it is our custom to begin and end that the reminder that office of small business is only place to start your new business in san francisco and best place to get your answers to questions about doing business in san francisco. the office of small business should be your first stop. where you have question about what to do nexting you can find us online or in person here at city hall and best of all, our services are free. small business commission is the official public forum to voice your opinions and concerns about the policies that affect the economic vitality of small businesses in san francisco. if you need assistance with small business matters, start here at the office of small business. >> item 8 adjournment. >> move to adjourn. >> president adams: all in favor. aye. >> meeting adjourned 6:32 p.m.

>> everything is done in-house. i think it is done. i have always been passionate about gelato. every single slaver has its own recipe. we have our own -- we move on from there. so you have every time a unique experience because that slaver is the flavored we want to make. union street is unique because of the neighbors and the location itself. the people that live around here i love to see when the street is full of people. it is a little bit of italy that is happening around you can walk

around and enjoy shopping with gelato in your hand. this is the move we are happy to provide to the people. i always love union street because it's not like another commercial street where you have big chains. here you have the neighbors. there is a lot of stories and the neighborhoods are essential. people have -- they enjoy having their daily or weekly gelato. i love this street itself. >> we created a move of an area where we will be visiting. we want to make sure that the area has the gelato that you like. what we give back as a shop owner is creating an ambient lifestyle. if you do it in your area and if you like it, then you can do it

on the streets you like. >> good morning, let's get this press conference started. hi, everyone, i'm mary of the city and county and san francisco, and also resident. welcome to the lower hate, everybody. i am here with sorrow who is the owner of café international, which is really an important legacy business that really holds this community together, and your supervisor, vallie brown. [applause] >> you know, this café is one of the small businesses around our city that are more than just a small business. they are spaces for our neighbors together across close-knit communities, they are where young people get their

first job opportunities, and they are an important part of our workforce. as i said, they are where zahra, the owner of were of café international, and in immigrant who can create new opportunities for themselves and countless employees. well we know that small businesses in san francisco employ more than 350,000 people, and make up 95% of our businesses, and generates millions of dollars for our economy, what i love most about our small businesses is the opportunities that they create for the people. the opportunity to grow a community, grow our skills, and grow our people -- our future.

from here in my home district of the western addition, lower hate neighborhood, out to the excelsior. we have hosted roundtable meetings with small business forms to provide faces -- spaces were businesses can talk about their concerns and their challenges. today, i am so excited to announce that we are working to make it easier for small businesses to not only survive in san francisco, but to thrive in san francisco. that is what today's announcement is all about. is not just for people to open and run their businesses, but for people to find employment at small businesses and for small business owners and employees to have a seat at the table where we are having -- making the decisions about our budget investments. first, let's take a step back and think about what it means to start a small business in san francisco. i hear from people all the time what a great idea and new innovation they want to do.

then they are confronted with bureaucracy at city hall. it is such an incredible challenge. san francisco has loan programs in place that help people through our office of economic and workforce development. we have issued more than 20 million dollars with 90 4% repayment rate, which is incredible. these loans have estimated to create 1300 jobs. this includes our revolving loan fund, the fund provides low interest loans with flexible terms and support for small businesses that help to keep them stable and to help them grow. with my proposed budget, we are adding an additional $1 million to this incredible program. this funding will support city sponsored small business loans that will help more small businesses to get out and run

and create more job opportunities. finally a small businesses grow and thrive, sometimes they need key improvements. one like we were able to do right here at café international , which is now a.d.a. accessible, and i'm so excited about that. even though people have always found a way to get in there and get their coffee and their snacks regardless of the barriers that existed, but heck, why not make it easier. so part of our investment will include new things like awnings and doors and windows, and upgrades to interiors, new equipment, or improvements to me businesses a.d.a. compliant so that people with disabilities can access those businesses easily. through our invest in neighborhoods and the s.f. sign program, we have business -- we help businesses cover some of the costs to make these upgrades because when our businesses shine, our communities shine. that is why i am committed to

