marked the beginning of the end for much of the taxi industry. Taxi companies went bankrupt and drivers struggled to pay off their medallions, pushing many of them into …

In 2020 call outs for mutual aid donations flooded social media, and people responded with an abundance of money, food and time. Two years later, interest and support has waned while the needs have not gone away. As …

It may feel a little far from the Bay Area, but Sacramento is home to our state Capitol. And just a stone’s throw away from that building, in the …

The rainy season is over. But it didn’t feel like much of a rainy season at all. And now, California is in another year of drought. In the Bay Area, the North and South Bay are getting hit the hardest.

Being asked to …

Before the Emeryville shoreline was a shopping center and commercial area, it was the site of a sacred burial site belonging to the Ohlone people, natives of the San Francisco Bay Area.

There were once more than 425 of …

When it comes to basketball in the Bay Area, there’s no team that’s done more winning than Stanford’s women’s team.

Since 1990, the Cardinal have won 15 conference championships, 3 national championships, and have made …

It’s been a weird month for BART’s Board of Directors. In the span of just 2 weeks, the agency removed — and then reinstated — Director Lateefah …

Landing in a new country is never easy, even if you’re landing in a place like the Bay Area, which is already home to so many immigrants, refugees, and people who’ve sought asylum. And between Russia's invasion of …

In April 2020, Vallejo became one of the first cities to opt into the state’s Project Roomkey, a program designed to provide hotel rooms for …

About 500 operators and technicians at Chevron’s Richmond refinery went on strike starting Monday. It’s the first labor strike at the plant in more than 40 years.

The union representing these workers says that Chevron …

It’s no fun getting gas these days. The average price in many Bay Area counties reached $5.80 a gallon. And that's making it tough for people who drive for gig companies like Uber and Lyft, or who are taxi drivers.

Guest…

From Monday to Thursday, a group of teachers staged a sit-in at the SF Unified School District building to protest the fact the district mishandled …

For the last 2 years California’s unemployment system has been completely overwhelmed. One of the biggest issues: The lack of language access for people who don’t speak English or Spanish.

Now, the Employment Development …

This week marks one year since a gunman killed 8 people in Atlanta, Georgia in a targeted attack against Asian massage parlors. 6 of those killed …

It's been an intense few weeks. And we believe that all of us deserve to take a break and take care of ourselves. So in the spirit of that, we’re going to play an episode to help keep us all going despite all that’s …

A group of homeowners sued over UC Berkeley's plans to increase enrollment, claiming that the university has not adequately studied the environmental …

Since the summer of 2020, SFUSD has seen waves of protests against sexual harassment and assault. Students say a familiar pattern has …

KQED’s Nastia Voynovskaya was born in St. Petersburg, Russia. In the late 90s, she and her family immigrated to the Bay Area.

Growing up, Nastia’s community included Russians, Ukrainians, Armenians, Georgians, …

Valero’s Benicia oil refinery is one of the largest refineries in the state. And from 2003 to 2018, it secretly released excessive amounts of …

Reparations in California is a series of KQED stories exploring the road to racial equity in the state.

California is in the process of a …

On Wednesday night, Berkeleyside journalist Ally Markovich sat in front of her living room TV with her housemates and watched as Russian forces invaded Ukraine, where she was born.

Ally is one of the more than 100,000 …

Living with climate change means we’re going to have to plan for more disasters. That includes things like emergency shelters, food, and financial help. 

But there are many people who don't feel safe or welcome accessing …

San Francisco voters decided overwhelmingly to recall 3 board of education members from office: Board of Education President Gabriela López and …

Antioch has been a destination for Bay Area residents looking for affordable housing. But now, it’s at the center of a growing eviction crisis. 

In …

California is in limbo with the death penalty. We have an execution moratorium, and no one has been put to death in the state since 2006. But it’s still legal to sentence someone to die, which means there are hundreds …

Over the past few weeks, students, families and educators in Oakland have pushed back hard against plans by OUSD's Board of Education to close or …

Way more people gotten sick with COVID-19 during these past few weeks. If you've tested positive, you may have felt a range of emotions: Surprise, fear...even anger.

There's also another emotion members of KQED's …

A proposal to spread the gig economy to health care could be on the ballot this fall. A group calling itself Californians for Equitable Healthcare …

A conservation group representing Northern California tribes has gotten 523 acres of land back.

The Sinkyone call the land Tc'ih-Léh-Dûñ, meaning "Fish Run Place,” located about 170 miles north of San Francisco in …

The recall election of 3 San Francisco Board of Education members has motivated many Chinese voters to get involved in local politics for the first …

Whether you have a kid in San Francisco public schools or not, if you’re a registered voter, you’ll have a say in the potential recall of three San …

Clouds of crows have taken over downtown Sunnyvale like a scene out of The Birds. A combination of factors are leading them there, including the increase of outdoor dining due to the pandemic.

Now, the city is trying to …

We've all had to weigh the risks of leaving our homes during this pandemic that has lasted for nearly 2 years. For lots of people, the risk of getting severely ill from the coronavirus is currently very low, even amid …

Trouble could be ahead for Santa Clara County Sheriff Laurie Smith. A civil grand jury has accused her office of 7 counts of misconduct related to …

A self-driving car is not an uncommon sight in San Francisco. And it can feel like more and more of them are out there on the roads. But why?

