Oakland, California, in the Bay Area, is descending even further into chaos as street and property crime skyrockets amid a vacuum of effective leadership.
Anger is growing at mayor Sheng Thao, whose home was raided by the FBI in June. She is suspected of engaging in corrupt dealings through her business connections. Public displeasure with her two-year-old administration has led to a recall effort to get her out of office.
Meanwhile, Oakland businesses and residents are dealing with constant looting, street shooting, burglaries, robberies, and extraordinary violence against old people on the streets. Oakland consultant Jim Ross, who works for Democrats, said the recent uptick in crime, along with the corruption scandal around local politicians, has created the perfect storm times three. He said he cannot recall a time in his life when Oakland was hit this hard.
Clergy agree. Senior pastor of a local gospel church, Bob Bishop Jackson stated that the city is in the grip of anarchy and a complete loss of law and order. He said he’s praying for “divine intervention.”
And even though the most recent stats show a comparative drop in murders, Oakland’s murder rate is still far above the national average.
Pastor Jackson said the city needs to clean political house and bring in all-new leadership. He wants to see a “brand new city council,” another mayor, and a completely fresh slate.
While homicide may be down, robbery has doubled and carjackings and thefts have tripled in the city compared to the period before the pandemic.
A recent Juneteenth celebration in the city saw a mass shooting at Lake Merritt. An elderly woman was beaten on the street and robbed in broad daylight. Last month, a gang of criminals numbering a staggering 100 literally tore apart a convenience store and gas station, making out with nearly all the store’s inventory. And police were nowhere in sight until they were long gone.
That’s probably down to the city’s surprisingly small police force; Oakland has only 35 officers on patrol, but the population is 400,000.
Mayor Thao has taken the same disingenuous approach familiar to those living under Democrat or Progressive rule in their areas. She insists that crime is down, despite what people can see with their own eyes. It may in fact be down, on paper, compared to the worst crime of 2023, but that does not make Oakland a city that can be fairly described as having a low or even moderate crime rate.
