>> thank you, supervisor kim. our next set of commendations will be offered by our district 4 colleague, supervisor mar. >> thank you, president chiu. i'd like to ask if fred ross, jr., can come forward. if sharon johnson is here as well, and any others that are here to join me and my colleagues in honoring fred ross, senior. colleagues, as people come forward, let me just ask for your support. today we stand here to honor an amazing legend of community organizing and labor movement organizing, fred roth senior. i'd like to thank supervisors avalos and campos and long-time community activist sharon johnson for bringing this to us.

fred roth, senior, was an inspiration to many of us, especially those that have been community organizers like myself. he trained an army of organizers, not just for the united farm workers, but for many different struggles historically. and it's really an honor for me to stand here before you with fred roth, junior, and others to urge your support to join hundreds of other labor and community and civic organizationses and groups in urging president obama to bestow the presidential medal of honor post hume usly on fred senior. his entire life work was spirited and defiant in the struggle for freedom and dignity, especially for lower income workers, not just farmers, but disinfran hiesed and depressed communities not just the state of california, but nation wood. a more proactive struggle for equity and human dignity for everyone.

i wanted to also say that a little bit of history is important. in the '50s mr. roth worked in the latino communities and barrios of los angeles, san jose, and other cities to build chapters of the cso or community service organizations, civil rights and civil improvement groups in california and arizona. the founding leaders of the cv so included members of the steel workers, clothing workers, meat cutters and other unions. and they formed the core of cso's early leadership who built a powerful coalition that included the naacp, the japanese american citizens league, the catholic church and the jewish community together as they fought for fair housing, employment, and working conditions. one of the biggest victories came in the wake of a severe beating of seven men. five of them latinos by the los angeles police department on christmas day 1951 known as bloody christmas, leaving the victims with broken bones and ruptured organs, but pressure from the cso forced the l.a.p.d., which routinely

harassed and abused african americans and hi cannot owes and latinos, they documented complaints and keeping up public pressure in the media. * they eventually resulted in the unprecedented indictment of the eight police officers and the first grand injury indictments of the officers and the first criminal convictions for the use of excessive force in the department's history. * in addition, the l.a.p.d. suspended 39 police officers and transferred another 54 officers. it is through work like this where he encountered -- fred roth encountered and trained many of the individuals who went on to play important roles in american political and civic life. i also wanted to say that in 1952, while mr. roth was building the cso chapter in san jose, a public health told him about a young man named cesar chavez, a young navy veteran who lived with his wife in a barrio called [speaker not understood] if you can.

get out if you can. at first chavez avoided roth thinking he was another white social worker or sociologist curious about the barrio resident exotic habits. but he finally agreed to meet with roth who that night wrote in his journal, this is according to the journal, i think i've found the guy i've been looking for, chavez recalled, that as time went on, fred became sort of my hero. i saw him organize and i wanted to learn. and after that fred roth trained cesar chavez first as a cso leader then as one of cso organizers and eventually as a statewide director. roth also trained a young teacher named dolores huerta and gilbert padilla, dry cleaning establishment, cso activist. and chavez and padilla joined forces to form the united farm workers union and the movement starting in the '60s. during his 15 year tenure with

the ufw, fred roth, senior, trained 2000 organizers who led worker strikes and consumer boycotts in every major u.s. and canadian city leading to major gains for farm workers and to the 1975 california agricultural labor relations act which remains the strongest labor law in the nation today. author and labor historian barry mcwilliams, the author of factories in the field of southern california country in island on the land and a long-time editor of the nation magazine describes fred roth as, "an unsung hero" and called him a man of exasperating modesty, the kind that never sleeps, that never steps forward to claim his fair share of credit for any enterprise in which he is involved. i just wanted to ask, colleagues, if you'll join me with the many community based groups in labor in supporting fred roth in your -- for this medal and distinction, the presidential medal of freedom. and as we vote on this later, i

urge your support. and now i'd like to introduce you to fred roth, jr., who has tremendous history himself in our movement. fred roth, jr. (applause) >> thank you. i want to first thank the members of the supervisors for once again continuing the proud tradition and legacy of san francisco of being first. in my lifetime i've been doing this myself for 40 years, as a proud second generation organizer, influenced both by my father and my mother francis, who was a trail blazer in her own right. * frances. she what the first woman ever in california legislative history to break through the barriers that kept women in the stenography pool. she was hired to be an advocate

