It started on MySpace. After losing a job, my best friend bought her first digital camera, a Sony Alpha. Despite it being brand new, I had an idea to do photography. Not just any photography, I wanted to showcase it on MySpace using models of different backgrounds and sizes. My photography would counter the imbalance of media that would make one think only one European-centered beauty mainly existed in the world. I’ve always lived in the Bay Area, so my photography would have represented the look, feel, and culture of the Bay Area.
Being supportive as always, my best friend let me use her camera when she was not using it, which was so often after a year of shooting, I got her a new camera because her new one was highly used. I had become a paid photographer, which helped me pay for my daughters’ extra needs.
It’s been 16 years since then. My curiosity got the best of me, with my will to show people different sides of current and past events. I am an editor and photojournalist who has documented Bay Area events and environmental changes to such a degree. Some say I have made history and changed the course of discourse.
Below is my best and most recent work to date. Below is my best and most recent work to date. To see all of my collective work as it’s updated, check out my collection on Authory.
Photojournalism
Preparing to pose for a picture, a young group of protesters protesting police on roller skates and skate boards pass by. Location, Frank Ogawa Plaza, Oakland, CA 
Artists gathered on every corner, claiming and covering every board covering businesses windows with murals of art dedicated to the Black Lives Matter movement in downtown Oakland on June 6. 
Taylor stand in front of a group gathered preparing to march. 
A protesters named Taylor spoke to an energized growing crowd as attendees chant “No justice no peace!” 
Protesters marched towards Oakland Police headquarters in downtown on Friday, May 29, 2020 in a national protest against police violence after the death of George Floyd. 
Protesters kneel with hands in the air in as police start to throw tear gas in their direction. 
Carroll Fife and Misty Cross 
Nikki Fortunato Bas and Dominique Walker 
Dominique Walker 
Dominique Walker at podium with the rest of moms 4 housing 
Supports of Moms 4 Houing hold a banner and stand in front of the home waiting for Alameda Sherriffs Department to evict them. 
Supporters paint banners to put on house after press conference 
Attendees boo and yell “shame” as Cat Brooks breaks down how few units at the MacAthur commons are considered affordable for families that make as much as $90,000 a year for 2-bedroom units. Accordning to Brooks, only 11 of the 385 units are for low-income charging $1400 a month for a studio and $1800 a month for a two-bedroom. Applicants who apply for the 11 units will be accepted by lottery. 
Young attendees hold a “evict the speculators!” sign in front of the MacArthur Commons 
A man holding a Poor People’s Campaign banner waves it in the air as one of the speakers spoke. 
Led by Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE) Action the rally and march included other organizations such as Moms 4 Housing, Sunrise movement, Poor People’s Campaign, Youth vs Apocalypse and Anti-Police Terror Project (APTP.) 
A woman with a Black Panther sweatshirt stops and records the truck full of speakers that led the march from Mosswood park . 
Youth from Poor Magazine looked at the crowd as they took turns speaking accross the street from three homes that became a stopping point for more speakers. According to Cat Brooks the three homes will be torn down to make room for another market rate housing development. 
Drone footage of BBQn While Black from Classic8Media, all rights reserved. 
Editorial Skills
(2020) Follow-up Story from Restorative Justice to Entertainment:
Restorative justice has been a fascinating subject I have wanted to study further, and I hope to help create a public discussion.
In 2020 when I was the Associate Editor for Post News Group in Oakland, California, I wrote an article referencing another I had copywritten for The Citizen, Laney College’s brand-new online digital news publication. I had worked closely with the writer on The Citizen article when I was editor-in-chief during my last semester in news writing at Laney. I saw the subject of the article featured in America’s Got Talent Semi-finals.
From Solitary Confinement to the Stage Singer Archie Williams Creates a New Life
(2020) George Floyd Protest collaboration: When the George Floyd protests started in Oakland in the summer of 2020, I worked with another writer/photographer to cover three days of protests. Some pictures were mine. I edited the story and added embedded social media. The format could be better. At the time, we were currently moving over the hosting and changing the format to modernize their digital content.
Three days of protest spark mixed reactions — Oaklanders question who is behind the destruction.
(2022) Freelance Editor for Post News Groups student intern program:
For one semester in Spring 2022, I was a freelance editor for Post News Group, guiding journalism students in a new pilot program partnered with the Oakland School of the Arts. I had previously suggested the idea of bringing in student interns so we could build relationships with local aspiring journalism students.
