. >> good afternoon, good morning. if we could all get settled and all get seated in. good morning. my name is marisa williams, and on behalf of the african american historical society i'd like to welcome you to our 2018 black history month kickoff celebration. this year's national -- i'll wait. this year's national theme as established by the association of the study of african american history is african americans in times of war. this theme honors those african americans who have fought in wars dated as early as world war i. it also recognizes those african americans who have been iconic and revolutionary in the struggle for skbru struggle for justice in america. now as a planning committee we decided to expand on the national theme and say african americans in times of war are a resilient spirit. since coming to america, african americans have had to embody a sense ofri sill yep see in order to succeed. from wars over seas to the struggle of day-to-day life in america, african americans have had to be resilient. our program will demonstrate that spirit african americans have had to embody. now, before we get started, there are some very important individuals and groups that we have to beiacknowledge. i please ask you to hold your applause until the very end. first of all, if there are any veterans here today, with he'd like to is you for your service to your country. second, i'd like to give a huge thank you to my planning committee who met with me every once to plan for this event. without you, i would not be standing up here today. lastly, we'd like to thank our sponsors. to prologis, thank you very much. representing them today, we have kristina john so i. >> director rahaim: and gentlemen -- johnson and. now to get kicked off. i'm going to invite reverend larry chapman to deliver the invocation. following that, we'll since the negro national anthem. aft you'll find the words in your program today. after the singing of the negro national anthem, i ask you to give a moment of silence for mayor ed lee. thank you all, and i hope you enjoy our program this morning. >> to all the distinguished s dignitiaries, honorable elected officials, youngest leaders, and people of this great sanctuary city of san francisco, it is with great honor and privilege that i stand before you today on this occasion of the kickoff ceremony of black history month. i have always said that black history is really world history because the struggle as we are learning in these current times embraces all peoples, all races, all genders, all sexual orientations, and all generations. to that end, we must celebrate the resilience we observe in all of us to fight for what we believe is right. common goodwill always lead us all to common ground. it is with that that we bow or heads as community today in prayer. all mighty god, mother and creator and sustainer of all, we thank you for waking us up this morning and clothing us with your love. we thank you, god, because you didn't have to do it, but you did. as we prepare for this great celebration today, as we gather in solidarity and grace, we recall your promise to be present when we gather in your name. we know that without you here among us and within us, we will labor in vain. the third principle of kwunzaa means collective work and responsibility and quietly becomes a hallmark for the resilience black people have come to understand and believe in. this celebration of black history month becomes a recognition that while we have come a long way, we set our sights on higher ground. we rejoice that we come together in your name, that we have this opportunity to serve you and our fellow men and women and grow in our community building. inspire in us seeds of wisdom, inspire us in our hearts and minds, give us humility in working with one another so that we know of the coming of your kingdom. may the communion we experience show in all that we do for you. father we ask that we be open to respect each other, to listen to each other, to be supportive of each other for of sake of your kingdom. come, fill us, fill our lives with your love, fill our conversations with your grace and truth. fill this gathering with your presence. we ask this for your glory and your praise. let all the people of god say amen. >> will everybody please stand. ♪ with every voice i sing, ring with the harmonies of liberty. ♪ let our rejoicing rise high to the glistening skies, let it sound as loud as the rolling sea. ♪ sing a song full of the faith hope that the present has brought us. ♪ facing the rising sun of our new days begun, let us march onto victory is won. ♪ show me the road we trod. bitter the chastening road. built in the days when hope unborne had died. yet with the setting piece, have not our weary feet come to the place for which our fathers died. ♪ we have come over a way that with tears have been watered. ♪ we have come, treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered. ♪ out from the gloomy past till now we stand at last where the white gleam of our bright star is cast. ♪ god of our weary years, god of our silent tears, thou who has brought us up, far and away. ♪ god who has by thy might, let us ensue the light. ♪ keep us forever in the past, we pray. ♪ bless our feet straight from the places, our got where we met thee. ♪ bless our hearts, drunk with the wine of the world we forget thee. ♪ shadow beneath thy head, may we forever stand true to our god, true to our native land. [applause]. >> thank you. >> please remain standing for a moment of silence in remembrance of mayor ed lee. thank you. you may be seated. i'm al williams, president of the board of director of the san francisco african american historical society, and i'd like to join marisa in welcoming you here, as well. for many years, it's been customary for us to have opening remarks from the mayor and the board of supervisors. for the past seven years, mayor lee was with us for the black history kickoff on every occasion. in keeping with that tradition, we will have brief welcoming remarks from the mayor, mark farrell, from board of supervisors president london breed and district ten supervisor, malia cohen. mr. mayor? >> thank you, al, for that introduction and thank you to the african american