>> welcome to the first -- let me take my mask off. so you guys can see who we're talking about. my name is aaron. i'm the executive director of the northern california martin luther king, jr. community foundation and we're elated to

inaugurate with our partners the san francisco human rights commission. and the university of san francisco. hope will spur a continuation year over year to launch our annual holiday celebrations. as we come to you tonight, there are several urgent issues and urgent matters that we as a community and as a country are faced with and need to come to grips with. 1965, in march of 1965, dr. king came to selma, alabama, to lead a march. that march was to bring light to the plight of the

african-american citizen in the southern states. the major issue with that plight had to do with voting rights. jim crow laws in the south, as many of you know, curtailed the ability of black folk to be able to participate meaningfully in society writ large in the united states. so they created their own community behind the veil so to speak, to create a vibrancy that was able to bring out a personality and a personality such as martin luther king, jr. to be able to highlight the ills and the plight of this nation. and so on that journey in selma, dr. king began to negotiate with the white house and with congress to pass the 1965 voting

rights act. there was in the congress and white house to do so. the marches were ensued. many of you know that the late john lewis as beaten brutally, josa williams and diane nash, beaten brutally, many were beaten brutally, just for seeking the right to vote. on march 21, after the protection of the united states marshalls took a five-day journey, 54 miles down from selma to montgomery to preach or to preach to the nation all 27,000 or so, to bring light to this issue of voting rights. in august, 1965, the voting rights act was passed.

fast forward three days later on march 28 -- three days after dr. king had led that march, dr. king stood in the pulpit of san francisco's grace cathedral as part of their installation service of that new cathedral and stated that this issue, the issue of racism, was the negroes burden "and america's shame". after the voting rights act was passed, 50 years later, 2013 shelby county versus holder stripped from that voting rights act the provisions that safeguarded the voting safety of african-americans in the south. fast forward to today and we're finding a new assault, a more insidious assault on voting

rights in our nation. so we're calling on all of this as we're here this evening and look out through this weekend to call a friend and to call their senators and to call their friend's friends and all of us to get out and push our congress and our senate to enact the voting right legislation that is before them. the freedom to vote act and the john lewis advancement act. voting advancement act. we want to make sure that those are passed. that's why our theme this year is toward justice. dr. king's -- one of dr. king's favorite sayings, the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice. it is that bending that is the

hard work that we of goodwill must do. we must bend that arc toward justice. and i believe tonight, as you enjoy this inspirational program, my hope is that you will be edfied and empowered to bend that arc toward justice. thank you so much. [applause] >> please welcome to the stage, nationally renowned recording artist d1. >> thank you so much for having me, san francisco. looks good! my name is d1. i'm going to get straight to it you all. the motto i live by is three up. i need everybody to throw three fingers in the sky right now.

these three right here. i'm from new orleans, louisiana and what i like to say when i throw them up is be real, be righteous, be relevant. that's the motto for everything in life. let's go, man. yeah, yeah, mic, check, one two. i'm so thankful. throw your threes up. in the middle, throw our threes up. come on. when you see the threes up. you know what they represent. be real, be righteous, be relevant. what? everybody, when you see the threes up, you know what they represent. what you say? come on. be real, be righteous -- up top. [ ♪♪♪ ]

♪ i could been rich, but that's another story] and bring my father honor ♪ ♪ they call me jeffrey dahmer. ♪ i mean your content sucks ♪ ♪ i can't cosign that ♪ ♪ look at these mean mugs ♪ ♪ every time i come around ♪ ♪ everybody got these mean mugs] you know how long it's been since i seen love net ♪ 10% of the people live the life they dreamed of ♪ sfloet i don't focus on the

not ♪ ♪ i just focus on the top, san francisco. ♪ let's go be real, be righteous, be relevant ♪ ♪ what you say ♪ ♪ what you say ♪ ♪ dee 1 ♪ ♪ i didn't just get in the rap game to be another artist. i did not get in the rap game to be another rapper. i got in the rap game because i know that god has a plan for my life. and even if i didn't have it all figured out, i know if i use my gift to make god proud and help people, i would end up where i'm supposed to be. this is called i'm no god. for the hook, i need everybody

to say, i know god got a plan for me, but i don't know what it is, i'm just out here trying to handle my biz. let's go. check. [ ♪♪♪ ] ♪ never know how long we got here ♪ ♪ that's why i'm in the rush snoetd ♪ people think they untouchable ♪ ♪ until they get touched. ♪ ♪ every day i be hustling ♪ ♪ i ain't trying to play the

victim ♪ ♪ i never ask the question ♪ ♪ could you pray for me ♪ ♪ i know god got a plan for me ♪ ♪ but i don't know what it is ♪ ♪ i'm just trying to handle my biz ♪ ♪ san francisco! and you and you! ♪ i know god got a plan for me ♪ ♪ i know god got a plan for me ♪ ♪ come on, sing it loud! ♪ i know god got a plan for me ♪ yeah ♪ i know god got a plan for me ♪ ♪ too many people in my city found dead lately ♪ ♪ and my girl been leaving me on

read lately ♪ ♪ i ain't even tripping ♪ ♪ i told you, i showed you, loved you, support you ♪ ♪ but you can't be trusted ♪ ♪ cut you off like i don't know what ♪ ♪ delivering that music that my family felt ♪ ♪ flow so hot it makes the butter on your pancakes melt ♪ ♪ i see people be complaining about the hand they dealt ♪ ♪ only getting one life and i know i'm too blessed ♪ ♪ i keep my 3's up ♪ ♪ i know god got a plan for me ♪ ♪ but i don't know what it is ♪ ♪ i see you! ♪ i know god got a plan for me ♪ i really mean that you all. ♪ and you and you and you ♪ ♪ i know god got a plan for me ♪ ♪ i know god got a plan for me ♪

♪ yeah what's up ♪ [ ♪♪♪ ] ♪ i'm a strong black man ♪ ♪ i ain't got it all figured out, but god got a plan ♪ ♪ yeah, yeah ♪ i appreciate you all, man. thank you all so much. yeah. you all make sure you all streaming all these songs. this next song is off my upcoming album that drops an february 10. it's called finding balance. you can preorder it on itunes. i'm asking you all to do that because as an independent artist it means we make a statement on the chart, with god-fearing music. this is called finding balance.

preorder that and it drops on february 10. before i was a rapper, i was a teacher. i had to take a chance. ♪ see if it's meant to be ♪ ♪ i took a chance on me ♪ ♪ i did not compromise ♪ ♪ i used to want to be the president in 4th grade ♪ ♪ till my teacher said i wasn't smart enough that was wild ♪ ♪ from that day forward ♪ ♪ i no longer was dreaming big. ♪ i graduated college then i had a revelation ♪

♪ my best friend got you areded ♪ ♪ can't live with hesitation ♪ ♪ i chose a path most people didn't approve of ♪ ♪ i stopped chasing security ♪ ♪ started chasing love ♪ ♪ nobody's entrepreneur in my family ♪ ♪ so when i quit my job to rap they didn't understand me ♪ ♪ this ain't just a hustle ♪ ♪ this is part of my purpose ♪ ♪ if i'm too scared to chase my own dreams then life is worthless ♪ ♪ i'm the underdog but my god keeps me strong ♪ ♪ taking a chance on me ♪ >> you all make noise for the band right quick. ♪ taking a chance on me ♪ ♪ i've got bleed these dreams ♪ ♪ even if it means i lose everything ♪ ♪ i had a job and a side hustle finding balance ♪ ♪ one paid me money the other

helped me nurture my talents ♪ ♪ i used to sleep three hours a night that ain't healthy ♪ ♪ i made $40,000 a year that ain't wealthy ♪ ♪ through these lyrics inspiration i'm providing ♪ ♪ i made a promise to the students that i used to teach ♪ ♪ i'm going to be successful without xreemzing my beliefs ♪ ♪ just to prove that it's possible so you can see ♪ ♪ what happens when you put your talents in g.o.d. ♪ show people a better way ♪ ♪ i'm going to beat the odds with my hustle and my faith ♪ ♪ taking a chance on me ♪ ♪ born to be wild and free ♪ ♪ see if it's meant to be ♪ ♪ i took a chance on me and it worked.

♪ even if it means i lose everything ♪ finding balance, album, february 10, preorder it right now. you heard me. love. this next song for the ladies. at the end of the day, we don't need to be making songs about women if it's calling out their name and disrespecting them. we're going to show you love, that's when we make music about you. personally, the working women in here, i don't think the world is ready for you. so this song, let's go. we're going to say i don't think they ready for you. ♪ i know you got a mama ♪ ♪ i know you got a grandma ♪ ♪ i know you got a wife ♪

♪ this for all the women ♪ ♪ you snap and go crazy you going to be doing jail time ♪ ♪ people throwing shade, but you don't forget ♪ ♪ nobody was around ♪ ♪ don't forget to treat yourself ♪ ♪ wear your crown ♪ ♪ every day look yourself in the mirror and know your worth ♪ ♪ you in church and it feel like the pastor talking to you ♪ ♪ world are trying to pull you down, but god pulling you through ♪ ♪ to all the ladies, all the queens. everybody put your hands up. and let me hear you sing. let me hear you sing. i don't think they ready for you ♪ what you say ♪ ♪ i don't think they ready for

you ♪ ♪ what you say ♪ ♪ you got a head on your shoulders ♪ ♪ believe you don't care behind your baby ♪ ♪ be working double shifts all day behind your baby ♪ ♪ you pray behind your baby ♪ ♪ two parents in one ♪ ♪ you made a way ♪ ♪ do the mvp ♪ ♪ you my wce seven days out of the week ♪ ♪ but you ain't weak, you deep ♪ ♪ they might not know it now ♪ ♪ but soon as your kids get older ♪ ♪ they'll appreciate the weight you carry on your shoulders ♪ ♪ yeah, you the one i wrote it for ♪ ♪ you deserve a standing o ♪ ♪ okay, okay, all the ladies in the house ♪ everybody let me hear you say, let me hear you say. i don't think they ready for

you. what you say? i don't think they ready for you. break it down. break it down. [ ♪♪♪ ] i hope you all enjoying this as much as i am. i hope you all enjoying this as much as i am. my name is dee 1. on streaming platform, that is dee 1. but on social media, it's dee 1 music. so make sure you all following, you heard me? this is my instagram and youtube. dee, the number 1, music. i only got a minute or so before i get out of here. so, look, i'm going to freestyle.

i'm going to freestyle off the top of the dome ♪ i'm going to take this last minute ♪ ♪ i'm from new orleans but now i'm in atlanta, that's 404 snoetd ♪ i'm cool, i don't blink you see ♪ ♪ because i got my homey uncle steak with me ♪ ♪ people see i work so hard and they be really ♪ ♪ i going to do it until the devil try to kill me ♪ ♪ i ain't scared of nobody ♪ ♪ this is the story of a one-man army ♪ ♪ i don't care what comes against me ♪ ♪ nobody can harm me ♪ ♪ this is a story of a one-man army ♪ ♪ yeah. i love you all. i really love you all. martin luther king, jr., we love you, too, brother.

it's because of you, that we get to do what we do. we're going to keep your legacy alive, man. san francisco! i'm out! i love you all. thank you so much. >> give it up for dee-1. come on, guys, one more time, dee-1. welcome to the stage, ms. cheryl davis. >> wow. all right. hello, hello. thank you, all, for being here. i enjoy listening to dee-1 and the idea and notion of like i'm going to be chanting that all night, be real, be righteous be relevant. i have to tell you, i know some of you have had heard this before. i was a kindergarten teacher and dee was the middle

schoolteacher. and every time i hear dee-1 talk it reminds me of one of my poe pems and it says, the first line says i love a lot of things like my cousin comes to visit and you know he's from the south. because every word he says just kind of slides out of his mouth. i like the way he whistles and the way he walks, but i love the way he talks. i love the way dee-1 talks. i love the way he raps, speaks and provides encouraging words. as we are here tonight, thank you, all, watching online, those who are here in the audience and took the risk and joined us tonight in person. dee, you came to this space station, we talk about social justice, conscientious rappers, you know, you didn't talk about it tonight, but your students and the impact and this idea of

justice. and fighting for this work. what is that for you? what caused you towards -- what is calling you towards justice? >> well, my spirit never seems at peace when i'm allowing people to be messed over or taken advantage of or when the underprivileged are not given a fair opportunity at winning in life. my spirit isn't at peace. my spirit isn't at peace if i'm using my god-given gifts to spread negativity and hatred. anything other than spreading love, knowledge and empowering people, doesn't feel right to me. you know that nothing in the world beats that inner peace feeling. that comes from knowing that i'm taking the road less traveled. i'm in the entertainment industry where social justice and activism is seen as something they want to push to

the fringes. and i want to push it to the mainstream because as long as i'm on this earth, there is people worth fighting for. >> as you talk about justice, you talk about social justice, but you've also been advocating for financial justice, financial literacy and making sure folks understand from student loan debt to investments in terms of taking care of your community. i know you've been giving money out in your community. >> i have. i have. being from louisiana, you know, we're a hot bed for hurricanes, so we just got hit by hurricane ida in late august of 2021. so many thousands of louisiana residents were impacted, including my own family. my parents are still displaced. they lost their house. my sister was displaced. my grandpa, i had to move him in with me. with that said, i'm blessed that i have a fan base around this

whole country that trusts my heart when it comes to doing work to help the people. so we started the mission vision. that's the name of my company. with the funds we were able to raise, we were able to take a bunch of families around new orleans and sponsor them for the holiday season. and literally, pulling up to people's jobs, houses, church, no matter where they were and people who were directly impacted, we were able to bless them financially. there is no better feeling. i'm always trying to find more ways to give back and be impactful. i can't do it by myself. people help water these seeds and bring them to fruition. >> so say a little bit about the financial justice in terms of student loan debt. are you still doing work with sally mae? >> i put out a song in 2016

called sally mae bank. i'm a proud college graduate and i did take out student loans. i didn't know what i was doing and i had to learn the hard way. yeah. you all feel me, yeah. that being said, when i signed a record deal and i got a big lump sum for money for the first time in my life, thankfully, i had shared all my desire to fit in and be cool and have a whole bunch of material possessions and name brands define me. being financially literate and debt-free defines me. so i paid all my student loans back. i did the song, sally mae and we've gone around the country and given out thousands of dollars this college scholarships so students don't have to take out as many loans. you hear me? we've been giving out fish and

teaching them how to fish. i'm coming to the schools and doing the assembly. they say, dee-1, this is the most lit assembly we ever had. he performed for us and at the end of the day was able to bless students with scholarships, so that's amazing and i'm humbled by that. >> thank you, all, so much. finding balance, the album, february 10. go on itunes and preorder it. we going to make a statement. peace and love. >> please welcome to the stage national recording artist the soul singer, accompanied by house band mark phillips and top of the mark.

[ ♪♪♪ ] ♪ and you can find the fighter ♪ ♪ ♪ we going to work it out ♪ ♪ and move mountains ♪ ♪ we going to work it out ♪ ♪ and move mountains ♪ ♪ i'll rise up ♪ ♪ i'll rise like the day ♪ i'll rise up ♪ ♪ i'll rise unafraid ♪

♪ i'll rise up ♪ ♪ and i'll do it a thousand times again ♪ ♪ ♪ i'll rise up ♪ ♪ high like the waves ♪ ♪ i'll rise up ♪ ♪ in spite of the ache ♪ ♪ i'll rise up ♪ ♪ and i'll do it a thousand times again ♪ ♪ for you ♪ ♪ you ♪ ♪ you ♪ ♪ you ♪ ♪ it feels like it's getting hard to breathe ♪

♪ i know you feel like dying ♪ ♪ but i promise we'll take the world to its feet ♪ ♪ and move mountains ♪ ♪ i'll rise up ♪ ♪ i'll rise like the day ♪ ♪ ♪ in spite of the ache ♪ ♪ i'll rise up and do it a thousand times again ♪ ♪ for you ♪

♪ all we need ♪ ♪ all we need is hope ♪ ♪ for that we have each other ♪ ♪ and for that we have each other ♪ ♪ and we will rise ♪ ♪ we will rise ♪ ♪ we'll rise ♪ ♪ i'll rise up ♪ ♪ i'll rise like the day ♪ ♪ i'll rise up ♪ i'll rise unafraid ♪ ♪ i'll rise up ♪ ♪ and i'll do it a thousand

times again ♪ ♪ and we will rise up ♪ ♪ high like the wind ♪ ♪ rise up in spite of the ache ♪ ♪ we'll rise up and we'll do it a thousand times again ♪ ♪ for you ♪ ♪ for you ♪ ♪ for you ♪ ♪ i will rise up ♪ ♪ you will rise up ♪ ♪ we will rise ♪