for social justice up there. and she was a strong influence on my father opening doors for women and people of color beginning in the early 1940s when he hired a young frightened japanese american internee who came from the camps in idaho to cleveland, ohio. and a year later she learned how to stand up and fight for herself and for her community and fight and challenge first at leave land, then here in san francisco the illegal unjust discriminatory hiring practices. i was fortunate in 181 to be at my father's side when he testified at the [speaker not understood] sear i in san francisco. that is an often overlooked part of his proud legacy. and i didn't learn until after he died that the parents that he organized in orange county in the late 1940s went on to file and win the first successful school desegregation lawsuit in the country,

thurgood marshall came out to meet with the attorneys. that's another landmark he was part of that i'm proud of. (applause) >> i might not look like it, but i was first raised in east l.a. [laughter] >> east l.a., [speaker not understood]. so, that part of the history i'm proud of, too, because of the men and women who formed that coalition and registered to vote and built powerful coalitions. that's why they're able to get the district attorney of l.a. to prosecute those guys. and the story that my father told the night he met chavez turned it around. it's the powerful story. i read my father's notes of that meeting. he described going to the chavez home, not knowing how suspicious and skeptical cesar was. he writes the first 10 minutes, this meeting isn't going anywhere, i can't get anybody to look up at me. my stories are falling flat.

i'm going to have a big failure. and then he wrote, then it came to me, cesar chavez were best friends of san quentin, not stanford. i knew the story i had to tell was the story of bloody christmas like i never told it in my life. that's how he painted a picture of how you build power whether you take on corporate interest or corrupt politicians or any other opponent you have. he described it to me and others. your father painted a picture to me of power so thick i could taste it. he did that time and time again and i trained thousands of us to do it in people's living rooms, block by block, neighborhood by neighborhood take on tough odds whether it was the reagan admission. d -- administration. we celebrated dee vainesting ronald reagan, unjust treatment in nicaragua, drugs. (applause) >> mao father and i crisscrossed the country training organizers in places

like memphis. i never knew i had an accent until i got to memphis. people said, you're not from around here, are you? [laughter] >> we had friends there, mid south peace justice center had a tee shirt that said, mid south peace and justice center. show'em, y'all. welcome to memphis. [laughter] >> i think and i know if he were here today he would have already been on the front lines with the dreamers. he would be in the forefront of inclusive broad immigration reform. (applause) >> and he would be pressing hard to make sure that the politics that's possible is much broader so that when you start the debate, you start over here with the most progressive position so that when it's over you're not way the hell over here. [laughter] (applause) >> that's the lesson he taught us and that's why jerry brown signed the best god dam labor law in the country 25 years ago

because the farm workers and i was one of them organized a bunch of 20,000 people to modesto with politicians in sack acto let them know we were alive and well and kicking. and 10,000 farm workers went to sackv sack to make sure they got the message. that changed the climate up there, right? * sacramento >> those are lifelong lessons that we ought to be acting on. i know i'm going to be at the side of the dreamers and other immigrants fighting like hell in the next few months. i just want to thank you all for honoring my father and i want to especially single out mini sill bert who wanted to be here with all her heart today. with all her heart. i talked to her for 15 minutes. my father and i worked with [speaker not understood] for the last 40 years. i want to thank [speaker not understood]. (applause) >> [speaker not understood], say a few words for de lancy street. >> i am a member of the de lancy street foundation. it is just so great to be up here to see the name roth being honored in this fashion.

we've had an association and a very close relationship with the roth family, both senior and junior and it thrills my heart because i came in as a crazy drug addict, didn't know anything about anything. and through their efforts i found out that there was really, real issues going on in life besides drugs and crime and prison that we were all involved with. and our minds were opened. we were able to support, learn, and be educated in how to stand up for the right things in life. one thing that i can say about the roth family, they didn't stand up for bull s., that whenever an issue was right, that's what they stood for. whether it was popular or not popular. a lot of times they caught a lot of heat for it but it didn't matter to them because they believed in doing what was right for the people that were in need of that. it was just again great to see that that name is being honored today. >> thank you. (applause) >> fred, let me just say that we have a number of african-american or black history month honor aloees in a month coming up in ray moment.