providing an additional and this year's budget $2 million this is with specific focus is in the excelsior, the bayview, the lower fillmore, and right here on the street. we know that when we make the small business investments that our community succeeds. let's say, you open a business and you go through the registration process and many of your small business owners have told me of these experiences and only to have the doors shut in your face because of what you did or didn't have, and you're told you will have to pay hundreds of dollars for a permit or a fee that you didn't even know existed if you are a small business owner, right -- raise your hand if you have encountered that. exactly. if those registers -- for a

permit for the fire department, for who knows what else and i want to be clear that these fees that the city charges is not intended to make doing business in san francisco harder, but we know that that is something that we need to address, so i was really determined with what i heard from small businesses to eliminate all city fees, but my staff wouldn't let me do it. so instead, until we can basically do the report, do some more investigation, determine what is needed, in the meantime, i'm allocating in this year's budget, $2 million in funding for relief for small businesses for refunds for some of those fees that we know are challenging for people to do business.

with our proposal, we estimate that more than 8,000 businesses, almost 9,000 businesses will qualify from some sort of reimbursement for certain fees that have really impacted our small businesses, and it may seem like a small amount, but it will make a difference in our ability to allow small businesses to have the kind of support that they truly deserve, until we can eliminate the fees. when i think back, growing up in san francisco, i remember the small businesses. i still go to the same drycleaners that i have been going to since i could even afford a dry cleaner, i am still going to the same nail shop and the person who does my hair, my same dentist since i have had teeth. and when i think about san francisco, what i want to protect is what makes us a special and diverse city. it is our neighborhood.

it is our small businesses, it is like knowing you can go to zara and she can basically give you advice on how to take care of your kids, how to discipline your kids, how to take care of your mom and give you a cup of coffee at the same time. this is what this is about and protecting businesses are so important we are also going to invest an additional $4 million in grants for small businesses. grants to provide additional support for small business and nonprofit that want to relocate in places where we have a number of vacant storefronts. because we know that is another challenge that exists in our communities where you know that there are vacant storefronts and there is difficulty in accessing those storefronts. we have to do more, as i said, to make the kinds of investment that not only provide, you know, the support and get rid of the layers of bureaucracy, but we

also have to provide the financial investments that are going to help businesses get into business, but also stay in business. these are some of the largest investments ever made in this city to support our small business community, and we still know that there's more work that we can do to better improve what is happening in san francisco, especially when we make decisions, when we make policy decisions, and unfortunately sometimes, we lose a small business because of his bad policy decisions. as we work through the bureaucracy, as we work through making the kinds of changes that are going to make things better for small businesses, this is a first step towards demonstrating that we are committed to supporting our small business community, and we are here to receive feedback in other ways in which these programs are working and making a difference in your communities, and of course, there is still more that we know we need to do, but this

is the beginning of what i think is a bright and prosperous future for our small businesses in san francisco, and i want to thank all of you for being here today. and someone who has been an incredible small business champion on the board of supervisors, who is working on legislation around vacancy controls, who is working on making sure that we have opportunities to have more legacy businesses, and funding for those legacy businesses, which is equally important, is a committed former resident, but now living in another part of d5 , but you all remember her, because she used to pick up trash in front of your businesses, that is why we know, and we love vallie brown because of her commitment to the residents of district five. ladies and gentlemen, your supervisor, vallie brown. [applause]. >> thank you. i really appreciate everything

you were doing, giving the funding forward so we can actually address these issues. i guess you i will have to legislate things to get that done, but i really feel that in these times when small businesses are struggling, the city needs to step up and do better. we need to make sure that streamlining, when people get in , trying to open their businesses, it doesn't take them a year and a half to pay rent and open a business if they want to have a couple of businesses able to go into one bigger space , that should be easy for them. we need to make it easy. in these times are we have amazon and all the other home deliveries, we need to make it easy for businesses to not only survive, but to prosper. this was personal for me because i lived in the lower hate for 20