♪ we'll rise up ♪ ♪ high like the day ♪ ♪ we'll rise up ♪ ♪ unafraid ♪ ♪ we'll rise up and we'll do it a thousand times again ♪ ♪ for you ♪ ♪ you ♪ ♪ you ♪ >> thank you so much. [applause] they call me the soul sanger. so if you're looking for me anywhere, just type in the soul sanger.

i'm going to do another cover song i hope inspires and moves you. [ ♪♪♪ ] am i in denial ♪ [ ♪♪♪ ] [ ♪♪♪ ]

♪ all i want to do is take the chains off ♪ ♪ all i want to do is be free ♪ ♪ all i wanna do is be free ♪ ♪ you tell me why ♪ ♪ every time i step outside ♪ ♪ i see my people down ♪

♪ oh, ♪ ♪ i'm letting you know ♪ ♪ there ain't no gun out there that can kill my soul ♪ ♪ oh, no ♪ ♪ all i want to do is take the chains off ♪ ♪ all i want to do is take break the chains off ♪ ♪ all i want to do be free ♪ ♪ all i want to do is be free ♪ ♪ all i want to do is break the chains off ♪ ♪ all i want to do is break the chains off ♪

♪ all i want to do is be free ♪ ♪ all i want to do is be free ♪ [ ♪♪♪ ]

♪ all i want to do is be free ♪ ♪ all i want to do is take the chains off ♪ ♪ all i want to do is break them off ♪ ♪ all we want to do is be free ♪ ♪ all we want to do is be free ♪ ♪ free ♪ ♪ all we want to do is be free ♪ ♪ be free ♪

[applause] thank you. >> one more time for the soul sanger! and please, give a round of applause for our house band, marcus phillips and top of the mark. [applause] and now, a virtual performance from hope briggs. [ ♪♪♪ ]

[ ♪♪♪ ] [ ♪♪♪ ]

[ ♪♪♪ ] [ ♪♪♪ ] ♪ let it shine ♪

[ ♪♪♪ ] [ ♪♪♪ ]

♪ we are not afraid ♪

[ ♪♪♪ ] ♪ the truth shall make us free ♪ ♪ the truth small make us free ♪ [ ♪♪♪ ]

♪ we shall all be free ♪ [ ♪♪♪ ] [ ♪♪♪ ] ♪ we shall overcome some day ♪ ♪ some day ♪ >> please welcome to the stage, derek brown.

>> thank you, thank you, so much. derek brown. senior director of the leo t. mccarthy center at the great university of san francisco and it an honor and privilege to be here today. to all the crowds that are here right now, you all look fantastic. thank you so much for coming out, as well as everyone online tuning in. thank you so much for coming out. i hope you are all enjoying the show. i know i am. it has been a great honor to partner with some extraordinary organizations. like m.l.k. nor cow right here in san francisco, with m.l.k. with aaron and all the incredible work he's doing as well as dr. cheryl davis with the san francisco human rights commission. and myself, as i said before, i'm with the leo t. mccarthy center and for us, we're really focused on service learning,

being in service to others and really preparing students for a successful life in public service. so that being said, as we honor m.l.k. day, i want to encourage you all -- i'm sure everyone is going to be doing this, it's a day of service, a week in the service, but i want to encourage you all to continue with your service throughout the year. continue to be in service with others. that's pretty much the work we do with the students. i'm about to take my seat now. but i want to say thank you so much for coming out. enjoy the rest of the show and look forward to seeing you next time. thank you. >> to continue our towards freedom, please welcome to the stage i am rebel. >> how you all doing tonight? good? everybody having a good night?

my name is i am rebel and my music is special to me because i write not only about me, but the people who are marginalized and the people who are not normal, but everyday people struggling to get it together. so this music is for you. i hope you love it. i hope you're encouraged. and let's have some fun tonight. [ ♪♪♪ ]

dproet ♪ i am here to guide you forward ♪ ♪ because the pain you feel is burning ♪ ♪ let's pick up the pieces for you ♪ ♪ so you can carry on ♪ ♪ i'll help you face all your fears ♪ ♪ because the pain you feel is the burden ♪

[ ♪♪♪ ] ♪ i know what you're going through ♪ ♪ i am outcast too ♪ ♪ you can overcome the hatred and abuse ♪ ♪ it's not your fault ♪ ♪ because the pain you feel is

burning ♪ ♪ pick up the pieces so you can carry on -- >> this is my favorite part -- ♪ you will make it out of this ♪ ♪ i know from my own experience ♪ ♪ not the time to throw in the towel ♪ ♪ you're almost there ♪ ♪ [ ♪♪♪ ]

[ ♪♪♪ ] [ ♪♪♪ ] thank you, guys, so much. woo. my name is "i am rebel".

you can fall all of my music -- i did drop a album last year, woo hoo, my first one. you can find it on all digital outlets. my name is i am rebel on all social media. this next hope, i wrote it in a dark place. and in those dark places there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. so this is talking about that dark place, but it's talking about coming out of it as well, so i hope you get it. [ ♪♪♪ ]

♪ i'm sick and tired ♪ ♪ of being here ♪ this pain, these scars ♪ ♪ [ ♪♪♪ ]

[ ♪♪♪ ] ♪ people don't change ♪ ♪ why must i hope there is something inside of me that won't let me go ♪ ♪ oh ♪ ♪ [ ♪♪♪ ] ♪ don't let go ♪

♪ i am trying my best ♪ ♪ i'm trying my best ♪ [ ♪♪♪ ]

[ ♪♪♪ ] ♪ life is never easy ♪ ♪ why is it never easy for me ♪ [ ♪♪♪ ] my name is i am rebel, thank you, guys, so much. have a good night! >> i am rebel. what an amazing journey toward

freedom we are on tonight. now for a virtual performance, welcome bishop yvette flunder. moving from acceptance to advocacy. or from monument to movement. today we commemorate the life, ministry and power of the reverend dr. martin luther king. he wrote from a birmingham jail. i want to share from a passage of scripture. acts. about two young men also who were in prison wrongfully. their prison experience taught us. midnight, the fallen silent,

praying and seeing him. the other prisoners were listening. suddenly there was an earthquake and the prison was shaken to its foundation. and all the doors flew open and the chains of every prisoner fell off. the prison was shaken to its foundation and all the doors flew open. and the chains of every prisoner fell off. i want to talk a minute about earthquakes. i'm from san francisco where earthquakes are a way of life. we're conscious of them and we build our buildings with them in mind. because we know what happens when we don't. our history tells us no matter how fabulous and magnificent we build our a buildings and

monuments, because they are, in fact, structures on a living earth, they can be utterly destroyed in seconds by a seismic event. even our monuments have had to respect our movement or risk being destroyed. i remember in the san francisco unified school district, when we were taught to get under our desks or stand in the doorway to protect ourselves, because monuments in an earthquake can be dangerous. our monument has to be retrofitted in san francisco. built to mimic living, moving things. they have to move, sway with the living earth movement. if they can't flex, they will crack, crumble and come down. and some of the new buildings have rollers.

some of them have these devices that look a little bit like bicycle pumps that are really, really big and they bounce. these things built into the foundations. just to survive. and even then some of them will fail because the earth is a living thing. one must know there is a difference between a monument and a movement. history is filled with monuments. i like to call them big formidable institutions. ideologies that divide, separate, diminish and destroy. often in the name of an angry and punitive god. thank god for shaking the

reformations. reformations that reformed and re-inform. i'm grateful for earthquakes of change that shift political concepts and ideas. change that came along and brought an end to many monuments, many ideas, many positions that simply would not die on their own. some folks thought that a big fine old respected institution, a big fine old respected document, a big fine old respected way of life with outdated exclusionary clauses in its rules would be strong enough to hold back a movement, no matter how big and how structured. the justice shaking will bring every miserable monument down.

why? because monuments are not built with movement in mind. monuments are not built with the wind as change in mind. it's movement that freed the slaves. movement that got women to vote. movements that brought justice to workers. and a movement that brought and is bringing equal rights to the same gender-loving community, trans-community, gender nonconforming community and all of us who were exiled. acceptance is good. there are those who accept, but there is little or no action in acceptance. people can do acceptance personally and privately. but movement requires action. advocacy is movement and often movement with risk.

putting one's self in harm's way, putting one's neck out, risks assassination, taking the heat, getting in the fray, taking a public position, joining the movement, acting up, acting out. but we are not moving from a weak place, for the divine is able to do exceedingly abundantly all we can think. according to the power that is in us, all things are possible. all things. you see, god and good is about movement. much like a growing stream. water doesn't freeze when it's moving. monuments fall. therefore, movement every time. we see god and good is not privately owned by a party, by a

president, not owned by one race or another race. god and good is not owned by the rich. god and good is not owned by those who live way out in neighborhoods where the housing insecure and the food insecure are not only not welcome, but are abused. you see, god is not a privately owned stagnate pond, but a fresh flowing river filled with truth and extravagant welcome. i say to my beloved, no matter what may be, the perfect storm that we are in now, in politics, in our environment, in our relationship to other nations, no matter what this day may bring, sickness, illness, frustration, anger. no matter how people are saying they will never see a bright

day. there will be no sun. i want to say something to you today. stay in the movement. stay in the movement. continue to do your justice work. go up in the attic, get your signs and your birkenstocks down again. let's march, let's walk, let's declare that not only shall we move, but we shall prevail. why? because we are a movement that refuses to be a monument and we're in the midst of a love movement that will redefine the definition of our neighbor. god bless you as we commemorate dr. martin luther king, who was taken to us in the middle of bringing justice, loving mercy, and walking humbly before god.

today we celebrate a movement warrior. god bless you. >> thank you for that message, bishop. now, please welcome to the stage, gospel recording artist,. the first song is about watching god work. do i have believers that believe that? this song says watch god work. [ ♪♪♪ ]

♪ like the time i opened the sea, the god says, watch me ♪ ♪ like david and the giants, what a victory ♪ ♪ just like that, watch me ♪ ♪ stay right where you are, god says ♪ ♪ i will do great things ♪ ♪ watch me ♪ ♪ because i'm still able to do more than you can ask or think ♪ ♪ my child, watch me ♪ ♪ just watch me ♪ ♪ god said i heard you when you

♪ i still have the power to fix anything ♪ ♪ just watch me ♪ ♪ i'm the god of every miracle ♪ ♪ bigger than anything you've ever seen ♪ ♪ all you have to do is ♪ ♪ watch me, yeah ♪ ♪ god says, i'm not through blessing all of you ♪ ♪ just wait and see ♪

♪ i've got great things for you ♪ ♪ i'm going to come through ♪ ♪ all you have to do is bring your problems to me ♪ ♪ and let me handle them ♪ ♪ god said watch me ♪ ♪ watch me ♪ ♪ i'll fix anything ♪ ♪ i can change anything ♪ ♪ i can make everything better when you step back and ♪ ♪ watch me work ♪ ♪ as only i can do ♪ ♪ do the impossible ♪ ♪ ♪ a big 'ole blessing is on the

way ♪ ♪ give me your worries and take my peace ♪ ♪ give me your pain and i will give you my joy ♪ ♪ give me your brokenness and let me make you whole ♪ ♪ looking up ♪ ♪ watch me work ♪ ♪ all you got to do is ♪ ♪ watch, watch, watch ♪ ♪ because god -- he's the one that's fighting for you ♪ ♪ cast every ♪ ♪ care you have ♪ ♪ he'll do it ♪ ♪ he'll change it ♪ ♪ he'll work it out ♪ ♪ he's not through ♪ ♪ he's not through blessing you ♪ ♪ there's still a victory ♪

♪ watch him work ♪ ♪ god says work is what i'm doing ♪ ♪ watch me ♪ god has big things for us. i'm ready for him. come on, 2022. this next song says, in the midst of waiting for watching god, do big things in our lives. we have to be grateful for what he's already done. anybody grateful for what he's already done? yes. we're alive, breathing, even in the midst of this pandemic. we still can find some happy, at least i can. i'm thankful i'm not on a ventilator tonight, i'm not in a house enjoying this. i'm in the presence of you all. and i'm able to do all this on

my own without any assistance. it's a blessing to breathe on your own, walk on your own. the things we call the small things are now very big things. that we, you know -- we don't take any longer for granted. so this is another song that says we're grateful. even if you're in the midst of the trial, god will see to it that you come out all right. [ ♪♪♪ ] [ ♪♪♪ ]

♪ that's not the life way is always going to be ♪ ♪ but we have to have ♪ so that we learn to appreciate the good times ♪ ♪ god wants us to be grateful ♪

[ ♪♪♪ ] ♪ he feels them just like you ♪ ♪ but he cannot afford to let you feel ♪ ♪ that you learn to appreciate ♪ be grateful ♪ ♪ make sure that you're always grateful ♪ ♪ you have to be grateful ♪

♪ be grateful ♪ ♪ someone else would love to stand in your shoes ♪ ♪ just be grateful, be grateful ♪ ♪ you're going to come out all right ♪ ♪ many are the afflictions of the righteous ♪ ♪ but god promised that he would bring us out of them all ♪ ♪ you got to be grateful ♪ ♪ ♪ through the life's heartaches ♪ ♪ and all of the pain ♪ ♪ be grateful ♪ ♪ he has a plan for it all ♪

♪ he never, ever leave you ♪ ♪ he'll never forsake you, yeah ♪ ♪ all things work together ♪ ♪ for your good and my good, our good ♪ ♪ don't panic, don't have anxiety ♪ ♪ god promised that he'll always come through for you and me ♪ ♪ be, be, be, be ♪ ♪ you got to find a way to be grateful ♪ ♪ oh ♪ ♪ yeah ♪ ♪ we may not have everything that we want, but god sees to it

that we have ♪ ♪ everything that we need ♪ ♪ it will be all right ♪ [ ♪♪♪ ] it's going to be all right. struggles are temporary. god is eternal. this last song, just says -- i'm an optimist. the best is yet to come. yes, we have suffered loss, but i still feel that god has some great things on the way that will blow our socks off, blow our minds. this song just says, you ain't

seen nothing yet. he's not finished pouring out. just us moving forward in society. i think he still has great things for even that. so we want to just encourage you that the best is yet to come. keep holding on. keep looking up. you can clap with me if you want. ♪ hold on, hold, on ♪ ♪ you say ♪ ♪ hold on, hold on, hold on ♪ ♪ hold on my brother don't give up ♪ ♪ hold on my sister just keep looking up ♪ ♪ there is a master plan in

store for you ♪ ♪ if you can make it through ♪ ♪ god's going to really blow your mind ♪ ♪ he's going to make it work ♪ ♪ for all of the struggles you've been through ♪ ♪ the blessings are going to double just for you ♪ ♪ all the best is yet to come ♪ ♪ hold on my brother, don't give up ♪ ♪ don't give up ♪ ♪ hold on my sister, just look up ♪ ♪ because there is a master plan ♪ ♪ in store for you ♪ ♪ if you can make -- make it through ♪

♪ god is going to make it worth all of your time ♪ ♪ for all of your struggle you get through ♪ ♪ the blessings they double and triple just for you ♪ ♪ the best is yet to come ♪ ♪ yes, it is ♪ ♪ the best is yet to come ♪ ♪ yeah ♪ ♪ today is the first day of the best days of our lives ♪ woo! ♪ today is the first day of the best days of your life ♪ ♪ today is the first day of the best days of your life ♪ ♪ the best ♪ ♪ yeah ♪ ♪ the best is yet to come ♪

♪ the best ♪ we believe the best is yet to come ♪ ♪ today is the first day of the best days of our lives ♪ ♪ today is the first day of the best days of our lives ♪ today is the first day of the best day of your life. yeah, the best is yet to come. the best is yet to come. [music playing] you guys ain't

seen nothing yet. god is just getting started. but he's not through blessing you. he's not through blessing you! you ain't seen nothing, you ain't seen nothing yet. you ain't seen nothing. you ain't seen nothing yet. you ain't seen nothing. you ain't seen nothing yet. you ain't seen nothing. you ain't seen nothing yet. you ain't seen nothing. you ain't seen nothing yet. you ain't seen nothing. you ain't seen nothing yet.

you ain't seen nothing. you ain't seen nothing yet. you ain't seen nothing. you ain't seen nothing -- i'm lena byrd miles, god bless you. thank you so much. [music playing] [music playing]

>> one more time, for lena byrd miles! what a fantastic journey we've been on tonight. now, please welcome back to the stage to close us out tonight, mrs. cheryl davis. [applause] >> can you just give another round of applause for all of the folks who shared with us tonight. [applause] oh, man, i am as the old folks used to say when i was in church, i am so full of bright. what an incredible evening. what gratitude i have for everyone who made it all happen. special thanks to the stage crew and the staff here at the theater. give it up for them. i really just want to recognize because we made the decision to still kind of try to be live for the performers, even though we wanted to limit how many people

were coming in. so i just want to give it up to the theater for opening up their doors and still letting us be safe with each other. for bringing this event to life in the midst of a challenging time. give it up to the folks that are helping us from s.f. gov tv. broadcasting live stream and making it all look great. we have heard amazing stories and voices through song and just the idea and notion of freedom. and freedom and moving towards justice, but the role of music in that. please, if you get the opportunity, re-share the link to this so folks can hear what we were able to witness in person tonight. so, again, give it up for s.f. gov to make it possible to share this. gratitude to the staff members at the m.l.k. north cal foundation, aaron and his team.

thank you to derek brown. i want to give a special shoutout to the folks at the human rights commission. every time we come up with an idea, the team steps up to make it happen. give them a hand for their support. i want to give special thanks to those live streaming this on facebook. everybody has been hitting us online and saying, whose voice is that? give it up for josh. this is a term i hadn't heard. apparently it's called the voice of god, like in performance world. so when you don't see the person, but you hear them from the back, so josh has been the voice of god tonight. thank you, josh. i want to thank sarah and william. she was not able to be here, but i want to give her a huge

shoutout, because when we had the vision of doing this, sara was ready, willing and able to bring together the amazing talent tonight. give a round of applause. i want to give another shoutout to marcus phillips and top of the mark for being here tonight. awesome job. maria and debbie. give it up for debbie who has been leading and touching hands with everyone. give her a round of applause. on behalf of aaron, derek, thank you to all who joined us, whether here in the theater or virtually online from home. thank you for joining us in this journey towards justice and freedom and to remember and respect and celebrate the legacy of dr. king. so, thank you all again for being with us. and, please, if you have time, go back and look at this again, because it is beautiful. thank you and good night. [ ♪♪♪ ]

[applause]

>> i am so happy. african-americans in the military from the revolutionary war to the present, even though

they have not had the basic civil rights in america. they don't know their history. in the military the most sacrifice as anyone in this country to be willing to lay down your blood and fight. i believe that all african-americans have served because they love this country and the hope that the citizens. >> first it's always the hardest and when they look back they really won't see you, but it's the path that you're paving forward for the next one behind you that counts.

(♪♪♪) hi, my name is jajaida durden and i'm the acting superintendent for the bureau of forestry and i work for public works operations. and i'm over the landscaping, the shop and also the arborist crew. and some tree inspectors as well. i have been with the city and county of san francisco for 17 years. and i was a cement mason, that was my first job. when i got here i thought that it was too easy. so i said one day i'll be a supervisor. and when i run this place it will be ran different. and i didn't think that it would happen as fast as it did, but it did. and i came in 2002 and became a supervisor in 2006. and six months later i became the permanent supervisor over

the shop. >> with all of those responsibilities and the staff you're also dealing with different attitudes and you have to take off one hat and put on another hat and put on another hat. and she's able -- she's displayed that she can carry the weight with all of these different hats and still maintain the respect of the director, the deputy director and all of the other people that she has to come in contact with. >> she's a natural leader. i mean with her staff, her staff thinks highly of her. and the most important thing is when we have things that happen, a lot of emergencies, she's right by me and helps me out every time that i have asked. >> my inspiration is when i was a young adult was to become a fire woman. well, i made some wrong decisions and i ended up being incarcerated, starting young and all the way up to an adult. when i was in jail they had a little program called suppers program and i -- supers program,

and i met strong women in there and they introduced me to construction. i thought that the fire department would turn me down because i had a criminal history. so i looked into options of what kind of construction i could do. while i was in jail. and the program that i was in, they re-trained us on living and how to make the right decisions and i chose construction. and cement mason didn't require a high school diploma at that time so i figured i could do that. when i got out of jail they had a program in the philmore area and i went there. my first day out i signed up and four days later i started to work and i never looked back. i was an apprentice pouring concrete. and my first job was mount zion emergency hospital which is now ucsf.

and every day that i drive by ucsf and i look at the old mount zion emergency, i have a sense of pride knowing that i had a part of building that place. yeah, i did. i graduated as an apprentice and worked on a retrofit for city hall. i loved looking at that building and i take big pride in knowing that i was a part of that retrofit. my first formen job was a 40 story building from the ground up. and it's a predominantly male industry and most of the times people underestimate women. i'm used to it though, it's a challenge for me. >> as a female you're working with a lot of guys. so when they see a woman, first they don't think that the woman is in charge and to know that she's a person that is in charge with operations, i think that it's great, because it's

different. it's not something -- i mean, not only a female but the only female of color. >> i was the first female finisher in the cement shop and i was the first crew supervisor, in the shop as a woman. when i became a two, the supervisors would not help me. in the middle, they'd call me a rookie, an apprentice and a female trying to get somewhere that she don't belong. oh, it was terrible. it was terrible. i didn't have any support from the shop. the ones who said they supported me, they didn't, they talked about me behind my back. sometimes i had some crying, a lot of crying behind doors, not in public. but i had a lot of mentors. my mentor i will call and would pick up the phone and just talk, talk, talk, please help me. what am i going to do? hang in there. it was frustrating and

disheartening, it really was. but what they didn't understand is that because they didn't help me i had to learn it. and then probably about a year later, that's when i started to lay down the rules because i had studied them and i learned them and it made me a good supervisor and i started to run the ship the way that i wanted to. it was scary. but the more i saw women coming through the shop, i saw change coming. i knew that it was going to come, but i didn't know how long it would take. it was coming. in the beginning when i first came here and i was the first woman here as a finisher, to see the change as it progressed and for me to become a permanent assistant superintendent over the cement shop right now, that's my highlight. i can look down at my staff and see the diversity from the women to the different coaches in here and know that no one has to ever

go through what i went through coming up. and i foster and help everyone instead of pushing them away. i'll talk to women and tell them they can make it and if they need any help, come talk to me. and they knock on my door and ask how i move up and how i get training. i'm always encouraging to go to school and encourage them to take up some of the training with d.p.w. and i would tell them to hold strong and understand that things that we go through today that are tough makes you stronger for tomorrow. although we don't like hearing it at the time that we're going through all of this stuff, it helps you in the long run to become a better woman and a person

>> hello everyone. welcome to the bayview bistro. >> it is just time to bring the

community together by deliciousness. i am excited to be here today because nothing brings the community together like food. having amazing food options for and by the people of this community is critical to the success, the long-term success and stability of the bayview-hunters point community. >> i am nima romney.

this is a mobile cafe. we do soul food with a latin twist. i wanted to open a truck to son nor the soul food, my african heritage as well as mylas as my latindescent. >> i have been at this for 15 years. i have been cooking all my life pretty much, you know. i like cooking ribs, chicken, links. my favorite is oysters on the grill. >> i am the owner. it all started with banana pudding, the mother of them all. now what i do is take on traditional desserts and pair them with pudding so that is my

ultimate goal of the business. >> our goal with the bayview bristow is to bring in businesses so they can really use this as a launching off point to grow as a single business. we want to use this as the opportunity to support business owners of color and those who have contributed a lot to the community and are looking for opportunities to grow their business. >> these are the things that the san francisco public utilities commission is doing. they are doing it because they feel they have a responsibility to san franciscans and to people in this community. >> i had a grandmother who lived in bayview. she never moved, never wavered. it was a house of security answer entity where we went for holidays. i was a part of bayview most of my life. i can't remember not being a

part of bayview. >> i have been here for several years. this space used to be unoccupied. it was used as a dump. to repurpose it for something like this with the bistro to give an opportunity for the local vendors and food people to come out and showcase their work. that is a great way to give back to the community. >> this is a great example of a public-private community partnership. they have been supporting this including the san francisco public utilities commission and mayor's office of workforce department. >> working with the joint venture partners we got resources for the space, that the businesses were able to thrive because of all of the opportunities on the way to this community.