Articles are written by an Oakland School of the Arts high school student for the Post News Group student intern program:
Digital Stories
(2020) Moms4Housing: This Moms 4 Housing article caught the attention of many in the National Newspaper Publishers Association. Shortly after posting this article, the story about Moms 4 Housing started to go viral nationwide in many publications, and at the same time, the NNPA was having a conference. Post News Group’s publisher Paul Cobb said everyone was talking about the story. He thought I was innovative and decided to hire me at that moment.
Moms 4 Housing Evicted from Vacant Home by Deputies After Verdict Favored Owners
(2020) Black Panther Legacy Keepers: Example of a featured profile story and interview with former Black Panther and Lumpen band member Saturu Ned (formally James Mott).
Legacy Keepers Bridge Gap Between Black Panthers and BLM
(2020) Downtown Oakland Protest Follow-up Story: After seeing a post on Facebook about a restaurant owner in downtown Oakland complaining about vandalism following protests, I interviewed the store owner to follow up in the aftermath of the protests.
Restauranteur: Vandalism Undermines Black Lives Matter Message
(2019) TEDx Talk Event: Covering a Ted Talk event at Laney College on technology, social issues, and social equity. There is an example of using someone’s proper pronouns, “They/Them.”
Talking Tech, Social Issues, and Social Equity: TEDx Oakland Comes to Laney
Timely Stories
(2020) Residential Debate: I watched the presidential debate in 2020, pulled screenshots, included embedded social media coverage, and wrote a timely story in one day so it could all be ready for print and digitally published the next day.
First Presidential Debate Neglected Issues as Trump Refused to Denounce White Supremacy
(2020) Red Sky: I wrote and posted this story on the fly one day when I woke up to the sky being read in Oakland, California due to Northern fires. I added a lot of commentary from social media for reference to give a visual conversation to the readers.
Eerie Apocalyptic Sky in Bay Area Raises Concerns for Residents
Solidarity
(2021) Anti-Asian Hate Rises and Right-Wing Propaganda against Black people in Oakland: This story collaborates with Left Coast Right Watch. In 2017 I met the founder of the site, Abner Häuge. We often ran into each at right-wing rallies documenting the violence that arose. When I discovered a well-known white nationalist was using news media regarding anti-Asian attacks in Oakland to create hateful propaganda against Black people, Abner asked me to write about it and even paid me; that’s saying something for a small org of journalists writing about extremism.
GROYPER PROPAGANDIST USES OAKLAND’S ANTI-ASIAN ATTACKS TO PUSH HATRED OF BLACK PEOPLE
Entertainment and Arts
(2016) Too Short Interview (Clip 1 of 4): When I co-owned DopeEraMagazine.com I was the camera person, editor, and publisher for this interview with Too Short and Mistah Fab. There was once a lot of digital content for this publication. Unfortunately, when I left, they changed hosting and completely removed all previous content, so the only thing left to show was on YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook, which I had managed.
Too Short Stories of Jay Z, Tupac & Biggie – Dope Era Magazine Exclusive
(2018) Park Jame at OMCA featuring Daveed Diggs:
(2018) RESPECT: hip-hop Style & Wisdom: This was one of my favorite articles; my first real interview was with the local infamous Hip Hop DJ Davey D.
OMCA exhibit highlights history of hip-hop
(2018) Dia De Los Muertos at OMCA: The Laney Tower covered a lot of events at The Oakland Museum of California; one was for Dia De Los Muertos. I did photography for this event and brought along another new photojournalism student to give them some guidance. Our print designer used one of the pictures for the cover—an example of working with the other staff in putting together a story.
Cover: https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/1QB_dC9VgsgMNoMwJg4NA2aumeQdBOCjC
Noted National Stories
(2017) Frontline PBS Emmy Award Winning Documentary “Documenting Hate: Charlottesville”: On April 15, 2017, I video recorded a violent “Free speech” rally organized by hate groups across the country. I did this to prove they were antagonizing locals and creating violence despite their claims they were just there for free speech. About 8 seconds of my footage was later used for the documentary. The producer said my footage helped identify R.A.M. members who were later arrested for their involvement at the violent “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, VA, on Aug. 12, 2017.
The footage is seen at TS 19:09 to 19:13 and 28:55 to 29:11 (identifying moment)
(2018) “BBQ Becky” inspires thousands of Karen videos and memes: On April 28, 2018, I received a text that a woman was harassing my husband at the time and his friend at Lake Merritt in Oakland. I filmed the incident, thinking she would give up, but I soon found out she had already been there for 2 hours and was intent on behaving like a victim to remove the two men for BBQing forcibly. Many journalists today follow me on Twitter and Facebook because they say I made history. It was my first semester as a journalism student; they supported me as an upcoming journalist. Producers from major publications and networks still follow my work.
