most. to the kids out there, to the kids that are being woken up several nights a week in fear, to the kids that wake up and spend their night time comforting their younger siblings so that they won't make anything worse, to the kids that then have to get up and go to school and they can't focus and their grades aren't good, and they're making disruptions and having marks of negative attached to them, i want to tell those kids, i want you to know, we can't wait to work with you. we want to help you with your homework, we want to help you rebuild your relationship with your nonviolent parents, we want you to have a safe place at night and to sleep with stuffy his and have hope for your future because we have hope for your future and we are going nowhere until this issue is gone thank you. [cheers and applause] >> another round of applause for orchid. there are a few more city

department heads that have joined me, in addition to fire chief janine nicholson. linda, department of department -- apartment of technology, we could not have done the app without her and her staff. please recognize linda. also, walking torres has joined us, director of the office of economic and workforce development. our next speaker is kathy black, executive director of the -- [speaking spanish] -- the first domestic shelter in california. please give her a warm welcome. >> thank you. orchid, you are awesome. i just want to say that. in keeping with today's theme, building pathways to safety, i want you to know, i will take it a little bit more local and i want you to know that we respond to calls for help from victims of domestic violence of all ages , 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. we give survivors the tools to

transform their lives. we seek to prevent future violence by educating the community and redefining public perceptions about domestic violence. we attempt to accomplish this by engaging nearly 20,000 women, teens, men, older adults and children each year through a continuum of expert intervention and prevention services. we also envision a community where domestic violence is not tolerated in equal access to asset -- asset building opportunities that is freely available to all. i want to talk about a local stat from our shelter. that is of the 7,000 hotline calls we take every year, or this last year, 500 of those were from the san francisco police department law enforcement and from the medical community. we are working really hard to engage community partners who

are out, first responders, and to make a difference in that way i feel like that ties to the mayor mayor's press release today because we believe these early interventions are really key to future safety. that by connecting victims and survivors with community resources like the ones represented here, and all out there, i see my crew out there. that helps reduce the incidence of future violence. and some other highlights from this past year, just so you get an idea about the scope of the work that some of our programs provide, we provided 10,991 nights of shelter to 368 women and their children. eighty-seven% of the mothers who stayed in our shelter participate in family counseling

and support groups. people are eager to learn and eager to get resources. we often operate at or over capacity. last year, it was 22% of the year that we operated either at our full capacity or over. what that means is that in the middle of the night when the police department calls, we bring out, and we are full, which we are a lot, we haven't rollaway beds, we have couches, we figure things out and we will shelter victims and survivors overnight while they are figuring out what their next move might be with the expert help of the staff and our community partners. also, i think i want you to know that, again, whether it is 10:0a first responder is going through

the legality assessment -- lethality assessment tool, that when they connect that victim with an advocate at our shelter, and they decide to do an intake, that victim is going to meet the same advocate at the door of our shelter so that it is not -- there's compassion, there's consistency, and i think that makes a big difference for people. it is a real personal connection over 92% of clients, of our clients report, and i'm sure this is true of my partner programs, as well, over 92% of clients report positive outcomes across our five key metrics, which is, i have to look and see what it is, knowledge, safety, his stability, agency, and isolation. with that, i want to really say

that we are one agency as part of a larger safety net, and i see my friends here, and my allies, and we couldn't do the work without city partnerships, political allies, people like joaquin who has been a friend for years. thank you for everything you do for us. and the community partners we work with. thank you very much. [applause] >> our third and final representative of our domestic violence emergency shelter community is sherry, executive director of the riley center, saint vincent de paul society. please give her a warm welcome. [applause] >> good evening. if we are to address and prevent domestic violence holistically, we must provide comprehensive supportive services centred on the survivors' trauma and need

while highlighting their individual family and community systems, strength and protective factors. and if we focus our efforts in providing client centred, trauma informed and culturally sensitive supportive services, we will support the long-term healing of intergenerational cycle of violence experienced by survivors and their children. this will lead to a stronger, safer, and healthier family and community system free of violence. this is what we work on at our center. we have four major programs in which we do this. we have our transitional housing program, we have rosalie house which is our emergency shelter and our crisis line, we have our community office where survivors can get the services they need, education, workshops, support groups, and then we also work with the family services

department, and so if there is an incident of domestic violence , we have a specialist that helps that family moved to a healthier life. we have been in this city of san francisco for 35 years and we are very proud of the work that we do. i want to take this time to thank our consortium, beverly, our domestic -- our department on the status of women, and the staff and all our community partners that do the work we do. this is how we survived the domestic violence system in the city. thank you. [applause] >> thank you so much. as president zawart stated, prevention is a critical part of our work to stop the cycle of violence. for over 20 years, asian-pacific islander legal outreach has engaged youth through its youth advisory council to address gender-based and dating violence in asian and pacific islander communities. please join me in welcoming the

