I Never Thought It Would Happen ("My Favorite Things" Edition)

-A liberal realist president
-A black president
-An articulate president
-A president with an intelligent sense of humor
-A strong, inviting First Lady
-The end of Bush's reign of terror
-A return to a focus on service and social equality
-The opening of honest conversations on race and racism
-The hope of peace
-The death knell of Neo-Conservatism
-A brighter outlook for my little brother, my nephew, and my future kids

These are a few of my favorite things!

I am so inspired today to make positive changes in my own life to live up to the standards our new president has set in the realm of dignity, honor, courage and tenacity. The success of his struggle and the outcome of his hard work and humility make me want to be a better person and work even harder to make my corner of the world better. We all need to acknowledge our responsibility to lift each other up and ensure that every person no matter their age, race, gender, nationality, or socioeconomic class has the same opportunities to life, health and education. And now, we might just have an administration who will back us up in those goals.

Good morning, friends. Open your eyes to a new, beautiful day for America and the possibilities therein.

Post-Rally Pondering

Tonight's rally to bring justice to Oscar Grant and all others lost to police brutality was moving and gave me a lot to think about. Most important to note was the joy, hope and determination felt with the knowledge that the officer involved was apprehended in Nevada earlier in the day. I will continue to keep you posted as things develop, but for now, I leave you with my favorite images of the evening.

It's hard to convey the magnitude of people in attendance. Early estimates suggest close to 500 attendees around Frank Ogawa Square.

The place was crawling with media, but the faces of the community shone through.

A sea of signs, cameras and consternation

Even the youngest participated in the "Lay In," nearly 100 people laying face-down, emulating Oscar Grant, chanting "Please don't shoot," while the names of victims of police brutality were read off along with Oscar Grant.

An event organizer calling for donations to support Oscar Grant's family.

The rally marched from city hall to the courthouse to listen to a rousing speech by Keith Muhammad, a minister with the Nation of Islam.

Protesters push back to City Hall after making the rounds of the march.

A handful of assholes decided to directly defy calls from organizers and the Grant family by following the peaceful, positive rally with further violent action against local businesses. It is appalling that they continue to appropriate Oscar Grant's memory and the energy of this positive moment to fulfill their own misdirected need for destruction. Shame on them and shame on the local media for ALREADY equating these miscreants with the movement and giving them more coverage than the rally itself. For once, I'm really glad I am not with a mainstream media outlet where in I would be forced to cover that insanity. Fuck sensationalism and fuck needless violence.

An Update on the Quest for Justice

Well, I said I'd update with news and images if situations presented themselves, but things have been oddly quiet since the mayhem of the other night, on account of the city's response being swift and appropriate. The people were heard; the violence has ceased; the authorities have made the first step in doing the right thing. If that's not news, I don't know what is. The BART authorities have publicly apologized and the Oakland PD have now opened up the shooting as an external, criminal investigation, instead of permitting the BART authorities the opacity they are so used to enjoying. I'd make a wager that the officer involved will not walk away without an involuntary manslaughter-criminal negligence charge, as it should be. The authorities are also seriously considering developing a community oversight committee which would be lead by members of the public to be a much-needed check on the historically trigger-happy group of bullies that are the BART police.

All of this positive response begs the question, would it have happened without the violence? Would the movement have been taken seriously if they had merely stood at the BART stations handing out fliers, blocking the entrances and singing Kum-bi-ya? Sadly, I doubt it. The violence against private citizens and the damage to local businesses has been roundly decried by both the community and the original rally organizers. I wonder, though, if the city's unexpectedly swift, appropriate response is evident of a real change of heart, or rather a knee jerk move to shut everyone up and prevent a second wave of chaos, a move that just so happened to be the right thing.