Today, an episode from our friends at Bay Curious about this, and whether …

The U.S. currently has an immigration court backlog that surpasses 1.5 million cases — and that includes many people who are seeking asylum from …

On Tuesday, the San José City Council voted to study the possibility of giving noncitizens the right to vote in local elections. Community organizers …

Last week, students, teachers and staff returned to class after the winter holidays…and right in the middle of a record-high surge in confirmed …

Traxamillion, born Sultan Banks, was a producer from San Jose who helped define the Bay Area’s sound and propelled the Hyphy Movement to the national …

Rep. Zoe Lofgren was in the U.S. Capitol a year ago when a mob of Trump supporters, white supremacists, and conspiracy theorists stormed the building …

Long COVID test lines and empty shelves where the rapid at-home tests used to be — all signs of another post-holiday pandemic surge.

It’s hard to know …

As of Jan. 1, 2022, it’ll cost $7 to cross a bridge in the Bay Area. But if you thought that was expensive, wait until you hear how much it has cost those who don't pay: One Bay Area resident racked up $30,000 in unpaid …

New year, same pandemic. The Bay team reflects on another year of covering local news from the Bay Area, and discusses both the hard — and hopeful — …

Alexis Madrigal was super-cautious about COVID-19 from the beginning. He co-founded the COVID Tracking Project through The Atlantic and has been reporting on the virus since the earliest days of the pandemic.

But in the …

This episode contains descriptions of police violence.

After Vallejo police officer Jarrett Tonn shot and killed Sean Monterrosa on June 2, 2020, the …

Ericka took up roller skating during the pandemic, and a lot of other people have, too. Maybe you've seen it along Lake Merritt or in front of City …

If the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, Californians won’t lose the right to an abortion. The right to have one is codified into state law.

But having the right to an abortion isn’t the same as having good access to …

When the police kill or hurt someone, the public has a right to know what happened. But in many cases, the police’s story is carefully crafted to …

During the first few weeks of sheltering in place, food banks saw a huge explosion in demand as thousands lost their jobs and income. Food banks also …

Federal health officials are expanding the search for the new Omicron variant of COVID-19 in the U.S, including at San Francisco International Airport, where there’s increased testing for some international travelers.

…

Artists in Afghanistan are in trouble now that the Taliban are back in charge. Visual artists and performers are fleeing the country for fear of being harassed, persecuted, and even killed.

This has ripple effects here …

Meeting new people as an adult is hard enough, whether it’s dating or meeting new friends. Then the pandemic happened, and it got even more difficult.

A movement to support Indian farmers scored a win this past week. The Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, announced plans to roll back three …

This month, Walgreens closed 5 stores in 5 different San Francisco neighborhoods. The company claims it was because of “organized, rampant retail theft,” although available information doesn't quite back that up.

These …

The United Nations COP26 climate summit was billed by conference organizers as the “last, best hope” to save our warming planet. In the end, …

52 years ago this month, a group of Native Americans began to occupy Alcatraz to assert their right to self-determination. The 19-month occupation is still known as one of the most important actions in contemporary …

California sent many representatives to the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland — including many Latinos, who are California's largest ethnic group and are also more likely to say that …

After a review process from the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, pediatric COVID-19 shots are now …

What if parts of the Bay and parts of the Central Valley were represented by the same person in the U.S. House of Representatives? What about Filipino voters in Daly City and Chinese voters in the western part San …

On this very special episode, meet the new host of The Bay.

3 members of the San Francisco Unified School District Board of Education will be facing a recall vote in February. The special election encompasses …

Less than six weeks after our KQED colleagues from On Our Watch published an episode that revealed new information about the police killing of Oscar …

In 2020, hundreds of workers at Foster Farms plants in California tested positive for COVID-19. 16 people have died and at least 20 others have been hospitalized.

A KQED investigation found that as Foster Farms' Central …

Over the past few days, the Chevron refinery in Richmond has been intermittently sending flames and toxic fumes into the air, and people living in the area have complained of a strong gas smell. 

Meanwhile, the public …

During the pandemic, the meal kit delivery company HelloFresh has made record profits. But some employees at HelloFresh factory kitchens like the one in Richmond say they’re not sharing in those gains, and that they …

We’re getting an unusual amount of rain this week, with the potential for strong storms during the weekend. And after a summer of drought and wildfires, the rain’s just got us feeling some type of way.

So this all begs …

On Oct. 19, 1991, a fire started to burn and spread in the Oakland Hills. By the time it was done, an estimated 25 people were killed and thousands of homes were destroyed.

30 years later, a warmer climate and drier …

Nearly a decade ago, Vallejo launched an experiment: what if citizens played a more active role in deciding how to spend public money?

It's a process …

California’s Reparations Task Force has a huge challenge before them: to study and recommend reparation proposals for Black Californians and descendants of enslaved people.

The task force wrapped up a series of meetings …

In 2020, homicides in the Bay Area increased by about 25%, according to a Guardian analysis of census and state data. Many of those deaths involved …

The Caldor Fire came very close to burning thousands of homes and businesses in South Lake Tahoe. But in the end, while the wildfire has done a lot of damage, the city was largely spared.

That’s no accident. South Lake …

Vineyard workers already have hard jobs that usually don’t pay high wages. And as wildfire season increasingly overlaps with harvest season, their work has gotten even more dangerous.

Now, advocates and farmworkers in …

Currently, there's little stopping a police officer accused of serious misconduct from simply resigning and moving to a new department.

But that's …

The news about COVID-19 booster shots has been confusing. In mid-August, President Biden announced that a COVID-19 booster shot would roll out to all …

Since July, at least 2,000 refugees from Afghanistan have arrived in California, with most settling in Northern California and the Bay Area.

