After visiting the highly unsuccessful Street Access for Everyone group efforts in Portland, Oregon, our SF leaders wanted to duplicate failure. So the Mayor launched a group made up primarily of Downtown power—the Chamber of Commerce, the Convention and Visitors Bureau, the trickle-down-fanatic Committee on Jobs, plus the Chief of Police, the Fire Department, the Department of Public Works, the Public Defender, and the District Attorney and, to throw some legitimacy to the group—the Department of Public Health, one or two token community representatives and a community chair. The group is nebulously entitled San Francisco Streets and Neighborhoods. Of course, when irrelevant safety issues come up, such as violence, the proponent is summarily dismissed so that we can get back to the real issue. The group has met six times, ostensibly to talk about how to keep the streets safer. Or whiter. Or richer. Or just-for-tourists-er. Or let’s just be specific: homeless-free. They pointed out countless times in the beginning of the process that this was not a group to talk about homelessness. Nope: not about homelessness. Yet every presentation and topic has been about… You guessed it: Homelessness!

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On September 4, the Disability Evaluation Advocacy Program stopped taking new cases, almost one month after Mayor Gavin Newsom cut DEAP—one of four homeless-serving programs—from the City budget. The program, which is run by the Department of Public Health (DPH), provided advocacy services for disabled people applying for SSI benefits. DEAP said they will finish their existing caseload before they disband. With a staff of four case managers, two psychologists, and a psychiatrist, DEAP helped bring the City $5 in Federal and state funds for every $1 spent. Why would the City cut a money-saving, revenue-generating service in the name of balancing the budget? Ostensibly, the Human Services Agency will handle cases not already served by the Homeless Advocacy Project and Positive Resource Center through the Disability Evaluation Consulting Unit (DECU). San Francisco has over 5,000 disabled people who are potentially eligible for the SSI maximum of $872 per month—and, by extension, Medi-Cal benefits afforded to SSI recipients, according to the City’s 10-Year Plan to Abolish Chronic Homelessness. For homeless people with physical and/or psychiatric disabilities, accessing such benefits is an arduous task. Less than 5% succeed in applying without somebody to help with the paperwork.

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I moved to San Francisco three years ago because I thought it was the place where I could most effectively work to combat the Prison-Industrial Complex. I am a teacher at the school inside Juvenile Hall, Woodside Learning Center, where I teach English and drama. In addition, on Friday nights I teach meditation in one of the women’s pods at the County Jail. I love this work. It consumes me, and I put every ounce of my energy into helping my students empower themselves through education and mindfulness. For the past three years, my husband and I have lived in a cramped economy studio, and our gratitude causes us to celebrate everyday that we are lucky enough to have roof over our heads in a city like San Francisco, where so many people care about social justice. Yet a call to motherhood and family has started to rumble somewhere inside me, but I try to ignore it because I simply don’t know if it would be appropriate to raise a child inside this tiny room. The lack of affordable housing makes me question whether or not I will be able to stay in this city forever, and whether ultimately I will have to make a choice between family and San Francisco.

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If a homeless person falls in the woods, does anyone hear them?

One can’t help but to think about that old tree falling question as we watch the disaster that is the US housing sector. For over 25 years, many have called for a serious re-examination of our Federal policies and priorities regarding housing—not just for the poorest people but for everyone in this country.

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On Sunday, September 14, Congregation Beth Sholom hosted a beautiful Farewell Reception for Sister Bernie Galvin, Executive Director of Religious Witness with Homeless People from 1993 to 2008 and a Tribute to her deeply loving 15-year gift to grateful San Franciscans, unhoused and housed alike.

True to Sister Bernie’s dedication to heartbreakingly beautiful celebratory ritual over the years, the bitter-sweet occasion was held in a space filled with original song and dance and praise for this loving woman who gave so much of herself to the city and to those she called, her, “noble companions along the way.”

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What is marginalization? Well, it’s when you’re not regarded or treated as a bona fide, real live, fully equal citizen! You’re seen as second rate—you don’t qualify. The local dominant culture’s seal of approval is not upon you, therefore the rights and privileges duly accorded the approved citizenry, are denied to you. Your papervork iss not in order, perhaps?

Have you ever tried to rent equipment or an apartment without an ID? How about apply for a job? It is next to impossible. What would you do if you did manage to land an “under the table” job, then on payday your employer only gave you half of your money, saying they’d owe you the rest, and if that wasn’t okay, oh well! Will anybody even take your complaint when you can’t so much as prove who you are? Without one shred of documentation to support your claim, or indicate anyone owes anybody anything? And no other job in sight? Variations of this scene play out over and over, in the out-of-sight nooks and crannies of the undocumented, unregulated shadow economy of day laborers, domestic workers, and bus boys.

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What do you believe to be the appropriate role of local government
in approaching homelessness?

