slow. those who have not done it and those who know how to do it we'll do it. we'll go real slow and then speed it up. [clapping] we used to say (indiscernible) today we'll see-i will say (indiscernible) [speaking spanish] with that, i want to-it is great honor to introduce an amazing woman who like i grew up in the (indiscernible) grew up in the ghetto and made her way through school against all odds, put herself through college, became elected to the board of supervisors and now and has and will continue being our mayor of san

francisco, please help welcome mayor london breed! i call it lb! [applause] >> thank you roburty roburto and are thank you for joining us today. this is really exciting and i never thought we would get to this place this quickly, even though it has been a really long time, but roberto you remember when we would ride through the mission and i want to say it was before i became mayor, and roberto and i talked about some of the challenges and also some of the properties that we could identify that we needed to purchase because of the investment that the city needed to make in providing housing to make up for a lot of the evictions and a lot of the issues that were occurring in this community, and it

had a lot to do with our bond came because what was happening in the mission actually happened in the community i grew up in in the fillmore western addition and it was important to him and this community that we don't repeat the same mistakes of the past, and so when we were riding through the mission we were talking about various properties and you know all the owners and are developers and what was going on, and i was so grateful to come together and collaborate and strategize and purchase some of the various properties and to work with our state partners to get the resources necessary to make sure that we were able to get these places built, because you are right, purchasing the land is one thing, but building the house is quite something different. it does take a village. it

takes a village to make things like this happen in our city, and one of the things i'm really proud of with this project, it wasn't just about building a building and hitting the lottery, mrs. romero would talk about hitting the lottery. what was really important was the neighborhood preference legislation and making sure that when we build buildings like this, that the people who live here get the right of first refusal for the new buildings built in the community that they have blood sweat and tears in and that is what happened in this particular case. [applause] so, it takes a village, and meta has been a pillar of this community for decades, and i got to say i'm so proud of the work meta is doing

under your leadership. not just with the new development, but also the buildings we were able to acquire through the small sites acquisition program. we have had [applause] had to increase the capacity of meta to make sure that the support was there, and working together and providing the resources to do that has been really transformative in this community, so we are grateful for the protections of the people who are in those existing buildings, but also incredibly proud of the work we are doing for places like where we are today that serve for the next generation of people and those who need a safe affordable place to call home without stairs so they can get around. this is so amazing for so many people and families who live here. i also want to give a special shout out to our governor and to the

california department of housing and community development. thank you pedro for being here. gustauvo who answers to you is running this department, and he is usually always here at these events. the state with our partnership with the governor invested so much money and to san francisco for project home key to purchase buildings to help people who are struggling with homelessness to help us build new buildings like the one we are in today, and all the various resources we need because we have under invested in housing for so long that the crisis of homelessness in the state of california, which exists here in san francisco as well is something that we have to reckon with with dollars, so we can get moving and building and acquiring properties as quickly as possible, so we are grateful to the governor for

his work, advocacy and department for all the amazing investments that have come to san francisco. [applause] i want to say to tndc, which you'll hear from a minute, thank you for being a great partner in housing too. working with meta on this project, but working on so many other projects that truly serve some of the most vulnerable residents in san francisco. we could not do this work without partners like meta and tndc, because they are the ones on the ground working with the community to provide places like this and i got to say, it is just-builds my heart with joy every time i come to an event like this. people say mayor, the city all kinds of stuff is going on and ribbon cutting is not doing anything. you know what? this ribbon cutting today is doing something interest the 130 families that moved into this building. [applause]

this ribbon cutting is about the blood, sweat and tears that went into providing this as a opportunity for those families in the first place, this community that fought hard to insure that this building was available to low income individuals and families. this means something to the people who are working here every single day to make sure that there are services and support necessary to insure the success of the people living in this building, and this building means everything because carnival is a institution in our city and the tradition of carnival has to continue for generations to come. this building is meaningful. it will be an incredible beacon of hope for the people who live here who i already met, but also the children who are growing up here and the community and what it all represents. i'm grateful and excited about what this means and i want to thank

everyone that had a role, even if it is placing the tiles correctly so the design looks good and that work, or the lighting fixtures and the people at the front desk working, the janitors, the mail clerks, the community as a whole, because it takes a village and casa el how do you say it? (indiscernible) represents our community values in san francisco at their very best, so welcome home to all the families and the people who are here and thank you for this great celebration and louis, the best is yet to come. [applause] >> good afternoon everyone. my name is anna, a legislative aid to supervisor ronen, and i need to speak louder. i

woke up this morning not expecting to do this but unfortunately supervisor ronen couldn't be here today. she is in budget and appropriation committee so apologizes for not able to be here but i'm here on her behalf and just here to really celebrate this amazing accomplishment and milestone in the mishz. there has been a lot of negative and punching down of the community in the news lately and it is important to come together to celebrate the milestone with mayor breed, tndc and meta and all the community partners who made this happen because we know the mission is about arts, community and having actual affordable housing for someone like those here today and the struggle to make that happen. i know we are hungry so i want to lift that up and thank you all for being here and thank you for everyone who made it

happen. [applause] now i would like to introduce greg shirken the wells fargo senior vice president of philanthropy and community impact. >> thank you very much. on behalf of wells fargo, colleagues here today, (indiscernible) and all our employees in san francisco, i want to say what a tremendous honor to be a part of this incredible project. congratulations to everyone involved. wells fargo is so proud to be a lender and community partner and able to help bring much needed housing to this incredible community. mayor breed i want to extend thank you to her as well as the supervisor as well as pedro to you and as well as

louis and (indiscernible) for your tireless efforts not on this project but to do so much for this community and this city, which is honesty where we live and work as well and really what you do is a testament to what makes san francisco such a special place, and able to support incredible people like dolores who spoke so incredibly today. you are such a inspiration dolores. please know we are plepaired to continue to support this project, this community and this city. we realize we are facing a lot of challenges right now and as the mayor said, it really does take a village and we at wells fargo want to be part of this community, part of the village and committed to do whatever it takes to help the people here reach their potential so thank you all very much for your time. [applause] and now i have the tremendous honor to

introduce (indiscernible) from tndc, a incredible partner. we worked with them for years and look forward to continue to do so. i turn it over to you. [applause] >> thank you greg. i am going to give some of my time to someone that has been really passionate about this project. makes us all look dynamic and great and a big part why we are here today. colleen, can you come up? [applause] >> thank you. i will keep this fairly short. i had the privilege of working or getting to be one of the many people who worked on the 681 florida project. we had a strong development partner with shout out to jose garcia my project manager who stepped in on the job and to complete

the project ester kim down there. our final project manager (indiscernible) this all just worked. the city of san francisco and our lenders (indiscernible) thank you for getting to the point with 130 units gorging affordable quality housing in the mission. our contractor team somewhere in the crowd k hill contractor and (indiscernible) what a gem of a team. countless union tradesman and trades women. our design team. adapting and problem solving everything step of the way and of course the incredible property management compliance accounting and social work staff that leased up the building and make it all work every day. if you haven't met