youth advisory council at the youth coordinator. give him a warm welcome. [applause] >> good evening, everyone. we are the youth advisory council from the legal outreach. we strive for and accepting an equitable future in which everyone is helpfully loved. as youth in our communities, it is important we engage in work against a mystic violence to educate our peers and prevent its occurrence in our everyday lives. through this work, we believe in setting pathways to safety. the youth advisory council meets to share a safe space where we are able to become activists and create positive change in our communities. in honor of domestic violence awareness month, every year the youth advisory council sets up press -- sets of presentations

about teen dating violence to youth organizations, schools, and community spaces oh, oh, -- all over the bay area. we inform our peers and give them a better understanding of healthy and unhealthy relationships and we also empower other youth and equip them with the skills and knowledge to make change in their communities. >> as youth ourselves, were able to directly connect with other youth and encourage them to be active and involved in their community. we believe in encouraging our young, male identifying peers to break the culture of silence regarding violence within our communities. we also seek to empower youth from the lgbt plus community, people of color, and women. they are patriarchal and systematic effects that are prevalent in our underserved communities, specifically low income people of color. there are societal norms that places men in positions of power over women. in my experience as a young woman of color, i have seen the

cultural and societal expectations of gender roles placed upon women of color that make it difficult for women of color to tell the truth. these marginalized women are survivors and deserve justice, with this justice system abuses their power to oppress this community. [applause]. >> we believe that in order to be helpful he loved, education is crucial. it is important to be able to identify an unhealthy relationship. for starters, and any relationship, it is important that both partners know what consent really is. consent is a strong and continuous yes. it is also a decision that cannot be influenced by power imbalances. another vital factor in safety and determining unhealthy relationships is the cycle of violence. a cycle of which the abuser or abusers traps a survivor in an unhealthy relationship. through the youth advisory

council's presentation, we also shuck the importance of a pragmatic and optimistic mindset everyone should feel safe opening up to others, but we should still take the necessary precautions to ensure our safety and well-being. it is also crucial to be well-informed of the reality of domestic violence, including some societal factors that perpetuate this issue. this mindset combines both positivity and it helps to avoid violence and/or aggression. [applause] >> it is important among san francisco teens because we present students with accurate information about domestic violence and the resources they can use to confront these situations. often, teens take to social media to speak about issues, but only to the extent of republishing a post. they don't necessarily check their sources, and this leads to people being misinformed and quickly disinterested. we are helpful in this way because it gives straightforward

and reliable information on domestic abuse and dating violence, as well as resources for people in these situations. this is especially needed in metropolitan areas such as san francisco where there isn't a strong sense of community or people to watch out for one another. [applause] >> too often, youth are unaware of the resources that they have at hand if they find themselves in an unhealthy relationship. these resources include hotlines , restraining orders, and measures of self-defence. through our presentation, we work to bring attention to these issues, which are often not touched upon in schools. our work as youth is equally, if not more important as the work of previous generations. our actions will lead to pathways to safety for our youth , not only now, but as they grow into adult hood in the future. we urge you to listen to the youth around you. encourage them to become involved in our communities,

provide them the support that they need to make profound changes in our society. but most importantly, give them the resources to protect themselves and find pathways to safety and their environments. [cheers and applause] >> another round of applause for our youth advisory council. so our final speaker tonight, before our concluding performance and group photo, please be sure to stay for the group photo, our final speaker is april mcgill, a california native and director of community partnerships and projects for the california consortium of urban indian health. april will share about the incredibly important project called red women rising, which advocates for culturally responsive services for urban, indian survivors. please give a warm welcome to april. [cheers and applause]

[speaking indigenous language] >> my name is april mcgill. i am in the enrolled member of rep -- round valley indian tribe california native, san francisco resident, and i want to recognize our ancestors whose land we reside on today. i just want to remind everybody that we stand on stolen land. this land was stolen by violence so we have a history of violence and all of our lives, in every single one of you. you have experienced experience that energy and that violence from this land. our what -- red women rising project brings attention to the -- to domestic violence and missing and murdered indigenous women here in california. we work with all the urban indian health and tribal consortiums to bring more attention to violence against native women. as california indian women, we

