fixable of all poverty related conditions. what they require is a decent wage, health care, disability accommodations, and relief from discrimination and financial exploitation. some of our clients are particularly vulnerable to poverty because they don't fit precisely in the categories of people the law protects. so, for example, when a woman is fired from her job, not because of gnder or race but because she's a victim of stalking and domestic violence and then is subsequently denied her unemployment benefits, we ensure that those benefits are restored and her income is protected. still, other victims of poverty fall into that vulnerability because of a health crisis such as the woman who was fired literally one day before she

underwent mastectomy surgery, losing both her income and her health benefits on the same day. both have now been restored. every large law reform or class-action case we take on comes with more quieter, more smaller but no less significant victories. that means that our clients will have access to basic necessities for years to come. so, for example, when we celebrate the resolution of a large class-action against home depot on behalf of deaf workers, we celebrate this gold standard agreement that we reach because it will enable those workers across the state to continue to work safely and to be accorded the same

opportunities as their nondeaf workers. for another example, another law reform case, we celebrate our enormous victory in enjoying california from denying the benefits of long-term care insurance, relying on the unconstitutional defense of marriage act. [applause] >> to deny the benefits of long-term insurance to same-sex spouses and register domestic partners, depriving them of long-term care at a moment in their lives when they are the most vulnerable to the effects of poverty. among the clients we assisted this year are nail salon workers who were not only denied minimum wage over time but were on top of all that assessed $20 every time they spoke vietnamese to each other. they are restaurant workers fired for speaking spanish in

the witch. they are caregivers who were paid what amounted to less than $3 an hour for 17 hour-long days. they are house painters who contracted lead poisoning and took it home to their toddlers and they are undocumented workers who are reported to immigration authorities simply for inquiring about minimum wage, or on the other hand, paid cents on the dollar simply because their employers know they fear deportation. in our work we see evidence every single day that poverty caused by ememployment crisis is indeed fixable by acts of justice. we are deeply grateful to our board of directors, to our volunteers, to all our contributors and to all of you here today for your acts of justice and for making our acts

of justice possible. now i have the distinct honor of introducing an old friend and current mayor, and i have promised joan i won't tell any stories from the old days, but this mayor has a firsthand deep understanding of both the injustice and the fixability of poverty. please give a warm welcome to our friend and our mayor ed lee. [applause] >> thank you, denise. again, congratulations to you and joan, to your wonderful staff and the legal aid society and employment law center for celebrating the 96th anniversary. it's my pleasure to be here today to join all of you. and as i was looking at the theme today, putting justice to

work, my immediate thought is that i have a very complementry theme i've been trying to do as your mayor and that's putting people to work. and i hope that that is very much the same. because we cannot be the greatest city in the world or the most innovative city in the world unless all of our communities share in the richness of this city, and that's been my theme and i know putting justice to work in the workplace is a great part of that. i want to again thank the legal aid society and the employment law center for doing all the great work that you do do. thank you for having me here today. it's an honor to present the matthew tobriener award for public service to belva davis. this award was named in honor of our legendary california supreme court justice matthew

o'tobreaner and serves to annually recognize individuals who have strived to ensure that justice for those who are most vulnerable among us is had. the late justice matthew tobreaner was revered as a legal scholar and humanitarian who did not hesitate to speak out on behalf of the disadvantaged and marginalized individuals. in fact, he expressed some time ago the very fundamental principle, whatever hardship poverty may cause in society generally, the judicial process must make itself available to the indigent. it must free itself of the sanctions born of financial inability. and it is that principle that is the foundation of this award.

and so a memory of justice -- and i want to give a shout out to michael and the tobreaner for working so well since 2000 on collaborating on the meaning of this award. it has been an award that pays tributes to individuals who have made extraordinary efforts to assist the most vulnerable members of our community and to strengthen the principle of equal access to justice. so today it's my honor to represent a bay area woman who exemplifies her distinguished career in the bay area for over 45 years. as the first african-american woman television reporter in the west bella davis truly embodies these principles. rising from poverty in the projects of oakland to one of the most respected news journalists of our time, she is

a true inspiration to all of our communities. during her career she covered many of the most explosive stories of our era such as the berkeley student protest, the birth of the black panthers, the assassinations of mayor mosconi and harvey. among many other stories. bella activates community awareness through her poignant reports and demonstrates her involvement by being a board member of community organizations, a labor activist and a supporter of diverse cultures and certainly of the african-american culture. through her hard work and dedication, she helped establish the san francisco's museum of acan dispra and numerous other civic projects in our area. bella davis has challenged and successfully overcome both race

and gender-based discrimination in the journalism profession with courage and fortitude. she's brought untold stories of african-americans and women out into the mainstream news, giving them the attention and respect they deserve. you are an outstanding citizen that has changed the face of television news and shed light on many of the most significant stories of our era. you have inspired all of us for decades with your grace. your dignity, your strength and your purpose. and with that, i would like to present to you this well-deserved award, the matthew o. tobreaner award for 20126789 please come on up. for 2012. please come on up. [applause]