(indiscernible) [calling names] the rest of the property management and service staff we owe them infinite coffees for the work they put into serving the tenants. plaef [applause] there are countless people i can't fit in the speech that contributed so much from start to finish and we are not joking when we say the word, it takes a village. as you may have noticed walking around the building art is at the core of what makes it special. (indiscernible) the three artist that spent countless hours with art work from community feedback. high schoolers with youth art exb change worked with partners to create the custom ornamental gates next door. and cana along with the community fought years ago to insure spaces like this would and could be

dedicated affordable and accessible space for housing the community and the arts. it is never lost on me that this is a place of new beginnings for many individuals and families who live here. at a san francisco native, san francisco is what will always represent home for me and the way hugging a warm blairngt on a cold day feels. to all the residents current and future at 681 florida, welcome home. [applause] >> thank you colleen. i promise you are all most home, folks. my name is (indiscernible) a ceo of tndc. the housing community development organization building and serving communities throughout san francisco. this past weekday, gus newport, the former mayor of berkeley passed. i wanted to take just a few minutes to bring

him in spirit here today. because gus was a mentor to many. gus was a inspiration to many more. but gus was my friend. one thing he always taught me and one thing he actually made me realize is the importance of listening. and many times to listen not for what is said, but also for what is not said. 681 is a example of both those things. of what has been said, and what hasn't been said. in the spirit of community, in the spirit of the mission, i could be no prouder then this moment because this is the

manifestation, this is the spirit, this is the [spanish] that we all work so hard to create day in and day out. i like to acknowledge for tndc, all the staff. all our partners. our board of directors. that allow us to do the work that we so passionately do and do well. we built this community, we'll build more. [speaking spanish] let's get to the ribbon cutting! [applause]

[cheers and applause]mo

>> pacific palisades heritage month is about celebrating the cultural and heritage of our community. >> affirming the asian american pacific islanders. it about register and honoring the path for future generations about celebrating culture. >> may is asian american & pacific islander heritage month empowering the leaders up in the administrator's office and about my daughter if helps the future of the apa heritage and friends and family. >> about family. >> we're honoring the irldz that came before us and findings

your roots and about culture insuring about the asian-american journey and all we're achieved and celebrate asian-american it means embarrassing the differences. it is about imaging. >> it is about representing as public servant in san francisco. >> about recommending the philippine generations and about how memory came for us less celebrate may is asian american & pacific islander heritage month and writing our own history for the future. >> may is asian american & pacific islander heritage

>> one more statement. we are the one. that is our first single that we

made. that is our opinion. >> i can't argue with you. >> you are responsible please do not know his exact. [♪♪♪] [♪♪♪] [♪♪♪] >> i had a break when i was on a major label for my musical career. i took a seven year break. and then i came back. i worked in the library for a long time. when i started working the san francisco history centre, i noticed they had the hippie collection. i thought, if they have a hippie collection, they really need to

have a punk collection as well. so i talked to the city archivist who is my boss. she was very interested. one of the things that i wanted to get to the library was the avengers collection. this is definitely a valuable poster. because it is petty bone. it has that weird look because it was framed. it had something acid on it and something not acid framing it. we had to bring all of this stuff that had been piling up in my life here and make sure that the important parts of it got archived. it wasn't a big stretch for them to start collecting in the area of punk. we have a lot of great photos and flyers from that area and that. that i could donate myself. from they're, i decided, you know, why not pursue other people and other bands and get them to donate as well? the historic moments in san francisco, punk history, is the

sex pistols concert which was at winterland. [♪♪♪] it brought all of the punks on the web -- west coast to san francisco to see this show. the sex pistols played the east coast and then they play texas and a few places in the south and then they came directly to san francisco. they skipped l.a. and they skipped most of the media centres. san francisco was really the biggest show for them pick it was their biggest show ever. their tour manager was interested in managing the adventures, my band. we were asked to open to support the pistols way to that show. and the nuns were also asked to open the show. it was certainly the biggest crowd that we had ever played to. it was kind of terrifying but it did bring people all the way from vancouver, tee seattle, portland, san diego, all up and down the coast, and l.a., obviously. to san francisco to see this show. there are a lot of people who say that after they saw this

show they thought they would start their own band. it was a great jumping off point for a lot of west coast punk. it was also, the pistols' last show. in a way, it was the end of one era of punk and the beginning of a new one. the city of san francisco didn't necessarily support punk rock. [♪♪♪] >> last, but certainly not least is a jell-o be opera. they are the punk rock candidate of the lead singer called the dead kennedys. >> if we are blaming anybody in san francisco, we will just blame the dead kennedys. >> there you go. >> we had situations where concerts were cancelled due to flyers, obscene flyers that the city was thought -- that he thought was obscene that had been put up. the city of san francisco has come around to embrace it's musicians.

when they have the centennial for city hall, they brought in all kinds of local musicians and i got to perform at that. that was, at -- in a way, and appreciation from the city of san francisco for the musical legends. i feel like a lot of people in san francisco don't realize what resources there are at the library. we had a film series, the s.f. punk film series that i put together. it was nearly sold out every single night. people were so appreciative that someone was bringing this for them. it is free. everything in the library is free. >> it it is also a film producer who has a film coming out. maybe in 2018 about crime. what is the title of it? >> it is called san francisco first and only rock 'n' roll movie. crime, 1978. [laughter] >> when i first went to the art institute before the adventures were formed in 77, i was going to be a painter.

i did not know i would turn into a punk singer. i got back into painting and i mostly do portraiture and figurative painting. one of the things about this job here is i discovered some great resources for images for my painting. i was looking through these mug shot books that we have here that are from the 1920s. i did a whole series of a mug shot paintings from those books. they are in the san francisco history centre's s.f. police department records. there are so many different things that the library provides for san franciscans that i feel like a lot of people are like, oh, i don't have a library card. i've never been there. they need to come down and check it out and find out what we have. the people who are hiding stuff in their sellers and wondering what to do with these old photos or old junk, whether it is hippie stuff or punk stuff, or stuff from their grandparents,

if they bring it here to us, we can preserve it and archive it and make it available to the public in the future.

public i the san francisco music hall of fame is a living breathing world that's all encompassing about music. [music playing] it tries to do everything to create a music theme. music themes don't really exist anymore. it is $7, the tour is two floors, (inaudible) so, each one of these

frames that you see here, you can-you are and look into the story of that act, band, entertainment and their contributions to music. affordability is what we are all about. creative support. we are dedicated to the working musician. we are also dedicated to breaking some big big acts. we like to make the stories around here. ultimately legends.

i'm currently an h2 firefighter for the san francisco fire department. i served active duty in the navy. i wanted something that was going to be in the medical field, but not necessarily stay in a hospital setting and i didn't want to stay in an office and this job kind of combines everything i was looking for. everyday's different. there's always something new and to learn. and my first introduction to the department was being surrounded by people of the lgbtq community. and so we were able to get, you know, it just made things a little more comfortable that you could talk to people about things that people necessarily wouldn't understand. i've had to hide myself. able to come out. being able to understand many his and being able to do things in had that sense, it's very liberating to be able to speak like this, this city in

particular, it's a mecca for the lgbtq+ community. you know, there's so much history behind it and being part of this community that now accepting us for who we are and what we do, we're able to just be ourselves. any time somebody finds out i am a member of the gay community, i don't get anybody talking about me, nothing at all. it's just oh, cool. you have a partner? like yes, i do. they start asking about that and how my life is. you become part of the family and here in the san francisco fire department it really is just one big family. you know, it was my dream to be a san francisco fire department member and i'm here.

