>> are we ready? okay. five, four, three, two, one. here we go -- whoops. roll it. [applause] >> the hon. lond

>> the hon. london breed: it is trans awareness month in san francisco. just have a seat and ignore the reserved seats signs because everybody for the reserved seats signs are probably behind me. happy trans awareness week in san francisco. we need to do it bigger. let's do a month, and this is where we are, celebrating so many amazing things, so many amazing accomplishments. but we also know, sadly, that our trans community all over the country is under attack. just recently, sadly, we shouldn't be surprised, but the president has rolled out some

new discriminatory plan against our trans community, trying to take away millions of dollars of federal funds from our cities throughout the country. and we are of course, in san francisco style, going to continue to fight back time and time again against the discrimination that continues to attract -- attack our trans community here in this city. [applause] >> the hon. london breed: we understand, more than anyplace else, despite the differences that we may have, that our diversity is our strength. that is what makes san francisco such an incredible, unique place. and i'm proud that every single time this president tries to put forth a discriminatory policy, we come back harder and badder than ever with more

investment, with more policy changes, with a new approach to doing things. the fact is this didn't happen because of us, it happened because of you. it happened because we have incredible leader like senator scott wiener and supervisor rafael mandelman who continue to lead the charge. it happens because of people who make sure we are making the right investment. [applause] >> the hon. london breed: now more than ever, we have to be bold, and i want to really thank mickey callahan for being here. because when i put out the forms last year to make the training and initiatives and other things possible so that people who work for the city and county of san francisco can have the appropriate training to work with our trans community, that we make changes

to our documents so people can choose whatever they want to identify with on our forms in the city, she was a leader in moving forth that effort, so thank you, mickey, for being here to celebrate with us today. [applause] >> the hon. london breed: but i will tell you, one of the proudest things that i think san francisco has done is to put forth not only millions of dollars of investments in organizations that not only serve our community, but trans home sf will really be a game changer for our community when it comes to supportive housing. we see, saddly, that our trans community is 18 times more

likely to experience homelessness than any other population in the city, so we have to be deliberate about the investments that we make to make sure that we change that. and so thank you so much for all of your work and advocacy. when i first became mayor, and we had that initial meeting, we talked about -- tony, you remember -- not just housing and homelessness, but investment in the arts, investment in resources to make sure that we as a city aren't just talking about what we support, we're putting our money where our mouth is, and we've seen record numbers of investments. i'm excited about the future of san francisco, and i'm excited to be here with each and every one of you today, and yes, i wore the deliberate colors of the flag. i wore my pink on my shoes and

my white on my ears to let you know how proud i am to be here in san francisco at this moment, celebrating a resilient community, one that represents san francisco so well in how we continue to push the envelope on policies that really not only support this community but support all communities that continue to be left out of what prosperity should be for all citizens of this city. and so i want to thank you all for continuing to shine a light on issues of equity that need to be addressed in san francisco, and i want to really thank claire for her leadership and her hard work and commitment. and i also want to acknowledge that we have other elected officials here today to support this incredible occasion. thank you so supervisor matt haney for joining us as well as

treasurer jose cisneros. i think i we're not

only funding trans programs, but that we're doing it in an equitable way. so you know, san francisco has

really had a long history of championing the community, and we've been a beacon of hope. so this morning, when i was thinking about what i wanted to share -- it wasn't that -- i was reminded of a quote by robert f. kennedy that says each time we're asked to standup for an ideal or strike out against injustice, we send forth a tiny ripple of hope. and i see that san francisco in these times where folks are under attack, black folks are under attack, immigrants are under attack, trans folks, lgbtq folks are under attack, san francisco can be a beacon of hope. so if we want to have better investments, it starts with recognizing and creating awareness. so we kick off this month

