In the diverse community of Oakland a person is bound to hear a voice, one that is so passionate about making sure the voices of minorities are heard. That distinctive voice belongs to Kamika Dunlap, a 28-year-old journalist who has dedicated her life to doing what she loves: writing.

Dunlap is of mixed African-American and Asian backgrounds. Being a biracial individual gives her all the more reason to want to help turn up the volume of these muted voices.

Dunlap has been interested in journalism since she was 16. Part of why she grew into an excellent journalist was because she participated in BAMMA, the Bay Area Multicultural Media Academy at SF State. During the program, high school students from all over the Bay Area live in campus dorms, take journalism classes and produce a newspaper.

“The program was life changing,” Dunlap said. “When the program ended I knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life writing. It was a very positive experience.”

Dunlap said her best experience in BAMMA was writing her first story and seeing her name in print. She said there was no other feeling like that.

“It made me proud that I could accomplish that,” she said.

The most difficult part of BAMMA for Dunlap was the social aspect because it was the first time she had been away from home. However, the friendships she made had a long-lasting impact.

“It’s really about making lifelong bonds and friendships with people. People who I met 12 years ago (when I graduated), I’m still in contact with today,” said Dunlap.

Dunlap also said BAMMA helped her with her career because it gave her confidence and determination and put her on the right track toward mapping out her goals. If someone were looking for a possible future career in journalism, Dunlap said BAMMA would be a very helpful resource.

“The biggest purpose BAMMA serves is giving young minority students an opportunity to realize their dreams,” she said.

Dunlap currently works for the Oakland Tribune, a job she greatly enjoys.

“I was made for this job," said Dunlap. "There are so many untold stories.”
Dunlap said she has become more and more passionate about making sure there are positive images of minorities in the news.

“All you seem to see in the news today is what trouble they’re getting into,” she said.

She said many people perceive Oakland to be a crime-infested city and have a lot of unchanging ideas about the kind of people who live there. But, according to Dunlap, only pockets of the city have crime. Dunlap said in order to tell the untold stories of Oakland, she had to get to know her community and this required improving her interview skills.

“When I was first starting out I had to learn not to be afraid to ask questions, even when I thought they didn’t make sense," said Dunlap. "I had to improve my social skills. People say, ‘You’re only as good as your last story,’ but I’ve learned no matter what I’m still good. I still believe in myself.”

The advice she has for future BAMMA students is to “stay true to their passion and dreams no matter what.”

Dunlap’s plans for the future are to continue journalism, to climb the ranks of management and to try to become an editor. Ultimately what got her to where she is today is “just trusting that the universe would help me be where I needed to be.”