>> hi my name is dochai i'm an american cambodian singer from southern california. this song is bongchoy, which translates to "i am 16." ♪ [singing in native language] ♪ ♪ they tried to stop us, they tried to rob us ♪ ♪ we survived ♪

♪ [singing in native language] ♪ la la la la la la la ♪ ♪ can i love you can i love you ♪ ♪ were you listening or whistling, our energy is chemistry and it would be a travesty if you and me would never be ♪ listen closer forget about the world and live your life how you're suppose to ♪ we can be that love ♪ ♪ but first things first, i'm a

woman raise from baybochan it is♪ ♪ i am a klein woman ♪ they tried to stop us,♪ they tried to rob us ♪ like a nazra, i survived, we survived ♪ ♪ [singing in native language] ♪ la la la la la la la ♪

♪ la la la la la la la♪ ♪ la la la la la la ♪ ♪ jump on the premoi ♪ ♪ la la la la la ♪ >> so i want today share with you guys a little bit about my family, and sort of plight of the cambodian people. for those who are not familiar

with the history of cambodian americans and how we first emigrated here to the states in 1975, to 1979, tlfls a genocide that took place in cambodia which resulted in the lives of 2 million lives. most of them were artist, diplomats or aristocrat or anybody intellectual. they want today do a cleansing and raise a new society. so many of us looked for another. after the genocide. began most commonly in the 80s, my family arrived in 1981, while america gave us a lot of hope and a new life, it also presented a lot of challenges

for culturation and i think for cambodia refugees struggling with the dark history, we see ptsd and trauma and and it inspired the this next song called "belief" ♪ don't you cry ♪ ♪ you're going to make it ♪ ♪ don't you cry ♪ ♪ you're going to make it ♪ ♪ you were day and night striving striving in this new land to make a good life ♪ ♪ boy and girl struggling

through ♪ the flat land below the city life ♪ ♪ don't you cry ♪ ♪ you're going to make it through, you survived, you made it here alive ♪ dry those eyes, you're going to make it. ♪ believe in you ♪ ♪ believe in you ♪ la la la ♪ ♪ di tara ♪ ♪ when daddy is home and kids are asleep everyone feels alone ♪ words spoken gets lost in

translation, he feels the distance further further between them ♪ ♪ he wants to go back ♪ back to the mother land ♪ ♪ when he had a man, he had a plan ♪ oh the good ol' days before the war ♪♪ ♪ where there was everything to live for ♪ oh don't you cry ♪ ♪ you are going to make it through, you survived, you made it here alive ♪ ♪ dry those eyes, you're going to make it ♪ ♪ believe in you ♪ believe in you ♪ ♪ believe in you ♪

♪ believe in you ♪ ♪ la la didara ♪ ditara ♪ ♪ la di tara ♪ ♪ believe in you ♪ >> so this last song that i'm going to perform for you guys

is one of my one of my personal favorite. it was the love theme for the documentary about dr. hung us nau, he was a supporting actor in the 1985 film, the killing fields which was the story about what took place in cambodian and he was the first asian of cambodian american that won the oscars for his role. when i look at his life, was a actor and also a human rights activist, and a lot of us here, especially like me, born in cambodian but spent most of my life here, i always felt that i had that duty and always awareness about what took place in cambodian. so i want to share the stories through my music, i want people

to know what happens and i think while my parents's generation, they struggled about sharing their stories and what they witnessed, what they went through, it's pretty important to remember because by remembering is how we can honor all those that we lost in the genocide but also pray that history does not company itself. this one is about coming out of the darkness and finding that, you know, the light after the dawn. it's called "like a rose." ♪ when the dark days come ♪ ♪ i ain't going to run ♪ ♪ when the dark days come ♪

♪ oh listen to the morning song ♪ oh listen ♪ to the whispers and our voices and singing of love ♪ ♪ singing our story ♪ ♪ i think you're sweet like rose ♪ ♪ calm like the ocean ♪ ♪ who knows ♪ ♪ i think you're soft like the sand ♪ sand in between♪ you, you ♪

♪ when the dark days come ♪ ♪ and i am afraid of who i am ♪ i promise you i will always tell the truth ♪ ♪ when the dark days come ♪ ♪ and i'm afraid of who i am ♪ ♪ i promise you, i won't run ♪ ♪ [singing in native language]

>> thank you so much for listening to the music and thank you to everyone here at city hall for having me. if you want to hear more music or about my journey, you can find me on my instagram. happy asian pacific islander heritage month.month.

>> pacific palisades heritage month is about celebrating the cultural and heritage of our community. >> affirming the asian american pacific islanders. it about register and honoring the path for future generations about celebrating culture. >> may is asian american & pacific islander heritage month empowering the leaders up in the administrator's office and about my daughter if helps the future of the apa heritage and friends and family. >> about family. >> we're honoring the irldz that came before us and findings your roots and about culture

insuring about the asian-american journey and all we're achieved and celebrate asian-american it means embarrassing the differences. it is about imaging. >> it is about representing as public servant in san francisco. >> about recommending the philippine generations and about how memory came for us less celebrate may is asian american & pacific islander heritage month and writing our own history for the future. >> may is asian american & pacific islander heritage >> who doesn't love cable cars? charging emissions and we're free which we're proud of you know, it's not much free left in the world anymore so we managed to do that through donations and through our gift shops. you got a real look and real appreciation of what early

transit systems are like. this was the transit of the day from about 1875 to about 1893 or later, you know. cable car museum is free, come on in. take a day. come down. rediscover the city. you can spend as time you want and you don't have to make reservations and it's important to be free because we want them to develop a love for cable cars so they do continue to support whether they live here or other places and people come in and say, yes, i have passed by and heard of this and never come in and they always enjoy themselves. people love cable cars and there's none left in the world so if you want to ride a cable car, you've got to come to san francisco. that what makes the city. without the cable cars, you lose part of that, you know, because people who come here and they love it and they love the history ask they can ride a cable car that has been running since 1888 or 1889. wow! that's something. can't do that with other historical museums. rarely, have

i run into anybody from outside who didn't come in and didn't feel better from knowing something about the city. it's a true experience you'll remember. i hope they walk away with a greater appreciation for the history, with the mechanics with people are fascinated by the winding machine and i hope the appreciation, which is a part of our mission and these young kids will appreciate cable cars and the ones who live here and other places, they can make sure there will always be cable cars in san francisco because once they are gone, they are gone. it's the heartbeat of san francisco that founded the cable and the slot and without the cable cars, yeah, we would lose something in san francisco. we would lose part of its heart and soul. it wouldn't be san francisco without cable cars. [bell ringing]

>> (indiscernible) i just know it. excuse me boys, but does anybody have sun

block to block this skin from the sun? >> yes. that's right, i need to get my (indiscernible) >> many of us last summer (indiscernible) reapplying sun screen is like getting the second dose of mpox vaccine. >> wait, two doses- (indiscernible) >> isn't it too late to get my second dose? >> girl, it is like sun screen, never too late to put more sun screen on. >> that's right, i need to get my second dose of mpox vaccine before the summer starts. >> let's (indiscernible) 21201 to find the closest location to get the vaccine or go to sf.gov/mpox. >> thank you for the information (indiscernible) >> excuse me boys, do you mind

checking please? >> sure. >> that doesn't look like a sun burn, you might want to getd it checked out. >> what do you mean clecked out? >> checked out. i was told if i got my second m pox vaccine i would have less severe symptoms. (indiscernible) >> maybe i schedule the second dose just to be safe from mpox. >> most vackeens offer you a level of protections, just like sun block. sometimes you need to reapply for more protection. the m pox vaccine is based on two shots several weeks apart to provide the strongest level of protection. visit sf.gov/mpox to get yours. >> thank you boys for that reminder! make sure your are fully vaccinated for m pox this summer. text summer vibes to 21201, to get

[applause] >> my name is (indiscernible) the director of the office of civic engagement and affairs. before we start our evening program, i would like to introduce to our opening performance. please give a welcome to bango (indiscernible) dance company performing the west african rhythms. [applause] [drums] [music playing]

[singing]

[drums] [music playing] [singing] [applause] >> give it again for bango and company. [applause] on behalf

of the san francisco human right commission and immigrant affairs, welcome to the 2023 immigrant leadership awards. we are thrilled to be celebrated with you again, in person this time. [applause] as a quick reminder, we have spanish, cantonese and arabic interpretation services: please go to the table in the back to get the (indiscernible) we are delighted you are here tonight for the special event to honor the powerful contributions of a local immigrants leaders supporters and champions of immigrant communities. let's begin with the we acknowledge that we are on the unceded ancestral homeland of the ramaytush ohlone who are the original inhabitants of the san francisco peninsula. as the indigenous stewards of this land and in accordance with their traditions, the ramaytush ohlone have never ceded, lost nor forgotten their responsibilities as the caretakers of this place, as well as for all peoples who reside in their traditional territory. as guests, we recognize that we benefit from living and working on their traditional homeland.

