The Bay

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 part interrupted some of the work that had been trying to prevent gun violence.In Oakland, community groups and the city’s Department of Violence Prevention (DVP) say it's going to take creative thinking to solve this problem — and that includes investing in arts and culture. Starting Friday and through July, DVP is bringing back Town Nights, a series of arts and culture events around Oakland that provide resources and positive social outlets. So why do some of the city’s leading gun violence prevention groups say this programming is effective at stopping gun violence? The Bay revisits this question in an episode featuring Nastia Voynovskaya, KQED associate editor of arts and culture. Episode transcript Links:Town Nights events for Summer 2023This episode first published October 10, 2022. It was produced by Maria Esquinca, Alan Montecillo, Alexander Gonzalez and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevarra Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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 similar roles to cops, armed security guards are not public employees but often low-paid civilians with few protections when they kill someone on the job, and they don’t get proper training on things like use of force or de-escalation either.That’s all supposed to change after the 2019 killing of a man by a security officer in Sacramento, which led to a bill meant to increase the state training standards for security guards.Episode transcriptGuest: Marisa Lagos, a politics correspondent for KQED and co-host of the political breakdown podcast. Links: ‘A Tragedy of San Francisco’s Marking’: The Killing of Banko Brown They Carry Weapons. So Why Don’t Security Guards Have to get Use-of-Force Training?  This episode was produced by Alexander Gonzales, Jehlen Herdman, Maria Esquinca, and Ericka Cruz Guevarra, and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevarra Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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 them stay active during the pandemic and find community. Today on the Bay: a field trip to Bushrod Park, the heart of Oakland’s pickleball scene, to see what all the hype is about. Episode transcriptGuest: Alix Wall, Freelance writer, Darlene Vendegna, Oakland’s USA Pickleball Association AmbassadorLinks: A look inside Oakland’s booming pickleball sceneThis episode was produced by Maria Esquinca and Jehlen Herdman. Molly Solomon guest edited. Ericka Cruz Guevarra is the host. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So much of life is online these days, but barriers to internet access remain, especially for folks who are unhoused. Resources at public libraries, like free Wi-Fi, are aiming to fill that gap. A 2022 study by the American Library Association found that 93 percent of libraries provide or plan to provide Wi-Fi 24 hours a day because of the high demand for internet.But San Francisco’s Eureka Valley/Harvey Milk Memorial Branch Library has moved in the opposite direction after neighbors raised concerns about homelessness, crime, and open air drug use outside of the library. Mounting public pressure prompted the Harvey Milk Library to shut off Wi-Fi after hours to try and deter homelessness in the area. So is it working?Guest: Sydney Johnson, digital reporter for KQED Episode transcriptLinks: What Happens When Libraries Stop Sharing Wi-Fi? This episode was produced by Jehlen Herdman, Maria Esquinca, Molly Solomon, and Ericka Cruz Guevarra, and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevarra Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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 have been seen around the world.Some argue publishing pictures and videos of people experiencing addiction is dehumanizing and has long-term effects that follow them for the rest of their lives. Others argue the images raise awareness and showcase the reality of San Francisco’s overdose epidemic. Episode transcriptThis episode originally aired on Dec. 9 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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 backgrounds have been speaking up — including in Silicon Valley, home to thousands of workers of South Asian descent, where allegations of caste discrimination have hung over some of the area’s largest tech companies. Now, a bill has been introduced to ban caste discrimination in California. And it has sparked heated arguments within South Asian communities.Episode transcriptGuest: Sonia Paul, freelance journalistLinks: LISTEN: The hidden caste codes of Silicon Valley READ: Trapped in Silicon Valley’s Hidden Caste System The audio used in this episode with Professor Anupama Rao originally aired in The Agenda With Steve Paikin. This episode was produced by Alan Montecillo and Maria Esquinca. Jehlen Herdman is our intern. Ericka Cruz Guevarra is the host.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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 signed two statewide laws hoping to address the problem, which has caused big headaches for car owners. When people lose their catalytic converters, they sometimes have to go months without a car, and are often on the hook for thousands of dollars in costs. Episode transcriptGuest:  Jose Fermoso, road safety reporter for The OaklandsideThis episode first published Oct. 22, 2022. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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 California will have to implement by next year, focuses on steering people suffering from severe psychosis, such as schizophrenia, and addiction into treatment. It will allow first responders, family members, clinicians and others to ask a judge to order treatment plans for unhoused people with severe psychotic disorders.San Francisco is gearing up to launch this program by Oct. 1. So can CARE Court actually deliver what the governor promises?Episode transcriptGuest: Scott Shafer, senior editor of KQED’s Politics and Government DeskThis episode was produced by Alan Montecillo and Maria Esquinca. Ericka Cruz Guevarra is the host. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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, Spanish colonizers forcibly removed the tribe from Juristac, and currently, the land is owned by a private firm that has proposed a plan to develop a mine onsite. For the last 7 years, the tribal band, with support from many residents and local officials, has organized to block the project. They want the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors to deny the mining permit from being approved. In this episode from Rightnowish’s “From the Soil” series, producer Marisol Medina-Cadena, speaks to Valentin Lopez, Chairman of the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band. Episode transcriptThis episode originally aired on Feb. 9   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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 announce plans to leave Oakland. And earlier this week, the A’s made a significant step towards a future in Las Vegas, as Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo announced a tentative agreement with the A's over public funding for a new A’s ballpark on the Las Vegas strip.These days, the Oakland Coliseum feels pretty empty, save for some of the die-hard fans who want the team owner to know one thing: that the A’s are nothing without Oakland.Today, we speak with KQED producer and A’s superfan and drummer Nina Thorsen about the latest news, and the heartbreak of being an A’s fan right now. Episode transcriptLinks:The Bay Survey Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices