Often in the Town, culture and art collide in many different ways. One way we see this is the hundreds of murals that line brick walls all throughout the city. Recently, Oakland Tech has announced that alongside the “Love Letter to Oakland” mural project, a city-wide initiative looking to represent Oakland’s vibrant culture on walls around the city, a mural celebrating Oakland Tech’s past, present, and future impact will be painted by September of this year.
The director of the Love Letter to Oakland project, David Burke, may also be known for the Love Letters work from the mural on the corner of 4th Street & Oak Street, which features recent Tech alum Samuel Getachew, and the mural on Shattuck, which features the late Oakland Symphony conductor Michael Morgan.
David explained that the goal of this new mural was to highlight the impact that Oakland Tech and its alumni have had on Oakland, the Bay Area, and the nation. He also continued by saying that not only should past icons be honored in this mural but also students at Tech right now, whose impact goes beyond our school walls, are planned to be included in it. David says that a major message he wants the mural to celebrate not only Tech’s past but as well as the history being made in the present.
The mural has three proposed locations: the portables facing the Football Field, the classrooms behind the bleachers, and the portables facing the Boys Gym. To encourage students to actively participate in the creation of the mural, a survey was sent out to gather opinions on not only the mural’s location but also who they wanted included in it. This survey included two categories for students to vote on. The first category, which included notable names like Dr. Gray-Lawson, Marshawn Lynch, and Huey P. Newton, was aimed at alumni over 30 years old to be included on the mural. The second category, aimed at alumni under 30 included recent graduates such as former valedictorian Ahmed Muhammad and girls basketball star Jhai Johnson in a list of people who might potentially be included in the mural.
Not only is student preference being taken into account through this survey, but Oakland Tech students will be an important part of bringing the mural to life. The mural, which will be worked on during the start of the next academic year, will enlist the help of student artists. Burke hopes this will be an opportunity for students to learn more about the mural-making process and gain valuable experience working on a project of this scale.
Giving students the opportunity to work on a mural that is celebrating their accomplishments helps pave the way for future students who will see it every day on campus to write the next chapter of history at Oakland Tech. Being part of this city-wide mural initiative through the “Love Letter To Oakland” campaign is a testament to the rich culture that Oakland has and continues to bring to the community around us. To help amplify student voice, students are asked to complete this survey from the QR code below:
