We investigated how Oakland residents define and experience safety and wellbeing in their daily lives. Collaborating with the Possibility Lab at UC Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy and six community organizations Building Opportunities for Self-Sufficiency, Center for Empowering Refugees and Immigrants, Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice, MISSSEY, TRYBE, The Unity Council, The Oakland Department of Violence Prevention and its Community Engagement Team. we engaged over 500 Oakland residents. Using an adapted EPI approach, the Firsthand Framework for Policy Innovation, we conducted 33 focus groups and town halls across nine communities. Residents were asked questions such as, “What does safety—or the lack of safety—look like here?” and “What are signs of community thriving or challenges?”
By listening to and understanding community members’ lived experiences, we gain deeper insights into what safety means in their daily lives. Our research identified nearly 600 firsthand indicators of community safety. Residents shared signs of both safety and its absence, such as “Hearing birds in the neighborhood instead of helicopters” and “Young people having mentors to guide them.”
To broaden the impact of the Firsthand Framework in Oakland, we initiated a visual narrative project. Our Photovoice team collaborated with 22 youth deeply affected by violence, capturing their perspectives through photos and narratives focused on specific indicators relevant to their experiences.
Our findings underscore the necessity for a comprehensive approach to public safety that goes beyond traditional criminal justice policies. Oakland residents perceive safety in multiple dimensions, including governance, violence reduction, environmental factors, economic stability, health, youth support, and community cohesion. By addressing all these dimensions, public safety reforms can more adequately reflect the community’s perspectives of safety.
