Black in San Francisco: Housing Discrimination, Racism, and Displacement

In 2015, San Francisco’s Point-in-Time Homeless Count reported 6,686 sheltered and unsheltered homeless adults, as well as 853 unsheltered homeless youth, for a total of 7,539 people constituting San Francisco’s homeless population in 2015. Thirty-nine percent of the homeless population counted is white, which is a small fraction compared to San Francisco’s 53 percent overall white population, while 36 percent of the homeless population counted is Black, which is a disproportionate number compared to San Francisco’s 6 percent Black population.

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[Poetry] 7-Letter Words for Black History Month

H-A-R-R-I-E-T .

                        M-A-L-C-O-L-M.

                                                  T-R-A-Y-V-O-N.

 

Weapons. Handgun. Bullets. Gunshot. Unarmed. Teenage.

Murders. Racists. Defends. Upholds.

Lawyers. Answers.

Nothing.

Objects. Inhuman. Ignores.

Witness.  Witless. Account. Useless. Protect.

Falsify. Testify. Justify.

Outrage. Protest. Agitate. Revolts.

Explode.

Failure. Beliefs. Silence.

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[Poetry] Reparations

I shout out to the rugged mountains of Tennessee….

I screamed in muddy bayou of Louisiana…

The slave trade led to propaganda….

Old dirty, dirty south you were never there for me…

Yet you sing sweet songs, sweet songs of liberty…

Life less bodies hanging from chest nut trees is

what I remember about the south…

Fishing black bodies out that bayou no doubt…

Why just last night I witnessed a lynching…

White men with sheets over their heads crying redemption…

My people have been killed burned and desecrated…

Denied their rights and discriminated…

We tended the fields of wheat,

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The Black Trans Activist We Should All Know: Marsha “Pay It No Mind” Johnson

Marsha P. Johnson (“P” standing for “Pay it no mind”) is one of the mothers of the trans and queer liberation movement who is often erase in mainstream narratives of gay pride. Marsha grew up in New York City and New Jersey, where she lived on the streets, often times without a permanent home or stable living situation. She was a prominent and revered activist between the 60s to the 90s.

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50th Anniversary of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Launch of the Poor People’s Campaign

This year, San Francisco will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Summer of Love.

However, in cities such as Detroit and Newark, New Jersey, this summer will be the 50th anniversary of urban rebellion. The Civil Rights Movement helped the Black middle class, but the impoverished urban Black communities did not gain much, and thus led to the urban uprisings of 1967. These insurgencies and the resulting Poor People’s Campaign organized by Rev.

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Artist Ronnie Goodman: “My only way to survive was to make art.”

I grew up in San Francisco. I’m what you call one of those hippie childs. I grew up in the Haight Ashbury and I been here all my life, other than in prison. I grew up in the Fillmore area also, which back then, was the Black area of San Francisco in the 60s and part of the 70s. I went to Roosevelt Junior High and Washington High School.

I started drawing when I was six years old from my mother’s boyfriend who used to design Harley Davidsons.

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The Origins of Black History Month

Since 1976, every U.S. president has officially designated the month of February as Black History Month. Other countries around the world, including Canada and the United Kingdom, also devote a month to celebrating black history. Black History Month, or National African American History Month, is an annual celebration of achievements by black Americans and a time for recognizing their central role in U.S. history.

In many cities throughout the U.S., a variety of events and activities will be held to celebrate Black History Month.

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The Forgotten Legacy of the Black Panther Party

Black is beautiful, and the history will always make you laugh, make you cry, make you question your beliefs, comfort your soul and act on your natural feelings, and that is what the Black Panther Party did. The Black Panthers acted on their feelings and tried their best to do what they thought was best for the people in their community.

The Black Panther Party was founded 50 years ago, and still there are many misconceptions about its revolutionary work.

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[Poetry] In the Shadow of the Ghost Ship

Lindsay, Tennessee and Jose, three hapless souls who didn’t escape the Fire. 

A conflagration, ignited by fear, suspicion and hatred suffocated Lindsay, Tennessee and Jose and bought about their demise

…mainly because Lindsay, Tennessee and Jose …were among the despised.

And the Ghost Ship still lingers after smoldering timbers have dimmed.

The Privileged sparked attitudes sets feelings ablaze, burning animosities that flicker with hatred and scorn.

There will be no concerts for 79 year old Jose Campos found dead in a driveway of the housed…

There will be no Crowdfunding for 27 year old Lindsay McCollum and Eddie Tennessee Tate…the two tasting and feeling the Fire from the muzzle of a deadly weapon.

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San Francisco Sheriff Seeks $82 Million County Jail Renovation

At the February 9 Board ofSupervisors Budget Committee, Sheriff Vicki Hennessy proposed to apply for state funding to renovate San Francisco’s County Jail No. 2, located at 425 Seventh St.

The grant would provide the Sheriff’s office with a $70 million state grant on the condition that San Francisco would pitch in an additional $12 million, for a total of $82 million in expenditures.

Budget Committee members Supervisors Katy Tang,

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