Vice President Kamala Harris is torn over Oakland losing all of its major sports franchises.
Born in Oakland and raised in Berkeley, Harris joins thousands of heartbroken East Bay sports fans and several public figures in sounding off on the Athletics’ recent exodus from the city it has called home for 56 years.
Speaking to former Warriors forward Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes on the latest "ALL THE SMOKE” podcast, Harris revealed why it pains her to see an empty Coliseum and Oakland Arena and what it means for the local economy.
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“Oh, it breaks my heart,” Harris told Jackson and Barnes. “It breaks my heart. Remember, we used to have all of them? We used to have all of them.
“You just drive by that area. You know, when I go to Oakland; when I go to the Bay Area and you land at the Oakland Airport and pass the Coliseum. It breaks my heart. And good, good teams, right?”
For the first time since 1959, Oakland is without representation in MLB, the NBA or the AFL/NFL, leaving hundreds of local workers out of employment.
Harris knows it’s a big blow to Oakland’s economy.
“You’re so right, it was part of the economic engine of Oakland,” Harris added. “And then the vendors, local folks, small businesses.”
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The A’s, who moved to the town in 1968 after spells in Philadelphia and Kansas City, were recently the last major organization to depart Oakland.
Before jumping over to San Francisco, the Warriors played in Oakland for nearly five decades, from 1971 to 2019, while the Raiders’ initial Oakland era began in 1960 before a second came to an end in 2019 when the franchise relocated to Las Vegas.
The three successful major organizations that once called Oakland home officially are gone, leaving behind an undeniable void.
But also, a lifetime’s worth of fond memories for proud Oakland sports fans like Harris, who points to the “We Believe” Warriors team as one of the town’s finest representations of not only sports excellence but of its diverse community.
“We want to say our Warriors are always good, whichever era,” Harris concluded. “But that was a very special time. I mean, it was electric.
“You guys, it was electric, and we would take BART to get there. This is the thing I like about sports in general, but I’m going to say, my Warriors, our Warriors, [are] that it was really about bringing all kinds of people from around the Bay Area.
“The Bay Area is a melting pot, right? All coming in, and the team was the best of the best. Legendary.”
Oakland might feel empty for now, but as Harris highlighted, the memories will live on.
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