years. it is my heart. i have to join you -- tell you, at café international, over 15 years ago, and the patio, that is where we started the first neighborhood association. we also started the first merchant's association. we argued about how many trees should we plant, and how many bar crawls should we have to get those money -- the money to plant the trees. all of this, the merchants were there, the merchants came forward with the residents, and said, your priorities are our priorities. the whole foods across the street, that is the original whole foods, everybody. there we are. yes, mike's barbershop has been there since the sixties, zara and café international, 27 years , has she been serving coffee to the neighbors, giving them advice, and also listening to their issues, and ricky records, two jacks, from 20

years plus. i mean this is the kind of businesses that we want and that we crave. when i say to my friend, let's meet for coffee or dinner, i don't say, come to my house, i say let's meet in the corridors. they are the extension of our living room. they are an extension of our home. when we go out, i want to be somewhere when i feel like i am at home. where i can talk to mike at the barbershop or others. i can't imagine not being able to go out my front door and go to a store that i love, or a café that i love and then i can meet my friends, so i am here today to say, all of a sudden, we weave ourselves in the fabrics of these neighborhoods, and we need to be -- we need to

support our merchant corridors because they are part of our home. i know you are nervous, but i told her, just pretend she is behind the counter, giving advice, and speak from the heart i want to thank everyone here today, and i, as your supervisor , will be working on creative ways, legislating them, to make it easier for merchants, and to make sure our corridor thrives. thank you. i will introduce her. because she has given me advice many times. and even though i moved, i still come in here, and after a busy day, i sit there and say, tell me what is real. i will have few tell her what is real right now, and your beautiful café, after the renovation, it is amazing. i want you to come up and tell

it from the heart. thank you. >> thank you, mayor breed and supervisor brown for the introduction and for coming to café international for this very important announcement. through the mayor and supervisor vallie brown in the office of economic and workforce development, café international, we have received a lot of money. our beautiful interior and exterior, with has a san francisco shine. café international is not only a community hub. with the health and support in the city and the mayor, we continue to serve our community and keep it healthy and vibrant. mayor breed, thank you.

supervisor vallie brown, thank you for all your support. these two people saved the café. thank you. and thank you everybody, and come and get coffee. [applause] >> now we will have comments from mario who is the president of the district council of merchants. >> good afternoon, everybody. mayor breed, thank you very much for having me speak here, and supervisor vallie brown, thank you for all you have done for this neighborhood. this is kind of my stomping grounds when i was younger, and i'm proud to say that as president of the council of district merchants, it is a member of the council as well as upper. the council stands to represent those who are underrepresented, as the mayor has said earlier, small businesses have been

struggling. that doesn't mean we're down and out. we are not looking for a handout , but we do need to help out. when times are tough, community -- communities need to get together. i commend the mayor for having that roundtable that you had a few weeks ago. she gathered many of us businesspeople together and she hurried as speak, not only did she hear us, but she listened. not only did she give our complaints and concerns, bed we told her what things we contributed to the community as a small business merchants. it is a symbiotic relationship. small businesses would not be there without the neighbors and the customers. we pretty much defined the neighborhood. most of us adopt our names based on our commercial corridor. it is something that is precious to us, it is unique to us, and if it is anything else other than that, then we become a suburb. then we are no longer a unique city called san francisco, which

is one of the most desirable cities in the world. i would also like to say that i commend the mayor for not just listening to our needs, but responding to them. when it comes to the shine program, when it comes to the revolving funds, and also the assistance with fees, sincerely, mayor brown, i thank you, because we were heard. it was a gesture. i hope it was just a start, and i hope if you need any help with that legislation, i've got your back on that, too, but the fact that we were heard, the fact that someone acknowledged that there is a problem, maybe we need a little bit of help, it goes a long way. i am one of those people that said, it is necessary, but also after that dialogue, we need some action, and we need follow-up. it is, it is a symbiotic relationship. we all grow together, we all sleep together, but it is important that we are heard and now we look forward to working

together, not one-sided versus the other, but as one team holding hands and walking through this process together because it does take a village. on that note, i laughed when i heard of her story because i too am an immigrant. i beat her here by about 25 years, and i've acclimated quite well, but i walked up and i started chatting with her, and she started chatting with me in arabic. or arabic was much better than mine, but what got to me is when the mayor mentioned that you came over there and she started to give advice, because 35 years ago, that was my mom and her little corner grocery store. should be sitting there giving these guys advice on how to run their marriages, their households, and a couple of them were esteemed attorneys and appointed judges on the federal court circuit, so it was kind of funny to see where some of our leaders know where to get the best advice. on that note, thank you very much. thank you for having me, and a look i look forward to working with you. thank you.

