Harbor trucker Andres “Andy” Garcia, owner of import drayage company GSC Logistics, died on June 24th.
Garcia, who was 72 years old, will be most recently remembered for his leadership role in opposing the Oakland A’s proposed condominium and baseball complex at the Port of Oakland’s Howard Terminal.
Garcia forged an alliance with stevedores, harbor truckers, freight forwarders and the African-American leadership of International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 10. Local 10 represents Port of Oakland longshore workers.
The coalition that Garcia helped build, along with his partner at GSC Logistics Scott Taylor, highlighted the divide between, on one hand, protecting harbor worker jobs and, on the other, siding with John Fisher, the Oakland A’s owner, who pursued a vision of a gentrified Oakland waterfront.
The result, development opponents say, is that Fisher’s proposed development will undermine cargo-handling operations at the Port.
At the same time, opponents argue, Fisher’s organization has sought to use the promise of a new ballpark as a means to market condominiums at Howard Terminal.
Garcia was also champion for the diverse racial and ethnic community that is the City of Oakland.
In the midst of nation-wide protests against racism and police brutality, Garcia told a meeting of opponents of the Howard Terminal development: “Black Lives Matter.”
Subsequently, on June 19, 2020, Garcia spoke at the ILWU Juneteenth press conference and rally, commemorating the end of slavery in the United States. Garcia spoke in support of maritime workers and against the privatization of the Port of Oakland by A’s owner John Fisher.
In so doing, Garcia showed himself a man who stood up for workers and for small businesses.
