Libby Schaaf dispenses advice to Uber
By Bay Area News Group |
PUBLISHED: October 2, 2015 at 2:47 pm | UPDATED: August 15, 2016 at 9:43 am
City officials are thrilled that Uber is expanding the company's operations to Oakland. But that doesn't mean Mayor Libby Schaaf doesn't have some advice for how the tech company can better assimilate to the town.
Schaaf, in a letter to Uber, outlined a laundry list of recommendations for the ride-booking tech giant, asking the company to hire a local and diverse workforce, encourage employees to eat and shop in Oakland, and prevent displacement by working with the city and other nonprofits on solutions.
"I look forward to working with you to identify ways that your unique contributions to Oakland's economy can make this a more vibrant and equitable city where we all thrive," she wrote.
It remains to be seen exactly how Uber will adapt to a city that's wary of gentrification and displacement of longtime residents as the economic surge in San Francisco and Silicon Valley push tech companies and workers to the East Bay.
Schaaf said Uber was attracted to Oakland because of its "magic," but Travis Kalanick, Uber's CEO, posted some of his thoughts about the city on Twitter on Sept. 11, 2009, a year before the company was incorporated:
"Lots of action @ Oakland BART 2nite-2 my rt is callgirl booking a john-2 my left is drug dealer yelling at his supplier," Kalanick wrote.
Schaaf's spokeswoman Erica Terry Derryck said the mayor's letter to Uber was typical of similar sentiments she's been expressing to the city's business community since her election last year.
"We're thrilled to have businesses like yours discovering what Oakland has always been about and coming here to share in and help preserve that special character," she wrote.
Uber Spokeswoman Laura Zapata didn't offer a comment on Kalanick's old Tweet, but of Schaaf's suggestions, she said: "We have received an incredibly warm welcome in Oakland and remain committed to continuing to invest in the community and build relationships as we work to open our headquarter's doors in 2017. We are grateful to leaders like Oakland Mayor Schaaf and Council President Lynette Gibson-McElhaney for helping us to make connections with other community leaders for us to develop meaningful relationships over time."
Oakland kicks off statewide caravan to protest police violence
Oakland activists against police violence will kick off a caravan this weekend to mobilize minority communities across the state.
On Saturday between 2 and 4 p.m., the families of people hurt or killed by police, including Oscar Grant's uncle, will gather outside City Hall for a rally.
The eight-day event will use the hashtag #CaravanForJustice to raise awareness on social media. The caravan will head to Sacramento on Sunday before stops in Stockton, Salinas, Fresno, Riverside, Orange County, San Diego and Los Angeles.
The event is being sponsored by the Ella Baker Center in Oakland and the ACLU of Northern California.
"There is a war on black and brown people in this country right now, and we are in a state of emergency," said Patrisse Cullors, a campaign director at the Ella Baker Center.
The caravan, among other things, hopes to educate residents on a new mobile justice phone app, which allows people to record police and transfer videos automatically to the ACLU.