>> and of course, i will take this wonderful opportunity to add something from the city that i get to do and that is, of course, to proclaim this to be belva davis day in san francisco. [applause] >> well, thank you so much, mayor ed lee, for those kind remarks, and most of all, thank

you for taking the time to be here. i know there are many, many other bells that are ringing for your presence, so my much appreciation to you. and to this room of distinguished attendees, to the leaders and staff of this life-changing organization, the employment law center of the legal aid society, and to all who followed the arc of history as it bends towards justice. thank you for this honor. i have been blessed with a long life of surprises and miracles. and one of them, or all of them, have been fueled by hope and the promise of america. and a america that promises liberty and justice for all. why else would a female black child, born during the really

great depression of the 1930's in the deep south envision and dream a life so far from her reality? it is that promise of liberty and justice that continues to fuel impossible dreams around the world today, and it is this promise that's kept so many of you working long past the hours for which you are being compensated for. because you are willing to sacrifice for those of us whose dreams depend upon your skills. my family migrated to california because of my uncle ezra. a man with no formal education, but one brave enough to file a lawsuit during the frightening days of the depression. he filed a lawsuit against his employer, a major manufacturer after he was injured on the

job. it took years for me to understand his bravery. i'm here because a young white lawyer filed that suit on his behalf. and a mysterious louisiana judge ruled in his favor. all seemingly impossible things for the era. but one day a check for $2,000 did arrive. and i went with my uncle and aunt to berkeley to pay for their house on ashby avenue. i saw the check. it was a miracle that he did not pay the price of being tarred and feathered as promised by the white men of monroe, louisiana. it was uncle ezra that led my immediate family on their exodus from the south. so no matter how hard i am willing to work to get into

broadcasting, i was willing, it could not have happened without help. and in this case, again, someone we didn't know, the president of our country, lyndon johnson's courage to sign and authorize the civil rights act of 1964 easing the color line in hiring, permitted me to be brave enough to go out and to apply for a job doing work i'd seen no one else do. no matter how often i recited my mann take -- my mantra, to not be afraid of the space between my dreams and reality, promising myself that if i dreamed it, i could make it happen. i could make it come true. but without the courage of those who had marched defiantly, rode buses, sat in at lunch counters and took the

beatings and cruelty that went with seeking justice in those times, my dreams would not have been possible. it is a promise of america that keeps me and millions around the world dreaming, hoping, working, and pledging to not be afraid of the unknown. that space between our dreams and our reality. because we're counting on those of you stellar scholars, powerful leaders, to continue to love liberty and the promise of america and fight for justice to help us realize our dreams. i'm so honored to receive this award named for such a distinguished chief justice of our state. i am more than flattered to even have been thought of to stand here today. for a woman who comes from my background, as i told you, a woman who did not go to college

, but did not let it deter her from dreaming big dreams. i just want to affirm for you whatever the sacrifices you with talent have that can help those most in need of help, i thank you for them. we need you. we would like to continue our dreams, too. thank you so much. [applause]

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>> i'm sue desmond hell monday, i'm chancellor here at the university of san francisco. thank you. that's very nice. i'm very, very pleased on behalf of all of my colleagues here at university of california san francisco to welcome all of you to mission bay. if you haven't been here before, look around you. here we are, less than 10 years from the time this building first went up here at mission bay and now we're a thriving environment for science, teaching and patient care who are all focused on one most important thing.

advancing health worldwide. [applause] i'm particularly -- that's good. that's worth applauding. i want to offer a heart felt welcome to leader pelosi and san francisco mayor ed lee. welcome to both of you. [applause] i also want to welcome members of the san francisco board of supervisors and other distinguished guests this afternoon. we're particularly honored to have leader pelosi here as we are very, very grateful for 25 years of public service. thank you. she has worked tirelessly on behalf of san francisco, the bay area and the nation and i particularly want to call out her work as a champion of issues in human health including h.i.v. aids, biomedical research and innovation and so many more of the important areas of science that are so important to all of us here at ucsf. thank you, leader pelosi. this is a great day today for us

at ucsf mission bay and the entire mission bay community. the transportation secretary's announcement earlier today of a $10 million infrastructure investment in mission bay is yet another vote of confidence in the great city of san francisco and our dynamic mission bay community. the grant which the d.c. insiders call a tiger grant will drink infrastructure that is critical for ensuring access for program at ucsf mission bay. with respect to point out the $1.5 million 550-bed hospital. it will provide aid to women, children and cancer patients. construction is underway directly south of us scheduled to open in early 2015. more broadly, the transportation

-- will be a key transit source for the full ufsf campus providing bike lines, pedestrian walkways and transit editions necessary to serve this vibe brant and still growing community. as the second largest provider of employment in the city continued success is key to our city and our nation's economic competitiveness. thank you so much, speaker pelosi, mayor lee and the entire san francisco family for working hard. we really appreciate it. thank you. [applause] now i would like to introduce our next speaker and director of the successor agency to the san francisco redevelopment agency, tiffany bohe. [applause] >> thank you, chancellor. good morning, everyone. my name is tiffany bohe. i'm pleased to introduce our

speaks for this afternoon. our next speaker is the director of the san francisco municipal transportation agency, ed riskin. ed has served in the this capacity for over a year prioritizing balancing budgets, creating greater first quarter sis in our transit system and investing strategicically in our capital complex with the commitment of improving on-time performance. ed riskin. [applause] >> thank you, tiffany. it is so great to be here. to me mission bay is really a model for the nation of how we should do land use and transportation planning and redevelopment. it is a model for us here in san francisco, modeling what will happen at treasure island and down in hunter's point. what that means from a transportation perspective is designing the land use of a transportation to serve people, not just building roads for cars to pass through, but designing

and building the public rights of way for people to be in for the benefit of the people who are going to work here, who are going to live here, who are going to visit here. what this tiger grant means to us is one of the final pieces to knit together that part of the puzzle that is integral with making mission bay work the way it was designed to work. putting in the last piece of the pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure and putting in the road way connections to make for first quarter but safe auto travel and maybe most importantly finishing the final transit connections for mission bay, the loop that you see down there, number four, the loop that is going to enable us to increase the service on the third street, light rail, the extension of the 22 fillmore on the other side of this building that is going to serve the beautiful new hospital with a zero emission electric bus. these are the things that are needed to make mission bay work and realize its potential just a

short anecdote. i was at a meeting a couple of blocks from here to talk about parking management. there are not that many people who live here yet but those ho do are very concerned with parking and this was an area that was designed so that people could live here without having their own automobile or certainly multiautomobiles. as we're starting to manage parking to achieve that goal people are saying you can't ask us to get out of our cars until the transit service good. until there are bike ways and walkways. i look forward with working with the director of public works, with tiffany, with the mar major's office and the rest of the city family to get these dollars in the ground, to get jobs created and to really help realize the vision for mission bay. i very much want to thank mayor lee and particularly leader pelosi who has been a strong and consistent and persistent

advocate to help make mission bay realize. i also want to acknowledge tom nolan and director jerry lee who got great support to make this work. mission bay is definitely a model for this country and as the chancellor said, a strong vote of confidence for getting this grant today. thank you very much. [applause] >> our next speaker is mike theriot, the distinguished secretary treasurer of the san francisco building and trades commission and worker in the trades commission since 19835. mike? >> we in the construction unions in san francisco are very grateful for the jobs that this grant is going to bring us as indeed we are grateful for all the jobs that federal contributions have brought us in what has for us in the construction industry generally been a depression, not a recession. for example, we had doyle drive.

we had the train box. we had 50 united nations plaza. those have kept us alive at a time when otherwise we would be in more dire straits. this grant is not in that scale, but it does a very, very important thing. the mission bay district here, as those of you who know san francisco well understand, is becoming a major economic driver for the -- for san francisco. and it has good transportation bones. it has 280 to the west. it has the cal train station just north of mission creek. those bones tie them to the economic body of the complex. that's what this project does. it provides the linkage between the bones of transportation that already exists and the complex developing here and i think it serves as an example for what could be going on in the rest of the country. work is turning around here in san francisco in construction. you can see the tower cranes

around but it is not in many parts of the country and there we're looking at an commix economist from the university of utah told us a few weeks ago, a five-year ark before the construction industry comes back to its precrash highs. projects like this, projects that have multiple purposes that put us to work so that it can put other to work in the complex s that areserved by transportation are just what we need and so we are again grateful. we think it is a great example for the country and we'll use it well here. thank you. [applause] >> thank you, mike. mayor lee has kept a laser-like focus on economic development, job creation. doing what it takes to make sure that san francisco keeps investing an infrastructure which is the backbone of our city. please join me in welcoming mayor ed lee. [applause] >> thank you, tiffany. well, mike, i just want to make

sure you know all of us own this two-word mantra. jobs now has been something we have all heard and i know leader pelosi has said it time and time again, whether she is here or in the air or if she lands in d.c., we have to have these jobs for the american people. that's what has been our joint mantra. i want to just let you know how thankful and happy i am to join our partners at ucsf. leader pelosi, a good friend, to let you know we were hanging out here a few minutes ago. every time we come together is because we are sharing good news about the efforts we have committed to ahead of us and behind us. so we were commenting on that. we have got if keep this in context. less than a decade ago, we were august all looking at a rail yard and people said in san francisco we worked with labor. i want to thank members of our