Since the …

California’s eviction moratorium is set to expire tomorrow, September 30. But in many parts of the Bay, Latino immigrant tenants have still been getting evicted by their landlords.

That’s because protections on paper …

Wineries have been affected by heat, drought and wildfires. Many have seen lower yields and have even lost grapes. But winemakers are also adapting, and finding creative ways to make sure their livelihoods continue.

…

Two days after the recall election, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 9, which effectively ends single-family zoning in California. The law is part of a larger effort to increase the supply of housing, at a time when …

Oakland Unified’s Board of Education is considering a proposal that would require all students 12 and older to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Some …

In Mountain View, residents of mobile home parks are on the verge of winning protections under the city’s rent control law — which they have been …

Most Bay Area residents rely on water that travels a long way to get here. And as we experience another drought, it’s more important than ever to understand how our water works, especially in our different local …

19 months, 46 candidates, and hundreds of millions of dollars later, Gov. Gavin Newsom has easily defeated the effort to remove him from office. It …

Latinos are roughly 28% of the voting public in California. And over the past 20 years or so, most have voted for Democrats, including Gov. Gavin Newsom. Now, the recall election is here, and millions of Latino voters …

The last day to vote in the recall election is Tuesday, Sept. 14. And if Gov. Gavin Newsom is replaced, his most likely successor is conservative …

Residents of communal housing in San Francisco’s Chinatown are organizing to keep their students home. According to a survey of residents living in Single Room Occupancy hotels in Chinatown (or SROs) by the Chinatown …

In December 2020, 30-year old Angelo Quinto died after an encounter with Antioch police. His family says that, after calling 911 for help, they …

The Caldor Fire continues to burn, and tens of thousands of people have evacuated areas around Lake Tahoe, including the 22,000 residents of the city of South Lake Tahoe. The fire is threatening homes, livelihoods, and …

In early August, 8 Bay Area counties reinstated mask mandates in indoor public spaces due to the spread of the Delta variant. Solano County was the …

It’s time to say goodbye to our host. Devin Katayama is leaving The Bay to become KQED’s first Editor of Talent and Development, where he'll help support interns and on-call staff develop their careers.

To commemorate …

When California voters look at their ballots for the Sept. 14 recall election, they will see 46 candidates who are running to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom. If a majority of voters mark “Yes” on the recall, Newsom will be …

In Santa Clara County, there are a series of controversies surrounding Sheriff Laurie Smith. They range from abuse in jails, to bribery — to even …

Several wildfires are burning in Northern California — again. Fire is now a regular part of our lives, and we need to address it with the nuance and …

The Bay Area is home to some of the largest Afghan communities in the U.S. And now, as the Taliban have taken over control of Afghanistan, refugee …

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s recall election is coming. Ballots have been mailed out and the last day to vote in Sept. 14.

Feeling unprepared? Here’s a primer with nitty-gritty voting details, some context for the campaign, and …

For the vast majority of families, this fall means a return to in-person school. But some have opted to stick with remote learning because of …

Bay Area teachers have been preparing to teach in-person again. There’s so much to get ready for — whether it’s taking steps to keep people safe from COVID-19, or figuring out how to navigate student group projects. But …

Many Bay Area students are starting school this week, and in California, classes will mostly be in-person. At the same time, COVID cases are rising …

Even before the pandemic, public transit did not feel safe to many women and girls. That’s why the #NotOneMoreGirl initiative was launched and spearheaded by Bay Area youth — and they've already helped create changes at …

Just when there was a palpable sense that everything might be OK, the highly contagious Delta variant of COVID-19 came along.

The race to vaccinate more people is now even more urgent; healthcare workers who are seeing …

COVID-19 cases are on the rise again, fueled by the contagious Delta variant. And over the past few weeks, many Bay Area restaurants and bars have …

For the next few weeks, we’re taking a break from making new episodes. It’s a lot of work to bring you 3 shows a week, and we’re going to use this time to rest up and reflect. 

We’re still going to be accessible if you …

Our colleagues at KQED and NPR have spent countless hours analyzing the world of police discipline, thanks to a police transparency law that unsealed …

Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed a law that extends California’s eviction protections for people economically impacted by COVID-19 — and who have paid at least 25% of the rent they owe — until Sept. 30. The state also has a …

California is in a second year of drought. And depending on where you live, you might already have water restrictions in place. Healdsburg, for example, has a mandatory 40% water restriction, while Santa Rosa has a …

It’s our 500th episode! One of the great joys of working on the show has been using our space to help people in the Bay Area get excited about or …

Forty years after the AIDS epidemic, the COVID-19 pandemic threatens those most at risk in the LGBTQ community across the world. Community organizers in the Bay Area have been building on the work of people like Bobbi …

On June 2, so many people spoke during a Bay Area Air Quality Management District board meeting that the agency had to postpone a vote to regulate …

On Tuesday, San Jose’s City Council will vote on a plan to rezone parts of the Flea Market on Berryessa Road, where hundreds of immigrant vendors …

Many live concerts and events are returning to the Bay Area, as COVID-19 cases remain low and the state ends capacity limits, social distancing and mask requirements in most places. 

But not everyone working in live …

California will fully reopen for “business as usual”on June 15. That means, among other things, that fully vaccinated people will no longer be …

The Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians doesn’t have its own reservation. Like many Native communities, many members also struggle with poverty and homelessness.

