The struggles of single fathers in the Bay Area, documented by the Investigative Unit, is now part of Oakland’s documented history.
The African American Museum & Library at Oakland reached out to NBC Bay Area about adding the new organization’s five-part investigative series No Man’s Land: Fighting for Fatherhood in a Broken System to its collection of work. As of this week, a DVD of the project is officially part of the museum and available to students, researchers, and the public.
Branch Manager Donielle Wood said it’s the library’s mission to preserve the stories of the African American experience in the Bay Area, both past and the present.
“Because I thought the story was very powerful because it focused on African American men here in the Bay Area. And I feel it’s very important as an institution to collect the African American experience in real time,” she said.
In 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 shutdown, the Investigative Unit started following the journey of Mike Duarte and his daughter Danielle. Mike described being evicted, kicked out of homeless shelters, and denied childcare services – all while navigating his sudden new reality as a single father.
Over the course of 10 month, the investigative team led by Investigative Reporter Candice Nguyen, uncovered systemic housing and emergency services barriers that disproportionately impact single fathers and their families. Alongside Investigative Producer Robert Campos and Chief Photographer Mark Villarreal, Nguyen held public officials accountable for a complex web of anti-male biases, racism and outdated rules that often shut these fathers out.
The reporting prompted policy changes in multiple Bay Area cities and went on to win a national Peabody Award.
“I was like, wow, single fathers – especially if they’re below a certain economic threshold – they do not have the resources available to them especially compared to their female counterparts,” Wood said. “I really wanted to preserve their stories. I don’t want other young men who may become fathers in the future to have to go through that.”
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The African American Museum and Library at Oakland is a branch of the Oakland Library. Check out their website or visit their location at 659 14th Street, Oakland CA 94612.
To watch No Man’s Land, go to www.nbcbayarea.com/nomansland.
