Transcripts For SFGTV Government Access Programming 20240714

This effort. I would like to urge the board of secure supervisors to continue supporting immigrant parents voting collaborative with full funding so we continue to do this work. Thank you. Thank you, next acre please read next speaker please. My name is ivy, im also parent to two Young Children here, and i am also a member of the specialist team. During the election last round along with my team we went to schools to read, speak to immigrant parents, and their schools and reach over 1000 chinese speaking parents to listen to their opinions about the school. As you know, San Francisco is a city made of many immigrants. Its not that parents do not want to participate in voting, there are one too many barriers that exist for them like language and cultural barriers. In this atmosphere today, there are many reasons impacting their decision. Our outreach effort is not just on educating and informing people of their rights to participate for election, but also recognize that there are many ways to participate in the community and encouraging them to do so. I would like to urge the board of supervisors to continue supporting immigrant families in our community, by restoring full funding for us to continue to do this work and continue to speak to immigrant parents about their rights. Thank you. Next speaker, please area please. My name is amy, im also a specialist with chinese for affirmative action with her daughter that also goes to school in San Francisco. Last year, i also went along with my team to go to Different Community to talk about noncitizen voting at the school and the Community Spaces area one of my personal experiences, we went to the school and it was the first time that the parents, and also the teachers, at that school that have heard about noncitizen voting to know they have the right to participate in different meetings and also be able to vote. The parents and teachers walked us to the door and passionately thanked us for coming to the school to speak to them that day. Really encourage us to come here to educate them about the right and opportunity to participate. This outreach effort is especially needed by the newly arriving chinese leaking immigrant. They dont really know what resources are available to them. We really want to use this opportunity to encourage that we can instill the full fund inc. For us to continue to work area thank you. Next speaker, please area my name is chris and i, i am also a parent to a young daughter. Im also an immigrant parent with chinese for affirmative action. San francisco is a city of immigrant. Many parents opted to not participate with the school board, where the activities in the school, for the reason, similar to what a lot of folks have already mentioned area my language barrier and cultural barrier. [speaking spanish language] especially in this time its, its really impacted their decisionmaking. Our work is not to only educate the parents but to empower them to participate in the civic process area we hope that the board of supervisors will support immigrant families to fully restore the funding. For us to continue outreach in the communities in education effort to inform people of their rights. Thank you. Thank you very much. Next acre, please. Good afternoon, my name is norma garcia. I am here also to call on you to support the full funding of the immigrant parent voting collaborative. As you have heard from him of the work of the collaborative is powerful. We are empowering the community by developing community leadership. Lets not forget, the city of San Francisco voters approved proposition and in 2016. We have an obligation to fulfill that mandate of the voters, and make sure that all of our citizens are fully informed of the opportunities on the risks associated the implementation of noncitizen voting we cannot tread lightly here. We need to make sure that the work of this collaborative is fully funded, because peoples lives, their freedom, their ability to participate pacifically is all at stake, if we dont do this right. I want to just remind everyone about the value of voting, its all right that we all hold near and dear, and the value of public anticipation, there really is no equal. Its really important that we follow up on our commitment to fully fund the immigrant parent voting collaborative work area thank you very much. Thank you. Next beaker. Next speaker. Good afternoon supervisors, jessica lehman. I know it is a long day. I want to thank you for listening carefully to people to speak their voice on Budget Priorities get we know San Francisco is a wealthy city. We need a just budget for all. One that prioritizes generalized communities. Including seniors, people with disabilities, lgbt, etc. Seniors and people with disabilities need to use necessities. There is the senior operating subsidies that pres. Tron 11 have worked on to make sure Senior Housing becomes affordable. We also need to continue and expand the portable tenant base senior and disability rental sub these that have been working so well to make sure that when a person is hit with a rent increase that they are able to pay in their home. We know finding a new place, unaffordable place is not an option. We also, of course, need sub these for homeless families. We hope you will prioritize these area seniors and people with disabilities need more