Elections
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June 2022 SF Election Guide

05.25.2022
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A nonpartisan election guide featuring text and audio summaries of all San Francisco ballot measures for the election occurring June 7, 2022.

• Proposition A — MUNI Reliability and Street Safety Bond
• Proposition B — Building Inspection Commission
• Proposition C — Recall Timelines and Vacancy Process
• Proposition D — Office of Victim and Witness Rights; Legal Services for Domestic Violence Victims
• Proposition E — Behested Payments
• Proposition F — Refuse Collection and Disposal Ordinance
• Proposition G — Public Health Emergency Leave
• Proposition H — Recall Measure Regarding Chesa Boudin

Social Justice
Derrick Soo stands by old industrial circuits in Oakland’s Cannery Lofts, the site of his great-grandfather Lew Hing’s first cannery. By the time Lew died in 1934, he had been forced to liquidate most of his business holdings, leaving him stripped of the wealth he spent his whole life earning. Soo said he believes that had it not been for the racist policies and actions against his family, their legacy would look much different today.

Tax Cuts and Eroding Worker Protections Made Wealth Gap More Extreme

05.05.2022
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When we examine the massive wealth gap between the rich and poor in this country, what stands out most is how differently it affects the country’s white and Black populations.

According to data from the Federal Reserve Board’s Survey of Consumer Finances, the typical Black family has $24,000 in wealth. That is less than 13% of the $190,000 in wealth held by the typical white family.

Community
Singer at benefit concert with Ukrainian flags.

Ukrainians in SF Are Anxious and Angry, and Refugees Need Homes

04.08.2022
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Members of the Ukrainian diaspora in San Francisco are angry, anxious and desperate to connect with loved ones in their ancestral homeland. Meanwhile, a local aid agency is asking for help as refugees begin arriving in the Bay Area. On a sunny weekend afternoon in mid-March, hundreds gathered at the bandshell in Golden Gate Park music concourse for a show called Slava Ukraini — or Glory to Ukraine. It was a fundraiser for the World Central Kitchen, which is helping to feed Ukrainian refugees.

Health
hands holding a vial of naloxone

Harm Reduction Critical to Addressing Overdose Crisis, Local Experts Say

04.07.2022
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The key to addressing San Francisco’s overdose crisis, say community activists and medical experts in the city, is harm reduction. That’s an approach that acknowledges not all drug users will achieve abstinence, and that focuses on keeping them safe and alive if they’re not ready or able to quit. Drug overdoses killed more people in San Francisco than did COVID-19 in the first two years of the pandemic — 711 deaths in 2020, and 645 in 2021.

Health
A photo of the building fascade and entrance to a HealthRIGHT 360 location on Mission Street. Overdoses in San Francisco spiked in 2020. HealthRIGHT 360 is one of many organizations in the city that provide substance use disorder treatment services.

Surge in Overdose Deaths Is a Puzzle Public Health Experts Are Desperate to Solve

03.30.2022
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In San Francisco, drug overdoses killed more people than did COVID-19 in the first two years of the pandemic — 711 deaths in 2020, and 645 in 2021. These figures are troubling, even without counting nonfatal overdoses and other suffering associated with this crisis. While fentanyl is often cited for the rapid increase, many factors contribute to this trend both in San Francisco and nationally.

Public Safety
A tent stands to the left of a pile of charred debris under the charred bottom of an overpass.

What Reporters Learned Mapping Encampment Fires

03.17.2022
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Fires in encampments, tents and other makeshift shelters occurred more frequently in recent years, reporting from the San Francisco Public Press and Mission Local shows. But incident counts alone do not offer a clear explanation of what is happening on the street.

Housing

Tenant Protections are Expiring as Thousands Wait on Rent Assistance

03.10.2022
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The last remaining tenant protections against eviction for pandemic-related rent debt that were granted by the state are expiring at the end of the month. A new protection covering rent due in April will go into effect for San Francisco tenants, but even these residents will be vulnerable to eviction for past rent debt at the beginning of the month. 

Homelessness

Hear Why Hundreds of Homeless San Franciscans Wait Months as Rooms for Them Sit Empty

03.03.2022
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A recent investigation from the San Francisco Public Press and ProPublica indicates Hanson is not alone in her frustration. But the problem is not that there is nowhere for people to go. Rather, hundreds of units of permanent supportive housing — rooms in hotels or full apartments intended to get people experiencing homelessness a roof over their heads and connected with services — are sitting empty. Meanwhile, more than 1,600 people have been approved to move into them, and more than 400 people on the streets have been waiting to be housed for more than a year.