* i want to acknowledge labor president mike casey in the audience. (applause) >> i want to thank you for [speaker not understood] to our doors. we have this coming up on our -- for a vote. >> your oscar time is up. a [laughter] >> i want to say supervisor avalos and campos are co-sponsoring this commendation with me and i wondered if they wanted to say a few words. >> thank you very much. >> thank you, supervisor mar. i think you said it all. i actually had the honor of working with fred ross junior when i was with the [speaker not understood] campaign. learned a lot from that effort and was able to realize that a lot of the work we did, the techniques we used as union organizers came from his father, fred roth. that contribution is huge was of the work that he did bring science to how we organize. that's actually changed the nation. that's the impact that fred

roth senior has had on the world and i just want to all be here in your presence. thank you. (applause) >> thank you. i don't want to repeat what's been said. but, you know, i was meeting with dolores huerta just a couple days ago and i was really surprised that someone like her would be supporting our effort to add harvey milk's name to the airport. (applause) >> what she talked to me about was how she learned about the enter connection of every human being and that every cause for justice and equality is one that concerns all of us regardless of where you come from and where you are. * and i think that's the lesson, that people like dolores learned from your father. not only did he influence leaders like dolores and cesar chavez, but to this day, after years of his passing,

influencing so many generations, it's really a legacy that will last forever. and just very grateful that i have benefited from it. thank you. (applause) >> we just wanted to take a quick photo and move on. (applause) >> thank you, supervisor mar, for honoring the house of labor who honors us by being in the house of the people. supervisor mar, do you have one

additional commendation for today? >> let me be brief on this one. it's another very important institution that's celebrating 40 years. and i'd just like to ask if dr. laura schmidt, [speaker not understood], and the great folks from ucsf, philip arly institute for health policy can come forward. i think many of you know that childhood obesity, the fight against childhood obesity is a growing national movement that takes community activism and organizing, but it takes great action-based researchers to really engage in our communities and really integrate them self-to support community organizing to address large food companies that are in many ways poisoning our children and our families as well. and today i'm asking my colleagues to join me in honoring the 40th anniversary of an incredible institution. again, it's the lee institute for health policy studies. and we're going to be declaring

later in the meeting, hopefully with a unanimous vote, the february 27th, 2013 as philip r. lee institute day in san francisco. i wanted to also say quickly that the work of the institute is amazing in integrating with community-based organizations and connecting some of the top -- world's top researchers in obesity, not only sugar and fat and how it impacts our brains, but also how children are targeted whether it's through ads or through chemicals that are in the food and super processed foods. but they're doing incredible research and are world renounced institution that many other cities look up to. the institute also really is about the future generations of our neighborhoods and i'm really proud to say that they're training health serves and researchers and really come from benefiting our neighborhoods in their research.

i wanted to say that they partner quite a bit not only with the schools of medicine, denttry, nursing, pharmacy, but also countless other universities, government entities and especially community-based organizations. the partnerships with the institute and other ucsf groups includes clinical and translational service or science institute or ctsi whose mission is to ensure the rapid transition from medical studies to medical aid. and additionally, the ctsi san francisco health improvement partnerships or sf hip program ensures that the knowledge gained from their research will touch the lives of many throughout our vibrant communities. and i've been in the different meetings that roberto vargas and others have convened where it's about empowerment and about really treating respectfully the grassroots community groups that work with new relationships, researchers to improve the lives of our communities. tomorrow at 6:00 p.m. an important dinner is happening.

i know that supervisor avalos and councilman ritter man from richmond, california, who championed the soda tax that unfortunately didn't pass, but i know that there's a lot of great people that will be there joining and celebrating in the 40th anniversary for the institute's impact in our communities. so, i'm urging you to join me in declaring february 27th ucsf philip r. lee institute day in the city and county of san francisco. and i'd just like to ask dr. schmidt, if you could introduce who is here with us, too. >> yes. we have here dr. [speaker not understood]. she is the director of the institute for health policy studies. roberta vargas as you already mentioned, and ms. paula fleichser who is one of our experts. i wanted to make a very brief statement. it's a real honor to be here to speak to this commendation on behalf of our staff.

we have over a hundred faculty and staff at the institute for health policy studies. ucsf is by far one of san francisco's many, many treasures. but the newest discovery for medicine and population health often get locked up in the ivory tower and they don't make their way out onto the streets to actually help the population very quickly. so, our institute's core mission is to translate advances in science as they come forward within the university and translate them into policies that help people live longer and live healthier lives. we work directly with people, with leadership at the global level, at the national level, at the state level, and at the local level. but nowhere are we more committed to helping, helping out than in our hometown in san francisco.

and that's why we instituted the san francisco health improvement partnerships, to help our own. you board members, a number of you have been directly and intimately involved in our efforts and have really become valued partners in our efforts to improve health, particularly as supervisor mar mentioned, around efforts to combat childhood obesity and type 2 diabetes throughout san francisco, especially in its poorest and ethnically diverse communities. but also our initiative to prevent the spread of hepatitis b throughout the city's asian american population, our work on preventing dental disease among low-income kids throughout the city, and a very novel effort to make the infamous streets of san francisco just a little bit safer from alcohol related

crime. so, we are deeply, deeply grateful for your support, for the direct involvement by supervisors avalos and mar and campos in our efforts to improve health and to promote a real meaningful partnership between our policy makers he, our community-based organizations, and one of the top medical universities in the country. and we look forward to 40 more years of helping improve the lives and health of san franciscans. (applause)