>> thank you for being here. i also want to take the opportunity to acknowledge the new head of the san francisco chamber of commerce, rodney phone, thank you for joining us here today, because it has to be about protecting and supporting our small business communities so we are all working together to do that. now that we are wrapping this up , a couple of things, get your food and your coffee from café international before you go back to work. if you need a haircut, mike will take care of you across the street. if you need groceries, you can go to whole foods, which is a local grocery owned place, and you will take care of their needs. everything you need before you go back to work, or you go home, it's right here in this neighborhood, at these incredible small businesses, usually staffed by the people who actually owned them and work day in and day out to take care of the people of this community. again, that is why we have to take care of them and make the right investment in our small

businesses all over the city and county of san francisco so they cannot only survive, they can thrive, and we can be the city that we truly know how to be. thank you also much for being >> shop and dine in the 49 promotes local businesses and challenges residents to do their business in the 49 square files of san francisco. we help san francisco remain unique, successful and right vi. so where will you shop and dine in the 49? >> i'm one of three owners here in san francisco and we provide mostly live music entertainment and we have food, the type of

food that we have a mexican food and it's not a big menu, but we did it with love. like ribeye tacos and quesadillas and fries. for latinos, it brings families together and if we can bring that family to your business, you're gold. tonight we have russelling for e community. >> we have a ten-person limb elimination match. we have a full-size ring with barside food and drink. we ended up getting wrestling here with puoillo del mar. we're hope og get families to join us. we've done a drag queen bingo

and we're trying to be a diverse kind of club, trying different things. this is a great part of town and there's a bunch of shops, a variety of stores and ethnic restaurants. there's a popular little shop that all of the kids like to hanhang out at. we have a great breakfast spot call brick fast at tiffanies. some of the older businesses are refurbished and newer businesses are coming in and it's exciting. >> we even have our own brewery for fdr, ferment, drink repeat. it's in the san francisco garden district and four beautiful muellermixer ura alsomurals. >> it's important to shop local because it's kind of like a circle of life, if you will. we hire local people. local people spend their money at our businesses and those

local mean that wor people willr money as well. i hope people shop locally. [ ♪ ]

>> all right. it is pride month in san francisco. good morning, mayor. >> here we go.

[applause.] >> welcome to san francisco. everybody is welcome. happy tried everybody. ever happy pride everyone. >> thank you for joining us to quick off pride month 2019. my name is clair farley, senior adviser for mayor breed and director of the office of transinitiatives. i am so honored to be the mistress of ceremonies. there will be cocktails later. i know it is early. you know, i think that today we

ask to really honor those whose stories often don't make the headlines, those brave folks in the community who do the work every day. we are excited to honor those folks today. i hope you join us in celebrating them. pride started as a riot. knowing the history can only give us hope and remind us of our strength and power for change. even when the federal administration attempts to strip away our rights, we know that san francisco will fight back. in san francisco we will never give up from the streets to city hall. from harvey milk to the trans women of color. today our community has achieved so much. we have made incredible strides thanks to the generations every

assistance before us. this work would not be possible with all of you and without our allies and leadership here in city hall who have joined us on the front lines for lbgt equality. it is my honor to welcome our mayor, mayor london breed. [cheers and applause.] >> mayor breed: thank you to everyontoeveryone who is joinin. no one celebrated pride like the city and county of san francisco. celebrate we must to make sure that our voices are heard and the federal government knows that no matter who you are and who you love, we will not be erased, not in america, not in san francisco, not today. i want to take this opportunity to acknowledge some of the

leadership we have in san francisco, people who are making a difference. thank you so much to our state senator scott weiner for being here, who you will hear from shortly. as well as our treasure who is with us today. your fierce supervisor rafael mandelman. community college board member alex randolph. and supervisor safai and another member of the community college board, tom. and thank you supervisor matt haney for joining us as well. i want to take this opportunity to acknowledge the first lbgt fire chief jeanine nicholson.