we wish to pay our respects by acknowledging the ancestors and relatives of the ramaytush community and by affirming their sovereign rights as first begin with the we acknowledge that we are on the unceded ancestral homeland of the ramaytush ohlone who are the original inhabitants of the san francisco peninsula. as the indigenous stewards of this land and in accordance with their traditions, the ramaytush ohlone have never ceded, lost nor forgotten their responsibilities as the caretakers of this place, as well as for all peoples who reside in their traditional territory. as guests, we recognize that we benefit from living and working on their traditional homeland. we wish to pay our respects by acknowledging the ancestors and relatives of the ramaytush community and by affirming their sovereign rights as first peoples. we are joined today by many city leadersism thank you for supporting this event and immigrant communities. why mayor london breed couldn't make it this eke vening to celebrate she sends

certificates for honorees and sends a proclamation declaring june as immigrant heritage month in san francisco. [applause] now, it is with great honor i get to introduce and welcome to the stage our city administrator, carmen well hello, everybody. i am so pleased to be here with you. let's give another huge round of applause for bongo. i'm telling you. i really needed to hear that uplifting music at the end of a long day, and i buy had that every morning when i woke up. oh my gosh, the world would be within our reach every single day all of our goals. i am so

pleased to be able to recognize some of the amazing people who have joined to celebrate today. i want to make sure to call out a few of the civic leaders who are here and if you'll join me in just giving a round of applause to them. i'd really be appreciative supervisor dean preston. our treasurer jose cisneros. our city librarian michael lambert. many department heads and, of course, our wonderful, wonderful immigrant rights commissioner. i can just ask you to please stand up, please. today is the day where we're able to gather here altogether after a long period of time being away from each other to celebrate some of our amazing immigrant leaders in the

community i a grew up as a daughter of immigrants and understand very clearly how difficult it is to come to a new country, sometimes without the roots. without family here without resources, sometimes without the ability to speak the language, so to be able to pick up your whole life to leave behind the people that you care about. um structures and societies and customs and things that are you're used to start a new life. some somewhere else is an incredible journey. it is a hardship at times. it is something that is incredibly brave for so many people to do, and i just want to acknowledge how difficult and hard that is. and while you have chosen to take the step to come to a different place to settle new routes here. i just want to tell you that i am honored. you have chosen san francisco to be your home. in the news we often hear

about immigrants, the need that are immigrant communities face the hardships. so many of the struggles that we all have. but at the same time we also know that our immigrant community is made of strength and resilience and of love. and i want to just recognize and celebrate all of those wonderful things tonight here. i also want to acknowledge that all of you are what makes san francisco so special. and so as we fight back on the narrative that is pervasive across the country when people choose their favorite place to pick on, which is san francisco. we think about the things that make our city wonderful. it's not always the beautiful places that we see. although we love our parks. we love our golden gate bridge. we love all of these different places. it's really the communities that make it special when we go down the streets and were able to go to our favorite store and know that we can see the grocer that we've known for a decade in the places

that we have gone every single day to eat. where we have watched the kids who grew up in the restaurants. that was me where you grew up. and you saw the kid grew up from a little kid all the way to the graduate. that's when they make stars are neighborhood special. it's what makes san francisco special all of you setting your roots and helping to grow the diversity. that is an francisco so i just simply want to say thank you for being part of our city. thank you for choosing san francisco to be the place that you're growing and investing your lives . it matters to us, and we're going to continue to do right by you. so again. i want to say congratulations to all of the awardees. we're going to be recognized tonight. you are an amazing group of people and i'm so glad that we get to honor and celebrate and uplift your stories tonight. congratulations to all of you. thank you see, administrator chew for those uplifting words.

now i would like to welcome and recognize members of the council corp if you're here, please stand and raise your hand. or staff. some of our elected leaders were already recognized . but i'm going to read others who may have staff in the audience. the office of nancy pelosi. rebecca roberts. president peskin. supervisor, preston was already recognized. scores are melander has staff in the room. surprise your mandolin. supervisor dorsey brother saffet. again treasurer who says he's nero's. similar department fire. some of the staff from our fire department are also in the room. the city clerk. sorry, the county clerk's offices here as well. and then

offers a tragedy initiatives. and our city librarian as well. now. i would like to ask and invite all our current commissioners to please come up onto the stage. as commissioners make their way up. i am pleased to introduce the chair and the vice chair of the san francisco immigrant rights commission. please meet the honorable chair. saleem saleem canali. and the vice chair mario pass. thank you, director rivas. good evening, everybody. do you have glare as the we see africa? helga gaelic. we are pleased to welcome you all tonight for the immigrant leadership awards. the san francisco immigrant rights commission first held this awards ceremony in 2017 as a way

to commemorate and celebrate 20 years of the commission. this is our sixth immigrant leadership awards celebration and our 20/6 year as the commission. tonight we are honoring local immigrant leaders and champions of the immigrant community for their unmatched leadership and dedication. we hope that this celebration serves as a beacon of hope and inspiration for us all. good evening. the game. the immigrant rights commission serves as an advisory body to the mayor and border supervisors on issues related to the quality of life and civic participation of all immigrants in san francisco. our commission meets on the second monday of the month at 5 30. pm all of our meetings are open to the public, and we encourage you to all attend a future meeting or special event. yeah, my strange . so at this time, i'd like to take the opportunity to

introduce you to all of our immigrant rights commissioners. commissioners please wave from your name is called and so i don't believe she's with us this evening, but i'm going to kick off with commissioner cadre. the children who sends her apology issues traveling. commissioner elahi and sunny commissioner haruko game. commissioners, a david lat. commissioner lucy a. african math, sir. commissioner neema rahimi. commissioner franklin m. repartee. commissioner jesse ruiz. commissioner markos thing or. commissioner sarah sousa. and commissioner alicia wang. we would like to give a very special thanks to the awards committee commissioners obregon , ricart single or and chowdhury . thank you for all of your

work, putting this event together. so we're going to take a quick photograph and then commissioners are welcome to return to their seats. in front of everyone together. yes. okay so we'd like i'm sorry. picture first go ahead of myself. now it's my turn. yeah, yeah. so again this evening. we'd like to recognize that mayor london mayor that major london breed speaker american nancy pelosi, state senator scott wiener city administrator carmen chu,

supervisor matt dorsey and supervisor rafael mandel. men have all provided certificates of honor to each of our awardees . this evening. they will be receiving these certificates when they are recognized. later during the program. helping chair kenneally myself present. the awards tonight is commissioner of bergen. who has served this year as the co chair of the awards committee. so i have the great honor of presenting the first award this evening. and this was close to my heart for a family that i've known since i was a young child. the entrepreneur leader award goes to the navarro's martial arts academy, carlos navarro and ruby navarro, can you please do you have? yeah. so this. this award recognizes the leadership of an immigrant run and on small business that supports immigrant

communities. tonight we have the pleasure of recognizing the virus martial arts academy founded in 1966 by carlos navarro navarro's martial arts academy is well known as a well known popular martial arts. uh program, one of the best schools and in training to martial arts disciplines. carlos and his daughter ruby, are a pillar of the community as a san francisco family on business, providing a safe space for youth of all income levels. congratulations carlos and ruby and the rest of the bar.

