Imported anger

(AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)

My wish was not granted.  Things got rowdy in Oakland.  Windows broken, stores looted, trash cans set afire in the wake of the Mehserle verdict on Thursday.  Not many, but enough.  If you read/listen to/watch any major national news source, you probably know this already.  I guess that no matter what, reputation proceeds reality, and in the end, it's Oakland; people have come to expect a certain bravado from a city with such diversity, passion and politics.  

But unless you live in the Bay Area you probably won't hear this:  Sources report that only a quarter (or fewer) of those arrested in Thursday's "riot" were from Oakland.  

I'm no riot expert (but, after two, maybe at least a pro?).  In my mind, a riot is a locally-owned phenomenon.  It's hard to read news accounts of recent Oakland riots knowing that a peaceful community gathering that started soon after the verdict was read was co-opted by haters from out of city and out of state as darkness approached.  That's not a riot, it's manipulation.  

I love Oakland, and though I don't live there, I clearly consider myself part of the Oakland community.  I work, climb and run there, which means a significant portion of my week is spent in the greater downtown district.  As I walked from work to the gym Friday afternoon, I watched crews drill plywood over broken windows and listened to multiple street conversations among genuine community members in which people discussed where things went wrong.  I heard so many things that stick in my brain, but one thing in particular: Oakland's anger and hurt is real, but this violence was not.