filled with wonderful events. we have the amazing trans film festival, spear headed by shawnna that's been a prominent fixture in our city, and we'll get to hear from her today. we also get to kick off our trans home, which is a $2.3 million investment in our community, which will include rental housing and subsidy for our community. [applause] >> and also through the leadership of supervisor mandelman, we'll be doing the board of supervisors first trans leaders recognition and accommodation day this month through city hall. and lastly, you know, there's a lot of events to share, so i won't go into all the detail. but we have our trans day of remembrance, which, you know, is often a very sad day. this year specifically, we've

lost more and more black trans women. i know for many of us in this room, we've been going to these events year after year, and we continue to see the same challenges. so today, i want to commit my office, with the support of the mayor, to really focus on how we can end violence in our communities. we are grateful that san francisco has done incredible work on this, but we know that we need to do more. and as we look out to the rest of the country where we continue to see such loss of life, it's important that we remember that we can be that change. so as we move forward, i really want to recognize, and i'll bring her up later, nicky colma, who's been leading the charge. nicky? [applause] >> wow. i have a lot of notes here.

i don't know how i thought i'd get through them all. you know, so as the mayor mentioned today, trump again came out against lgbt health care. it seems like he has something against fridays and trans people. it's like every friday, there's something else. and so i just want to remind folks, because i think this can be a scary time, that outside of even november, that san francisco and california will continue to protect our community. and so regardless of what happens in washington, you will be protected. we will stand together, and we will make change together. [applause] >> so in closing, you know, i really want to encourage us all to get involved and encourage our allies to be a part of this change. we know that being open about your love and respect and value of trans co-workers and friends

and partners is key to shifting the landscape of violence that our community faces, and that also starts with policy and our elected officials. so as kennedy said, we'll move forward with a ripple of hope, and i hope today is just one moment of that, and i really appreciate you all for being here. and with that, i would love to introduce our first speaker who's going to share a little bit more about our trans home and has been a leader of change, miss tony newman from st. james infirmary. [applause] >> i am so excited to be here. i wrote a book in 2011 called "i rise," and it was in mind that transgender people can get power and rise. and i see that san francisco is the only city in the country who's financially supported trans home and safety and

housing, and that deserves a round of applause. [applause] >> i would like to thank mayor breed for your support, the supervisors for their support, especially rafael and matt. matt has been very supportive to st. james, and we're thankful to him. and i would like to thank larkin and their team. i want to announce that we've hired the trans home team. the social worker is matthew peda. would you stand, please? [applause] >> the housing navigator is camden carter. [applause] >> my bilingual navigator is jessie santos. [applause] >> we're also in touch with john mckinley, who's the housing project manager at t

t.g.i. justice manager project. we can help you immediately or with your own apartment. we're here to serve you with the community, so come to st. james starting december 1. we're not quite ready. we have to train these folks. they just got hired yesterday, so come to st. james starting december 1 with your needs, and we will do the very best we can to serve you in the capacity as your ambassadors. thank you. [applause] >> are we ready to get our community housed? yes. i also want to do a shout-out to aria saheed who's leading our cultural district. aria, thank you for all of your work. so next, we're going to move on, and it's my honor to

introduce someone who was in the office and has been leading the charge in trans and lgbt policy on the state level, our state senator, scott wiener. >> thank you, claire. i also want to acknowledge aria saheed who we honored as our district 11 woman of the year, so thank you, aria, for all you do. you know, we've made a lot of progress, and we tend to focus on the challenge because it's important, and we have to overcome them, but sometimes we need to step back and recognize where we've been. in 2011 when mark leno authored the program to extend health

care to trans people, it was lambasted by fox news. fast forward to 2012, when we were able to get health care to extend full coverage to trans people in san francisco. we braced ourselves for this explosion, and you could have had a pin drop. that's just in a decade. that shift was extraordinary. but we know there's still huge challenges around poverty and unemployment and homelessness and around the violence. and the epidemic of trans people and particularly trans women of color who are being brutally murdered all across the country and living in fear. and people should not be in fear to walk down the street, and yes that is the atmosphere that we have for so many trans

people in this country, and that is unacceptable. and you have to call out the elephant in the program. part of the problem is there is lack of trust in the criminal justice system in the trans community, and it is well earned mistrust, and we have to change that. and this year, we were able to pass legislation, and i want to thank toni and st. james infirmary for sponsoring it, to provide that when a sex worker is reporting a violent crime, they can't be arrested for sex work, because -- [applause] >> -- when we talk about keeping people safe, and keeping trans people safe, the last thing we want is if i go to report i was being assaulted, raped, or kidnapped,

or i saw someone getting assaulted, raped, or kidnapped, that they're afraid to report it, that creates a community of fear. we're working to pass legislation to ensure that trans people who are incarcerated. that if they choose, they can be incarcerated and housed in the housing that they choose, not their birth gender. we're going to continue to work -- i want to thank the amazing trans leaders who make all of the work we do in city hall and in the capitol possible. and the fine -- another challenge i want to leave you with is we need to help elevate more trans people into high

leadership in this society. [applause] >> i would never have thought that we still would not have a transgender member of the board of supervisors. we have never had a trans state legislator in california, but we might change that. so i know we have a lot of work to do, but thank you, everyone. [applause] >> so speaking of leadership, i want to recognize my team. we're a small and mighty team. hal craigo and mateo pearson. we're also taking on a training officer to train all our departments. i know it's only one person,

but we're going to do our best. i also want to recognize our amazing trans advisory committee who advises our office as well as the mayor. to our trans advisory committee members, if you could raise your hands. give a little love to them. [applause] >> thank you so much for your leadership. so now, it's my honor to introduce someone who's been doing incredible work both as a director of community health projects, formerly a.p.i. wellness center, but also leading the charge for trans day of remembrance, trans march, trans visibility day. i don't know how she has the energy she has, but please welcome nicky colma. >> thank you, claire. good afternoon, everyone. my name is nicky colma, and i work for the san francisco health center, formerly known

as the agency a.p.i. wellness center, and i oversee our programs and community engagement of the organization. so i'm very honored to be here with everybody and speaking here, you know? i came to san francisco in 1989, and i was right behind mark leno when they were doing all those initiatives to -- to give health care for all the city employees. and i wasn't wearing glasses then, and now i'm wearing glasses coming back here. so -- but i just wanted to let you all know what's going on, the contribution that we're doing. you know, i've been doing a lot of events for my community, and this one -- this one event is something that every time it comes near, i always have to think about if i want to really spearhead it and make sure that it's happening because i think

it's something that we just don't want to have it anymore, you know? it's the transgender day of remembrance, and for many of those who don't know, the transgender day of remembrance started in 1989 by transgender advocate gwendolyn smith to honor the memory of her friend, rita hester, who was killed in 1988. and this day is to remember those who we have lost. sadly, across the country, in 2019, we have seen 22 transgender people shot or killed by violent means. 22 people of color or transgender african american

women. the body of b. love slater, 23 years old, a trans woman of color, was found on august 23. her body was badly burned, and she had to be identified with dental records. this hasn't stopped. so i would like to invite all of you to join us this coming november 20. it's going to be a city event. we have a march from city hall to u.c. hastings, where we held it last year, as well. it's going to be at 5:30 to 6:00 for the march and a celebration at 6:00 at u.c. hastings. and i would like to invite folks to come to our annual trans giving event.

i think it's official that san francisco was the very first city that had a drop-in center for the transgender community, and that was trans pride, so that was trans at that time. and we do this wonderful brunch for our community on thanksgiving day itself from 11:00 to 2:00, and we'd love to see folks who could like to serve or like to help out or just, you know, talk with all the clients that we have at trans tribe. i'd like to also mention the trans pride board is here, who we just brought somebody new on board, our president, carol and anjalie. we're going to rock s.f. pride and make sure we are there, so everybody, thank you so much. [applause] >> so before we continue, i

would love to just take a moment of silence and really honor all those folks that nicky mentioned that we've lost this year. now, i'd like to thank tom horn for helping us make this event happen. it would not happen without his leadership and support. standup, tom. okay. [applause] >> he doesn't like the attention. and charlotte, too. thank you so much for your ongoing support and work. these events are done with love, and it takes resources to make them happen, so thank you so much. so speaking of resources, we have a huge champion for our

community and our lgbt community. our district 8 supervisor, and the only out lgbt member on the board. please welcome supervisor raphael mandelman. [applause] >> supervisor mandelman: thank you claire. and as others have said, thank you so much for the extraordinary work that you and your office do. and thank you, tom horn. the mayor was whispering to me before we started that tom horn always comes through. thank you. [applause] >> supervisor mandelman: i guess i'll begin where senator wiener finished, in that harvey milk knew how important queer representation is, how important it was for people to come out, and for people to be elected and serve. i think i had said at other events i look forward to the

day when i am speaking after a trans elected supervisor. we need to do that, and it will happen soon. we have other queer people who are serving on school boards and other places, tom temprano and mark sanchez. since we're quoting great elected american officials from decades ago, i often think about hubert humphreys quote, about the three groups of american citizens. in san francisco our actually in the united states in 2019, i think the moral test of our queer community and certainly here in san francisco, the moral test of our community is

how we treat our trans community. and until recently, i think we all know -- and continuing to this day, by that measure, we are failing, and we have failed. but i do want to thank this mayor, london breed, for the focus she has brought to the trans community and the unprecedented achievements she has made, but we need to do more. these shelters particularly around homeless and the workforce events we are doing is so important to this community. but we need to do these things not because the trans community is in need but because the trans community is our strength. certainly as queer people, we know our movement began with trans folks. the reason that donald trump finds repeated reasons to

attack the trans community is because the trans community is everything that donald trump is not. and ultimately, donald trump will lose, but every single trans person in this country presents a fundamental threat to what donald trump is all about. so the future is trans if we're lucky and if we work for it, which i know we're going to do. have a fantastic month, everybody. [applause] >> wow. the future is trans, and for now, we'll start with a month, but -- so i also wanted -- we have one more speaker, but i want to recognize our lgbt commissioners, and our department heads. if folks could wave. i see you back there, naya, being all shy. [applause] when we talk about pathways to

leadership, the supervisor spoke, they're a great way to be on one. so come talk to me. it's my pleasure to introduce two people that have been doing incredible work in the arts, shawnna veraga and shawn dorsey have been leading the way for the trans festival and the fresh meat festival every year. and last week, shawn, who's on our trans committee, met with the mayor about the need to preserve trans art in our city. we come to san francisco with the hope to be able to share that with the rest of the city. and with so many of us displaced, it's really important that we invest in art so that we not only remember our history but that we preserve the stories and art

that make our community so important. so with that, please welcome shawnna veraga and shawn dorsey. [applause] >> excuse me. i -- i can't right now. speaking to the mayor. okay. bye-bye. hi, everybody. my name is shawnna verago. i'm the artistic director of the san francisco transgender film festival, and i'm so honored to be here today. i'm so grateful to be here today. i came out in the 1980's, and so when i go to trans events, whether it's the san francisco transgender film festival or fresh meat or anywhere else where a lot of trans people

gather, i'm usually the only person from my generation of friends that's still alive because of suicide, hiv/aids, poverty, murder. and so i feel very driven to continue our battles and our -- and our fight against our avowed enemy. you know, it's interesting because i'm primarily an artist, and i'm been thrust into being an activist. and i've heard so much inspirational wisdom here today, and i would like to thank -- i have a long list of gratitudes, but i do want to thank senator scott wiener, supervisor mandelman, everyone at the office of transgender initiatives, and especially the mayor's office and mayor breed for helping us continue to

thrive, to increase our budget. we -- when we started, we -- one of the codirectors had a credit card, and that's how we were able to rent the theater. we applied for years to get grants. we couldn't get a grant to save our lives. and so through grit, through punk rock toughness, really, we managed to survive since 1997. and we're the longest running transgender film festival in the world. and we started here. we started in the mission district. we've screened over 300 films since that time, and i do think, as we know, our communities are under attack, but that the san francisco transgender film festival, i think we kind of all have to know what our expertise and our lane is. and i think there's these

political geniuses behind me. but we need to change the narrative of how we're viewed in our culture. and i think we've proven since we have been here since 1997 that trans people won't be silenced, we won't be erased, and we're going to continue the fight through the arts, so thank you very much. [applause] >> hello, everyone. i just want to add -- i don't know if you shared that the trans film festival was founded at the world's first trans film festival, so i feel like we should give ourselves a round of applause. hello. i'm shawn dorsey, and i'm the director and founder of the

fresh meat festival. we're all about investing in the creative expression and cultur cultural community in the trans community. right now, i want to invite all of us to take part in a creative expression exercise. so i want everyone to please repeat after me. i love trans people. [repeating] >> except say it like you're not so sad about. i love trans people! i love gender nonconforming people! and as we talk about the continued genocide and murder of black trans women, that's an

equation. so the other side of that equation is please repeat after me. i will invest in the well-being and leadership of black trans women. i love trans people! [cheers and applause] >> thank you all so much. please -- yes, check out our work and please come to the san francisco transgender film festival next week. it's thursday through sunday. sftfs.org. two programs are closed captioned and a.s.l. interpreted. no one turned away for lack of funds, so please join us. thank you so much. [applause] >> so it's almost that time for

drinks and food. i'm sure you're all ready for it. it's friday, but i also want to recognize honey mahogany from the dccc and supervisor haney's office and ana deyano and her team. [applause] >> so as we move forward, as i mentioned, we need to continue to prioritize communities that are impacted in our city and beyond. and the mayor has taken leadership and really supported mental health and housing four -- for people in our city, and that includes the trans community. and over the last year, we've lost so many to suicide. so it's really important we reach out for help, we see each other in our community because you are loved, as shawn said.

we want to continue to be a part of a community that continues to grow. and as i said, have a great trans month of awareness. yes, drinks. let's get drinks. >> 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. [ ♪ ] you.] >> when i first moved here people come to san francisco to be the person you want to be can be anyone you want. >> the community is so rich and diverse that i'm learning every single day san francisco is an amazing photoy town historically been

base on evolution and that applies to every single professional field including philanthropic arts today what i do is photo based art manifests traditional forest and some colonel lodge and other frames of digital forest is a meeting that has been changing like super rapid and the quality is not extended by the medium if you took forest in school or you get a job in a newspaper they'll give give you a list of how to create a philanthropic story my goal to break down that model and from a to b that is unique and allows the ability to incorporate different types of i believey about propels someone through the rise and a fall of their own experiences one of the main things i'm trying to contribute it

unconditional narrative form the narrative art of photograph the in between of photos how does a group of photos come together as how to use the space between photos to alight emotional responses from the audience and bring innovation and create bodies of work that narratively function the way that photos do san francisco as the commission came out and you visited me and one of their prerestricts was to find an art with enough work to fill a large says that a quad down the hallway downstairs and we hung that quad to feel like a train station that constant sensation from all different directions

some of the major characteristic of the landscape festivities the blur of the train their 70 miles per hour and they're not perfect as opposed to to what landscape will look like it creates a dichotomy for people insides the train not just the story of the subject it is not just the visual design the composition juxtapositioning, etc. not just all autobiography boo-hoo it creates pictures with meaning within them and then some of the portraits feel awkward some of them feel welcoming and the person that mime making the picture is really comfortable and other ones feel awkward and weigh i

