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Best Model Citizen: Leon ‘DNas’ Sykes
DNas: "In order for us to make sure we're going somewhere, we have to remember our past."
Credits: Portrait by Sam Zide
Leon Sykes II is as Oakland as it gets. He once transcribed Black...
Best Young OG: Pendarvis Harshaw
Pendarvis Harshaw, the young OG.
Credits: Portrait by Sam Zide
Some boys dream of becoming a fireman. Or a doctor, a lawyer, or even the president. Pendarvis Harshaw only wanted to become one...
Best QTPOC Performance-Activist and Status Quo Challenger: Devi K
Community organizer turned performance-activist Devi K traded in their megaphone for a microphone about seven years ago and hasn’t looked back since.
After realizing that they could help fight transphobia by delivering messages that challenged audiences onstage, K...
Best Platform to Amplify Under-Represented Voices: The team at Paulson Fontaine Press
Pam Paulson (right, shown here with Rhea Fontaine)
Credits: Portrait by Taliesin Gilkes-Bower
When I poke my head under the roll-up door of Paulson Fontaine Press on a Saturday afternoon in July, the...
Best Garden Whiz and Butterfly Savior: Victoria ‘Tora’ Rocha
Victoria "Tora" Rocha: “I believe in showing your passion."
Credits: Portrait by Sam Zide
Victoria “Tora” Rocha may now be known for her gardening prowess, but her 36-year career with the Oakland city government started in a much...
Best Fade: Shevelle ‘Shevy’ Mitchell
Barber Shevelle "Shevy" Mitchell's been cutting hair since he was a teen.
Credits: Portrait by Taliesin Gilkes-Bower
My recent interview with talented East Bay barber Shevelle “Shevy” Mitchell wasn’t the first I’ve conducted with someone holding...
Best Hope to Preserve Pre-Legalization Cannabis Culture: Chip Moore
Alex de Man was reviewing her notes. She and her business partner, Chip Moore, had come to a meeting of the West Oakland Neighbors to share plans for expanding their cannabis delivery service, 4&20 Blackbirds, into a...