But recently, using funds from California’s ‘Project …

After the mass shooting at a Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority rail yard in San Jose two weeks ago, some politicians started talking about …

Undocumented Californians have been mostly shut out of three rounds of federal stimulus checks. So when the ‘Golden State Stimulus’ was approved in …

The effort to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom picked up steam in late 2020, during the height of the pandemic.

Now, COVID-19 has slowed down in California, …

Deaths from fentanyl overdoses have been on the rise during the pandemic. In Santa Clara County, the ages of the victims are trending younger, according to an analysis by KQED and the Documenting COVID-19 project at …

The deadliest mass shooting in Bay Area history happened Wednesday at a rail yard for the Valley Transportation Authority, the Santa Clara County transit agency made up of around 2,000 employees. The 9 victims who died …

For years, Black and brown parents of Oakland Unified students have been pushing the district to do more to support kids in low-income communities of …

South Hayward has one of the highest rates of per capita deaths in Alameda County. It also has one of the lowest vaccination rates. Some aren’t sure whether they want the vaccine, but there are also many other barriers …

Starting Friday, May 21, 130 artists in San Francisco will receive $1,000 a month for the next 6 months through the city’s Guaranteed Income Pilot Program, which was announced in March to help artists from marginalized …

It’s almost been a year since Vallejo police officer Jarrett Tonn shot and killed Sean Monterrosa on June 2, as protests against police violence were …

On International Boulevard in East Oakland, just 5% of businesses received Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans from April to August of 2020. …

Just four months ago, a pro-Trump mob violently stormed the U.S. Capitol in support of the former president's conspiracy theories about the 2020 …

The vast majority of the nearly 70,000 fire survivors are waiting for the compensation they're owed as a result of PG&E's bankruptcy settlement — …

When people see attacks on Asians — including a recent near-fatal stabbing on San Francisco’s Market Street — many refer to them as hate crimes, in …

In the 1920s and 1930s, Stockton’s Little Manila grew into the largest Filipino community outside of Manila itself. Thousands of Filipinos worked as farm laborers in the San Joaquin Valley, and over the years they …

Indians and Indian Americans in the Bay Area are facing a dual reality when it comes to COVID-19: while businesses start to reopen here, COVID-19 cases and deaths are exploding in India — and many are worried for the …

When it comes to sea level rise, East Palo Alto will be one of the first and hardest-hit areas of the Bay Area. It’s already prone to flooding now, and the city is leading the way when it comes to community-led …

Bay Area transit agencies lost huge numbers of riders during the pandemic — and with it, enormous amounts of revenue. Federal money has saved them from big layoffs and service cuts. But as the region reopens and more …

Last summer, confirmed COVID-19 cases ballooned inside San Quentin State Prison. Now, with many incarcerated people and staff now vaccinated, infections are very low and the worst of the outbreak seems to be over.

But …

The state legislature last week confirmed East Bay assembly member Rob Bonta California’s new Attorney General. His confirmation happened the same week Derek Chauvin was convicted of murdering George Floyd. Bonta, the …

Oakland has been the epicenter of on-the-ground anti-policing efforts since Oscar Grant was killed by BART police in 2009. That same movement saw its …

A jury has convicted former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin of all three charges for murdering George Floyd. There’s a lot to process, so …

San Francisco Unified School District has been mired in several controversies over this past year, and the politics around its school board have been …

About 9,000 nursing home residents in California have died of COVID-19. At the height of the winter surge, more than 80 residents were dying every day.

But now, thanks to the COVID-19 vaccines, there are now fewer than …

Oscar Grant’s name has been circulating after police in the Minneapolis suburb of Brooklyn Center claimed that 20-year-old Daunte Wright was …

A corporation known for flipping houses in the Bay Area has been buying even more homes at foreclosure auctions during the pandemic. Jocelyn Foreman lives in one of these homes and is now trying to compete with …

On Tuesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that California’s economy will ‘reopen’ by June 15, as long as there’s enough vaccine supply for everyone 16 …

After months of local and national attacks against people in the AAPI community, Oakland Chinatown has rallied together to support their elders and businesses.

But the community is divided — and a generational gap …

California’s Employment Development Department (or EDD) is responsible for paying out the state’s unemployment insurance. Ever since the pandemic began, the agency has struggled to close its huge backlog of claims. The …

Californians ages 50 and older are now eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine. They have two weeks to book appointments before the state opens up …

Earlier this month, leaders at Mills College announced that the school, which has been in the Bay Area for 169 years, will no longer be awarding …

Throughout this pandemic, disabled people and seniors have been at risk of getting sick and dying from COVID-19. And all this time, advocates and community organizers have been pushing to make sure that people in power …

Oakland and Marin County are the latest California jurisdictions to announce plans to launch guaranteed income pilot programs. The idea is to give …

The killing of 8 people in Georgia, 6 of whom were women of Asian descent, has led to marches and rallies in the Bay Area in support of the AAPI community. It’s also prompted many people to share experiences they’ve had …

This past year, a group of organizations have been keeping count of reports of anti-Asian hate incidents across the country. Nearly 3,800 reports have been submitted since the Stop AAPI Hate reporting center was …

Over the last year there has been a lot of heartbreak caused by the pandemic. There have also been moments of joy and communities coming together to help each other out. KQED’s Bay Curious podcast honors how lives have …

School boards in California have historically had a lot of power over decisions at the local level, but the choice to reopen for in-person learning …

