Oakland stands up and says, 'I am Oscar Grant'

Gregory Nash of Oakland participates in a rally against police brutality and in memory of Oscar Grant on Jan. 14 in Oakland, Calif. (By San Jose Photography Examiner Bea Ahbeck, copyright Bea Ahbeck Photography)

It was truly touching to see the massive rally that took place Wednesday afternoon and evening in downtown Oakland in memory of police shooting victim Oscar Grant.

Early on, the atmosphere couldn't have been further from the rioting at last week's protest against the killing by a BART train officer's bullet that left burned cars and broken windows in its wake.

At the latest gathering, most of the 2,000 people who came took the message of peaceful protest to heart, holding "power to the people" fists in the air as they criticized city officials for mishandling the investigation into the killing. 

Tempest Winfield, 16, of New Orleans, dances to the music of Brass
Liberation Orchestra as a police brutality protest heads toward
Oakland City Hall on Jan. 14. (By San Jose Photography Examiner
Bea Ahbeck, copyright Bea Ahbeck Photography)

During a march on 14th Street, bikers roared as they led the way, while the Brass Liberation Orchestra played an ebullient version of New Orleans second line music (think jazz spliced with hip hop).

That's about the last thing I expected to see on Bay Area streets, anytime. 

Even more impressed was 16-year-old Tempest Winfield, originally from New Orleans and now living in Oakland.

The li'l hurricane uninhibitedly strutted her stuff in front of the band, ecstatic over the hometown sound she was enjoying. Eyeing my New Orleans Saints cap, she said, "You're making me want to wear your hat."

Unfortunately at the tail end of the evening, a small group smashed more windows, marring an otherwise inspiring tribute to Grant. Prior to that petty violence, the mood was almost celebratory, a genuine coming together of the community.

Oakland-reared rapper Too Short addressed the crowd early on at Frank Ogawa Plaza, commending people for taking pride in the city "no matter what the town goes through, up or down, the Raiders winning or losing ...."

Mayor Ron Dellums gave his best preacher-in-the-pulpit speech but heard more boos than applause thanks to the slow probe into Grant's death.

After the talk, there was a march from City Hall to the Alameda County D.A.'s Office near Lake Merritt, then a return to the plaza.

A group of Original Scraper Bikes riders showed up, one of them pumping hyphy hip hop through handlebar-mounted speakers. Many in the crowd heeded a call from organizers to chant, "I am Oscar Grant!"

Six helicopters hovered overhead, presumably both TV news choppers and police whirly birds. This was an event to record.

Speaking of surveillance, I talked with a self-described anarchist named Sam from Oakland, who carried a black flag on a pole and disguised her face with a black bandanna.

"That's why I wear this," she said, then pointed to Oakland policeman G. Williams taping us with a video camera. "I can't believe anybody believes we have free speech."

Masked anarchists protest Oscar Grant's death outside the Alameda County D.A'.s Office on Jan. 14 in Oakland, Calif. (By San Jose Photography Examiner Bea Ahbeck, copyright Bea Ahbeck Photography)

Unafraid to speak out despite the presence of authorities, Gregory Nash of Oakland wore a colorful Barack Obama T-shirt and a gold-colored chain with a matching bullet casing. He held the totem aloft and crowed to anyone who would listen that the casing symbolized the shot that took Grant's life.

The killing earned worldwide attention thanks to mobile phone videos taken by train passengers of the shooting at the Fruitvale BART station, making "Oscar Grant" nearly a household name as a symbol of police brutality. At the time, he was lying on his stomach while being restrained by officers.

The startling footage struck a chord locally and beyond, luring people from around the Bay to show their solidarity with folks in Oakland.

Richard Pocklington, 38, of San Anselmo said he came to the rally to show that people "from the suburbs" and elsewhere feel kinship with city residents.

"Everyone deserves to feel safe on public transit," he said.

Many attendees seemed to take heart in the rally and its themes of police accountability and community strength. It's a shame Grant himself couldn't be there to feel the love.

See many more photos of the Jan. 14 rally in Oakland by none other than my partner in crime and newly minted San Jose Photography Examiner, Bea Ahbeck, right here.

Here's Too Short talking to the crowd, via YouTube: