Late last year, the City of Oakland, California, was confronted with several alcohol-related controversies, ranging from vandalism at liquor stores to complaints about a giant alcohol billboard ad. While other cities have faced similar situations, the community's response highlights how Oakland is using a unique and collaborative approach to address alcohol-related concerns.
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Oakland made national headlines when several of the city's Muslim-owned liquor stores were looted and vandalized by several men, dressed as Nation of Islam followers. The vandals were caught on camera confronting store managers, demanding a stop to liquor sales, then destroying bottles, shelves, and display cases containing alcohol. While the perpetrators were arrested for their violent approach to reducing alcohol sales, public frustration over the negative impact of widespread alcohol sales is not isolated to this incident. Members of the newly formed Muslims for Healthy Communities recently spoke out about the growing concern around liquor stores. "It was the flash point," said Faheem Shuaibe, resident imam of the Masjidul Waritheen mosque in East Oakland. "It was the right intent, but simply done in the wrong way."1
City officials have been working with other local residents for several years to address concerns around problem stores. Under the direction of the Neighborhood Law Corps, Oakland's innovative community law program, the city is bringing its liquor stores into compliance with current operating codes. Already, the city has imposed dozens of new operating conditions on local stores to reduce nuisance and crime in hard hit areas. Local officials are also planning to study the impact of the federal Small Business Administration's lending practices to liquor stores, which has been implicated in keeping problems stores in business.
Oakland's second major controversy involved an alcohol billboard placed on the side of a hangar at the Oakland Airport. The Tanqueray gin ad, which featured a well-coiffed African-American man with a martini, not only violated the city's ban on billboard ads but, as many residents complained, it greeted visitors with an unflattering image of the city. Prompted by public concern, city officials worked with the Port of Oakland Commission-which manages advertising at the Airport-to change its policy to prohibit alcohol on billboards. This change brought the Port of Oakland in line with the rest of the city, which banned alcohol and tobacco advertising on billboards in 1998.
Oakland's response to these controversies reflects the unique degree of collaboration between government, advocacy groups, and community residents. Most impressive, though, is the continued commitment by all stakeholders-residents, advocates, and city officials-to work together to solve the range of alcohol-related problems in the city.
1San Francisco Chronicle, January 29, 2006.
