San Francisco Magazine‘s newest edition is entirely devoted to Oakland. But it’s not the first time San Francisco Magazine‘s paid so much attention to Oakland, and its take tends to be very anglo-saxon, er, white.
It’s not the first time San Francisco Magazine has done this, and I was there for the birth of the SF publication’s interest in what was once called “chocolate city” and is a sign that Oakland can’t be called that any more.
It was at this party at Luka’s Taproom in Oakland, on video from Zennie62 at YouTube.com, and, in October of 2007. In fact, then-editor Bruce Kelley, basically let it slip that he felt more comfortable as a white person visiting Oakland than he thought he would:
2007 was part of a point in time where the impact of then-Mayor and now Governor Jerry Brown’s “10 K” program took effect, as market rate housing, coupled with rising housing prices in San Francisco, and the overall feeling that Oakland was, for white people who didn’t live here at the time, the undiscovered gem.
Thats why I use the photo of Jerry talking to the media. The Governor, who once lived in San Francisco, paved the way for the migration of SF whites to Oakland. First, by moving here, second by becoming Oakland’s high-profile mayor, and third, by building market-rate housing.
The resulting change is a by-product of Oakland focusing on housing development, but not on manufacturing jobs. It’s those low-skill, but well-paying positions that draw more blacks and other minorities than many bio-tech jobs. The political message has been one of “retraining” which is another way of saying ‘there’s something wrong with you if you don’t fit the demographic, so fix yourself.’
Not a traditionally Oakland message.
Now, we are in the process of making two Oakland’s: one for white hipsters (or those who aspire to be that) and the other for blacks and Latinos and Asians and those whites who can’t stand hipsters.
Of course, that’s hyperbole to a degree, but it’s the message San Francisco Magazine sends out.
And I know this point of view pisses off some people, and to that I say “good.” What makes a city is its people, and we have to pay attention to how we push certain people out of it.
I should also remind all that, of all of the Oakland bloggers over the past 10 years, I’m the only one of less than a handfull of blogs and bloggers still at it.
Stay tuned.
Zennie Abraham | Zennie Abraham or “Zennie62” is the founder of Zennie62Media which consists of zennie62blog.com and a multimedia blog news aggregator and video network, and 78-blog network, with social media and content development services and consulting. Zennie is a pioneer video blogger, YouTube Partner, social media practitioner, game developer, and pundit. Note: news aggregator content does not reflect the personal views of Mr. Abraham.