didn't and tense that sensation is counter to what we feel like makes a successful portrait that sensation makes that work it is hard to be an artist in a city is 100 percent focused an business the cost of living is expensive and to value your success not scribble on financial return creates a conflict between the paramount egos in san francisco today. >> you see a lot of artists leaving for that reason because you need space to make work my ultimate goal to make work that firms people firms this gift

and just the experience of life and of their worst and of the amazement the wonderment of everything around us >> you're watching quick bites, the show that is san francisco. and today you're in for a real treat. oh, my! food inspired by the mediterranean and middle east with a twist so unique you can only find it in one place in san francisco. we're at the 55th annual armenian festival and bizarre. this is extra special not only because i happen to be armenian, but there is so much delicious food here.

and i can't wait to share it with all of you. let's go. armenia, culture and cusine has had much cultural exchanges with its neighbors. today armenian food infuses he flavor from the mediterranean, middle east, and eastern europe. >> this is our 55th year and in san francisco we're the largest armenian food festival and widely recognized as one of the best food festivals in the area. we have vendors that come up from fresno, from los angeles showing off their craft. we really feel like we have something for everyone in the neighborhood and that's really what it is, is drawing people to see a little bit of our culture and experience what we experience weekend in and weekend out. >> we are behind the scenes now watching the chef at work preparing some delicious armenian kabob. this is a staple in armenian cooking, is that right? >> absolutely, since the beginning of time. our soldiers used to skewer it

on the swords. we have a combination of beef and lam and parsley. and every september over 2000 pounds of meat being cooked in three days. >> after all that savory protein, i was ready to check out the fresh veggie options. >> this is armenian cheat sheet. it's tomatos and mint and olive oil. that makes summer food. and what i'm doing is i'm putting some nutmeg. it is kind of like cream cheese. in armenia when they offer you food, you have to eat it. they would welcome you and food is very important for them. >> in every armenian community we feel like we're a "smallville"age and they come together to put on something like this. what i find really interesting about san francisco is the blends of armenia that come together. once they are here, the way people work together at any

age, including our grandmothers, our grandfathers, skewering the meat, it's fun to see. fun to see everybody get together. >> we call it subarek. it's a cheese turn over if you want. we make the dough from scratch. we boil it like you do for la san i can't. >> the amount of love and karin fused in these foods is tremendous. they come in every day to prepare, cook and bake bread, all in preparation for this big festival. >> nobody says no. when you come them, they have to come tomorrow for the feast. >> what a treat it is to taste a delicious recipe, all made from scratch and passed down through generations. it really makes you appreciate the little things. >> it's one of the best festivals. it's outstanding, a marvelous occasion. >> we're outside checking some of the food to go options. i grabbed myself a ka bob sandwich, all kinds of herbs

and spices. i'm going to taste this. looking fantastic. one of the best i've had in a long time. you know it's delicious b i have just enough room for dessert, my favorite part. we're behind the scenes right now watching how all the pastries get made. and we've got a whole array of pastries here. honey and nuts and cinnamon, all kinds of great ingredients. this is amazing. here's another yummy pastry made with filo dough. oh, my god. really sweet and similar, it's lighter. this is what i like. we have a lovely row here. looks like a very delicious and exciting surprise. i'm going to bite into it. here we go. um. this is great with armenian coffee.