and thank you supervisor walton for being here as well. and our police department, our chief is here, bill scott. i am so excited. have you guys seen the new flag, new vehicles of the san francisco police department? amazing. thank you, chief so much. there is a freedom band that you will be the official band of the city and county of san francisco, lgbt freed domband. you will hear from them shortly. no one celebrates pride like san francisco. thank you for joining us to raise the flag in our city. i know there are challenges throughout the bay area of raising this flag. in san francisco it is not a question. it is an important part of what makes our city so special. i want to thank all of you every

year for coming for the flag raising. i want to acknowledge the man behind making the celebration great, commissioner tom horn, thank you so much for your amazing support for this event. i want to say a special acknowledgment and for the parade which i cannot wait to participate in. it is a lot of hard work. we all have fun and a good time. i know that you and the committee work hard to make sure it looks effortless. thank you so much for being here today. [applause.] along with celebrating pride this month, it also is a time to reflect on our lgbt community's long history of activism and

resilience from the aids which ravaged our city to the war against the transcommunity that is playing out throughout this country. since san francisco's first pride parade in 1970, we have overcome so many challenges thanks to the courage of the amazing community leaders who stood up. today san francisco is a beacon of hope for the lbgt community. this year's pride parade theme generations every assistance, just as generations have resisted before we in san francisco will continue to resist. despite the federal government's continued attacks on the lbgt community we will not back down until we achieve full equality. we will stand with our transgender people who continue

to bravely serve our country, and in san francisco our businesses, hour healthcare services, our work force and housing will always be open to all. in san francisco, we are expanding gender identity options on all city forms and applications that ask for demographic information, and we are including education on our lgbt identities for city employees as part of harassment prevention and implicit bias training. last week i was proud to announce a new $3 million investment in our budget for transand lbg in san francisco. it includes $2 million for flexible housing to keep our transcommunity housed. we know that transgender people

are 18 times more likely to not be able to have housing and to be homeless in san francisco. we are going to make the investment to support the lbgt youth by providing them with housing, employment and case management services. i want to thank all members of the board of supervisors and others who advocate for this much needed investment. [applause.] we will be funding training and internship programs for transjob seekers and community members exiting the criminal justice system. we are committed to continuing to backfill the federal h.i.v. as getting to zero in the effort that state senator scott weiner fought for and now supervisor mandelman continues to fight for

on the board now. this will help with efforts like the win senator wiener is doing to increase access for everyone in california. thank you, senator wiener. [applause.] together we can make sure that no one is left behind, and this city doesn't just celebrate our lbgt community, we make investments and put deeds behind those words which is why we are the best city in the world, and what is so amazing so many of you play such a critical role in that success. i want to take this opportunity before i acknowledge the work of two incredible individuals here today. i can't move on with this program without acknowledging donna sachet for being here

today. [applause.] she and charlotte shuttl shultze only two that dress better than me. thank you for all you do to make us look and feel good. i forgot you were there. vicky, thank you so much. [applause.] so i have two awards to give. first of all, i want to ask george to come up to accept this on behalf of sf pride. as i said, i know that it looks like it is easy, but it is not easy because we know the stress in getting permits anchorednating with city departments and getting everyone to follow the rules and stay where they are to stay and not lag behind in the parades,

festivities, events, programs, the fund-raising. i didn't mention the fact they have to fundraise to pay for these incredible activities that make san francisco look good to the rest of the world. thousands of people come from all over to celebrate pride in san francisco. june is a fun and energetic and incredible month for us. because of sf pride and this committee, the work they do means so much to our city. on behalf of the city and county of san francisco, i would like to declare which day am i declaring? [laughing.] today june 3rd as sf pride day in the city and county of san francisco. thank you so much. [cheers and applause.]