>> bayview has changed. it is growing. a lot of things is different from when i was a kid. you have the t train. you have a lot of new business. i am looking forward to being a business owner in my neighborhood. >> i love my city. you know, i went to city college and fourth and mission in san francisco under the chefs ria, marlene and betsy. they are proud of me. i don't want to leave them out of the journey. everyone works hard. they are very supportive and passionate about what they do, and they all have one goal in mind for the bayview to survive. >> all right. it is time to eat, people.

you're watching san . francisco rising. today's special guest is monique gray. >> hi. i'm chris mannis and you're watching san francisco rising. the our guest today is marquise gray. he runs out of the office of the mayor in the city and county of san francisco. and he's with us today to talk about the recent progress of the sunnidale hope sf housing project. welcome to the show. >> good morning. thank you for having me today. >> let's start by talking about the existing residents of sunnydale and their history. >> so sunnydale was built in

the 1940s for a workers. it's the largest public housing community west of the mississippi. it's about 50 acres. pretty huge. about 760 single story units one to four bedrooms. >> i understand it's an ambitious rethinking of the residences. can you briefly describe the scope of the program and hope sf's involvement? >> yeah. the work of hope sf is this idea of more than housing. that acknowledging that our public housing community, the levels of violence and poverty that are in these communities are not by accident. you know, it's our opportunity to address a system issue, you know, that people need more than housing. they need health services. resources. economic investment opportunities, jobs and things

of that nature. and so hope sf strives to work with our city systems to better serve our public housing communities. >> so recently, mayor breed and speaker pelosi toured the site to both put focus on a national housing initiative and also to highlight the completion of the first new building. how many units does it contain and when will people start moving in? >> yeah. it was an amazing event. honored to have the secretary here with us as well in our community. it's 167 units. it's about 75% going back to the original families that currently live on site. so the replacement. so i did forget to mention i want to say real quick, the beauty of hope sf is housing development, new development without displacements or anti-displacement initiatives. so, for example, the building is 167 units. 75% of those units going to families that have lived there in the community for

generationings and the other 25% are tax credit units adding to the affordable housing stock here in san francisco and those units are up and running now. they're leasing them as we speak. people are picking their units each week until they're filled up. >> so was this particular building put on a new plot of land or did people have to move out so it could be constructed? >> that's a good question. our first building was vacant which you may have saw across the street from this building and then this plot of land is the way we kind of do it, we do it in phases. once one goes in, we're able to move families into the new unit and where they previously were occupying, able to demolish old buildings to build the new. so this area had some older units that were demolished. >> it's impressive that construction has been able to continue during the covid-19 pandemic. can you talk about some of the challenges that needed to be overcome and how the community

has managed during the crisis? >> that's a great question. you know, in san francisco, if i understand it correctly, i could be wrong, i believe housing was an essential service. the mayor made a strong commitment early on in the pandemic that we would continue to build housing as housing has been a critical issue in our city. so the housing part hasn't impacted us too much. 67 units have been going on its current time line. the bigger challenge for us was showing the families in our communities, low income families had the resources we need to survive the pandemic. many of our families didn't have the luxury of working from home, working in the zone and things of that nature. making sure they had access to covid testing and things of that nature. so i want to give a big shout

out to our resident leaders, our service providers across all four sites. for those that don't know, hope sf is four sites. sunnydale is one of the four sites. and so across those four sites, the most critical thing was making sure folks in these neighborhoods which have historically have been disconnected from resources have the things that they need to remain healthy, to, you know, survive the pandemic as we all had to survive the pandemic and we did pretty well. we were able to bring back scenes and covid testing on site. food distribution was happening all throughout the week. wellness services and things of that nature were all happening on site thanks to our resident leaders and our service providers across the sites. >> so, finally, when could we expect the next set of residents to be ready? despite -- i guess we just said covid doesn't have an impact on

the schedule. when will the next residences be ready? >> yeah. things are rolling. we have block a3 and block b3 to the building we were referring to earlier. and things are on pace. things are going really well. so we're looking at starting construction spring of 2022 and that will be 170 units and the goal is to have that lease up around 2024. >> well, thank you so much. i really appreciate you coming on the show, mr. gray. thank you for giving us the time today. >> thank you, chris, and i really appreciate your time as well. >> and that's it with this episode. you've been watching san francisco rising for sfgov tv i'm chris manners. thanks so much for watching.

>> on behalf of the san francisco office and historical society, our partners and sponsors, welcome to the 2022 black history month kickoff program. i am aloe williams, president of the society's board of directors. the society was founded in 1955. in 1958, it merged with a local chapter of the association for the study of african-american life and history, which is better known as the national group which started the celebration of what is now black history month. that is the society became the official sponsor of black history month in san francisco. from the beginning, the society has centred its black history month activities around the theme established by the group.

the national 2022 black history month theme is black health and wellness. today's program and other society programs throughout the month of february will address this theme. we hope you will enjoy and be informed by today's program. as is our custom and tradition, today's program will begin with an invocation. the reverend amos brown, senior pastor of third baptist church in san francisco will provide today gigi invocation. the invocation will be followed by the singing of the negro national anthem by the soul singer. [♪♪♪] >> it is significant that we have chosen this year as the national theme that we are

focusing on the health and wellness of this african-american community. need i remind you, history calls on us. and because of that, mid atlantic slave trade, our ancestors were robbed of life and liberty and the pursuit of happiness. and the quality of life was compromised because of the way we were treated. we were not even considered human. in fact,, the constitution of this nation defined us, at one point as being three fifths human. consequently, when this elected

policy treated us as not being human, we got less than quality food, quality healthcare, quality mental health, and a quality environment to live in. friends, that is un-american. that is inhumane and that is the height of egocentrism and selfishness. i hope that out of our celebrating this african-american history month, we shall collectively, in our city, work to correct the

age-old historical disparities. it has experienced -- it has caused us to experience hypertension and strokes, doubled and almost tripled in some communities than that of the majority of cultures. women disproportionately dying of uterine cancer, breast cancer, and we have been challenged with the age-old's -- age old sickness of sickle-cell anemia. in addition to that, and too many of our communities, there have been food deaths. we are not eating a healthy diet. consequently, we need to be

creative and think outside of the box and make sure that we have, in our communities, stores that will sell as quality food and never as it has been document lee reported, leftovers. we don't need any more hush money thrown at us. during the days of enslavement when those who worked in the big house and finished cooking for those who enslaved us, whatever grease and cornmeal that was left, many times they had to take the cornmeal and grease and make hushpuppies to sustain themselves. and then there were times when the dogs would be out barking and they were hungry too.

some of them would throw out hushpuppies and say, hush, puppy or hush, dog. that says to us, symbolically, and in some instances actually, we should stop accepting leftovers, prongs, and that which others would not want to eat into our bodies. finally, let me say, help also is maintained by people having a sense of belonging. a sense of belonging. psychiatrists and psychologists have documented the fact that whenever a group of people feel that they are invisible people,

that they are not connected, that they are not respected and not regarded, they develop mental challenges. and you all have heard, i'm sure, about the posttraumatic stress syndrome. we have too much stress in our communities. from noise, guns, and violence. and many times that violence comes from the tone. how we talk to each other, how we treat each other. so what is the answer? we need to work towards creating what dr. martin luther king jr. by teaching this, what was that? the establishment of a beloved community in which we first

learn how to reasonably and rationally respect our self-worth. and secondly, the obligation of society to make up for times in which we were wrong and we received payback for the times that our watering holes, our community gatherings were destroyed by so-called urban renewal. it was not urban renewal -- urban renewal, but it was black removal. i will not go into detail dealing with the specificities, but in the city and county of san francisco, we have to do more than just calm -- call on god or pray to god. we must work collectively in a responsible, realistic, righteous way to restore every

historical center were african-americans were embattled. commerce, cultural celebration, and having a place to say that this is ours as sons and daughters. [♪♪♪] let us pray. [singing]

[singing] will [singing]

[singing] >> we will now have readings from the mayor of the city and county of san francisco. the honorable london breed and the president of the san francisco board of supervisors, supervisor walton. >> hi. i am mayor london breed. thank you for joining as as we kick off black history month in san francisco. this year's theme of black health and wellness is not just a response to covid. it is celebrating the black health care workers who have provided culturally competent care for our families for generations. from the black doctors and nurses in today's hospital.