The single-family neighborhood has been foundational to American housing policy for decades. It’s also been a tool to keep Black and brown people out …

Organizers behind the attempt to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom believe they will collect enough verified signatures to trigger a special election later …

On Monday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released new guidelines for fully vaccinated people. New, confirmed cases of COVID-19 are …

Angelo Quinto was having a mental health crisis when his family called 911 for help. After Antioch Police arrived at Quinto’s home, his family says …

On Thursday, the California state legislature approved a $6.6 billion plan to encourage school districts to resume in-person learning for the …

Mill Valley in Marin County is one of the 10 most segregated cities in the Bay Area. During the rise of protests following George Floyd’s death in …

The ZIP codes in and near East San Jose have been hit the hardest by COVID-19 in the Bay Area. They’re predominantly immigrant neighborhoods with thousands of essential workers, many of whom work for the Silicon Valley …

Last fall, KQED launched a new, five-part podcast about possible solutions to the housing crisis. It’s called SOLD OUT: Rethinking Housing in …

An oil spill from Chevron’s Richmond refinery earlier this month and the toxic fumes released last November are part of a long trend of dangerous spills into the Bay Area’s water and air. So why’s it so hard to keep the …

Several surveys show that Black Americans are, on average, more hesitant to receive a COVID-19 vaccine compared with white people. And when it comes to Black communities showing less trust in the health care system …

After the pandemic forced strip clubs in San Francisco’s North Beach neighborhood to close and protests against police violence erupted in the …

Sakhone Lasaphangthong spends his work day in Oakland's Chinatown helping people get the resources they need. He walks the streets and connects with merchants, elders, and people who don't have housing.

Over the last few …

Traditional Chinese Medicine has a complicated history in the Bay. In the 70s, a Chinese immigrant in Palo Alto named Miriam Lee was arrested and put on trial for practicing acupuncture — even though she learned it from …

After months of debate on whether to reopen public schools in the Bay Area's largest districts, some families have finally had enough of distance …

There’s a long history of Black women in the Bay Area leading social justice work — including the hundreds of women who led the Black Panther Party. One West Oakland resident believes a celebration of these women and …

The climate crisis isn't just about big tropical storms and deadlier wildfires. Rising sea levels — as a result of climate change — are forcing …

California’s vaccine rollout has been…confusing. Many people have been writing into KQED with basic questions about eligibility or where they go to …

It’s easy to think that California’s eviction moratorium means people can expect to remain in their homes during the economic crisis and global pandemic.

But a KQED investigation found that hundreds of evictions are …

It takes a lot of hard work to curb gun violence at the community level. For the past few years, those efforts in Richmond and Oakland were paying …

In our first virtual live event of 2021, we invited KQED reporters to share what stories they’ll be looking out for this year. We want to share this conversation and ask what matters to you as the Bay Area adjusts to …

KQED wasn't alone in struggling to cover former President Trump. These last four years changed how many journalists think about their responsibilities to the public. It's also forced more members of the news media to …

It’s been a week. So now, music.

We’re bringing you the first episode of a new series from our friends at Rightnowish that shines a light on all sorts of creators this year. In this episode, Pendarvis Harshaw introduces …

It's Inauguration Day in the U.S. The end of the Trump administration, and the beginning of the Biden administration is a monumental moment for the country –and for the rest of the world. Today, we hear from members of …

Silicon Valley giants like Facebook, Twitter and Google have long struggled to deal with violent language and misinformation on their platforms.

But …

On Monday, California’s COVID-19 death toll reached 30,000. Gov. Gavin Newsom and health officials are relying on mass vaccinations to slow the …

It takes a lot of work to undo white supremacy. For many who have been committed to this work, it’s a lifetime of protests, campaigning, donating, and showing up. And sometimes, it can feel like an impossible task.

…

California is a state run by Democrats. But we have elected officials who have either ignored or enabled President Trump through the years — …

This week, 200+ employees at Google announced that they've formed a union. The Alphabet Workers Union, which is supported by Communications Workers of America (CWA), is the first of its kind at Google, and will include …

If you want to get involved in local politics, your city council meeting can be a good place to start.

But it can also be a lot. It's where your …

This year in news has changed us all in so many ways. And as we wrap up 2020 with our final episode of the year, we thought we'd take some time to reflect on the stories that have stuck with us the most.

Remembering San …

In August, a Foster Farms poultry processing plant in Livingston was temporarily shut down because of a a COVID-19 outbreak where at least 392 …

This is the fourth episode of By The People, The Bay podcast’s new series highlighting the way democracy shows up in the places around us, and how we can all plug in.

It's been called one of the biggest protests the …

The Bay Area has a long history of providing refuge to migrants seeking asylum. And for some, like Luna Guzmán, a transgender woman who left Guatemala at 22, places like San Francisco are one of the few places where …

Over the weekend, another surge in COVID-19 cases once again led to playgrounds being closed in many communities across California and in five Bay Area counties.

But some parents felt like this part of the new …

This is the third episode of By The People, The Bay podcast’s new series highlighting the way democracy shows up in the places around us, and how we can all plug in.