have experienced this violence since the gold rush. we know this violence. this has been happening throughout indian countries, that many nations, but our work is to make change with our rising project by bringing attention to policy and legislative initiative that can change and impact issues around domestic violence and missing and murdered indigenous women and -- in california. we work with many legislators to make change. we work with sovereign bodies institutes, we work with strong native women coalition, and we partner with all of our other grassroots organizations here in san francisco that are also standing behind me. i wanted to share with you some statistics from sovereign body's institute about california. statewide, there are 135 missing and murdered indigenous women and girls cases across california that have been

identified. california is number five for total number of missing and indigenous women and girls cases , alongside washington, new mexico, arizona, and montana. seventy-five% of all cases in california occurred in northern california. nearly one third, 28% of all cases in the state, a humble -- of the humble county are involved with victims involved in tribes. of the 135 cases, only seven have information on alleged perpetrators available to the public and only one of those alleged perpetrators has actually been charged. over half the cases documented in california occurred in the last three years. from 2013 through 2015, the rate of these cases per year statewide increased by approximately 20% each year. in 2016, the right out -- the

rate of cases increased, and in 2018, the rate increased, as well. san francisco is one of the highest in the state, which is really embarrassing considering that we have such a progressive state. one of the things that i can say is we are making change with the port -- with support from the mayor. thank you, london breed for all your support for the american indian community. thank you supervisor ronen, and supervisor brown because we were able to pass a legislation -- a resolution in may recognizing may 5th as the national day of awareness ongoing missing murdered indigenous women. [cheers and applause] i would like to read the resolution. were as indigenous people have inhabited the north american continent including the state of california for many centuries, and from the first contact with settlers from other countries,

native americans share their knowledge of the land and its resources and have continued to play a vital role in the development of local communities , the state of california, and the nation. whereas, the missing murdered indigenous women and girls report from the urban indian health institute released in 20 -- 2009 provides data from 71 urban cities across the united states on missing and murdered indigenous women and girls. recognizing that a number of factors, including or data collection by law enforcement, and limited health resources, that there is an undercount of these women in urban areas such as san francisco, and we are ranked tenth among cities with the highest number of these cases. whereas the 2009 apology to native american people of the u.s. recognizes special legal and political relationships indian tribes have with the united states, and the land we share. recognize that there has been years of official policies and the breaking of laws by federal

government regarding indian tribes. apologize on behalf of the people of the united states to all native people for the many instances of violence, maltreatment, and neglect inflicted on native people by citizens of the united states, and commend that the state governments that have begun reconciliation efforts with native american tribes, located in the boundaries, encourage all state governments to work towards rock and say it -- reconciling relationships with indian tribes within their boundaries, were as the city and county of san francisco has a responsibility to address the disapproved and an victimization of indigenous women from domestic and sexual violence, including missing and murdered indigenous women, and whereas, our sister, jessica nicole alva, lassie died on april 6th, 2019 at the age of 35 after being in a coma for four days as a result of an abusive domestic

relationship. jessica grew up in reading and lived in san francisco for five years. she is survived by her mother cindy and her six children and four siblings with a stepbrother and stepsister. and whereas, in 2005, grassroots movements for the safety of indigenous women led to the struggle to include safety for indian women under the violence against women act. whereas, of the last decade, awareness of the national issue has increased, but more must be done at all levels to stop the disappearance and save lives of our women. whereas, may 5th, 2017 was designated as the first national day of awareness for honoring missing and murdered indigenous women through the efforts of survival families, native american tribes, national, indigenous organizations and law and policy makers. now resolve, this city and county of san francisco permanently designates may 5th as honoring missing and murdered indigenous women's day in the

city and county of san francisco , and furthermore, will begin discussions with urban indian organizations, neighboring native american tribes, local tribal organizations to develop recommendations for local and indigenous victim advocacy services. local and tribal justice responses including coordination and identifying the implemented solutions to strengthen the safety and health and well-being of our indigenous women. thank you, san francisco mayor's office for this resolution. [applause] [cheers and applause] >> and i would like to ask my sister aurora to come up and introduce our red lightning women singers. >> good evening, relatives. we are from the red lightning woman power group. we came about the name through our sister betty over here in

regards to missing and murdered indigenous women. we started about a year and a half or two years ago through a red ribbon dress workshop where we had some workshops on domestic violence and sexual assault awareness. we created, 21 -- we created and so 21 ribbon skirts. red represents are missing and murdered women and domestic violence. we are from the native american health centre here in san francisco, the wellness department, located on mission and seventh. we believe that women are sacred and when we wear our skirts, we are sacred, and also native women, is april mentioned, have the highest rate of domestic violence. we believe in saying her name for our sisters that are no longer here due to domestic violence, and we come from matriarchal society originally, before colonizers came.

i just want to say, remake treat we will sing a missing and murdered indigenous women and girls song this evening. thank you. [applause] [singing] [singing]

[singing] [singing]

[singing] [singing]

[singing] [applause] >> let's give another hand to the lightning singers, the red women lightning singers. there are three people i want to think as we close. first, nicole, the senior adviser to the mayor for helping us put together today. give us a wave. secondly, and finally i want to thank elise of the the department of the status of women. please waive. she held -- she helped put all of today's logistics together. i want to thank all of my staff

at the department. please join us for a very large group photo which we want to do really quickly. everybody come on up.