I believe the appropriate role of government is to provide its citizens with safety, healthcare, and education, and ensure a level playing field. Thereafter, citizens should be free to operate as they wish, as long as they do not cause harm to others or break the law. The following items are taken verbatim from my platform: Require genuine one-year proof-of-San Francisco-residence to receive any form of City aid. Reduce social services funding by only providing services to legal residents. Enforce quality of life laws to reduce abuse of social services. Coordinate all city services to identify homeless so as to track their utilization of services and criminal activities.

As supervisor, what, if anything, would you attempt to do to
address homelessness in San Francisco?

My response to question 2 is the same as my response to question 1 above.

How would you handle San Francisco’s affordable housing shortage?

I do not believe government has the obligation to interfere in markets other than in cases of monopoly, manipulation, or national security. I do not believe people have the right to live where they want to live (save for the right to bring action for discrimination) unless they can pay for it. San Francisco is slated to have approximately 50,000 new units built over the coming years, and presently there are thousands of homes available at foreclosure rates throughout the Bay Area. Consequently, I believe the better actions on the part of government is to pursue the following steps, which are taken verbatim from my platform: Encourage home ownership through allowance of Tenancies In Common and through reduction of mandatory below-market housing development. Prevent increase in maximum zoning heights in residential neighborhoods so as to preserve their character. Encourage the construction of downtown high-rise apartments. Encourage maintenance of existing neighborhood character through appropriate zoning limitations.

What is your opinion of Care Not Cash?

I support it.

What do you believe to be the appropriate role of local government in approaching homelessness?

Local government needs to pay more attention to homelessness. It’s an issue that affects District 1 and the City as a whole. I’ve been impressed by local non-profits; they have great courage and need the support of the City to continue. Homelessness is a complex issue and there is no one magic bullet to solve everything.

As supervisor, what, if anything, would you attempt to do to address homelessness in San Francisco?

I support programs that are actually working to address homelessness on both the short and long term levels. I support further research on what’s been done in other cities. Education, Housing, Jobs, and Treatment Services all need to be integrated and provided.

How would you handle San Francisco’s affordable housing shortage?

I’m supporting Proposition B to create more affordable housing, among other strategies.

What is your opinion of Care Not Cash?

It has clearly shifted the focus to services, but it’s not clear if those services are sufficient to meet the needs.

What do you believe to be the appropriate role of local government in approaching homelessness?

Homelessness is a perennial problem that generations of San Francisco elected leaders have been unable to solve. In part, the root causes of homelessness – mental illness, drug and alcohol addictions, lack of affordable housing, lack of jobs, etc. – are complex and require multi-faceted, sustained public policy responses. Local government cannot solve the problem on its own, but it must play a critical and leading role in funding and delivering these sustained public policy responses.

As supervisor, what, if anything, would you attempt to do to address homelessness in San Francisco?

From my perspective, we need to continue to prioritize funding social services for the homeless, and integrate law enforcement functions in the context of these social service programs to make sure that homeless people are guided to receive the social services that they need. We need to support an integrated network of neighborhood homeless providers who can provide a more cost-effective and humane way of connecting homeless individuals and families to the programs that meet their needs.

How would you handle San Francisco’s affordable housing shortage?

While District 3 has some of the most amazing housing in the world, many of our residents live within a few paychecks of being priced out of their housing, and some of our residents live in significantly substandard or overcrowded housing.

As former Chair of the Board of Directors of the largest affordable housing organization in District 3 (Chinatown Community Development Center), I have a direct understanding of how we may be able to create sufficient affordable housing opportunities in San Francisco for low income, working and middle class individuals and families.

As a tenant during my 12 years in District 3, and as someone who has represented and advocated for tenants facing evictions, including one of District 3’s largest Ellis Act evictions, I am committed to ensuring tenants’ rights, protecting rent control, and carefully managing annual rent increases, and am honored to be the only District 3 candidate endorsed by the San Francisco Tenants Union and the Community Tenants Association, District 3’s largest tenants organization.

I am committed to preserving the current affordable housing stock and expanding our affordable housing. To do that, we need to ensure adequate funding, and thus support the proposed November ballot initiative for an affordable housing set-aside. As Supervisor, I would work to ensure that we leverage maximum federal and state housing dollars and private tax credits to build affordable housing.

I will explore prioritizing in the planning process private developers who develop affordable housing levels that exceed current inclusionary housing requirements, or who provide other substantial community benefits. I support stronger requirements for onsite inclusionary housing to maintain the economic diversity of our neighborhoods.

Within District 3 and throughout San Francisco, we need to renovate public housing that has deteriorated and is coming close to being unlivable. As Supervisor, I would work to renovate existing public housing to ensure that it is safe, clean and provides access to services by residents. A renovation strategy is more cost-effective and environmentally sound than building new housing, especially in a district with little vacant land for new development.

What is your opinion of Care Not Cash?

While I had a number of concerns about Care Not Cash when it was first proposed, the program has made some real progress; that being said, as is evident to any observer of our streets, our city has a long way to go to fully addressing homelessness.