A vote in Oakland today goes farther than it did prior …

California is planning its rollout of a coronavirus vaccine. Healthcare workers have already been prioritized, but figuring out who comes next and …

It's always been difficult to charge a police officer after they've killed someone while on the job. But in the Bay, it's happened a few times within …

This is the second episode of By The People, The Bay podcast's new series highlighting the way democracy shows up in the places around us, and how we …

When Evelyn Legarte migrated from the Philippines to the Bay Area in 1980, she was part of a growing number of Filipinos that now make up about 20% …

One way to change your hometown? Run for office. That’s what Alex Lee, James Coleman, and Lucy Shen decided to do in the 2020 elections. All three …

When the pandemic hit, thousands of unsheltered people were moved into hotels under a plan known as Project Roomkey. Gov. Gavin Newsom said the goal was to eventually move people into permanent housing. But early data …

On Monday, Gov. Gavin Newsom said that California has seen the fastest two-week increase in confirmed COVID-19 cases since the pandemic started. Now, most counties, including six in the Bay Area, are under the state’s …

We've heard a lot about how older people are vulnerable during this pandemic. And it's true that they're more vulnerable to the virus and that …

California Proposition 22 was a big win for tech companies. Its passage allows a handful of corporations — like Uber and Lyft — to create a new "gig" …

The Bay Area passed a number of local measures related to civilian oversight of police this election. This means an increase in access for what …

Things are still really stressful right now. But comedian Luna Malbroux navigates that stress but choosing laughter and joy in a time of extreme …

Voting in the Bay Area seemed to go smoothly on Tuesday, thanks in part to California's efforts to get people to vote early and by mail. That says a lot, in an election where there's been so much misinformation about …

California may have mailed all voters a ballot, but a lot of people still chose to cast their ballots in person. And thousands of people worked long …

The killing of George Floyd led to protests in South San Francisco, and the creation of a youth-led activist group called Change SSF.

These last few months have also exposed a generational divide about how quickly the …

Martinez isn't known for its activism. But after George Floyd was killed, and after a white couple defaced a Black Lives Matter mural in Martinez, many residents decided it was time for that to change.

Now, they've …

Miles Hall was shot and killed by Walnut Creek police a year before many residents joined national protests supporting Black lives this past summer. …

Bela Gonzalez and Louie Licea are 15. Both of their parents are essential workers and need to leave the house every day.

It's all pretty stressful. …

On Tuesday, a California court ruled that officials at San Quentin State Prison have to either transfer or release half of the facility's population. …

Housing is not a human right in the United States. But more people are saying it should be.

That growing movement has roots here in the Bay Area, …

Generations of Armenians and descendants of those who escaped the Armenian Genocide have found refuge in San Francisco. That’s the epicenter of a robust church community center and where Armenian Americans can celebrate …

Community fridges have been popping up all over the Bay since the pandemic began as a form of mutual aid, which has deep roots here. There's a long history of this kind of community care, especially around food …

Proposition 25 is the culmination of a long fight over the bail system in California. A win for the "Yes" vote would uphold a law that abolishes cash …

Distance learning is hard enough. And once you get past acquiring the technology needed to make it happen, there’s an additional step for many …

Bay Curious is exploring the 12 statewide ballot propositions with its Prop Fest series. Today, we're sharing their guides to Props 16 and 17, which …

Latino and immigrant workers keep the economy of "wine country" going. And while many in the Bay Area sheltered in place at the start of the pandemic, farmworkers in Napa and Sonoma counties continued working.

Now, the …

Berkeley recently renamed a street after a South Asian activist Kala Bagai. But her story isn’t the typical one you hear about people who get streets or monuments named after them.

Nearly 100 years ago, Bagai and her …

North Bay journalist Sarah Stierch has become a resource for locals looking for critical fire information, down to their specific block. That’s because when the North Bay was burning in 2017, she knew the streets and …

There are still Californians who need to be counted for the 2020 Census. Here in the Bay Area, there’s the extra challenge of making sure we count people who don't have housing and families whose homes have been …

California wasn’t ready for the spike in unemployment since the pandemic. And one big reason is because the agency that handles unemployment benefits …

This week, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that the state plans to eliminate the sale of gas-powered cars by 2035 in order to keep cutting California's greenhouse gas emissions.

Many environmentalists say we need to move …

Before the coronavirus, orange skies from wildfires, and huge protests against police violence, housing was the issue in California. But still, even …

Since the 90s, law enforcement groups like police unions, correctional officer unions, and sheriffs' associations have had a huge influence on …

After the Tubbs Fire in 2017, Lil Milagro Henriquez felt she had to do more than just tell her students to mask up for the smoky air. She wanted to empower her students to face the challenges of climate change head on. …

Sixteen year-old Crista Ramos was in her high school Zoom class when her family got some stressful news: A federal court ruled in favor of ending the …

Suburbs are some of the most diverse spaces in America. It's one reason why — more and more — they’ve become the backdrop of tensions between police …

When KQED photojournalist Beth LaBerge woke up to orange skies in San Francisco Wednesday morning, she rushed out the door to document the extraordinary moment.

In a year with the coronavirus pandemic, racial justice …

The pandemic has set off a chain of events that will make this year’s election in California different from years past. For one, the state can’t bet …

Uncle Bobby Johnson, also known as the People’s Uncle, has been standing up to police brutality ever since his nephew Oscar Grant was shot by a BART …

For the last eight years, Uber and Lyft have successfully beaten state and local attempts to change its core labor model: treating drivers as …

Soon after the pandemic started and Californians began to lose their jobs, Gov. Gavin Newsom issued what he called an 'eviction moratorium' to …

Fire season doesn't have to be this bad. There are lots of things we can do to prevent more and more extreme wildfires.

