African Americans in the East Bay (San Francisco Bay Area)

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Ethnicity in the San Francisco Bay Area

The East Bay within the San Francisco Bay Area has historically had a significant Black population, in comparison to the other counties and cities nearby. Culture of the area has been shaped by the Black population.[1] Most notably the 1960s formation of the Black Panther Party happened in city of Oakland, which also served as the headquarters.

The two counties that comprise the East Bay Area, Alameda and Contra Costa, are estimated at 11% and 10% Black, respectively.[2] The largest city in the East Bay, Oakland, is estimated at 22% Black in 2022.[3]

African Americans in Oakland, California

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Migration and demographics

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The African Americans arrived in Oakland en masse between 1940 and 1970 (which is called the Second Great Migration), this was a result of Black people leaving the American South during the time of Jim Crow laws which enforced racial segregation.[1] Local jobs in the East Bay, particularly in the World War II era, such as shipyard work and railroad work offered Black Americans middle class wages.[4][5][6]

In 1980, Oakland, California had a 47% Black population (the 20th-century peak number); and by the 2010 census, Oakland had a 27% Black population due to out of state migration and other factors.[4][7] The Black population has declined since the 1980s, and since then the entire San Francisco Bay Area has experienced more affluent residents as a result of gentrification.[1] Some of the Black residents of Oakland have sought residence in other San Francisco Bay Area cities, such as Antioch and Pittsburg, California, and have moved to other states, largely seeking a lower cost of living. However some African immigrants from Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Nigeria have taken up residence in the Bay Area.[when?]

Oakland, California culture

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Oakland is home to Black rights organizations, such as the Black Panther Party (1966–1982).[4][1] Students Huey Newton and Bobby Seale founded the Black Panther Party in 1966 at Merritt College (then located at a former high school on Grove Street, now occupied by Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute), which emphasized Black nationalism, advocated armed self-defense against police, and was involved in several incidents that ended in the deaths of police officers and other Black Panther members. Among their social programs were feeding children and providing other services to the needy.[8]

Marcus Books was founded in 1960 in the Fillmore District of San Francisco as one of the country's first Black bookstores and oldest African American bookstore in the United States. It closed its San Francisco location in 2014 (with plans to return), and has a second location at 3900 Martin Luther King Jr. Way in Oakland.[9][10]

Many Black celebrities grew up in Oakland, such as NFL player Marshawn Lynch,[11] and rapper MC Hammer.[12] Vice President Kamala Harris was born and raised in Oakland.[13]

Social issues and violence

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The BART Police shooting of Oscar Grant, a 22-year-old Black unarmed man occurred in 2009;[14] this led to many protests and riots in Oakland and in the Bay Area,[15] and a court settlement between the Grant family and BART.[16]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Where to Eat, Stay, and Play in Oakland to Experience the City's Rich Black History". Condé Nast Traveler. 2023-02-13. Retrieved 2024-03-13.
  2. ^ "QuickFacts Contra Costa County, California; Alameda County, California (V2022)". U.S. Census Bureau. 2022.
  3. ^ "QuickFacts: Oakland city, California (V2022)". U.S. Census Bureau. 2022.
  4. ^ a b c Kuruvila, Matthai (March 11, 2011). "25% drop in African American population in Oakland". SFGATE. Retrieved 2024-03-13.
  5. ^ Tramble, Thomas and Wilma (2007). The Pullman Porters and West Oakland. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4396-3418-9.
  6. ^ Adams, Luther (2010-11-29). Way Up North in Louisville: African American Migration in the Urban South, 1930-1970. University of North Carolina Press. p. 15. ISBN 9780807899434.
  7. ^ "Bay Area Census – City of Oakland – 1970–1990 Census data". BayAreaCensus.ca.gov.
  8. ^ Tyler, Carolyn (October 19, 2016). "Oakland Museum of CA celebrates 50th anniversary of Black Panthers". ABC 7 News. KGO-TV / The Walt Disney Company.
  9. ^ Woo, David. "Marcus Books, the Nation's Oldest Black Bookstore". FoundSF.
  10. ^ Brown, Lynn (July 23, 2016). "Preserving the Soul of Black San Francisco". Ebony. Archived from the original on October 7, 2023.
  11. ^ Ostler, Scott (February 3, 2021). "Marshawn Lynch explains his 'unmatchable' love for Oakland, how he's giving back". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2024-03-13.
  12. ^ "MC Hammer And The Oakland A's". WBUR. June 13, 2015. Retrieved 2024-03-13.
  13. ^ Canon, Gabrielle (2021-01-20). "Kamala Harris: her home town watches as one of its daughters makes history". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-03-13.
  14. ^ Tucker, Jill. "No cuffs on man shot by officer, BART maintains". SFGATE. Retrieved 2024-03-13.
  15. ^ "Protesters Mark Oscar Grant's Birthday". KTVU. February 27, 2009. Archived from the original on March 4, 2009.
  16. ^ "BART Reaches $1.3 Million Settlement With Oscar Grant's Mother". CBS San Francisco. June 28, 2011. Archived from the original on July 4, 2011.
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