i have one more special award. i also get the honor of presenting the annual teddy worthington award to a legendary film maker and writer. this award recognizes individuals who have contributed a longstanding large body of work in the lbgt community. sharcheryl is a central part ofe queer new way of young film makers. watermelon woman has won critical acclaim. her project was one of the top must see film innist films. today she is continuing the body of work with award-winning sear rears. -- series.

she will give me the ending. it is amazing. it is my honor to also declare today as cheryl d un yee day for your amazing contribution and the work you have done to not only advocate for the lgbt community but the work you have done to shine a light on people of color who are often times disenfranchised to tell our stories and how we should be represented in film. it is beautiful to watch and see and those people love you out there just as much as we do. cheryl, come on up. [cheers and applause.]

first of all, congratulations to all of the grand marshalls for this year's pride parade. can you all please stand or wave your hand so we can see you. thank you. and last but not least, cheryl, do you want to say a few words? say "hello" to the folks. >> hi everyone i am proud to be the grand marshall awarded with the award. i have been working for so long to bring the margins to the center. i have been working really long to make what is invisible

visible. in this day of independent media and television and the browning and blacking of images, i am making the invisible and visible invincible and thank you. >> thank you so much. with that, i will turn it back over, ladies and gentlemen, enjoy the city, enjoy pride month in the city. let's have an amazing time. make sure you don't forget to go to our restaurants and spend all of your money, too. thank you so much. >> thank you, mayor breed. now it is my honor to introduce you to someone who has done so much work in san francisco and now leading the way across california. our state senator scott weiner.

[cheers and applause.] >> thank you, and i want to thank the mayor for being an extraordinary ally to our community. thank you, mayor breed, for everything you do. this city is in amazing hands under your leadership. thank you. this is my 23rd san francisco pride. my 29th overall pride since i came out as a gay man a long, long time ago. time flies. i am optimistic for our community in many ways. this community that been through so much in terms of the hate crimes and the worst of the hiv aids crisis and housing crisis and all of the other weighs in which our community that struggled over the years in san francisco and elsewhere. we are so resilient and the community comes back and comes back and gets stronger and stronger. i am so proud to be part of our

lbgt community, particularly in san francisco. that doesn't mean we don't center challenges. i think pride is the right time of the year for us to recommit to celebrate and recommit to the fight. of course, we know what this guy is doing in washington, d.c. in the white house to undermine and harm our community including our children, attacking children. it is something that it is hard to fathom that you have a president of the united states who would attack lbgt children. apart from what he is doing and we are fighting back hard to make sure california goes in the other direction, we have our own challenges here as an lbgt community in san francisco and california. we are continuing to criminalize the lbgt community. we are continuing to see obscene

rates of homelessness in our community, particularly our youth and 40% of homeless youth are lgbt. we continue to not be supportive enough of our transgender community in terms of what our transkids have to experience in terms of what trans-people experience in the criminal justice system or in the lack of employment or access to healthcare right here in california. we are not doing enough to support our lbgt seniors. too many are going to the closet when they enter long-term care. we have challenges. the good thing is in san francisco we are leading the way in confronting those challenges, whether it is the great work in the jails to treat lbgt inmates with the dignity they deserve or the groundbreaking work we have

done with seniors and homeless youth. we are taking that statewide. this shouldn't depends on where you live. i want to close. in terms of h.i.v., there is a narrative we have defeated h.i.v. we haven't. we have so much more work to do in california. we have dunk am -- done amazing work to reduce infection rates. we need to end h.i.v. let's recommit and have an amazing month. this community deserves it. thank you. [applause.] >> thank you so much. next we have our champion here on the board of supervisors, the only out gay member of the board of supervisors big

responsibility, and he is doing it with charm and grace. please welcome rafael mandelman, our supervisor. [applause.] >> thank you, for all of the amazing work that you do. every time we get the queers and friends together, this is a beautiful and wonderful group. happy tried 2019 everybody -- happy pride 2019 ever body. thank you for bringing us here today, mayor. you have been a champion. senator wean you wiener it is go have you back and thank you for your leadership. this is a very big pride. folks know i it is the 49th

