>> be successful without working with the surrounding bay area counties to address a global pandemic that impacted our city state country and entire world so significantly. i am so proud of our public health response and what we were able to do to lead the way in san francisco. in fact, we are one of the most dense cities in the country and we saw one of the lowest death rates for covid anywhere and we should be proud of

that. [applause] sunday was the 50 anniversary of roe versus wade and why are we here? why do we have the district attorney, diana beckten here and state senator from another county and our district attorney brook jenkins and other representives from our local to our state to our many of our officials from all over the bay area region. why are we here today? we are here because we understand we just celebrated the 50th anniversary of roe v wade last year, the rights of women to choose how they take care of their health by not granting access to abortion in places all over the united states is absolutely a direct threat against

women's health, period. [applause] so, we are here because kimberley ellis, the director of the commission on the status of women came to me and to other women throughout the bay area to talk about how are we going to respond. as places like texas deny women the right to get an abortion and to take care of their health and to make decisions about their bodies, what happens when those women need help? they come to places like california. what is going to be our response not just in san francisco, but what's going to be our response in california? last year women came together and proposition 1 was passed. solidifying in our constitution [applause]

solid ifying in our consitution in california as a whole we will not take away a women right to choose and what does that mean for various counties and the work that needs to be done? it wasn't just be the work of major cities like san francisco, los angeles, it has to be our collective responsibilities to deal with the challenges for any woman that comes to us and expresses a need for support. that is where organizations like planned parenthood come into play and so grateful guilda gonzalez is joining us today as well because of they work, fight, advocacy and i remember guilda time when people were like, couple years back, why are we still fighting so hard to protect roe v wade, it is a done deal? we see as of last year, it is not a done deal and we have to fight every single day to protect it so we are so

grateful for partners like planned parenthood who continue the fight all over our country. today [applause] today i'm proud to announce that this bay area response, this bay area collective and what we are going to do to make sure we are all working together to provide solutions, to make sure that our state-wide organization is supported so they can provide a comprehensive solution to addressing this challenge, this is why we are here today. this is why this is important and i again, introducing kimberley ellis want to thank her for her work and leadership because she recognized under the commission on the status of women working with the san francisco department of public health, we can't just do it alone, we need bay area partners, we need to come together and so she helped to lead the way in developing this partnership so we

can work collaboratively together with investments with resources, with political support, with policy, and with the things that are necessary to insure that women's right to choose and the healthcare of women in the city of san francisco and the bay area and in the state of california will continue to be protected. ladies and gentlemen, please welcome kimberley ellis to talk about this collaborative. [applause] >> thank you madam mayor. as one of the most prominent city leaders in the country, particularly as a black woman, your voice is critical to supporting women and pregnant people's right to access the full range of reproductive healthcare services. we are deeply grateful for your continued and unwavering support from day one.

[applause] good afternoon everyone. i'm kim berley ellis. my remarks today will be dedicated to those individuals who lost their lives to senseless gun violence in monterey park, in san mateo county and a couple days ago in oakland and their families. whether we realize it or not, all of these issues are connected and intersectional. i am honored for the opportunity to be in community with you and to welcome all the reproductive justice leaders who joined us today. we are here today for three reasons. number one, to commemorate this past sunday, which would have been the 50 anniversary of roe v wade by officially launchish ing the san francisco bay area

abortion rights coalition. [applause] this is the very first ever bay area regional collective of municipal and county governments and reproductive health justice stakeholders who are committed to working together to reinforce and reimagine the local reproductive healthcare system in this new post-roe era. number two, we are here to visually demonstrate the collective commitment of this coalition. take a look around the room, folks. our squad represents the beautiful diversity that is california. it is both deep and broad, hailing from all 9 of the surrounding bay area counties. and finally, we are here today because the fight for abortion rights and reproductive freedom and justice was never about abortion. the fight for abortion rights and reproductive freedom and justice has always

been about power and control over women and girls agency and bodily autonomy. we are here today to state loudly and unappall jtically, we will not back down and we will never go back! [applause] and the launch of the bark coalition is just the beginning. we are in this fight together and this time we are playing for keeps. i would now like to welcome guilda gonzalez the ceo of planned parenthood, northern california. guilda. [applause] >> good to see a lot of friends here today. thank you kimberley. and planned parenthood northern california is proud to be here today and proud to be a coalition member. as we were heading into this last weekday, i had

advised my team to take the time on sunday to reflect and get some rest, because we needed to be clear-minded and strong as we advance the next phase of reproductive freedom while providing high quality healthcare to all patients coming to us. because the truth is, roe was never enough. so, we should not spend our time working just to restore it, instead, we must be on a bolder path aiming higher to achieve true standard of reproductive freedom that the insure access to care that is equitable, affordable and safe for all. [applause] our reprotective

freedom movement must also be pro-democracy, pro-civic engagement, pro-voter turnout, because the overturning of roe, was a direct result of election outcomes from school board to the president of the united states. every election matters to secure reproductive freedom. i believe our movement stands on the right side of history and that is why i know we can do this. together we are stronger, together we can fight harder and longer, together we win. thank you again for including us in this coalition and in this announcement today and i'm honored to introduce senator

waha. [applause] >> thank you guys. so, my name is (inaudible) and i'm very proud to be here to stand with our brave mayor london breed, our director kimberley ellis and so many other women here as well as alleys in positions that really do make a difference and all here today. this issue is about choice, but it also incompasses everyone's choice. it is about men, women, children, the lgbtq community, transmen and women and all of us sitting here together to understand what choice really mains. i stand in front of you as a former foster child and when we talk about that and we talk about the issues that really plague our communities, we don't get at the root of it. we don't have paid family

leave. we don't have safetynets. some of us don't have health insurance, so we are standing here with activists and allies that provide healthcare, that receive healthcare and at the same time i want to make sure it is not lost upon any of us when we talk about choice and freedom and democracy. i'm also the first (inaudible) elected to the california state legislator and you see what is going on there. [applause] thank you. women's rights are being stripped away and when we saw roe v wade fall that is just the first step in individuals trying to take other people's rights away and when we talk about equity and inclusion, giving somebody more rights does not take anything away from you. so, as we celebrate our diversity, as we come together, we also need to understand that every

single election does matter. we in the city of hayward, i was a former hayward city council member, we have planned apparent hood in the city. there is protest in front of the planned parenthood weekly. why? in the heart of the bay area we should not see this and we like to say these issues and problems are somewhere else. they are in our backyard. if we continue to allow them to speak more then us, to be at the table more then us and these individuals destroying our rights, toppling our progress, we have a problem and so the work isn't done, and i really want to thank the san francisco leadership, the department of women and children and director kimber ellis just to take a stand on this in particular. no other city has done that so i want to thank mayor breed and director ellis for your

leadership and i want to highlight the importance of us coming together and consistantsly raising our voices and we are united together and stronger together and i really appreciate being here. thank you. [applause] >> so, before we have san francisco district attorney brook jenkins come up i are did want to share sh oof the distinguished guest. we have a lot so i'll break it up. i think it is really important to speak the name into the record of those who are here today, because the fight for abortion rights despite the false narrative woven into the fabric of this nation are not a woman's issue. abortion rights is everyone's issue. [applause] and so it is important to demonstrate who is in the room. in addition to our speakers that we have lined up, we also have assembly

woman kayhan. california commission on status of women chair lauren bab. california commission on the status of women executive drether holly martinez. access reproductive justice executive director jessica picny. california state director shannon (inaudible) we also have san francisco supervisor joel dario. san francisco city attorney and also the cofounder of legal alliance for reproductive rights, david ch i. san francisco city administrator, carmen chiu. the office of hillary ronan, san francisco supervisor. we also have san francisco supervisor connie chan. san

francisco human rights commission executive director dr. cheryl davis. san francisco human rights commission chair, karen clapton. san francisco status of women commissioner (inaudible) status of women commissioner (inaudible) zuckerberg san francisco general hospital women's option med ical center dr. eleanor drake. that was a lot. [applause] we also have marin county health human service director (inaudible) i will let our da come up and then start the list again. madam da. >> thank you director and thank you mayor breed for putting not

only this coalition together but bringing us together today to promote the awareness of the issue and i'm glad to be a member of this coalition to do what i can to make sure that women and others have the right and access to this type of healthcare that they need. what we know is as much as we can try to protect the right, we have people who are working as we just heard to intimidate women from gaining access to the healthcare that we have made legal for them in california. that we have healthcare providers receiving threats that are the target of vilnsh and we as a city and as a state have to do more to protect those who are trying to gain access to their rights as patients and those who are providing the care to them. [applause] and today as a part of the coalition is to make

sure as a san francisco da office we are doing watt we need to do to let it be known loud and clear intimidation and violence and anyone who tries to get in the to provide these reproductive service will not be tolerated and held accountable because that is what we have to do. we can't just saying it we have to make sure we allow people to gain access without feeling they will be attacked or the subject of violence and so that is my commitment to our city and to our state and now i want to introduce my fellow district attorney from contra costa county diana beckton. >> thank you so much district attorney brook jenkins and also thank you to our mayor for the vision as well as director ellis. i'm diana

beckton, district attorney for contra costa county. after the dobbs decision june last year i took a pledge with 80 other prosecutors in the united states to protect a person's right to make their own reproductive choice. today i am here to state the pledge that i took is part of a plan. it is a unwavering commitment to use our expertise to insure that in the bay area and in california that this is a safe place and a accessible place for those who are seeking or providing reproductive care. it is a plan to strengthen our healthcare system in the bay area. it is a plan to help manage the arrival of those from other parts of our country seeking reproductive care. it is also a plan that

details the patient capacity of bay area clinics and hospitals, and a plan to help those with expenses who travel to the bay area seeking reproductive care. part of the reason why i took the pledge last year and why i i'm here standing today is because reproductive rights are also economic rights. reproductive rights are the rights of personal liberty, and reproductive rights are human rights. [applause] every person seeking reproductive healthcare and every person providing that care should have safe access. today i'm proud to stand with my colleagues at the bay area abortion rights coalition as we lead the way in securing our liberties and seeking justice

for everyone. we are stronger together and i stand with the same stance as district attorney brook to pledge that the district attorney's office will stand alongside all our other partners to protect those rights. and now it is my pleasure to introduce dr. grant cofax, director of san francisco public health department. [applause] >> good afternoon. it is a pleasure to be here and i want to thank mayor breed for her leadership and the leadership and vision of director ellis and look forward to continued partnership with you as we work together. thanks to our proactive work and in anticipation of the

unfortunate supreme court ruling the bay area is positioned as a regional collective leader in insuring reproductive healthcare and i'm so appreciative to the local and are regional leaders who are making this commitment. this is so important. in san francisco we recognize that abortion care and safe abortion services as a human right and essential to healthy living. whether or not you live in california, regardless of immigration status, there are options to access this vital healthcare service. restrictions on abortion care heighten gaps and health disparities that have always existed. yet the san francisco department of public health under mayor breed continues to be a leader in serving

people seeking abortion care and working to insure access to safe and timely abortion for san franciscans as well as others seeking care. our women's options clinic at zuckerberg san francisco general hospital lead by medical director dr. dry in conjunction with one of the other key leaders in the health department, dr. holly hammer, the director of ambulatory care has long been a leader insuring access to abortion for pregnant people in the bay area and nationally. the department remains committed to providing low cost low barrier abortion in other reproductive health services to all who rely on us for healthcare. dr. (inaudible) and colleagues stepped into the gap in recent months to insure safe and affordable abortion care is accessible to all. in san francisco support is always available for people who need

help. even covering cost, including people traveling from out of state and people with limited or no insurance. california offers medi-cal coverage for abortion rights through the eligibility for pregnant women program. abortion providers also offer free or discounted services or payment plans and connect people to financial assistance including such barriers to healthcare and abortion care, lodging, meals, child care, transportation and more. this is not only about our healthcare delivery system, this is making sure we support people wrap around services so they get services they need. [applause] what we know is that reproductive freedom is essential at the local level, which is why i'm proud to be here today and reinforce of commitment with bay area abortion rightss

coalition for critical abortion care access to maintain resilient reproductive healthcare delivery in spite of uncertain future. i on the behalf of the department am i committed to partnering with bay area neighbors to insure access to abortion care and comp rehensive reproductive healthcare for all. thank you. now i'll invite director ellis back to the podium. [applause] >> thank you dr. colfax. in closing i want to continue to share who is with us today. we have san francisco city assessor recorder (inaudible) director of communication for california on status women and girls darcie (inaudible) is here as well. we also have representatives from united states senator diane feinstein's office here today. representatives from

congressman barbara lee's office are here. california legislative women caucus chair, nancy skinner. as well as san francisco supervisor walton. and alameda county supervisor lina tam has representatives as well so thank you all. i also want to give a shout out-teamwork really does make the dream work and none of this would have been possible without the staff of the department on status of women. special shout out to them. special shout out especially to alex before (inaudible) strategic director for this project. alex, thank you so much for all the work that went into getting everyone here today. i want to thank all the speakers. ypt to thank our incredible always there always

on the right side of justice and equity and fairness and women, madam london nicole breed . your unwavering commitment to insuring that the least among us and those who don't have seats at the table, who's voices are not represented are brought into the room one way or another and so we want to thank you on behalf of everything you do every single day on behalf of this city. [applause] as you can see reproductive freedom starts at the local level. the groundwork of the initiative lays the foundation for critical abortion care access today and resilient reproductive healthcare delivery system for tomorrow. we are inspired and fired up that each of you have prioritized the success of regional system coordination efforts in order to protect the

health and safety of patients and their families in this post-roe era. onward together towards our radical reproductive justice and freedom. and now, i would like to ask all our guests to remain in their seats until after the speaker photo. i like to invite mayor breed and all the speakers to remain at the podium for a photo. staff will soon direct you with how you can line up for our first group photo. again, thank you all so much for being here today. onward. [applause]