good evening, everybody. and uh, thank you for the opportunity and i was talking to my son. and he said, remember the reason why you came to this country? well so many visions movies, you see the luxury and ah, you see how countries going up and up? you know, i'd say. i don't belong here. i gotta go there. probably my little contribution will help this city and i'm glad that i came to san francisco and let's see. i think it's been ah. about 68 years, you know, since i came here so. ah like i said, you know, it's not only martial arts, but i was i care so much about the news, you know? yes. i developed programs to keep the use away from the drawers, alcohol gangs, you know, not only through the martial arts

self defense, but we provided all kinds of activities. baseball leagues. soccer leagues , competitions have been profoundly clubs. excited excited. i like i said, you know, i want you to we are involving in neural, not only martial arts by the exercises as well. okay. anna. they told me i'm only having two minutes here , but it's so much that we talking to thank you to everybody, uh, especially me. my family that is present here and some of my students and community, uh, people that is president tonight. thank you again. muchas muchas gracias. happy. city. city commissioner. true. thank you very much for

recognizing what what you said was captured the essence of the original immigrants that came took the strength to leave there. natural element to venture forth into a new land. and they chose this city and this city is quite fortunate to have not only my father but everybody else that is being honored today and that has been honored in the past and that will continue to be honored in the future because these people are our people that come to prove that if you come and you have a pureness in your heart to help it's gonna shine through and one day it will be properly recognized. thank you. okay thank you. navarro's.

congratulations, felicitations. our next award is for grassroots leader this award recognizes nonprofit organizations or individuals who have demonstrated extraordinary leadership for immigrant communities. this year. we are recognizing two outstanding community organizations in this category. tonight we are recognizing the work of calma calma, which stands for collective actions for laborers , migrants and asylum seekers is a grassroots community made up of entirely volunteers that provides support for families. individuals who are marginalized due to their immigration status. each month. karma collects and distributes resources to local day laborers, their work helping asylum seekers day laborers in migrants throughout san francisco and the bay area demonstrate their grassroots

leadership to support immigrant communities and to help them achieve stability. welcome to the stage. iris lopez in garcia, who are accepting this award for calma. to hit my sprint on it. thank you so much. collective action for laborers, migrants and asylum seekers has always been a volunteer based mutual aid group , assisting people in navigating the complexities of the immigration systems. through the years we have seen stay true to our grassroots communities and organizing by supporting the bay area, migrant community through this work, we are fulfilled and also angered. we hope that one day mutual aid groups like us won't be necessary as these groups would be accepted and aided by local government. every single one of us is involved with karma because we believe that migration is beautiful. powerful and a part of the human

experience that everyone has the right to live freely and safely in any community. sorry um, as a migrant's rights organization, we do not condone or support the intimidation, incarceration and neglect of migrants, the house lists and other marginalized communities in san francisco and beyond. as an example of the impact we can make. when we were together. it was a mission we believe in thank you for the honor of this award is with pleasure that we accept. justice for bingo brown for keita, o'neil and all the lives that have been stolen. so you.

our next award is for another amazing organization that has been a grassroots leader. tonight we are recognizing the samoan community development center for the grassroots leader award. s c. d c is a nonprofit that provides programs, resources and tools for san francisco bay area simone and pacific islander communities. over the past 25 years. they have built programs for youth and families, including case management, summer cultural programs. mental health promotion, breast cancer, await education and awareness, reentry, immigration and more. here to accept this award is pet cm. tito who has served as executive director of s cdc for the past 25 years.

you see, i was just gonna say that. can everybody just say tallow fun? again loaf are. i feel like i might have to the global awards or something because everybody's but for those of you that do not no or have seen a pacific islander or someone person. on behalf of the s c. d. c. to the executive director, as well as the commissioners of the. immigrates rights commission. we are honored and humbled by this award that is given to s c d. c.

for so long. we've been silent. we've been hidden isolated. in the southeast sector. but today someone told me a good friend. just said to me in the back when i seen her miss annie, she said. today is s c. d. c s season. this is our year. to be able to be recognized to be acknowledged and to be seen. by the city of san francisco that our grandfathers our great grandfathers, where. and the navy ship housing that they joined the military. and now we are finally getting our flowers that we deserve. and so on behalf of s, c, d, c and the someone pacific islander community here in san francisco . we just want to say thank you. and.

our next award is for the youth leader award. this recognizes a courageous immigrant leader under the age of 35, who has helped or inspired other immigrant youth in their community and beyond. we are excited to present this award to not ask coram nas left iran in 2009 on the heels of the youth revolt that failed to reform the country. nas found refuge in san francisco, where they pursued their education after a decade of working in the restaurant

industry not founded. the bar, restaurant and entertainment venue are gonna located in the mission district. please welcome nas to the stage. hello everybody. thank you so much to the immigrant rights commission for honoring me with this award. it's my pleasure to accept thanks for everyone. um especially to my mother who immigrated in the age of 55. just because she knew she is not going to see me for a decade if she doesn't um, i want to thank my dad for staying behind because he had too much love for my country, but he also sacrifice or i can have a better life. um thanks to my partner for truly showing what it feels to be trusted by someone and empowered and thank you so much

for my staff and my team who's here in the audience for never saying no to all my crazy ideas . you all make me realize that it was a great decision to move to san francisco and being immigrant. thank you. so next up. we have two special recognition awards. we would first like to honor catherine gin. outgoing executive director of immigrants rising for her work and dedication to immigrant communities. since 2006 catherine gin has served as the founding executive director of immigrants rising, a san

francisco based nonprofit that empowers undocumented people to get an education, pursue their careers and build a brighter future for themselves and their communities. catherine was born and raised in san francisco, and it's a proud descendant of chinese immigrants. who first came to the u. s in the 19 and 18 sixties to work in the gold mines of california and later during the restrictive chinese exclusion acts. throughout her career, she has worked to enhance art career and education, opportunities for immigrants and people of color. she announced this year that she will be stepping down from her position as executive director of immigrant risen's. we would like to congratulate her and thank her for her service on behalf of the immigrant communities. congratulations kathy and we're going to miss you. but we know you're not going away, please. thank you so much to the immigrants rights commission and i was cia for

this amazing award. um i feel pretty awkward accepting this because as you have heard, i am not an immigrant, um and as was just said. the last immigrant in my family. my father's mother arrived in san francisco in 19 20/100 years ago, and the first immigrant in my family arrived in the 18 forties, actually nearly 100 and 80 years ago, also to san francisco and also from china. and so i'm not an immigrant, and it was too young to ask the immigrants in my family what it was like to arrive in the city what they loved what they hated what they found beautiful or what kept them in this city, despite so much hatred and persecution and laws that were meant to exclude them and other chinese immigrants, and i never got to ask them. and so i wanted to thank the undocumented immigrants that i have had the honor of working beside for the last 17 years. daniel and catherine and julio, who are in this room with me. and so many other immigrants who have been

with me on this journey for teaching me so many lessons about leadership in life. for teaching me how to simultaneously pursue plan a and plan b and plan c and have at least five other plans in your back pocket. for teaching me how not to wait to dream big while finding and exploring all the opportunities right in front of you had to manage your fears how to live courageously in spite of and maybe even because of your fears. how to embrace challenges to push open door after door after door after door not just to walk through, but also to hold it open for others to follow in your footsteps. and finally, how to be someone, someone that no one else ever thought you could be and still keep a sense of who you want to be. and what story you want to tell about yourself. so thank you to my colleagues and my friends for helping me learn these lessons. thank you for helping me feel closer to my immigrant ancestors. and thank you most of all for helping me

this native sixth generation san franciscan for finally feeling at home in this city. thank you. alright. thank you. our second recognize special recognition award goes to amanda. think about hippa. kaya amanda is a multidisciplinary artist, educator and community builder born in atlanta to tie and indonesia immigrants, her art spent sculpture, textiles murals. instead of mural installations and public art campaigns. her work examines the unseen labor of women amplifies asian american pacific islander

narratives in affirms the depth , resilience and the beauty of marginalized communities. tonight you have all been able to see her work. let's talk about us a domestic violence prevention our campaign with the asian women's shelter that can be seen throughout the bay area's transit systems accepting this award on behalf of amanda. it's sara ahmed of the asians women's shelter. good evening, everyone. um it's such a pleasure to be here on behalf of amanda. um after i feel like after being at home for three years. i just this is my second event of the day. so bear with me. i'm easing into coming back in person. but it is such a pleasure to be in a room full of amazing immigrants and people supporting immigrants. so again. my name is sara ahmed.