Community Connector program, technological help at home. These are all about reducing isolation, which is a major cause of death. Not to mention the impact of the rest of our community when we do not get to be in contact with other seniors and people with disabilities get the current proposed spending plan is a start. As the pot grows and you determine your district ask, please ir ties as from the budget justice coalition. This is what Community Members have asked for and what we need. And we deserve to be cared heard. Next beaker, these. Good afternoon, we are here representing senior and disability action. We are asked and you to fund the senior disability budget acts, but particularly the rents of these that people have talked about. People with disabilities. We have seen so many of our members who are able to answer go, because of Affordable Housing for seniors. That in foods members like therese area these are the people that built san fran disco and made it the great city that it is and we want our members to continue to be able to live here most of their families and communities area thank you. 1016 next speaker, please get good morning. My name is almon, coming back for a second time here representing mission graduates. There are two points i would like to make today around immigrant voting. One is we have a twoyear contract with you all. It dates you are going to fund it, and fully funded. I want to name them. The second part is, this is a good invest and, and you know, as san fran disco continues to build trust around different immigrant communities, we want to foster civic participation, many of the collaborators and partners you heard from have really deep ties to the community. They are really essential to this work, is ashley with the 2020 census coming. When we look at the longterm, and how much information and education we want to get out to our immunity, this is a key time in San Francisco, over the next 10 years, this is all around hardtoreach communities to get i just really want to stress that, that it might as if its only for this purpose of voting within the School District, but it is actually much larger than that. Thank you. [speaking foreign language] my name is norma and i am part of the parent program. I am a mother whose mother is to form inform other parent of information. And our rights. 1920s six immigrant but was already implemented. In 2000 and continue throughout other cities area in washington, boss none other cities area the people before us have left us and we continue to fight. It was not fair to them and it is not fair to us area paying taxes and not being able to have a voice, democratic voice for everyone. To have the right to vote, it motivates us to feel more at home, and to be able to advocate for the education of our children. [speaking native language] we want to continue with the process of immigrant voting. Since 50 years ago [speaking native language] think to these type of fund, we can continue to do this work. [speaking native language] to reach every parent with the objective of raising their knowledge around immigrant voting. [speaking native language] and the empowerment of families, without us worrying about our immigrant status. Continue contributing to our cities in different ways. And around the participation that the sick of education of our children. With the help of immigrant voting, leaving a legacy for our children. And for all of the youth to leave a Better Future for them. Better job, better salaries, and a better style of life. Educating the community [speaking native language] strengthening the voice of our community. Promoting democracy. With the immigrant vote area that we we are able to say that the power of immigrant Civic Engagement [speaking native language] there is so much to say, but the most important thing is to continue to help our youth. Thank you. Good warning, my name is josefina. I am also a mother leader here in San Francisco. Supporting immigrant voting. [speaking native language] within the last five years, i have had the privilege how families dissipate more. One another communicating, their voice. We get information, and we get involved area so that folks can hear our voice. And take us into account. And to be able to participate in all of the decision, no matter how tall they are. Like a community, we are very important. We need to know our right. And to keep reporting the immigrant vote. Thanks to these fund, and you all, the supervisors, and our Community Organization we can continue to preserve our sanctuary city. With our values, of our sanctuary city. Thank you. Tran16 next speaker please get good afternoon my name is amy lynn im a i am here today to advocate for the budget allegation at 250,000 each year for the next two years to get over the course of the week last week, we have witnessed how an unsettled administration terrorizes and attempt to disrupt peoples daytoday life and make them feel unsafe going to and getting their children to. Moments like this remind us why the work to empower and affirm immunity members that they belong here. They have right in their access to basic services is not jeopardized speak misinformation. I work with a cord group of undocumented parent and empower them to understanding their rights as migrant and as parent two kids in the School District to get have long face challenges advocating for the cells on their