Sara Rowley

About Sara Rowley

Sara is a proud resident of the Clinton/East Lake area of Oakland, where she enjoys her current gig as a stay-at-home mom. She grew up in Minnesota and Colorado before moving to the Bay Area in 2006. She has a background in art and worked as a graphic designer for many years. She feels her connection to the community is best held by exploring new places, asking people about their stories, and bearing witness to the changes surrounding us all.

There’s so much more to Oakland

March 18, 2015 Sara Rowley

Taking a tour of my own city isn’t something I’ve done before, but something everyone should do once in their life. I’m slowly piecing together the places, the people, the history of this fascinating city

The InterTribal Friendship House: A Tradition of Growing

February 20, 2015 Sara Rowley

It’s a sunny and clear Valentine’s Day morning, and young and old arrive at the InterTribal Friendship House (or IFH) to ready the community garden for spring. There are trays of seedlings that need to

Ericka Huggins: a Life in Learning

January 7, 2015 Sara Rowley

Ericka Huggins, the activist, educator, and poet, begins her class at Merritt College “The Black Panther Party: Strategies for Organizing the People” by having students gather their desks around in a circle. She reminds them

Her Resilience: Women in Control of their Own Image

December 9, 2014 Sara Rowley

Mural concept art by Nicole Gervacio Early in the morning on April 5th, 2014, the body of a young woman by the name of Kimberly Robertson was found, raped and beaten in Oakland’s F.M. Smith

Ferguson to Oakland, the 580 Shutdown

November 25, 2014 Sara Rowley

At 9:00, the approach to the 580 freeway on Lakeshore seemed almost quiet at first. But on Lake Park, a street that runs parallel to 580, a large group of about 200 people seemed to

The Long Campaign

November 12, 2014 Sara Rowley

Early on in the summer, I met mayoral candidate Joe Tuman, endorsed by the Oakland Tribune, at Love Our Lake Day. He spoke with me about after-school programs and the Oakland Police Department, and even

Tweets of the Oakland Mayoral Race: week in review

November 3, 2014 Sara Rowley

The Oakland mayoral race cannot be escaped these days. On the eve of the election, any politically-minded Oaklander’s feed is full of “@” mentions, #mayoral hashtags, and links to polls and studies of varying relevance.

Tweets of the Mayoral Race: Allen Temple Forum

October 31, 2014 Sara Rowley

The race to become Oakland’s next mayor is serious business with serious consequences for the people of East Oakland, who often face issues that only major city hall policy change can affect. As election day

Movement fair – staying healthy

October 29, 2014 Sara Rowley

Oakland Voices asks booth hosts at Tassafaronga Park’s Oakland Movement Festival: “What do you think is the biggest health issue facing our community today?”

Where the Kids Are

September 29, 2014 Sara Rowley

A few months ago, I took a group of neighborhood kids up to the end of our block to a big old oak tree. We slung a rope over a low-hanging branch, tied it, and