to the doolittle and the healers in the field when our ancestors were in play. it is honoring the leader who fought to open clinics that served black people when hospitals would turn us away. it is recognizing the contributions of black scholars and practitioners like dr. carlton goodwin who was more than just a black physician in san francisco. he was a civil rights leader. he was a newspaper publisher. he advocated for black people and told our stories in our own voice. in celebrating black history month this year, we are renewing our commitment to ensure the next generation has equitable access to health and wellness resources, including cancer treatment, nutrition, and preventative care to mental health, therapy, and mindfulness. as a kid in the western addition, we were lucky to have the health center that served

our neighborhood with compassion and care. even today, while we are living in the era of vaccines and testing, there's still a lot of elders in our community who do not trust modern medicine, and with good reason. we have all heard the stories of how black people were used for cruel experiments under the guise of medicine. that is why it is so critical to create a holistic, inclusive, and black system that can break down the barriers for health care to everyone. programs like the abundant birth project. a project that provides guaranteed income to support black mothers during pregnancy and after giving birth. our dream keeper initiative has committed $60 million annually for the black community of san francisco, with $14.9 million to expanding and sustaining black health and wellness programs. i'm excited for a future where everyone has equitable access to

healthcare and wellness resources. thank you to al williams and the san francisco historical society for helping us host this event today. thank you for joining us to celebrate and honor the history, health, and lives of black people in this city. [♪♪♪] >> good afternoon. this is president of the san francisco board of supervisors, representing district 10. first of all, i want to start off by saying, happy black history month and wishing you many blessings this year for 2022. i also want to thank the san francisco african-american historical and cultural society for always remembering to bring us together as a people. to celebrate the contributions of black people, not only here in san francisco, but across the country. each year we come together at city hall to kick off black

history month. and as we know, every day is black history. it is very important to highlight those contributions and it is really important to kickoff black history month in that fashion, reflective of the city supporting black people. i also want to take the time to say that my fraternity brother, carter woodson started black history month, which originally started as negro history week. so that we could look at all the things that black people were doing here in the united states, contributing to society and making sure that everyone knew and understood black folks are intelligent, black folks are human beings, and black folks are people who need to be celebrated here in this country. as we come together for another black history program,

unfortunately we are not able to do this in person again this year. i want everyone to remember your history. remember that you are great. remember that you come from greatness, and remember that you are special. happy black history month, and again, i want to thank the san francisco african-american historical and cultural society for bringing us back together. [♪♪♪] >> thank you, mayor breed and supervisor walton. debate area company will now share with us their rendition of rooting for everybody black. >> i root for everybody black. everybody black is my hometown team. everybody black dropped the hardest album of the year, easy. everybody black is in this show, so i am watching.

everybody black is in this movie, so i am watching. everybody black's new book was beautiful. how you don't know about everybody black? everybody black is mad underrated. everybody black reminds me of someone i know. i love seeing everybody black to succeed. everybody black deserves the promotion more than anybody. i want everybody black to find somebody special. [ indiscernible ] >> i met everybody black once and they are super chill and down-to-earth. i believe in everybody black.

>> there's something about everybody black. [applause] [♪♪♪] >> we now have readings from the san francisco assessor reporter, joaquin torres. >> hello. i am the assessor recorder in the city and county of san francisco, wishing all of you a wonderful start to black history month. here in san francisco we are grateful for the contributions african-americans made with building and strengthening our culture and autonomy, and for advancing our pursuit before a more equitable society.

to our history making mayor, london breed, african-americans have elevated san francisco to world-renowned places. as we reflect on those contributions, let it fuel our ongoing and collective goal towards justice. as dr. king said, we are tied in a single garment of destiny. whatever offences directly affects all of us indirectly. this one,'s workers and his actions ground us in the purpose to advance black health and well-being as we work to close racial inequity and we fight for voting rights, pay equity, access to excellent healthcare and police reform, the work that we do offers tribute to those leaders who have come before us and for those who have laid the path using the diversity of practices to move our hearts and our minds towards a more humane and just world. some of them have left us this year.

sydney paktia -- desmond tutu, sidney potier. the society, who since 1955 has made sure we know where we come from and continues to lead the effort and timeline to celebrate african-americans in the bay area through one of the art -- oldest collections of art and recordings. for you, in appreciation of your work to keep these traditions of black history month alive and present and to preserve the rich history of african-american culture in san francisco, so we present to you a certificate of honor to thank you for your service. happy black history month. >> thank you, assessor torres. it is now my honor to briefly introduce the keynote speaker. dr. jonathan butler.

he is a faith leader and community activist. is a postdoctoral fellow at the university of california san francisco and holds a ph.d. degree in medical sociology and a master of divinity in religion and health. he is a social epidemiologist and minister with interest in the role of religion of childhood experiences and psychological stress on health outcomes. dr. butler is also the executive director of the san francisco african-american faith-based coalition, which seeks to address food security in san francisco and whose mission is to mobilize the city and its resources to eliminate health disparities and inequities in the african-american community. with that, i give you the keynote speaker, dr. jonathan butler who will share his thoughts and suggestions on the subject of black health and

wellness. >> my name is dr. jonathan butler. i am grateful to the san francisco african-american historical society for the invitation to speak for this year's black history month kickoff in san francisco. i served as executive director of the san francisco faith-based coalition. the coalition of 21 churches with a mission to eliminate health disparities and serve as an associate minister at the stork baptist church and a researcher in the department of family and community medicine at the university of california, san francisco. this year's black history theme is black health and wellness. when i think of black health and wellness i am reminded of the same principle that symbolizes it is taken from the past what is good and bring it into the present in order to make a positive progress through the benevolent use of knowledge. it is a word that translates to

retrieve and to go back, to get, to return, to seek and to take. and to understand who we are today in terms of our black health and wellness. we must go back and learn from the history of yesteryear. that's why i am delighted to greet you from the motherland. i am currently in ghana and i have been able to experience the culture here, taste the food, but to visit the coast slave castle, which has been an overwhelming experience. just imagine that castle. up to 2,000 men and female slaves who were shackled and crammed in the castle ventilated dungeons with nose to lie down and very little light without water or sanitation. the dungeon was littered with human waste and men were separated from the women. the captives regularly raped the

health -- helpless women. it also featured these confinement sales. -- cells. small, pitch black prisoners. once they step foot in the castle, they could spend up to three months in captivity. imagine living in these dungeons. defecating on themselves, standing near corpses. under these dreadful conditions until they were shifted into the new world. and then for them to cross the atlantic, from being thrown off the ship's, to come to places like the united states, africans were then hunted like animals, captures, sold, tortured and raped. they experienced the worst kind of physical, emotional, sake will -- psychological abuse. you can imagine how traumatizing the slavery was.

emancipation was followed by 100 more years of institutionalized racism through the enactment of black coals, convict lease -- convict leasing, lynching, these violations continue. and when combined with the crimes of the past as dr. joyce states, it results in unmeasured injuries. so to understand where we have come helps to delay the necessary foundation to ensure that everyone lives equality and sustained life for future generations to come. so first when we think about black health and wellness, we have to think now about not only

what we eat, how often we exercise, how often we get the sleep that we need, but we must understand the stressors and trauma and how they are measured comprehensively. we don't only experience racism and discrimination. there is financial stress and work stress and the work-family spillover type of stress. neighborhood stress. all of those stressors combined has damaging impacts on our physical and mental health. blacks especially are additionally harmed by this racism and discrimination. this -- these stressors proliferate over the life course and across generations and it widens the health gap between the advantaged and disadvantaged group members. to address these types of health inequities, we must focus on the

structural conditions that put people at risk for these stressors. we should focus on programs and policies and all levels that address the social conditions. let's look at this stress phenomenon. this trauma little deeper. what we mean by stress is being stressed out. feeling overwhelmed. out of control, exhausted. anxious. frustrated, angry. what happens to us when we feel these types of stressors. we don't get enough sleep. we eat too much of the wrong thing. we drink excessively. we smoke, we neglect to moderately exercise that can reduce these stressors. the succession -- this success of these stressors -- [ indiscernible ] and when the brain perceives and

experiences stressors, there's certain loads the where of tear move -- of our body throughout. this is why we experience many cases of diabetes and hypertension and obesity, but it is the racism and the discrimination that is correlated with this substandard employment housing, education,

income, access to health services that is associated with risks that include occupational hazards, exposure to toxic substances and allergens in the home, and low-quality schooling and lack of availability, at easy access to illicit drugs and alcohol, violent neighborhoods, environmental exposures, to these daily stressful events of living in poverty, racism, oppression, inequality, sexism, classism calls for us to come together and advocate what it is that we desire. we have to deal with damaged, fragmented, disrupted social relations, social networks and infrastructure of support.