children. Act this way participation is enabled by this elaborative work to educate, empower and mobilize communities and for them to meaningfully participate in the communities they love and belong. Please continue to advocate along side immigrant families and ensure the funding info to emigrant collaborative for us continue to work a long time migrant the travel time. Good morning supervisors, i am here in support of the immigrant voting collaborative area we began in may 2018 to inform immigrants of their rights and the risk associated with non it is an voting on school board elections. Since that time we have look into over 6000 Community Members who are impacted by noncitizen voting. We work with the department of election to ensure implementation is accessible, and community friendly. Flying in the face of the tran 50s San Francisco is hitting setting nationwide president. Not necessarily on allowing noncitizen to vote, but how we implement noncitizen voting. There are several cities and municipalities that have reached out to us in their eyes on severances will in terms how we roll out the initiative. The outright attack on immigrant communities, the collaborative are part of the broader safety net of services that San Francisco provides to its immigrant Community Members. As immigrants are under siege, we need to be prepared and we need to inform Community Members of their rights and the risks. As the voters declared in november 2016, that they want immigrants on noncitizen to be able to vote in school board election. The school the city of San Francisco has a responsibility, which means fully funding the immigrant collaborative at 250,000 a year for two years to get San Francisco needs to stand wrong and not just with our words, but our actions and resources to fully fund the collaborative. Thank you. Good afternoon, supervisors area and give her your time. I am the director of Youth Development at the youth council. I managed the asian Youth Prevention Services program. It began in 1987, a consortium of asianpacific islander associations including j cyc community center, and the vietnamese Youth Development center. We are proud to have been a pioneer for sub abuse prevention versus for the community not only in San Francisco, but across the country. As we face an increasing number of low income ati families in the city, i am asking you to support 240,000 to restore the much needed services to the citys most vulnerable children, youth and families area thank you. Good afternoon, supervisors and members of the committee. I am one of the Program Managers area do we have a partnership with asian Youth Prevention Services and i come here today to request review of the budgeting process for the asian youth Prevention Service for the year of 2,0192020, and also which should be allocated to the department of children youth and families. Sorry. We asked that you acknowledge [inaudible] the one that will be impacted by this funding would be our families and the student. Which api students make up 40 of the district the islander committee has been riddled with violent, Mental Health issues and drugs. [inaudible] we are taking positive steps in the right direction by not only supporting our youth and helping families, stronger connectedness in the families, more support around Family Communication and building up their families in our communities. And also with our culture. We know some of the values that we possess in our culture will help out our young youth. [inaudible] i know that is one of the bigger things. By restoring the services or our community it would build skills, leadership skills, communication, Mental Health awareness to better help our communities and have a better outcome in the future. Thank you. Good afternoon, supervisors area my name is debbie, i am the associate director for the asian Youth Prevention Services grant at the jeffers unit Japanese Community council. I was a College Intern at a y ps and before that a high school participant. This program has been a part of my life for over 13 years now. The asian Youth Prevention Services graham is much more than just a sub than use prevention program. I cannot put a price on the amount of support i received from account orders and peers as a heist participant. The tools and skills i learned from this program helped me make healthy decisions, and succeed. I believe in this program, that is why am here. I believe prevention work makes a Lasting Impact on a young person. As the cities api population continues to grow, program like the asian Youth Prevention Services provides a safe and welcoming face needed for youth from our most honorable communities. I hope that many more young people will be given the opportunity to be a part of the grant. And on their behalf i am urging you all to support the full amount of the asian Youth Prevention Services request area thank you for your time. Next speaker, please. Good afternoon, supervisors. Thank you so much for having this opportunity for us to provide public comment. My name is lori, and i am the health and Wellness Program manager at the vietnamese Youth Development center. We are also a heart of the asian youth inventions services consortium. I am here today to speak on behalf of not just the contortions, not just the organization that i work for, but as a southeast asian, one youth in such high risk, as well as on behalf of the youth that we serve here. Growing up as a cambodian immigrant, in a town where we were almost always forgotten about. I somehow miraculous the made it out of the juvenile Justice System runs. I made it out of avoiding teen pregnancy. I graduated high school. I cannot speak on behalf of my peers without the same scenarios. Many of them are now grandparent. They are in the prison and the juvenile Justice System for their children, and so, so many southeast asians have fallen through the cracks, and growing up, there were not any program that offered services prioritizing asian youth. Services that are not only culturally responsive but linguistically. I cannot trust the power to be able to provide Prevention Services that are culturally and linguistically appropriate for our young people, in navigating a city that is so new to them, and with pressure from society, and parents, and schools. I can speak to the power of the return on this invest. I urge you to please consider our request. Thank you very much. Next speaker, please. Good afternoon supervisors, my name is cindy tran. Im a supervisor at the asian Youth Development center. I want to become behalf of the youth that i work with. Being a part of the rh1 we do a lot of programming with Community Health programs to get and to get accepted into Great Schools and colleges and create their own journeys. But, this is like having these services gave them a stepping down to be exposed to how to become a community leader. These Immunity Health Readership Program give them the ability to talk and share it dances living in the tenderloin, growing up as an immigrant and also being a part of a low income working class background. Things that they can share with their ears and build community with. I feel like these pogroms, right, not only do they help them navigate life also feel more confident with them else. In addition to that, learn about the history, and how to gauge a better environment for the community. Throughout these program i have my youth conduct interviews with Community Members, and they have done Great Community organizing work area i am so proud. However, we have been working under to be intentional with this work we do with our youth, knowing they are the future, i believe i really hope that you support this to provide more funding for our consortium in order to to need to do this work area thank you. Thank you. Next speaker. Good afternoon everyone. Im a family educator from the youth center. We collaborated with the rh1 consortium to provide Substance Abuse and resilience. Over the years, providing services to multilingual families our consortium has received recognition for achieving youth and families throughout sentences go. Serving populations including api low income families, immigrant and families surrounding Mental Health issues to get the asian Youth Prevention Services has under age drinking among api, strength and bond and families to learning inventive parenting skills area for an, many of our immigrant families fill disconnected and have issues communicating with children growing up in the United States get bringing parents on their children closer and strengthening the relationship. Asian Youth Prevention Services was not an available resource it would be a devastating loss in our community. For us to continue to providing this critical service, we are here to ask the board of supervisors to support the asian Youth Prevention Services consortium, 240,000 in the budget. Thank you so much for your time. Good afternoon, supervisors. My name is vanessa reynolds. I am representing the Theater Center which is the bay areas premier lgbt q plus petersons 1881. I am here today to respectively asked in addition to all of the important issues put before you today that you add Art Education to your priorities get the theater has brought free health and wellness education plays to students, in the San Francisco unified School District for over 30 years. At that time, they have served over half a Million Students as an inch addition of San Franciscos health curriculum. Youth aware serves are the 19,000 k12 students annually and supports teachers and administrators by reinforcing the health curriculum. This program is part of us these requirement under Education Code 519344 hiv prevention education, including a section about body image, gender, and sexual orientation. Its offered at no cost to all participating San Francisco schools read we served 14,00769 student during 84 shows up 49 was in the sf ufc. On the importance of diversity to the cities next veneration area please help us create a more effective sentences will [inaudible] you so much for your time. Yay technology. I am Jennifer Walsh and im the abilities integrator for the Community Living Campaign Area at the Community Living campaign we help build this wheels and tools needed to have a good life. We create community all around temperance is the in unique ways. We believe everyone has their own gift with the out works of neighbors and friend to communities so they can be there for each other, plus have fun and be more active together. To have the ability to give back to our community. The community has to be physically, emotionally and psychological. We are beginning with physical act as. All about making simple issues fixable by shining light on them so people can have the power to fix them. While our new