>> thank you. supervisor mar. >> i want to welcome all of our guests who are here for our presentations related to black history month. and i'd like to ask supervisor cohen if you'd actually like to take my gavel and preside over the proceedings of today's commendations. supervisor. >> yes, mr. president. i'll gladly take your gavel. [laughter] >> all right. are you guys excited? because now is the time we're going to actually take a moment and honor many outstanding african americans who have contributed greatly to the city and county of san francisco. and as we begin to close out our black history month, we'll have an opportunity to reflect not only what we've done this entire month, but also what we did last year and in previous years standing on the shoulders

of rosa parkses, dr. martin luther king, sojourner truth, those are leaders from a historical perspective. i and supervisor breed stand ort shoulders of more recent giants, like espinola jackson, like ms. westbrook, ella hill hutch, doris ward, willie b. kennedy, just to name a few. anyhow, i welcome you and i'm looking forward to -- [laughter] (applause) >> thank you very much. look forward to having a spirited conversation and i'd like to give supervisor breed an opportunity to welcome you as well. >> thank you, supervisor cohen. i just want to start by just thanking you all so much for your patience. i know many of you have been here for a very long time waiting for this opportunity. i'm looking forward to hearing the stories. i'm looking forward to the

folks here being honored for the great work that they've done in the community. i, of course, had a really challenging time choosing who i would honor. i settled it at careen mayfield and pat scott who are here today and i'm looking so forward to honoring them and seeing some of the -- my other colleagues on the board who they plan to honor. african-american history month is a really important month to me, but what i would tell kids when i ran the african-american art and culture complex, this is african-american month 360. 3 61 on leap year because every single day we need to remember the struggles. we need to remember the good times and the bad times so that we are pushing forward and not pushing backwards. so that we are moving our community together as a whole, forward, and making sure that the mistakes of the past that this city has made does not continue to impact the african-american community,

which includes the rapid decline. with myself and supervisor cohen have been working extremely hard on this board and we are going to be looking to members of the african-american community to help us continue to find creative options so that we can begin to repopulate this city with the african-american community that is so deserved. thank you so much. (applause) >> supervisor breed, you sound like the good reverend dr. breed. we were about to have church in here, folk. i hope you're ready. i want to start with district 1, supervisor 1 districtv, supervisor eric mar. >> thank you. colleagues, black history is so important to me as an asian american. as others have stated, in the past i do feel that a lot of the progress, civil rights and equality for many chinese americans and asian americans have been really the direct result from the struggles of african-american people historically in the united states. the first person that i'm

honoring today, and we've chosen a richmond district poet and african scholar, dorothy randal saruda who is the chair of black studies or i should correct myself. we used to call it black studies when i taught at sf state. now it's africana studies. first i would like to ask if professor saruda's brother bobby randal can come forward. and if there are other africana scholars that are in the room as well, please join us up here. dorothy saruda i first met decades ago when she taught at mills college and was in solidarity with one of my asian american faculty colleagues who was under attack by the administration there and dorothy, professor saruda always exhibited solidarity with other people of color. i always respected that as her work. she's been dedicated to up lifting young people in our

communities through literature and poetry, but also teaching about women's rights and the history of struggleses in african-american, but also other communities of color as well. i wanted to say that she was born in detroit, michigan, but grew up in chicago and upon graduating from high school came to san francisco to attend college. and she graduated from stanford university with her ph.d. in '78 and she and her husband kaz -- too bad they couldn't live here, they live in the inner richmond, but they met in san francisco and their entire adulthood is defined by living in the city they love. they have four adult children and dr. saruda's brother bobby randal who she has been close with, also moved to san francisco at about that same time. dr. saruda is an activist scholar who figures prominently in the field and served on the board of not only the national association of black studies,

but also supporting poetry and arts and culture in our neighborhoods as a judge for the college language association and many other organizations, kpoo, kpu as well. she supports the village project which is an incredible after school program which she assigns many student interns from or community service learning process to community institutions and schools and supporting our empowering organizations in the african-american community as well. so, she is being honored not only by recognition from in the past from our mayor and san francisco and the board of supervisors, but on this black history month 2013, it is my honor to recognize richmond district activist poet scholar dr. dorothy saruda. mr. randal? (applause) >> good afternoon. my name is bobby randal, and