now we're making some incredible armenian coffee. >> we buy our coffee, they have the best coffee. they come from armenia, specially made. and would you like to try it? >> i would like to try. >> would you like sugar or no sugar? >> no sugar today. i'm so excited. really earthy. you can really taste the grain. i think that's what makes it so special. really comes out. i hope you try it. we're having a great time at the armenian festival. we ate, we saw, and we definitely conquered. i don't know about you, but i have to go down to the food. check out our blog for so much more at sf bites at tums

abler.com. until next time, may the force be with you. ♪ ♪ >> first of all, everybody is welcome and we ask two things when they get here. one, that they try something they've never tried before. be it food or be it dancing or doing something. and if they feel like it was worth their while to tell one person and bring that person, that family member, that friend down the street to come with them. >> we're going to have to do a lot of eating so get ready. >> get ready. and you diet tomorrow. [♪] >> i just don't know that you can find a neighborhood in the city where you can hear music stands and take a ride on the

low rider down the street. it is an experience that you can't have anywhere else in san francisco. [♪] [♪] >> district nine is a in the southeast portion of the city. we have four neighborhoods that i represent. st. mary's park has a completely unique architecture. very distinct feel, and it is a very close to holly park which is another beautiful park in san francisco. the bernal heights district is unique in that we have the hell which has one of the best views in all of san francisco. there is a swinging hanging from a tree at the top. it is as if you are swinging over the entire city. there are two unique aspects. it is considered the fourth

chinatown in san francisco. sixty% of the residents are of chinese ancestry. the second unique, and fun aspect about this area is it is the garden district. there is a lot of urban agriculture and it was where the city grew the majority of the flowers. not only for san francisco but for the region. and of course, it is the location in mclaren park which is the city's second biggest park after golden gate. many people don't know the neighborhood in the first place if they haven't been there. we call it the best neighborhood nobody has ever heard our. every neighborhood in district nine has a very special aspect. where we are right now is the mission district. the mission district is a very special part of our city. you smell the tacos at the [speaking spanish] and they have the best latin pastries. they have these shortbread cookies with caramel in the

middle. and then you walk further down and you have sunrise café. it is a place that you come for the incredible food, but also to learn about what is happening in the neighborhood and how you can help and support your community. >> twenty-fourth street is the birthplace of the movement. we have over 620 murals. it is the largest outdoor public gallery in the country and possibly the world. >> you can find so much political engagement park next to so much incredible art. it's another reason why we think this is a cultural district that we must preserve. [♪] >> it was formed in 2014. we had been an organization that had been around for over 20 years. we worked a lot in the neighborhood around life issues. most recently, in 2012, there were issues around gentrification in the neighborhood. so the idea of forming the

cultural district was to help preserve the history and the culture that is in this neighborhood for the future of families and generations. >> in the past decade, 8,000 latino residents in the mission district have been displaced from their community. we all know that the rising cost of living in san francisco has led to many people being displaced. lower and middle income all over the city. because it there is richness in this neighborhood that i also mentioned the fact it is flat and so accessible by trip public transportation, has, has made it very popular. >> it's a struggle for us right now, you know, when you get a lot of development coming to an area, a lot of new people coming to the area with different sets of values and different culture. there is a lot of struggle between the existing community and the newness coming in. there are some things that we do to try to slow it down so it

doesn't completely erase the communities. we try to have developments that is more in tune with the community and more equitable development in the area. >> you need to meet with and gain the support and find out the needs of the neighborhoods. the people on the businesses that came before you. you need to dialogue and show respect. and then figure out how to bring in the new, without displacing the old. [♪] >> i hope we can reset a lot of the mission that we have lost in the last 20 years. so we will be bringing in a lot of folks into the neighborhoods pick when we do that, there is a demand or, you know, certain types of services that pertain more to the local community and working-class. >> back in the day, we looked at mission street, and now it does not look and feel anything like mission street. this is the last stand of the

latino concentrated arts, culture and cuisine and people. we created a cultural district to do our best to conserve that feeling. that is what makes our city so cosmopolitan and diverse and makes us the envy of the world. we have these unique neighborhoods with so much cultural presence and learnings, that we want to preserve. [♪]

welcome. we're glad you are here. this is the regular meeting of the board of education. the san francisco unified school district. today november 12th, 2019. this meeting is now called to order. roll call, please. [roll call] >> i'd like to start this meeting by frederick douglas who said power concedes nothing without a command. and it never