you have to deal with the social efficacy. we have to deal with an elevation of the structural and destructive social norms promoting violence and unhealthy behaviors. what do we need to advocate for? we need sustainable community economic development. we need restorative justice. we need healing circles. we need to reclaim and improve our public spaces that have often been stolen from us. even in places like ghana. we need to advocate for shifting community norms and enhance the social connection and networks that we have had before. we need to rebuild intergenerational connections and relationships and organize and promote positive community activity and provide more of a voice and an element of power

for community folks around shifting and changing the environment as well as our structural factors. we need to create safe public spaces through improvements in our built environment by addressing parks and housing quality and transportation. reclaim and improve our public spaces. we have experienced this community level trauma. it is not just the aggregate of the individuals in the neighborhood who have experienced trauma from exposures to violence, but there are manifestations or symptoms of community trauma. community trauma is cumulative in synergistic impact and regular instance of interpersonal violence. historical and intergenerational

violence and continual exposures to structural violence. for us to become a people who have good quality of life, for us to address this issue of creating a healthy community, we must come together. we must demand what was stolen from us. i would like to end my conversation with a statement about our faith. a connection to faith has long been recognized as having a deeply profound impact on our social and emotional well-being. and throughout history, a connection to a higher power has been the cornerstone of resilience and empowerment that has sustained generations of individuals from the african diaspora. trauma and health disparities face historically and currently african and african americans

that contribute to the enduring legacy of faith and spirituality. to this day, it remains a powerful source of hopeful light for the community. when we help -- we think of health and wellness, we think of bringing us together. [♪♪♪] >> thank you for those inspiring, informative, and thought-provoking remarks on the 2020 black history month theme, black health and wellness. you are certainly giving us a great deal on things to think about and to think on for the days and months ahead. once again, we now go to some more performances. [♪♪♪] [singing]

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[♪♪♪] >> thank you for another great performance. we hope you have enjoyed today's program. we look forward to seeing you at our genealogy resources program. and other programs on february 19th through 26th. last, but certainly not least, we would like to thank our sponsors and everyone who support made this program and all of our programs possible. we look forward to seeing you in person or virtually at these upcoming programs. until then, please stay safe. now, i leave you with a closing performance by the singer, rubble. [♪♪♪]

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[singing] >> i am so happy. african-americans in the military from the revolutionary war to the present, even though they have not had the basic civil rights in america. they don't know their history. in the military the most

sacrifice as anyone in this country to be willing to lay down your blood and fight. i believe that all african-americans have served because they love this country and the hope that the citizens. >> first it's always the hardest and when they look back they really won't see you, but it's the path that you're paving forward for the next one behind you that counts. (♪♪♪) hi, my name is jajaida durden

and i'm the acting superintendent for the bureau of forestry and i work for public works operations. and i'm over the landscaping, the shop and also the arborist crew. and some tree inspectors as well. i have been with the city and county of san francisco for 17 years. and i was a cement mason, that was my first job. when i got here i thought that it was too easy. so i said one day i'll be a supervisor. and when i run this place it will be ran different. and i didn't think that it would happen as fast as it did, but it did. and i came in 2002 and became a supervisor in 2006. and six months later i became the permanent supervisor over the shop. >> with all of those responsibilities and the staff you're also dealing with different attitudes and you have to take off one hat and put on another hat and put on another hat. and she's able -- she's displayed that she can carry the

weight with all of these different hats and still maintain the respect of the director, the deputy director and all of the other people that she has to come in contact with. >> she's a natural leader. i mean with her staff, her staff thinks highly of her. and the most important thing is when we have things that happen, a lot of emergencies, she's right by me and helps me out every time that i have asked. >> my inspiration is when i was a young adult was to become a fire woman. well, i made some wrong decisions and i ended up being incarcerated, starting young and all the way up to an adult. when i was in jail they had a little program called suppers program and i -- supers program, and i met strong women in there and they introduced me to construction. i thought that the fire department would turn me down because i had a criminal history. so i looked into options of what kind of construction i could do.

while i was in jail. and the program that i was in, they re-trained us on living and how to make the right decisions and i chose construction. and cement mason didn't require a high school diploma at that time so i figured i could do that. when i got out of jail they had a program in the philmore area and i went there. my first day out i signed up and four days later i started to work and i never looked back. i was an apprentice pouring concrete. and my first job was mount zion emergency hospital which is now ucsf. and every day that i drive by ucsf and i look at the old mount zion emergency, i have a sense of pride knowing that i had a part of building that place. yeah, i did.

i graduated as an apprentice and worked on a retrofit for city hall. i loved looking at that building and i take big pride in knowing that i was a part of that retrofit. my first formen job was a 40 story building from the ground up. and it's a predominantly male industry and most of the times people underestimate women. i'm used to it though, it's a challenge for me. >> as a female you're working with a lot of guys. so when they see a woman, first they don't think that the woman is in charge and to know that she's a person that is in charge with operations, i think that it's great, because it's different. it's not something -- i mean, not only a female but the only female of color. >> i was the first female finisher in the cement shop and i was the first crew supervisor,

in the shop as a woman. when i became a two, the supervisors would not help me. in the middle, they'd call me a rookie, an apprentice and a female trying to get somewhere that she don't belong. oh, it was terrible. it was terrible. i didn't have any support from the shop. the ones who said they supported me, they didn't, they talked about me behind my back. sometimes i had some crying, a lot of crying behind doors, not in public. but i had a lot of mentors. my mentor i will call and would pick up the phone and just talk, talk, talk, please help me. what am i going to do? hang in there. it was frustrating and disheartening, it really was. but what they didn't understand is that because they didn't help me i had to learn it. and then probably about a year later, that's when i started to lay down the rules because i had

studied them and i learned them and it made me a good supervisor and i started to run the ship the way that i wanted to. it was scary. but the more i saw women coming through the shop, i saw change coming. i knew that it was going to come, but i didn't know how long it would take. it was coming. in the beginning when i first came here and i was the first woman here as a finisher, to see the change as it progressed and for me to become a permanent assistant superintendent over the cement shop right now, that's my highlight. i can look down at my staff and see the diversity from the women to the different coaches in here and know that no one has to ever go through what i went through coming up. and i foster and help everyone instead of pushing them away. i'll talk to women and tell them they can make it and if they

need any help, come talk to me. and they knock on my door and ask how i move up and how i get training. i'm always encouraging to go to school and encourage them to take up some of the training with d.p.w. and i would tell them to hold strong and understand that things that we go through today that are tough makes you stronger for tomorrow. although we don't like hearing it at the time that we're going through all of this stuff, it helps you in the long run to become a better woman and a person

>> hello everyone. welcome to the bayview bistro. >> it is just time to bring the community together by deliciousness. i am excited to be here today because nothing brings the community together like food. having amazing food options for and by the people of this community is critical to the success, the long-term success and stability of the bayview-hunters point community.

>> i am nima romney. this is a mobile cafe. we do soul food with a latin twist. i wanted to open a truck to son nor the soul food, my african heritage as well as mylas as my latindescent. >> i have been at this for 15 years. i have been cooking all my life pretty much, you know. i like cooking ribs, chicken, links. my favorite is oysters on the

grill. >> i am the owner. it all started with banana pudding, the mother of them all. now what i do is take on traditional desserts and pair them with pudding so that is my ultimate goal of the business. >> our goal with the bayview bristow is to bring in businesses so they can really use this as a launching off point to grow as a single business. we want to use this as the opportunity to support business owners of color and those who have contributed a lot to the community and are looking for opportunities to grow their business. >> these are the things that the san francisco public utilities commission is doing. they are doing it because they feel they have a responsibility to san franciscans and to people

in this community. >> i had a grandmother who lived in bayview. she never moved, never wavered. it was a house of security answer entity where we went for holidays. i was a part of bayview most of my life. i can't remember not being a part of bayview. >> i have been here for several years. this space used to be unoccupied. it was used as a dump. to repurpose it for something like this with the bistro to give an opportunity for the local vendors and food people to come out and showcase their work. that is a great way to give back to the community. >> this is a great example of a public-private community partnership. they have been supporting this including the san francisco public utilities commission and

mayor's office of workforce department. >> working with the joint venture partners we got resources for the space, that the businesses were able to thrive because of all of the opportunities on the way to this community. >> bayview has changed. it is growing. a lot of things is different from when i was a kid. you have the t train. you have a lot of new business. i am looking forward to being a business owner in my neighborhood. >> i love my city. you know, i went to city college and fourth and mission in san francisco under the chefs ria, marlene and betsy. they are proud of me. i don't want to leave them out of the journey. everyone works hard. they are very supportive and passionate about what they do, and they all have one goal in mind for the bayview to survive.

>> all right. >> all right.

>> good afternoon. this meeting will come to order. welcome to the january 10th 2022 -- january 31st regular meeting of the land use and transportation committee board of supervisors. i am chair of the committee, joined by vice chair supervisor jean preston and supervisor erin peskin. the committee clerk today is erica major. i would also like to acknowledge the good folks at san francisco government t.v. for staffing this meeting. do you have any announcements? >> thank you. the minutes will be happening through videoconference to the same extent as if they were physically present. the board recognizes that public assets to city services is essential and invite public participation. public comment will be available