As unfortunate as the violence truly was, I think that it ended up being necessary for justice to be served and accountability to be shown on the part of the BART authorities. Without the fear of further political and social unrest, I believe the movement would have gone the way of the Berkeley tree sitters: irritating, but ultimately unheard. The peaceful protests, nonviolent dissent, and sit-ins of the civil rights movement don't do jack squat in our society anymore, and that's a real shame. That speaks to the deep lack of respect our government has for its people. Our traditional lack of long-term memory as a culture has convinced our overlords that if they ignore us, our passion will fizzle out and we will go away. Our apathy has proven to them that they don't need to listen to us unless we're really going to mess things up. They can ignorance a nuisance; they can't ignore a riot, which means it takes nothing short of a riot to be taken seriously these days. What a sad, sad state of affairs.

We hope for peace in Gaza, at the same time we responded to violence on our country with magnitudes more intense violence on Afghanistan and Iraq. Our mouths say, "Live and let live," while we support widescale displacement of peoples in Gaza. We try to teach our kids that violence and fighting don't solve anything, but the overwhelming message sent by the authorities' response to calls for peace and transparency are deaf ears and blind eyes. Would we hear the plight of the Palestinians without Hamas' mortars? Would there be a criminal investigation into the shooting of Oscar Grant without Wednesday night's riot?

I think you know the answer.

Calm Like a Bomb

Today was a peaceful breath, the calm before what is expected to be part two of last night's dangerous riot. Last night a peaceful protest turned into an ugly, dangerous riot that has caused upwards of $500,000 of damage to private property in the neighborhood where I live. The people of this city are furious at the shooting death of a 22 year old father of two by a police officer with the Bay Area Rapid Transit System (BART). The officer, who claims to have been reaching for his taser, but instead grabbed his gun, shot and killed the young man when he was already laying face down on the ground, apprehended. The protest was to bring the public transportation system to a halt to force awareness and bring about justice for the victim. What followed was a terrifying scene reminiscent of a war zone. Cars on fire, looting, SWAT teams, riot police, tear gas, explosions, at least 12 helicopters circling with search lamps for 5 hours. It's the most bizarre thing I've ever seen, a sea of people roaming in the streets, breaking into cars and store fronts, halting traffic; fearless brutes lurching and devouring cars like so many insects stripping a carcass and moving on.

Who is to blame for this scene? The angry, seething masses grasping to be heard? The police officer who pulled his gun when he meant to pull his taser? The economy? The history of police brutality in this area? This city is a powder keg. Racial tensions, economic strife, a culture of turf violence; it is hardly surprising that the response to white cop on black youth violence would quickly turn to into this.

As much as I wish I would have gotten some photos of last night's insanity, when the burning cars began to explode down the block from my apartment, I decided to stay inside. I'm glad I did. Talking to a San Francisco Chronicle photog this afternoon, I was informed that the handful of media journalists who were on hand during the riot did not fare well. Most of them received damage to their equipment and one journalist ended up being beaten for taking video coverage. Yep, glad I kept me and my uninsured equipment at home.

This afternoon I roamed around my neighborhood taking pictures of the aftermath and talking to people waiting around for something to happen outside of the BART offices, 3 blocks from my home. In my neighborhood, there were 200 police officers stationed just waiting for something to happen. Here is a very detailed timeline of what has been going on in the past 24 hours, courtesy of the Oakland Tribune. They have been updating very regularly, so keep checking back there.

I was really impressed by the rapid clean up in the wee hours of the morning. By the time I got out and about mid-morning, much of the devastation had been swept up and hidden away, but whispers of the conflict can still be seen everywhere. (Sadly no skeletons of burnt out cars. They scuttled those away right quick.) Below are a few shots from the day.

Busted window at a shop two blocks from my apartment.

Somebody should have invested in safety glass.

Completely shattered shop window a block away from my apartment.

What appears to be the handiwork of a bullet in the window of a cafe I frequent.

A sample of the police presence downtown today.

A cop preparing his riot gear for a conflict that never materialized this afternoon.

Another cadre of officers waiting in the park near my house.

A small group of protesters hassling the cops outside of the BART offices.

One of the protesters being handcuffed after throwing a cigarette at a cop.

I have the feeling that this is nowhere near over. I will faithfully communicate information and images to you as I gather them. I still hear helicopters and sirens as a pregnant pause descends on the city.