campaign is eating construction areas more accessible for more abilities, we are targeting the block between mission and market. Everyone is welcome to our next meeting on july 9 at 12 pm teen 63 mission, fifth floor. Thank you for your time. Thank you. Good afternoon, supervisors im here to talk about the housing for the homeless, for families, for use, for elderly and disabled. Be sure that we get housing for all of these categories, okay . In support of. Thank you. Good afternoon, i am a member of senior and disability action team. I am here to request support for the budget, that is the senior operating city submitted by supervisor tran11. Also the Senior Housing subsidy. Thank you. [speaking native language] good afternoon my name is guadalupe a. Thank you for giving me a few minutes of your time. I am here because i am supporting the fight for the sub the. This fight is for us to have a better life. About 1. 5 years i was evicted. [speaking native language] and its really hard after living in in place for 14 years, and paying rent, that actually i was merely able to afford. Speak because [speaking native language] i know how a person suffers because we dont want to leave from a city that we made our city. [speaking native language] i know in your hand, lays a big responsibility. To take Big Decisions for the city. Okay, let me. I hope you guys continue to support, and guide you to make the best decision so you can continue to help us with subsidies to make our life better. Because [speaking native language] i know there is a lot of asked today, and i regard i pray god that he will enlighten you so you can make the best decision. Thank you. Hi. Good afternoon. My name is mina, on the interim executive director of the San Francisco Suicide Prevention. The only 24 hour crisis hotline in San Francisco. We literally save lives through the hotline, manned by a staff and 200 volunteers that dedicate over 200 hours per year to answer san franciscans in crisis area San Francisco is an unusual city and out the Golden Gate Bridge also lives here. It really attracts the highest suicide rate in the western hemisphere because of that. As i walked into the 57yearold agency i saw that our building was at risk. Which would mean the collapse of a or City Infrastructure for Mental Health. We were funded, over 25 years ago to receive about 2000 called. In reality we are receiving 70,000 calls a year. As the city has grown, and as Suicide Awareness has really used area we receive about 580,000 from the city currently and it has remained flat for the last 25 years to get i discovered while fundraising has been robust math organization, we really need to offset the Operational Foundation of the organization that has been compromised and not sustainable for over five years. Our call center is jimmied together. We really want the board of supervisors, today, to know that we know the city is reasonable. We have had multiple conversations with the department of health. With a lot of the leadership transition we have not had much leverage increasing the base. I want you to know that to 35 of our callers are homeless or at high risk of eviction. 20 of our callers thank you. Next speaker. Hello, my name is robin and i might isolate count or at San Francisco Suicide Prevention. In 1. 5 years i have taken 681 calls from people contemplating suicide. This is a story for my first volunteering, donating the rest of a young girl just 18 years old. She said she did not want to be saved, but just wanted somebody to talk to. Within 10 minutes, i was able to connect with her will to live, and get her to collaborate in her own rest. Something that our lien specialized in in one i kept her talking while we collaborated with San Francisco though dispatch and we tried to collaborate for paramedics to arrive on site. This was difficult as she was wondering the street lost and confused rate it was hard to pinpoint her exact location. 45 minutes went by and she continued to take those because she thought nobody cared enough to come. Ultimately we were able to find her, and save her life. This is a much closer call than it needed to be. Our 20yearold technology, and limited staffing slowed our ability to identify her location and relay that critical information to dispatch. With proper funding, we would be able to update our core infrastructure. Enable a higher level of ordination with the city, during complex rest like these to get those Emergency Services and have a collective duty to do all that we can for this young woman, who has her whole life ahead of her and the many others like her. I look forward to you supporting San Francisco Suicide Prevention by fully funding our request. Thank you. My name is amelia, on the Development Coordinator with San Franciscos Suicide Prevention. I first came to in 2016 because i had my own asked answers with a suicide. I attempted suicide as a teenager in high will, definite undergrad in college. I struggled with over the decades that i grew up with very strict parents who emigrated from mexico. Traditional values taught me to work hard to try to pull myself rate even though they loved, they did not teach me how to take care of myself. I know within communities of color, Mental Health can be extremely stigmatized. More so than the general population. And so, at times, i felt exhaust, defeated. I am here, i lived. I ended up calling a Crisis