Erica Bonavida brings color and texture to Oklahoma City Hall. The artist was hired in February to serve as City Hall’s first artist-in-residence. Bonavida finds art fulfilling, but there was a time when she avoided the subject altogether. An admitted perfectionist, she said she struggled when she was younger to understand why she would create […]
Miguel Rios
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Proud community
Oklahoma City Pride Alliance was formed by former 39th Street District director Lauren Zuniga to take the reins of Pride festivities. Officials said the new organization’s structure is set up to be sustainable and scalable. 39th Street District Association was set to host Pride this year while OKC Pride Inc. continues to reconfigure following a […]
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Strong foundation
Freshman congresswoman Kendra Horn completed her first 100 days in Congress boasting support for bipartisan legislation and community outreach. Though she has raised more than $370,000 since January and outpaced fellow Oklahoma congressmen, she continues to prioritize “common sense” legislation. “That is separate from the work I have been doing as a member of Congress,” […]
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Hate history
Oklahoma residents woke up to find racist, neo-Nazi, white nationalist graffiti twice in the last month. Additionally, posters and stickers of a “white identity” organization have been found — and removed — from various parts of the state, particularly at universities and high-traffic locations. But extreme far-right ideologies are nothing new, and they are actually […]
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One OKC
One of the newest city council members is making history and giving a voice to people who have gone without representation at the city level. Ward 2 councilman James Cooper is the first openly gay member of the council, first biracial representative, first black representative outside Ward 7 and the first teacher on the council […]
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Child care
April has been Child Abuse Prevention Month since the ’80s, but state and city leaders are making it a point to support the designation. Mayor David Holt and Gov. Kevin Stitt each issued proclamations about child abuse prevention recently. “Because of all the attention that’s been given to this, not just nationwide but statewide, more […]
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Comet city
Principals Scot McAdoo and Chris Thomas are working together to help merge Classen School of Advanced Studies with Northeast Academy (NEA), but some feel it will not be equitable. The merge is part of Pathway to Greatness, a plan to improve equity and efficiency at Oklahoma City Public Schools (OKCPS). The current Classen building, 1901 […]
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Figures of speech
Sen. Julie Daniels, R-Bartlesville, and Rep. Mark Lepak, R-Claremore, have coauthored Senate Bill 361, which protects “any lawful verbal, written, audio-visual or electronic means by which individuals may communicate ideas to one another.” Both lawmakers were invited to the White House by President Donald Trump because of their work on the bill. Many critics have […]
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High impact
Impact Oklahoma annual meeting April 25 Will Rogers Theatre 4322 N. Western Ave. impactok.org Free Impact Oklahoma has given more than 40 grants in 13 years, and the membership is now preparing to choose this year’s beneficiaries. The organization, a network of women who aim to make the “community stronger and better for everyone,” pools […]
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Shoulders of giants
James Cooper and JoBeth Hamon are anxious and excited to take their city council seats April 9. After winning their respective elections without a runoff, Ward 2’s Cooper and Ward 6’s Hamon have had time to participate in forums and orientation meetings. “My campaign manager kept telling me, ‘We won; no runoff.’ And I was […]