[♪] ♪ homelessness in san francisco is considered the number 1 issue by most people who live here, and it doesn't just affect neighbors without a home, it affects all of us. is real way to combat that is to work together. it will take city departments

and nonprofit providers and volunteers and companies and community members all coming together. [♪] >> the product homeless connect community day of service began about 15 years ago, and we have had 73 of them. what we do is we host and expo-style event, and we were the very force organization to do this but it worked so well that 250 other cities across the globe host their own. there's over 120 service providers at the event today, and they range anywhere from hygiene kits provided by the basics, 5% -- to prescription glasses and reading glasses, hearing tests, pet sitting, showers, medical services, flu shots, dental care, groceries, so many phenomenal service providers, and what makes it so unique is we ask that they

provide that service today here it is an actual, tangible service people can leave with it. >> i am with the hearing and speech center of northern california, and we provide a variety of services including audiology, counselling, outreach, education, today we actually just do screening to see if someone has hearing loss. to follow updates when they come into the speech center and we do a full diagnostic hearing test, and we start the process of taking an impression of their year, deciding on which hearing aid will work best for them. if they have a smart phone, we make sure we get a smart phone that can connect to it, so they can stream phone calls, or use it for any other services that they need. >> san francisco has phenomenal social services to support people at risk of becoming homeless, are already experience and homelessness, but it is confusing, and there is a lot of waste. bringing everyone into the same space not only saves an average of 20 hours a week in navigating the system and waiting in line for different areas, it helps them talk, so if you need to

sign up for medi-cal, what you need identification, you don't have to go to sacramento or wait in line at a d.m.v., you go across the hall to the d.m.v. to get your i.d. ♪ today we will probably see around 30 people, and averaging about 20 of this people coming to cs for follow-up service. >> for a participant to qualify for services, all they need to do is come to the event. we have a lot of people who are at risk of homelessness but not yet experiencing it, that today's event can ensure they stay house. many people coming to the event are here to receive one specific need such as signing up for medi-cal or learning about d.m.v. services, and then of course, most of the people who are tender people experiencing homelessness today. >> i am the representative for the volunteer central. we are the group that checks and all the volunteers that comment participate each day. on a typical day of service, we have anywhere between 40500 volunteers that we, back in,

they get t-shirts, nametags, maps, and all the information they need to have a successful event. our participant escorts are a core part of our group, and they are the ones who help participants flow from the different service areas and help them find the different services that they needs. >> one of the ways we work closely with the department of homelessness and supportive housing is by working with homeless outreach teams. they come here, and these are the people that help you get into navigation centers, help you get into short-term shelter, and talk about housing-1st policies. we also work very closely with the department of public health to provide a lot of our services. >> we have all types of things that volunteers deal do on a day of service. we have folks that help give out lunches in the café, we have folks who help with the check in, getting people when they arrive, making sure that they find the services that they need to, we have folks who help in the check out process, to make sure they get their food bag,

bag of groceries, together hygiene kit, and whatever they need to. volunteers, i think of them as the secret sauce that just makes the whole process works smoothly. >> participants are encouraged and welcomed to come with their pets. we do have a pet daycare, so if they want to have their pets stay in the daycare area while they navigate the event, they are welcome to do that, will we also understand some people are more comfortable having their pets with them. they can bring them into the event as well. we also typically offer veterinary services, and it can be a real detriment to coming into an event like this. we also have a bag check. you don't have to worry about your belongings getting lost, especially when that is all that you have with you. >> we get connected with people who knew they had hearing loss, but they didn't know they could get services to help them with their hearing loss picks and we are getting connected with each other to make sure they are getting supported. >> our next event will be in march, we don't yet have a date set. we typically sap set it six weeks out.

the way to volunteer is to follow our newsletter, follow us on social media, or just visit our website. we always announce it right away, and you can register very easily online. >> a lot of people see folks experience a homelessness in the city, and they don't know how they can help, and defence like this gives a whole bunch of people a lot of good opportunities to give back and be supported. [♪]