Massachusetts-born and Yale-educated, Oliver wasn't welcomed when he arrived in New Orleans on the crest of the civil rights movement in 1965, when the Federal Voting Rights Act forced the state to end its restrictions against black voters. A political science major, he had dedicated himself to civil rights activism, using the wealth of his friends and family to fund his efforts. While he wasn't the most well thought out idealist, he was a forceful activist, willing to risk anything to further his cause. It was this tendency which led to his death by lynching two years later. Had it not been for the intercession of Grier and his tendency to hunt among Klan members, that would have been the end of his story. However, the Brujah were desperate to fill their ranks. The war with the Lasombra was at its peak and Callough was pushing his advantage. And so, Oliver was inducted into the ranks of the undead to act as a soldier in a fight which wasn't his.
Barely able to assimilate what was happening to him or why, he was thrust into conflicts so vicious as to make the danger he had faced as an activist pale in comparison. Without any other choice, he fought merely to survive. The only explanation he was given was offered by Bonifazio, who attempted to put it all into context and have it make sense for the man, a difficult prospect given his own reservations in the matter. It was to have a strong effect, though, such that Oliver opted to remain with the Italian when Callough was killed and the rest of the Brujah driven from the city. His presence was allowed based on his relative youth and lack of understanding of what he was involved in and Bonifazio's willingness to take him in and teach him Sabbat ideals.
So it was that the 70s were a period of assimilation for the former activist. The history of the Sabbat given him by his two packmates sufficed to offer him a new context by which to regain the purpose in his life and he swiftly returned to social activism with their blessing. While he still doesn't grasp the full intricacies of kindred politics, he also isn't particularly interested. He's never been one to spend too much time on the theory of a thing. Instead, he takes his cues from Golda and Bonifazio and pursues his own causes.
Despite his education and choice of professions, Oliver is not a particularly deep or idealistic person, at least not in the more formal sense. His fanaticism is merely a framework to guide his actions, driven more by compulsion than any real understanding of the principles involved. This lack of depth bothers Golda somewhat and even Bonifazio, at times, but neither can fault him for lack of commitment. He's tenacious as a pit bull and will not sway from a course of action once he's been set upon it.
Oliver is, unsurprisingly, very loyal to the other members of his pack and will act unerringly as their agent when asked. He has become something of a field marshal, tasked with seeing to the day-to-day operations of the Brujah while the other tend to more ideological matters (in Golda's case) or the larger picture (in Bonifazio's case). While he tends to be more liberal than socialist, as they are, he does not question the sincerity of their devotion to the sect and its cause.
He has a dislike bordering on outright hostility for the three bishops and their immediate agents, considering them little more than tyrants of the sort that the sect is presumably fighting against. Malena, in particular, he feels needs to be taken down. The decadent elder represents all that the Sabbat is dedicated to destroying and he doesn't really understand why the others suffer her to exist.
When it comes to the other Setites and the Rex Krewe, he is vaguely tolerant but usually a bit put off by the libertinism they represent. Their adoration of Malena also tends to reinforce the idea in his mind that they are mere blood dolls of the hated elder. As such, he pities them and hopes to one day free them from her control.
Oliver's limited influence is within liberal social causes in the city and elsewhere in the state. This does give him a little sway, though, as some of the patrons of these causes are quite well-connected and he's well-skilled in guilting the rich into contributing time and effort (a skill honed on his own mortal family). As such, he's been able to get Brujah ghouls and allies sprung from jail or Brujah-supported causes funded or given proper political support on many occasions.