Alastair Boone

For unhoused people, "street names" are monikers — chosen or assigned — that often take the place of the names they were assigned as children. But what are the stories behind these names, and what purpose do they serve?

As encampment management policies become stricter all over the Bay Area, unhoused people are using the courts to fight back. Here, the story of one man's fight to stay in his RV shines a light on what's at stake for the future of lawsuits like his.

The Albany bulb is a beloved fixture of the East Bay shoreline. People visit for kite flying, dog walking and the culture of renegade art making. Today, we go out to the bulb with some former inhabitants to hear their story of a community that made the bulb a home.

Kevin Fagan, is an award-winning journalist, with over 40 years covering homelessness and poverty. Kevin is recently retired from the San Francisco Chronicle, and has tapped into his reporting experience to write a novel called “The Lost and the Found.”

To understand the lived challenges and real solutions unhoused people and their advocates are working for, KALW recently hosted a live panel as part of our Bay Agenda series.

For trans people experiencing homelessness, accessing gender affirming resources can be a challenge. This is the second installment of Sidewalk Stories.

Down by the train tracks in West Berkeley, a group of RVs and tents line the intersection of Second and Cedar Streets. But, like lots of encampments in the Bay Area, it probably won’t be around for long: the City of Berkeley plans to close it down soon, and they got special funding from the state to do it.

We’re introducing a new series called Sidewalk Stories, a collaboration between Crosscurrents and the East Bay’s Street Spirit newspaper where we hear from unhoused people about how they survive and build a life outside.

Section 8 is a federally funded program that provides financial assistance to low-income renters. And for the first time in 14 years, Oakland’s housing authority is accepting applications.

Homeless Californians have the right to vote, but many don't make it to the polls. We surveyed 100 unhoused East Bay residents about what prevents them from casting their ballots.