It'll take a big shift in the way we do things. California has spent decades reacting to and …

California is low on firefighters at a really bad time. It’s partially because the state released thousands of incarcerated firefighters to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

But it’s also because this system of relying on …

Earlier this month, President Donald Trump issued an executive order that could ban WeChat, the popular Chinese messaging app, from operating in the …

Back in 2017, Quinn Jasmine Redwoods saw a long line of people at a food distribution center in Oakland. Nobody in line had a mask, even though the most deadly and destructive wildfires in Californian’s history were …

People across the state lost power with almost no warning over the weekend, and there’s a risk it could happen again soon. The California Independent …

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Jesus Guillen overheard a woman ask why those being held on the Grand Princess cruise ship docked at the …

A federal judge in San Francisco has ordered a privately-run immigrant detention center in Bakersfield to stop transferring people to the facility and to provide weekly COVID-19 tests to those inside. Now more than a …

Sen. Kamala Harris will be the first Black woman and person of Indian descent to run for Vice President on a major party ticket. Many Americans got to know her when she ran for president last year. But we here in the …

Many senior care homes in the Bay Area are in fire risk areas, according to a KQED investigation. These facilities are supposed to have emergency …

Almost all Bay Area schools are required to start the school year remotely to prevent the further spread of COVID-19 this fall. In response, many …

A secret clique of Vallejo police officers commemorate killings by bending the tips of their star-shaped badges — and the city’s top leaders did …

Last week, Congress questioned leaders of four of the largest tech companies in the world - Amazon, Facebook, Google and Apple - about just how much power they’ve gained over the years. Today, we're revisiting an …

Some doulas are seeing an uptick in business during the pandemic. Hospitals are limiting the number of people who can be present at births, and many …

From November of 2019 to January of 2020, two Black mothers occupied a vacant West Oakland property without permission from the company that owned the house, Southern California-based Wedgewood Properties.

Since then — …

On October 14 of last year, Native people from across the West Coast gathered in San Francisco for a ceremonial canoe journey to Alcatraz Island. Each canoe represented a territory, tribe, community or family. They …

Ashanti Branch started Ever Forward Club because he wanted the young men in his classroom to have what he didn't have as a student: a safe place to be themselves. After Ashanti gave them that, he saw them start to …

Jason Mai didn’t know why his father was taken to jail when he was 12 years old. As a kid growing up in the Bay Area, he was told by his Chinese …

We've produced more than 300 stories about the Bay Area. Today, we're taking a break from the headlines to revisit a show from March (before shelter in place orders) where we traveled to three of our favorite spots …

At one point in Vallejo, the city was paying so much money in salaries and pensions for its police and firefighters that the city went bankrupt. It’s …

In 2017, Vallejo Police shot and killed Alicia Saddler's brother, Angel Ramos, in their mother's backyard. What began as a family gathering was …

Before Sean Monterrosa was shot and killed by Vallejo police on June 2, VPD officers killed Willie McCoy. Police fired 55 shots into McCoy's vehicle …

Gig work is often marketed as 'flexible work.' But it's also precarious and unprotected work, and today gig workers are continuing to put themselves at risk because they struggle to earn the income they need to survive.

…

Many Americans are in deep debt. Household debt has reached an all time high at over $14 trillion. This means many workers have to do a lot more just …

Big companies spend more of their profits on enriching shareholders and executives than they do on increasing compensation for employees. Today, we …

Only 1 in 10 workers in America are part of a union. And for many people, having one would make it a lot easier to advocate for better pay and …

Tens of millions of people in the US are either out of a job or still working without meaningful protections, benefits, or wage increases. And if …

On Monday, we're airing the first in a special five-part series by KQED reporter Sam Harnett and editor Alan Montecillo. It digs into how workers in the US have lost benefits, power, and protections over the last few …

Tech companies in Silicon Valley are turning to Black employees and other workers of color to help them respond to Black Lives Matter protests …

New records obtained by KQED show local Bay Area hospitals have reported supply chain problems and the need for support and equipment from public agencies to deal with the coronavirus pandemic since January. Today, …

Within one week in June, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases at San Quentin State Prison grew more than 700 percent. Prison authorities have now reported that more than 500 incarcerated men have the virus, and that …

In Oakland, a city that’s seen school closures and a rapid rise in homelessness in recent years, the police budget takes up around 44% of the general …

Growing up, Sarah Mizes-Tan's father encouraged her to always stand up to anti-Asian racism whenever she saw it. That's because he had experienced discrimination in the U.S. since immigrating from Singapore as a kid. …

You can’t separate labor from the police violence and oppression that’s being called out this Juneteenth - the day that commemorates the end of …

In January, the Anti Police-Terror Project launched a community first responder program in Sacramento called Mental Health First. Throughout the …

Lisa Fagundes is a San Francisco librarian who also helps track and prevent the spread of COVID-19. As more Bay Area residents leave their homes, the state is hiring thousands of people like Lisa to contact people who …

There have been dozens of Bay Area cities protesting against police violence since the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Most of the protests …

Oakland Unified is the only school district in Alameda County with its own police force. And for nearly a decade, activists with the Black Organizing …

Vallejo Police killed another person of color last week. Sean Monterrosa of San Francisco was shot after police say they mistook a hammer for a gun.

…

Californian police officers are rarely disciplined, even internally, when they do something wrong. That's what KQED reporters have learned by looking …

On Jan. 1, 2009, Oscar Grant was shot and killed by a BART police officer. The killing was recorded and the video went viral.

