San Francisco, CA
San Francisco group rallies to protest evictions at homeless shelters
San Francisco prides itself on its status as a sanctuary city. But some homeless immigrants say their families are being forced out, not through deportation but by eviction.
The noon rally outside Everett Middle School in San Francisco included immigrant parents trying to raise their children while living in homeless shelters in the city.
“We’re here to demand a sensible answer to the question how does evicting working families from shelters solve anything,” said Reverand Victor Floyd, a member of a group called Faith in Action.
The city has a 90-day limit at its family homeless shelters. Then they’re served with an eviction letter and may or may not be eligible for a 30-day extension. Everett’s principal, Heidi Avelina Smith, joined the rally to urge San Francisco to live up to its “sanctuary” ideals.
“By nature, a sanctuary is a warm, welcome, safe place to call home. A 30-day shelter policy is not a reflection of this commitment,” she said. “San Francisco is one of the most expensive places in the nation. The cost of living, and more specifically, the cost of housing is an extraordinary challenge for all. A shelter policy that offers families with children only 30 days to attempt to stabilize economically is a policy that does not acknowledge the reality of our city today.”
Bridget Early has been the school’s social worker for 17 years, and things have never been this bad. She said 80 kids, one-fifth of her students, are homeless with 20 of them living in city shelters.
“It is shocking, and I honestly have to say it’s shameful too that, for whatever reason, we don’t take care of each other. And I think we see ourselves as separate, maybe. Or we don’t have the shared responsibility to take care of our neighbors, but we should. And we do have the resources in this city to do that.”
The city does, in fact, have the money. Eight years ago, voters approved Measure C which taxes large businesses to establish a fund to fight homelessness. Now, there is $50 million available for hotel vouchers and rental subsidies. Supervisor Connie Chan said it’s time to act in a big way.
“We do have the capacity right now, we do have the funding now,” she said. “It’s like, what can we do to rip the bureaucracy, rip the red tape, and get them housed first. And I think if there were more families to come, we’re going to tackle it along the way.”
That responsibility may fall on Mayor Daniel Lurie who, on Tuesday, was given more power to approve contracts to fight homelessness. Advocates are hoping that will cut though some of the bureaucracy and political bickering. Maria Zovala just received an eviction order to move out of the shelter room she shares with her two special needs children.
“It’s inhumane,” she said. “For the responsible authorities to allow families with children and seniors to be on the street, living with uncertainty of not knowing what the current government is going to do with regards to deportations.”
The school said it’s doing what it can to help. It provides a weekly food giveaway and maintains an on-campus thrift store. And it’s experimenting with a guaranteed income program, offering one thousand dollars a month to the families of unhoused 6th graders.
“Help us raise our next generation in a safe, secure and warm environment,” said the principal. “A true sanctuary.”
It turns out that being a sanctuary city may involve more than just letting people stay. It may mean finding a space for them to live.
San Francisco, CA
San Francisco rolls out heightened security measures ahead of World Cup knockout match, 4th of July
The city of San Francisco is taking heightened police and security measures in advance of two major events in the Bay Area this week – the 4th of July and the first knockout round of the FIFA World Cup.
Mayor Daniel Lurie hosted a press conference Monday to address the public on how the city plans to manage the overlapping swarms of soccer fans and 4th of July revelers.
“No matter the occasion, our top priority, and my top priority, remains the same: keeping San Francisco residents and visitors alike safe,” said Lurie.
The two events would be major draws for crowds independently, but combined, and with special occasions marking both, the city wants to ensure that security is a top priority.
The World Cup has already brought hundreds of thousands of people from across the country and the world to the Bay Area, but this week’s game at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara is especially notable for the San Francisco as the host city and the United States as a host nation. The stadium, renamed San Francisco Bay Area Stadium for the duration of the World Cup, will host the knockout round match between the U.S. and Bosnia and Herzegovina on Wednesday.
Official fan zones and watch parties for the U.S. match, as well as for Mexico’s match against Ecuador on Tuesday, will be held at multiple locations in San Francisco, including at Thrive City at the Chase Center and at the Pier 39 Fan Zone.
This year’s 4th of July in San Francisco, which already boasts large crowds across the city each year, will have another draw as the city prepares to celebrate the nation’s 250th birthday. The city will be hosting a fireworks show on the Golden Gate Bridge on Saturday night – only the third time that pyrotechnics have ever been set off from the iconic San Francisco landmark. Fireworks will be launched off the two towers of the bridge and from barges in the water.
The Golden Gate Bridge show will be the only official one in the city – fireworks are illegal in San Francisco.