Center the next time i felt overwhelmed. I realize that people were out there who cared. People like us here. They wanted to help, and offered support and ultimately that is what got me through. Now i want to be that person for especially to include in their budget two expiring programs from our members which include Language Support Services for the tenderloin Arab Community which will serve over 100 middle women, and the Asian Youth Services which will serve over 450 students. We hope that the board can restore these two programs. Thank you. Chair fewer thank you. Next speaker, please. Good afternoon, supervisors. My name is sarah wong. Im the executive director of Community Youth center, c. Y. C. Today, i would like to request the supervisors to consider funding the program at San Francisco International High school. This is a school where it has about 360 students are 100 new immigrant students who reside in the United States less than four years and only english learners. The students have a high need for connective services, and also tutoring and other support, so we really hope we can have this funding as we support students from San Francisco International High school. The other school i want to bring to your attention is African American middle school. We only funded for to serve 153 students, so were serving 53 more students every day because of the need of the school, with almost 50 of the students receiving free and reduced lunch and about 56 of students more that need service there. We also would like to expand our current senior martial arts training program. [inaudible] chair fewer thank you. Next speaker. So the Domestic Violence consortium is here to the city has made a great investment over the years, and it is deeply appreciated, but to keep the services and staff at the ready, we are going to need more investment. I know that 1. 3 sounds like a lot, but we are here representing 39 programs, some of which you will hear from today. Thats only 39,000 per program. Several communities are so at risk. We are so concerned about our transgender sisters. Please continue the citys commitment to saving lives in San Francisco. We have reduced homicides. When i started, it was 10 or 15 women and sometimes their children per year, now, 1 or 2 are still tragedies, but its a reduction. Help us keep this trend going. Continue to support these services. Theyre vital. People are counting on them. Thank you so much. Good afternoon, supervisors. My name is ben, and today, im speaking on behalf of the Chinese Culture center in above of art and culture. The Chinese Culture center is a supporter of the asian culture. The Chinese Culture center is art and Culture Center of our community. Our survey shows that most of our visitors earn 40,000 or less annually. They have never been to the opera, ballet, symphony or other programs, but they do come to enjoy world class performances at the chinatown festival and dancing on waverley. This turns the underutilized spaces in our community into livly music and dance halls that bring free, unique and diverse programming to the more than 26,000 lowincome and underserved individuals and their families who might otherwise not have access to these kinds of high quality performances. We therefore ask for investment in the Chinatown Community for the chinatown musikfest value and dance Music Festival and dancing on waverley. We want to thank you and thank you to the community for listening to this. Good afternoon, supervisors. My name is Alicia Justin cook, and im a victim rights attorney of the cooperative restraining order clinic. We assist Domestic Violence and sexual Abuse Victims to keep themselves and their children safe. I know that youre already aware of the connections between Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault, and homelessness. Domestic violence is a contributing factor for 1 in 4 homeless women. Domestic violence victims suffer from homelessness because they may have flee. Their abusive partners may force them to quit their jobs or their physical or Mental Health issues resulting from the Domestic Violence may led to loss of employment. Unfortunately housing and stablity in turn puts survivors at risk for more victimization. Homeless women experience much higher rates of special assault than women with housing, and when there is no safe place for a survivor to go, theyre more likely to return to the partner who perpetrated the violence against them. Im confident that San Francisco can become a model for how to effectively address homelessness. We are grateful that as you address the issue of homelessness, you will continue to consider how the citys Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault agencies are also addressing this issue. We appreciate your continued budgetary support as we Work Together to support the most vulnerable members of our community and to keep Domestic Violence survivors and their children housed in safety and stability. Thank you. Good afternoon, supervisors. My name is mary rivers, and i am here representing district 6 and tenderloin. I address my comments to all of you. In regards to the new city budget we are asking you to support job readiness and Tech Training programs that are offered in the tenderloin and soma. We offer this to all city residents. Our programs are rarely funded and sometimes overlooked in this process. We operate at mal