i'm the communications and community engagement specialist at asian women shelter. and it is absolutely my honor and privilege to accept this word on behalf of a man amanda thing, body pakiya. i had a lot of practice working with her for a year. um at long last name on instagram definitely follow her and all her amazing art. um she could not be here today because she's in the middle of another project. um so earlier this year , asian women shelter had the absolute privilege and honor to work with amanda. to come up with this prevention campaign. so i just a little bit about us, where one of only three domestic violence shelters in san francisco? yes there are only three and we're the ones that provides a lot of culturally specific services, so it warms my heart to see all the language access we have over 100 language advocates that speak over 40 different languages. if any of you guys are interested, please

connect with me and we would love to have you as a language advocate. um so the collaboration with amanda was made possible by the a p i civic engagement fund. um and we worked with amanda. over a year . she met with our staff multiple times during that year , um, and listened to them and what they had to say, working with predominantly immigrant and marginalized survivors and our city. um and so all the messages on the campaign. all the images on the campaign came from those conversations. and it's just been an absolute honor. um amazing to see such colorful, bold art all over our city. um and being able to have a lot of the communities that we serve, seeing themselves reflected in the work. sorry i just wanted to give that background information , but i will now share amanda's words. um so good evening, everyone. my name is amanda. finger body pakiya. i was born outside of atlanta as the daughter of thai and indonesian

immigrants. these days i call brooklyn home, but the bay area holds a special place in my heart. since 2021. i have completed three large scare scale murals in san carlos, oakland and emeryville. celebrating the research of women in stem and recently partnered with asian women shelter to create a campaign focused on domestic violence prevention. the bay area was where i first learned about the power of intention. as a young artist. i was 17 and trained for three months here with alonzo king's lines ballet. one day in class. alonso asked me what i was thinking while doing a particular step. confused i told him i was trying to point my feet and be aware of my turnout in lines. he looked at me and said, no, the audience wants to see what you see. i want to see what you see. is it a sunrise is a fireworks show me what's in your mind when you do this step something profound clicks for me

that day. alonso wanted me to go beyond technical artistry and embody the feeling and intention of the movement. it was totally a different way of looking at things and it's an insight i've carried with me throughout all of my work. intention shapes are output as artists when we think deeply and feel deeply and move and create with intention our audiences can receive and can receive an immersed deeply with us too. for me. the power of public art lies in the ability to make a statement that is impossible to ignore. it is my privilege to honor my roots and give back to immigrant communities. my award. recognizing and celebrating immigrants as especially meaningful. my artwork aims to make space for marginalized voices, women of color immigrants survivors by honoring their stories through public art . what humbles me most about creating art is knowing that one image can resonate profoundly with someone and make them seen or give them courage. i think osha for this tremendous honor,

and i share it with my, um in middle asian women shelter family, so i cannot accept this award in person. i know that i hold this city and all of you close to my heart. so deep appreciation to amanda and i'll see a and please tried to like. sorry. grab some of these. please pass them out. thank you so much toshiya for taking the time to print them out. um, with the language access, please pass them on to the people in your lives that you know, especially the language access ones. um, and go to the website. let's talk about us a .org and start the conversations. thank you, amanda and thank sophia.

so our last award this evening is for the vera hail champion of justice award. this award, named in memory of the very formidable immigrant rights commissioner vera hail. is for an organization or individual that has demonstrated courage and advocacy for justice and equality during turbulent times. we are proud to present this on earth to all can single executive director and co founder of the lgbt asylum project. under his leadership. the lgbt asylum project has served more than 2.5 1000 lgbt q plus immigrants in the bay area with a 99% approval rates. exactly. the organization, which is the first immigration law group to be located in the

historic castro is exclusively dedicated to providing legal representation for lgbtq, plus immigrants fleeing persecution and feeling seeking asylum in the u. s and has been doing so since 2015. thank you for your dedication to the lgbtq community or can it is truly an honor to present you with the champion of justice award. well um hello, everyone and thank you to the san francisco immigrant rights commission for choosing me as this year's recipient of the better health champion champion of justice award. i am truly grateful for this honor. and before i continue, i wanna say happy pride, everyone. well

san francisco during pride. pride month is so beautiful and sometimes people who live here, um forget what a magical place it is my husband and i live just a few blocks away and we walk to our favorite restaurants. we hold hands we kiss in public and we proudly introduce each other as my husband. we build a home a life together, and we don't live in fear. we never take that for granted. i never take that for granted. as an immigration attorney. i hear from countless people all around the world. who don't have that luxury of safety. living in san francisco as an out gay man was always my dream as a teenager as a gaiety in asia in turkey. so i know firsthand what it is like being an asylum seeker, leaving my home country behind and coming

to the united states was extremely scary. but i knew that as a gay man, i would never be able to live a free and happy life in turkey. i wanted to be free to live my truth and to love who i wanted to love. luckily i was a little bit of myself and i had access to legal representation. so i was able to present my case to the u. s government properly. and as you can see, my case was approved, and i'm an american citizen now, but i knew i had to do more so in 2015 co founded the lgbt asylum project to make sure that all lgbt q. i plus asylum seekers have access to legal representation so they don't have to go back to those countries where they could be harmed or even killed for being who they are or who they love. thank you. i am very proud of

the fact that we are positively changing the lives of our l g b t. q i plus family and i want to say thank you to the mayor's office to cia two opposite stretch gender initiatives to him to the human rights campaign for supporting the work of the lgbt asylum project over the years. and thank you again to san francisco immigrant rights commission. um, and thank you to everyone here at the city hall for making this day one. i will never forget. thank you, everyone.

so congratulations to all of the award winners this year. let's give them all another big round. how to rock bars, please. thank you with a great evening. this is the first time we have been able to celebrate in person since the pandemic began. for the past two years, we have held this event virtually tonight. we'd like to take a moment to recognize all the award winners from the past two years who were celebrated during our virtual ward events. many of these awardees are with us tonight, will the awardees are the virtual 2021 2022 immigrant leadership awards? please make your way to the stage so we can acknowledge you here tonight. but we have anywhere.

as everybody is making their way up to the stage. we'd like to give some additional shout outs . to supervisor handymen who has joined us welcome supervisor. we're delighted to have you with us this evening. and of course to the array of folks who have made this event possible. thank you to sf gov t v for capturing tonight's event. city hall events for arranging the space for us. and amanda thing. bodhi bach iou. let's talk about us art campaign with the asian women's shelter and bart and again, please don't forget to take home a complimentary double sided print. you see melissa with the lovely red jacket waving at you in the back. she has them there for you. so now that we have our previous winners from the last two years, please give us a wave when we call your name or your organization. so from our 2021 awardees, public private, nonprofit collaborative leader awards covid 19 emergency family

relief fund. the entrepreneur leader awards. um alu, emilio mola wa i divide you. head chef and owner of eco kitchen. our industry champion award latino community foundation. our grassroots leader awards in 2021 went to soho abdu of the arab families program coordinator in chinatown. community development center and ella parrot, trans latinas. 2021 vera, hail champion of justice award stop ap i hate initiative. 2021 youth leadership award, rubi ibarra. and our 2021 special recognition awards went to san francisco interfaith council. the latino task force and united peace

collaborative. in our 2022 awardees. the entrepreneur leader award lacko sina. grassroots. grassroots leader award on their jolly rimi from paris barbet area. the honorable of rc tenderloin safe passage. norma kagle slatina tenderloin safe catches. are you youth leadership award oil in java to uh, it's here. youth leadership, joy. okay? and a vera hail champion of justice award, the ucsf health and human rights initiative. and our distinguished leadership and public service to former director of the cia. adrienne pine. thank you to all of these

amazing individuals and organizations. we are so happy to get to reckon recognize you in person. you're welcome to return to your seats now, but one more hand of applause to all these crazy thank you. thank you all. oh, we're gonna do a photograph. yeah. one photograph. yes. thank you guys. i think now we. i believe we have our last performance of the evening. okay? what a great celebration of immigrant leaders in san francisco wouldn't you agree? come on, you can do better than

that. so in the spirit of celebration, i would like to introduce an amazing performer. this evening. ahmed patel. who will be performing a dense piece for us. it is a first generation indian american professional dancer, choreographer and teacher. he is a pioneer of an unconventional style of dance called indian contemporary, which fuses his eastern culture with his western training. it also works with para ver bay area. the south asian transgender led organization dedicated to transgender economic, justice and immigrant equality. take it away, ahmed.