There are so many other …

This past week has been a lot. Several Bay Area cities joined other communities across the country protesting the police shooting of George Floyd in …

Stacey Park Milbern was an expert at organizing people. A self-identifying queer disabled woman of color, Stacey organized to help her move from …

Since early 2019, 125 random Stockton residents have been receiving $500 a month to spend however they want. And while the final data hasn't been released yet, we're starting to learn a little more about how that money …

When Evelyn Legarte migrated from the Philippines to the Bay Area in 1980, she was part of a growing number of Filipinos that now make up nearly 20% of nurses in California. Many of them are on the front lines of the …

Ramadan is an important time for mosques to receive donations that help them operate throughout the year.

But fundraising is hard when people can't attend mosques to pray, be with people, and donate. While some Bay Area …

This time of year is a critical point in the run up to the November elections. Normally, campaigns would spend the next few months organizing …

More than half of confirmed COVID-19 deaths in California come from senior care homes. And for family members and workers at these facilities, the …

Around 1.2 million California students lack adequate access to the internet right now, despite the fact that public schools have moved classes …

Thanks to shelter-in-place orders, we car-lovin’ Californians are driving 75% less, according to one recent estimate from UC Davis. That's good for the environment in the short-term, but it's not a sustainable way to …

Pedro Archuleta and his mother, Connie Archuleta, have gotten closer since Pedro's incarceration in 2002.

But the COVID-19 pandemic has cast a shadow …

PG&E needs to reach a settlement agreement with nearly 70,000 survivors of the 2017 North Bay fires and the 2018 Camp Fire. The deal needs a two-thirds majority to pass and must be approved by May 15.

But the process …

This pandemic has upended the Bay Area’s restaurant industry. Huge numbers of people have been laid off, restaurants have closed, and the businesses that are still open are trying to make it work through delivery and …

An estimated 2 million Californians are undocumented. And whether they're essential workers or have recently lost employment, none of them are …

Brandon Lee is paralyzed from the chest down and recovering at his parent’s home in San Francisco’s Sunset District. Lee had been working as an environmental activist in the Philippines when he became what's believed to …

Leaders at the Bay Area's public transit agencies are dealing with a massive fiscal crisis that happened seemingly overnight.

Chinatown community leaders were taking steps to prepare for the coronavirus in early February.

For the kids of essential workers, saying goodbye to their parents each workday brings its own kind of stress.

Many artists are still making creative work. But without live events, they're still in big financial trouble.

Phyllis Lyon's activism throughout the years helped lay the groundwork for the LGBT rights movement to come.

Anyone can get sick from the coronavirus, but it's having an unequal impact on communities of color.

Jonathan Hirsch is one of many people worrying about a loved one in a Bay Area senior care home.

Hotel rooms, RVs, and other shelter spaces are being made available. But it's going to take a lot more to keep people experiencing homelessness safe from the coronavirus.

News outlets are considered 'essential' businesses. Here's how we're (still) bringing you stories.

The San Francisco Examiner and SF Weekly are cutting the pay and hours of their journalists by 40 percent.

How much help do you have right now if you can't make rent? It depends on where you live.

Courts are considered "essential," but it doesn't mean a jury trial is a safe place for people to gather right now.

Students may be taking online classes, but their extracurriculars have been canceled.

Jessica Christian wants to take photos of where the people are.

The new coronavirus is highlighting just how precarious life has been for many workers and contractors.

Religious communities are trying to stay connected while also staying safe from the coronavirus.

Seton Medical Center is in financial trouble. But closing the hospital could put many vulnerable people at risk.

Lots of workers, including gig workers, can't work from home to stay safe during the coronavirus outbreak.

Reported cases of the new coronavirus are increasing, and it's up to public health officials to try and figure out where those cases came from.

To celebrate The Bay turning two, the team went on a little field trip.

The AP called California for Bernie Sanders, but we won't know the full results for a while.

Most people don't volunteer for presidential campaigns. So we spoke to two volunteers, to learn about what led them to spend their free time helping …

Groundwater contamination has forced McClymonds High School in West Oakland to temporarily close.

Mountain View could make changes to its rent control policy on March 3. But no matter what happens, mobile home renters will continue to be left out …

Californians can now request their personal data from companies that have them. So KQED's Rachael Myrow tried it out.

Baseball on the radio is special to many longtime fans. So some of them aren't thrilled that the A's are dropping their local English-language broadcast.

Thousands of college graduates from Wuhan live in the Bay Area. Some of them have formed a non-profit to help their hometown fight the coronavirus.

Why protesters at Berkeley High School say they're fed up with how their school responds to allegations of sexual assault.

The building in Oakland now known as Uptown Station has a long history. And if you follow that history, you can see just how much the city has …

In 2010, San Francisco started selling taxi medallions. Now, some drivers are in so much debt that the stress causes physical pain.

SB 50 would have made big changes to the way housing in California gets built. So why did it fail?

What happens when food delivery apps add local restaurants without the owners' permission?

Even if you can afford to buy a home in the Bay Area, you might get outbid by an anonymous shell company paying cash.

The paper will print its final issue this Sunday, ending a 161-year run covering the county seat of Contra Costa.

Why has the "mass shooting" element of this tragedy been largely overlooked?

It's been one week since the Kincade Fire started in Sonoma County, but this time residents say the county is more prepared.

Willie McCoy had a hard childhood, but his dreams of making music professionally kept him alive until he was shot 55 times by Vallejo police in …

High rent. Long commutes. Expensive food. Childcare. Sea level rise. Gentrification. These are just some of the challenges of living in the Bay Area. …