Scene Report: Oakland Hometown Hero Alysa Liu’s Massive Celebration Rally

In the version of Donna Summer’s “MacArthur Park Suite” that gold medalist Alysa Liu skated to for her free program in the 2026 Olympics, she spliced together sections from the nearly-18-minute original extended version of the 1977 disco classic. Liu’s version included the lyrics: “There will be another song for me, and I will sing it… I will take my life into my hands, and I will use it.” As videos of Liu’s skate went viral, fans everywhere became captivated by her story of retiring from competitive figure skating in 2022, at age 16, and then returning to the sport two years later on her own terms. 

A rally for Liu — who declined a parade — was scheduled at Frank H. Ogawa Plaza (OGP) in the same month as Harper’s Magazine reported on the Bay Area’s “tech boys” obsessed with agentic AI and with “being agentic.” With all this talk of “agency,” we wondered what it might take for more people to feel that, à la Liu, they could take their lives into their hands.

The scene at OGP was as much a celebration of Oakland and Bay Area pride as anything else. Mac Dre’s “Thizzle Dance,” Too $hort’s “Shake that Monkey,” and LaRussell’s “I’m From the Bay” blasted on speakers in front of City Hall. Oakland, a city recently stripped of multiple professional sports teams, came out to celebrate the athlete, who chose to rep her hometown instead of pedaling nationalism on the international stage. A midday celebration on a Thursday in downtown Oakland provided an excuse, for those who could swing it, to take lunch outside — though many, of course, couldn’t. 

The Olympics began as a competition for amateur athletes only, privileging those with the means for leisure. But the idea of an amateur — literally “one who loves” — is in keeping with the joy so many noted as a reason they showed up to celebrate Alysa Liu. We spoke to rally attendees about taking time off, burnout, and what inspired them to come out in the first place.

Jaime, Executive Assistant

What brought you out today? 

I came because I watched videos and it made me cry. Oh, my God, she's so iconic. I'm a sucker for Asian representation. I thought it'd be hype. 

Do you relate to Liu’s story of taking time off?

I am a first generation college student, and I took two breaks from college, but I just graduated. Coming from going to poor schools, you're not really set up to study at those high institutions. But you could do it at your own pace and still be great. I took two one-year breaks. I was studying the same thing, but actually going to school and liking to study instead of doing something I had to do, that my parents were telling me to do — it is divine.

Abby and Isa, Nonprofit Workers

Did you relate to Liu’s story of taking time off?

I feel like I don't take enough time off from doing things, so it's refreshing to see somebody modeling that for us. Right now, we're bargaining a contract for our union at work. And people have been stepping in and out and taking time as they need it and we're all trying to support one another in taking time to step back from facilitating, or organizing, or whatever, and coming back in.

Are there ways that you could imagine being more supported in your work? 


We organized a union because we believe it's great to have a place to negotiate as workers. And to be able to democratically come together and create the structures for us to ideally have a better work life balance.

Cherish

Do you relate to Liu’s story of taking time off?

I've been working since I was 15, but then I went through a pretty bad tragedy and I had to stop working for about 3 weeks. And honestly, I felt bad, but then I was like, wait, I needed those 3 weeks to reset myself. I just kind of left. I hop jobs all the time. I find jobs all the time. I was like, it's not for me. And I was working in the city, so I was going from Vallejo to San Francisco every day and my body couldn't take it anymore. And I got sick and my mom's like, “It's okay. Take a break. It’s okay.”

I think older generations were taught to stick it out. And to deal with it. Gen Z’s like, You’re rude to me, I'm leaving. There’s no point in coming to work stressed out. There's no point. 

Are there ways you could imagine being more supported in your work? 

I am full-time, so I would love to have a few more days off, but I'm making the most of what I got, you know? 
I work at a smoothie shop so it’s chill enough where you can actually be creative when you go home. So you don’t have that burnout.

Becca, Marketing and Amalia, Self-Employed Dog Trainer

What brought you out today? 

I think Alysa Liu is inspiring this wave of caring more about mental health and protecting her peace as an athlete.
She's young and she's so wise. I think it's gonna inspire a wave of change.

Do you relate to Liu’s story of taking time off?

I actually quit my job a few months ago because I was feeling burnt out and needed to change things up. So I took some time off, traveled, and now I'm looking for work. And now I feel a little more fresh. I was lucky in being able to do that because I was able to get on my partner's health insurance — because of a domestic partnership — but that's a big barrier. So that was a concern for me in terms of leaving my job. Also, income, like, I have an emergency fund of savings, but without that I would not really be able to do that.

Valerie, Artist

What brought you out today? 

I'm Bay Area born and raised. I'm from Hayward, California, and my last name is actually Liu as well. I've never had people talk about the pronunciation of my last name so much. The towels that say “Liu’s Crew,” it's really exciting. Seeing how much care she's put into her craft has been really cool. And for her to do it with such joy and such power. 

Do you relate to Liu’s story of taking time off?

I'm an illustrator, and as an artist I deeply relate to the feeling of having your craft be a job almost. So her taking time off and returning when she felt ready on her terms was honestly something that as someone who's even older than her I was like, oh, I have to take notes. Like, I gotta lock in and take care of myself so that my craft can benefit. 
And her joy, like, she's just having fun with it. When you monetize something that is a passion, you kind of forget to have fun with it when you're thinking about bills and stuff.

Maddie and Leslie, Oakland Tech Students

What brought you out today? 

We're in our school’s journalism class. So we're writing about Alysa Liu.

Do you relate to Liu’s story of taking time off?

I was a ballet dancer for most of my life growing up, and then I just took my senior year off and it has been really nice. I used to hate it, and now I'm excited about going back in the summer. I think breaks like that are really important for athletes to recuperate and make sure this is really the thing that you want to do, especially if you're putting in so much time into something and effort and energy.
At first I felt bad leaving my teammates because there are a lot of people I dance with, but I think it's more important to prioritize your mental health, your well-being. 

What about you? 

I used to take three, four college classes, plus a senior high school workload. So I decided this year: just high school work, no pressure, just relax.

Diana, Poet

Do you relate to Liu’s story of taking time off?

I am a poet, and I don’t get paid for that. So, I've never taken time off from, like, working for money. And I do love my job. I'm a tutor. 

Are there ways that you could imagine being more supported in your work? 


Well, I mean, that's a very internal thing. I think Alysa is a good example of caring less about rejection, or, you know, it's not so much about being published, or making money off of it, but sharing your art, as she said. Obviously our current administration is not supportive of the arts, and it's been devastating to see so many arts programs lose their funding. But it's also been heartening that a lot of people have stepped up and donated, and I think there is still a lot of support among the general public for arts. As they say, in bad political times the best art gets made.