language away. be my birdie. your husband. funny just holding on. in jail good job. baby. my party

. funny. honey this song good. clean. cool. good.

addressing. legend who will be. they're gonna. language. baby. bonnie. the job .

okay? give it up for a meet again already. as a program concludes , i would like to thank everybody for being here tonight. together let's continue

to uplift each other's work and celebrate our accomplishments, our cultures, our diversity. i want to thank mayor london breed for her office proclamation of june as immigrant heritage. month. and the city administrator carmen chu, for being here tonight and supporting this event. i would like to invite everybody to say for the reception. with refreshments provided by food is, um alicia's tamales, los mayas bishop bob bob and the irish immigration historical center. i would also like to thank, thank thee o. c s staff for all their hard work and making this a how that happened. and then now, please take a moment to congratulate tonight's winners and thank you for being here again. let's celebrate.

sf gov t v. san francisco government television..

[applause] >> good morning everybody. good morning, it will work better to hold this. (indiscernible) it is 5 after 12. this is the last time stopped this long was the 1906 earthquake.

it is in fact 11 o'clock, so we are starting. i want to welcome everybody here. i'm the rick the president of market street railway, a non profit muni's preservation partner. we get no government funding. we depend on donations from individuals and businesses who love and benefit from the historic cars that run on market street which we brought back 40 years ago, and the cable cars. we run the san francisco railway museum around the corner on stuart street, so check that out some time. we are here as an organizer with sfmta of the celebration of 150 years of cable cars. we have great participating partners and i want to run down them quickly, around business groups, non profits and government agencies. china town (indiscernible)

nob chinese historical society of america, the san francisco chinese chamber of commerce. (indiscernible) he was not feeling well. he was going to speak, but anyway, we want to recognize. if you want to speak in a few minutes, you are more then welcome. downtown sf partnership. fisherman's wharf. (indiscernible) 50th anniversary this year. want to thank them for the podium and the cool lavender lemon aid you got a sample. pier 39. the san francisco chamber of commerce. city guide, historical society, board chair kevin o'brien is with us we think. san francisco public library with a great list of cable car books you can check out and by the way, all of this information is on our very special website sfcablecars.org. you can scan

the qr code on the stickers on the cable car window and go right to that site. also, sf travel, sf heritage and last alphabetically, but hardly least, union square alliance. i don't know (indiscernible) we will have a celebration on the actual anniversary date august 2 and that will be at market. it is a really diverse group of people coming together to celebrate this focused on the past, some focused on the present, but all of us have a commitment to san francisco's future and the cable cars will always be part of it. we are here to celebrate is century and a half of them. let's start with the city number one cable car fan, i have seen this with my own eyes, mayor london breed. [applause] >> thank you to the market

street railway for all the work and advocacy that they do to make sure that the cable car and the various modes of transportation options that existed in san francisco are recognized in the way that we are doing today. how many of you are alive 150 years ago? [laughter] aaron peskin was not alive. you might have been actually. but you know what is amazing, 150 years ago, when we talk about san francisco, its invasion and creativity, the cable car was invented in san francisco. everyone decided to follow suit after 1873 and august when the first ride andrew holiday decided that the horse and the carriage was not making it up our steep hills fast enough. most of us probably cant make it up those steep hills fast enough ourselves, but the cable car was our answer to

that. what i think about san francisco and the invasion and creativity we are usually the first of many things. the invention of the cable car many fallowed, yes, the television and juke box and so many great inventions we enjoy today, but while others decided to fore go the cable car, san francisco decided to double down and in 1947, we have this extraordinary woman, fidel (indiscernible) who said no mr. mayor, we are not going give up our cable cars. in fact, i'll rally all the women och san francisco, put it on the ballot and save the cable cars of san francisco and save the cable cars she did. [applause] and many many years later the first woman mayor of san francisco, diane finstein, knew there was a need to refurbish the cable car

infrastructure and to make sure that the tracks and all the things they run along were preserved so we can see cable cars make it into the future to get to 150 years. she worked hard both public and private monies, came together and the infrastructure was invested in and look where we are today. cable cars are one of the number one attraction in san francisco. when they come to san francisco to visit, they want to go to the golden gate bridge and want to ride a cable car, and of course i got to also throw in, there is no better food anywhere in the world then san francisco. so, while other people are trying to write us off, we are doubling down. to remind people of who we are and what we represent. this is not unfamiliar territory dealing with the challenges of the city, but the thing that we know as san franciscans most people don't know, this is where the invasion

happens, this is where creativity happens. this is where we are reminding people why we are resilient and why we use the phoenix as a symbol to rise out of the ashes of challenges that existed in the past, whether it was earthquakes or a down economy, or changes to things because of a pandemic. san francisco continues to not be what we were, but to be something better. time and time again to continue to make sure that we are at the forefront of new technologies of invasion while also preserving and respecting our past. the cable car represents that for us for now and into the future as san francisco begins to come out of a challenging time because of this global pandemic. the stories are still not written about how even though-there is

20top companies in the u.s. of artificial intelgence, 16 in the bay area and 11 in san francisco. the technology that will lead the future is happening in san francisco, while preserving maintaining and uplilfting the past and what makes san francisco so special. i want to appreciate all you for being here today. thank you so much to the downtown ambassadors, union square improvement district. fisherman's wharf, downtown merchants and other groups that continue to make sure they are part of a vibrancy of what makes san francisco and all these beautiful people with us who are dressed to the nines to eare mind of the attire that used to be worn so we can feel what it was like back in 1873 when the people who were the first to ride the cable cars did so. it is great to be here, great to celebrate the opportunity for scf

san francisco, so continue to support the city, ride the cable cars, enjoy the restaurants and know san francisco, we'll continue to be here. we'll continue to matter and we are going to continue to grow and celebrate all the amazing things that our city represents. thank you. [applause] >> there are 11 elected supervisors in the city and county of san francisco, and all of the cable cars belong to one of those people. our board president, aaron peskin. aaron. [applause] >> thank you rick, and thank you to you and the market street railway association for your loving and careful and long stewardship of our cable cars and our street cars. mayor breed invoked the phoenix rising from the ashes

and if there is a physical manifestation of that mythical phoenix, it is standing behind me. it is the cable car. it is the symbol of resilience and perseverance in san francisco. when they first started in 1873, really in 1888, the city burned down to the ground three times, and that was before the 1906 earthquake and fire. that was before the 1918 spanish influenza pandemic we didn't know about until a few years ago, and the cable car was a constant through all of that. this is the symbol of san francisco's resilience. and as rick said, all 11 members of the board are created equal, but i'm lucky and a

little more equal because i represent the original part of san francisco, the northeast corner of san francisco, our china town, russian hill, north beach and downtown and what binds those all together, but our historic rolling stock. (indiscernible) was invoked and she comes from a proud line of bay area women like the three women who started save the bay that saved us from ourselves from filling in the bay. (indiscernible) did exactly the same thing in san francisco and it is a lessen that has to be learned again and again. our propensity to mistreat some of the historic resources that makes san francisco the envy of the world never goes away. we must always remind ourselves of