anniversary of our san francisco pride parade but 50th anniversary of stone wall. [cheers and applause.] >> now in san francisco we know the modern civil rights movement began in 1966 with the compton cafeteria riots, but i think we can still acknowledge that stone wall is a big deal. now, madam mayor, we both grew up in san francisco. you and i both know so many communities are under stress in san francisco with our overheated real estate market and displacement across the city. on friday you brought us out to the sunnydale housing project to focus energy and attention and light on a community that for far too long our city has

shamefully ignored. at that event you announced your budget, which is your statement of values. i want to thank you for your commitment around the housing needses all of our communities in the city and particularly the lbgq community. we talked about the extraordinary $3 million investment for the first time in transcommunity housing needs. that is a big, big deal. i want to point out and celebrate the 79 new units opening at open house this summer right now. [applause.] i know many folks in this room worked on that adding to 40 units opened two years ago. it is partially due to the work of this mayor when she was on the board of supervisors that there are queer people going in those units.

thank you for that and all of your work to ensure our generations every assistance will be able to age and remain in san francisco. i know we are just getting started. those open house units are the first. i am excited. with that we have such a fantastic group of community grand marshalls that i have the honor to introduce to you today. i will start with api equality northern california. [applause.] >> where are you? very good. api equality northern california builds queer and transgender fire to trans form the community livelihoods from scarcity to abundance through their movement building they envision a world where all queer islanders can be

affirmed in bodies and communities as their full authentic selfs. api equality northern california. one more round of applause for them. [applause.] >> for our extremely queer district two catherine stephanie who has joined us. [applause.] >> our second amazing community grangrand marshall is ms. billy cooper. she is a 60-year-old who has worked for years in h.i.v. positive community engagement. she has traveled and spoken for both communities. she is a 30 plus year survivor living with h.i.v. who works with her recovery family because she has been clean and sober for 15 years.

ms. billy cooper. [applause.] >> vince. he is a gay pacific islander, aid aids survivor who has dedicated more than 30 years to aids activism and he currently runs the program for long-term survivors at the aids foundation and co-chairs the aging work group of the long-term care council. he was executive director of regional networks and founded the pacific island aids action group and served as united nations delegate. (applause). is vera here? she is amazing.

she has been encouraging people to experiment by attending public events. by creating costumes utilizing recycled materials they help discover unique visions in free workshops. they have marched in the san francisco pride parade since 1995. entertaining the ftca and bookmobile. vera sphere. [applause.] >> last, but not least by any means, ms. donna persona. the open house video with donna is absolutely amazing. donna is an activist for

transgender rights. she served on the boards of trans-march and day of remembrance and on the main streets after the compton's coms cafeteria. she raised the first transgender flag at city hall with mayor breed. the play recreates the transgender history and including sf weeklys best of 2018, donna persona. [cheers and applause.] >> this is such a great group of grand marshalls for 2019. i am excited to watch you celebrate this month and be honored. with that happy pride again. [applause.] >> thank you so much. you are doing such amazing work. it is my honor to bring up our

last speaker. the executive director of sf pride has done amazing work with pride. we are sad that he will be leaving pride this year. he has done so much amazing work. please join me in welcoming george and thanking him for his incredible service. [applause.] >> thank you, clair, mayor breed, supervisor mandelman. i have many of our team joining us. as mayor breed mentioned, there is a lot of work to do to put this event on. these are just some of the people that help make it work. i would introduce you buy name but i only have three minutes to do my talking points. i have more board members. we have board members and staff

here today. we are excited to be here to kickoff pride month with all of you. we are really grateful for the excellent relationship that we have with the city and many of the agencies that we have to work with to pull this event off. it is true i am leaving after this year's event. i will be working with rec and park. i intend to volunteer for pride when i can and do as much work for the city as i can. the global pride movement has proven to be an effective and enduring agent for change. it is the modern movement san francisco has been the leader in the space as supervisor mandelman mentioned we had o our own rising. this is part of a