Authorities advised attendees to use public transportation and to leave plenty of time on both ends of their travel for traffic and delays. Caltrans has announced road closures and detours on U.S. Highway 101 and the entire Golden Gate Bridge for the fireworks show.
San Francisco Police Chief Derrick Lew said the department is collaborating with multiple state and local agencies to keep people safe, and that police officers have had their days off cancelled to meet the staffing needs that July 4 will require.
“This week will be safe because that’s what we’ve been doing every day,” Lurie said. “It is a glorious time to be here in San Francisco.”
Lurie cited past heavily attended events like Sunday’s San Francisco Pride Parade and Super Bowl 60 in February as examples of the city’s successful management of major crowds.
San Francisco police officers arrested 20 people late Saturday night in SoMa after breaking up an unauthorized “Stud Alley” block party with hundreds of participants, according to the police department. It marked the second round of arrests of Pride attendees this weekend after police arrested five people at the tail end of the Trans March on Friday.
Police officers arrived near Kissling and 11th streets at 10:58 p.m. and “encountered an unsanctioned and unpermitted block party” that had about 300 participants and a D.J., according to a statement from the San Francisco Police Department. The following details are based on the department statement and social media videos; two participants reached by Mission Local declined to comment.
The department said that the large crowd “prompted the response of additional SFPD resources.” Social media footage shows dozens of officers marching through SoMa streets armed with batons, wearing riot helmets and carrying plastic zip-ties.
Officers then gave an order to disperse, the department said, and told the D.J. to leave the area. The D.J. left but the partygoers did not, the department said, and officers tried to “disperse the crowd.” Two people “resisted,” the department said, and officers arrested them.
Several people also “vandalized two vehicles passing through the area,” the department said, and made them “inoperable.” The two vehicles may have been Waymos: One online video shows two Waymos in the street blinking hazard lights, and appears to show one officer telling others that the Waymos had been vandalized.
The party then reformed a few blocks later at Washburn Street about two blocks away, the department said, with about 200 people; the police shut that gathering down as well.
Footage from the scene shows a line of officers in tactical gear advancing rapidly on the crowd, shoving people out of the alleyway before forming a cordon line to block the street. In total, 18 people were arrested on Washburn Street, the department said, for “obstructing or delaying a peace officer and unlawful assembly.”
The department said that “makeshift barricades” had been set up to keep officers at bay; at one point in a video, an officer moves several large rocks that were placed in the street. Two officers sustained minor injuries, the department said.
SoMa has been the site of unsanctioned “Stud Alley” parties on the Saturday evenings of Pride weekend for at least the past six years. The parties have made headlines in past years for graffiti, broken windshields and outraged neighbors.
The organizers of Stud Alley posted an announcement this year that they would not host a party, saying that the party had recently “outgrown itself,” but reminded past party-goers of the unofficial slogan that is frequently graffitied onto walls around the party: Every alley is Stud Alley.
Jesse, a bartender at the nearby bar the Willow, reported seeing cops “everywhere” after the Saturday incident, when people “fled” to the bar to escape. He did not report hearing of any incidents of violence between party-goers and police.
The arrests mark the second encounter between Pride-goers and police this weekend. On Friday, at the end of the Trans March, police officers arrested five marchers for alleged vandalism and assault after march-goers allegedly spray-painted several statues and a person.
On Sunday afternoon, Washburn and Kissling streets still bore signs of the party. Spray painted on the walls of buildings were “Fuck SFPD,” “No Cops at Pride,” and “Every Alley Stud Alley.”
It’s series finale time, and it’s rubber match time, as the San Francisco Giants host the Atlanta Braves.
It’s a battle of Cy Young southpaws. For the Giants, it’s Robbie Ray, who won the award in 2021 in the American League. Ray, a 34-year old two-time All-Star, is making his 17th appearance of the year, and is 6-6 with a 3.70 ERA, a 4.80 FIP, and 80 strikeouts to 42 walks in 87.2 innings. After a rough patch, he’s been exceptional in his last two games, including allowing just an unearned run in eight innings against the Athletics his last time out.
For the Braves, it’s Chris Sale, who won the prestigious pitching award in 2024. Sale, a 37-year old nine-time All-Star, has made 14 starts, and is 8-5 with a 2.14 ERA, a 2.71 FIP, and 99 strikeouts to 21 walks in 84 innings. He allowed two unearned runs in 5.2 innings against the Milwaukee Brewers in his last start.
Enjoy the game, everyone.
Who: San Francisco Giants (34-48) vs. Atlanta Braves (49-32)
Where: Oracle Park, San Francisco, California
Regional broadcast: NBC Sports Bay Area
Radio: KNBR 680 AM/104.5 FM, KSFN 1510 AM
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