the lessens of the three women who saved the bay, the lessens of (indiscernible) and let me say this, yes, this is a tourist attraction, but it is also used by our local residents. i have been elected five times by the good people of the northeast corner of san francisco to the board of supervisors, and i know sharon is in the crowd and i know i'm turned out yet again and will tell the secret to my electoral success. in the mornings this is a commuter vehicle and it delivers folks from nob hill and russian hill, and the upper tenderloin to downtown, and if you get on that thing at 7 o'clock in the morning and you hand out your campaign literature, you will be the next district 3 supervisor. in closing, let me thank the

men and handful of women who operate these incredible vehicles, who have done so for 150 years. without your work, without your maintenance, we would not have these cable cars that are the envy of the world. thank you to the workers from the sfmta. [applause] >> beat you to that. i want the sfmta employees please put your hand up, including the retired guys like (indiscernible) these guys do a incredible job and they really care. [applause] somebody else who really cares heads the downtown sf partnership, and that represents this area, helps keep it clean and safe and i want to bring him up now, robby silver. [applause] >> good morning downtown san francisco! it is

still morning. i'm robby silver, the executive director of downtown partnership and leading economic recovery efforts for the 43 block district around the financial district and jackson square neighborhood. daily cleanings and safety services for three activations and creating new public spaces for all. in fact, we are standing in a area we will be reimagining some time in the next year. we are also standing in a important gateway for the downtown and our city. downtown workers (indiscernible) and embarcadero transit centers. people come from all over the world to see the historic cable cars in action. this is just more then just a attraction as board president aaron peskin pointed out. the cable car lines support visitors, workers and residents from the downtown core through beautiful china town,

nob hill and finally, van ness avenue. the top of california street is breath taking and really captures the best of what this city has to offer. when i got my drivers license and i will not tell what year that was, i thought i'll drive to san francisco. i hopped on the cable car and immediately transported to a different place and different time and felt the city's energy and decided i wanted to move here. i was transported to new time and place, all cities change and evolve and it is time for san francisco to reimagine its downtown. can california street be the center of economic activity with art, with culture, with hospitality? yes. yes it can. the downtown sf partnership is here to serve the city and lead that. no hill is too

steep for the city and downtown to climb. we must reimagine ourselves, it can be done and we are doing it together. thank you all and congratulations. [applause] >> cable cars both the original line that ran on clay and sacramento street ended in 1942 and the california line which enders are simnel to mobility for the china town community and i like to call up don. donald is head of the san francisco chinese chamber of commerce and would love to hear some words from you. >> thank you. [applause] mayor breed (indiscernible) not just supervisor peskin- [difficulty hearing speaker]

we have been gone through many many challenges over the years, and along the way, the cable car has been there with us. bringing visitors in china town. (indiscernible) i remember as a child in particular, the cable car on california (indiscernible) i'm very glad to have the city bringing back this program to encourage more ridership to the cable car in celebration of the 150 years anniversary. thank you so much. [applause] >> thank you donald. now for someone who has maybe the second toughest job in the city beyond the mayors, stepping forward, the director of transportation for the city and

county of san francisco, sfmta (indiscernible) >> thank you rick. [applause] since the gold rush in 1849, downtown san francisco has been through endless cycles of boom and bust. each of the cycles the people who made real money were not the ones chasing after the obvious things. levistrauss didn't make money off gold, he made money by taking cloth and turning into tough pants for the gold miners. andrew holiday and his father came to san francisco during the gold and also did not make money off gold, but figured out how to make wire rope, which he sold to gold miners all over the state and then thought, what if i took the wire rope crazy technology and combined it with some weird

new technology for hauling ore outlet of the ground and turned into technology for reinventing real estate in san francisco by hauling people up the highest hill. andrew holiday did make money off gold, he made money off using and reinventing older technologies to create something that people really needed. cable car technology. in every cycle of boom and bust, san francisco has invented the next new technology that lead the world forward but not just by making money. we reinventing ourselves remembering who we are and why we are here and what attracts. that is socialability and joy and beauty. (indiscernible) cable cars are no

longer the most efficient mobile technology, but they bring joy. they bring visitors to san francisco. they are at the heart of who we are as a city. as we move forward reinventing the next san francisco in this transition from bust to boom cycle, we need to remember that as we reinvent new technology, that we also anchor ourselves in our san francisco values and as a center of joy and social mobility. we are so grateful to be caretakers of these amazing vehicles, and we are also excited and partnership with market street railway, downtown partnership and china town to offer a whole summer's worth of special events, celebrating the 150th anniversary of cable cars. i'm so grateful to our partnership with market street railway and (indiscernible) encourage you to visit

sfcablecars.org in order to explore all the opportunities for riding. the $5 all day rate we'll have starting july 1 for the california line, tours of the amazing shops that our crews work in. when parts were out on these cars we cannot order from a catalog. they are hand machined. each one of these cars is rebuilt lovingly by a dozen different trades who have greater skills then any shop anywhere in the world. we will be doing- [applause] they are amazing. also, if you are interesting every wn of the skilled trades we have job opening now. go to sfmta.com/careers to build your career at sfmt a. i thank you for coming out and hope you take advantsage of the tours and trips and special deals we

are offering through the cable car system all summer long. thank you so much. back to rick. [applause] >> thank you. were your ears burning when he was talking about you? we have one more special guest. he comes to us from the past, but his legacy enders forever and that is mr. andrew holiday. andrew. this is microphone you speak into. [applause] [laughter] >> hello everyone. i'm very glad to be here and i want to thank the (indiscernible) who brought me back to life here to be part of this event today. i wasn't supposed to mention the time machine, but anyway. i did receive a complement as i came up here. i was told i look very

good for being dead 123 years. i believe my greatest accomplishment in life is to build a cable car system for san francisco. it didn't take very long for my invention to become part of the city reaching other streets such as geary, sacramento street and of course market street. by 1890 there were 18 cable car lines all making transportation easier for everyone to get around. i'm very pleased to see one of my favorite cars here today, car 19, built in 1883. it looks as good today as it did then and i want to thank all those workers who continue to preserve it. i understand some dignitaries are going to ride this car up and down california street. you know, on my very first

ride up clay street, we came to the top of the hill and looked at the bottom of the hill far on the steep incline and jumped out of the car and panicked and ran away so i had to take the lever myself. i want to assure you men and ladies, that won't happen again today. i paid a extra dollar. i want all you to take advantage of the beautiful cars that- (indiscernible) no other city can brag that they have cable cars like these. they are a treasure and may climb these hills another 150 years. thank you very much. >> thank you mr. holiday. i want to do a quick shout out to our crew who i guarantee will not run away from the car. derrick johnson and calvin watts are our crew and

standing by hiding somewhere but they'll be out. we are going to board now. firts i want to recognize my boss, the board chair of our organization, carmen clark. leslie rogers a board member, retired head of federal transit administration district. dennis talk to your friends about getting us more money, leslie. and wes (indiscernible) a retired superintendent of cable cars. we got a great board. now it is time for the fun, so we can have the press and the mayor group will be on this platform here. that is for them, but others who are press and invited guests can walk down to the end there and they can climb on the rest of the car and then we'll let others on as we have room. press and invited guests and then we'll get going.

[cheering and applause]

aca.org or 510-271-8443 extension 300. >> can you hear me? okay. thanks. do a roll call, please. >> thank you. commissioner bridges. joining late. commissioner driscoll, present. commissioner gandhi, present. commissioner heldfond, present. commissioner o'connor, present. commissioner safai is running late and commissioner thomas, running late. we have a quorum. >> before we go any further, i like to officially welcome our fellow commissioner mr. o'connor for the first meeting and tim is takes the place of brian. we welcome him and really welcome because we are now in a full force on