historical society for continuing to help lead this celebration. today in san francisco and inside of city hall is a day to celebrate the contributions of the african american society? san francisco. this month, we celebrate the proud history of fearless and courageous activism while acknowledging the fight for justice is far from over. the african american community has built a very strong foundation in our city, and we continue to play an integral role in shaping the future. from board president london breed to supervisor cohen, to naomi kelley, to the countless teachers, and muni workers, we will continue top rely on the african american community to move our city forward. thank you to you, our city family, and all of the committee members who are here supporting this great event today. thank you, everyone. [applause] >> now we'll hear welcoming remarks from the president of the board of supervisors london breed. >> the hon. l. breed: thank you, everyone. thank you so much for that warm welcome. you know, it's an honor to be here today to celebrate black history month and the kickoff to what will happen throughout the city and county of san francisco for the rest of this month. and i want to start by telling you all, i look into this audience, and i see people i went to high school with, i see folks i grew up with, and i see my community. i see my friends, i see my family members, i see my loved ones. you are the people who help raise me and shaped me to lead this city. you are the people who instilled in me the kind of values that a leader should have: good, moral decent values. and as president of the board of supervisors, as previously acting mayor, and hopefully, as future mayor, i will take everything -- [applause]. >> the hon. l. breed: i will take everything that you instilled in me to make this city a better place. we can't let what happened last week in san francisco tear us do you object. -- down. we have to move forward because we are a resilient people, and we are a stronger people because of it, and we will get through this coming together, working together, fighting together. that's what this month is about. it's a history of the challenges of the past that led us here today and the hope and the promise of a better future. and as a member of the board of supervisors, we have worked so hard to do some amazing things, and one of the things that i am so proud of when i first became a member of the board is working together with supervisor cohen, with reverend brown and the delta sigma theta to get that housing legislation passed to make sure that affordable housing is prioritized for the residents that live in those neighborhoods. [applause]. >> the hon. l. breed: just imagine how many more african americans would still be living in san francisco had we done that legislation years ago. just imagine the power of our community when we rise up and we work together. we will not go quietly in the night, we will stand strong and be proud, and we will continue to do all we can in this city to make sure that people know we are still here, and we still matter. so yes, there are a lot of things that we can celebrate. we have some amazing african american leaders in the city and county of san francisco. al williams, the head of the african american historical and cultural society, he's passing his torch to his daughter, marisa, who will lead the historical society into the future. we have to cultivate the next generation of leaders, and we're going to do that with groups like project level, who will be performing for you today. but the work is not done. we can't sit back and think it's great that we had barack obama as our president and we should be happy and content because look at what we have now in washington d.c. look at what's happening to our country. we have a leader of our country who is trying to tear us apart, and that is what is going to bring us together. we have to work harder, now more than ever. the urgency of now is such -- such -- so much more important than it has ever been before because we are seeing, sadly, some of those same issues play out right here in our great city and county of san francisco. i love san francisco. i'm a native daughter of this city. i will continue to fight for all of its residents. and no, i'm nobody's slave. no while man millionaire slave, so let's set the record straight: slavery is over. slavery is over. it's time for a new day in the city and county of san francisco. do not fear black leadership. do not fear black leadership. we are not about dividing people, we are about bringing people together, and as mayor, i will continue to do all i can to make sure that my door is open for rich people, for poor people, for black people, for white people. that's what a real leader is, opening our door to make all in our city work together. i will continue to do that. i feel grateful and honored to be a part of this amazing celebration. thank you all and have a wonderful day. [applause]. >> and now, supervisor malia cohen, district ten. >> supervisor cohen: thank you. well, ladies and gentlemen, if that's not mayoral, i don't know what is. happy black history month to you all. make some noise. make some noise so they know that we are in here. [applause]. >> supervisor cohen: standup, get on your feet so they know that we are here and we're not leaving. the time is now. the time is now. we are at an urgent point in our history. not just here in san francisco but across this entire country. if you haven't felt that call to action yet, you've been asleep. this is your wake up call. we must stay woke, we must stay vigilant, and we must stay ready at all times. are you ready? good. i want to recognize leaders that are in this room and with us today. and i've got to tell you, as i get older and older, black history month starts to mean more and more. those words in the black negro anthem that we sang, all four stanzas mean more and more than they did when i was a girl growing up in san francisco. for a long time, i could never understand why reverend brown wanted us to sing all four stanzas, and now, i know. when you get older, you see some things. you live some things, you experience some things, and you see injustice, and those words remind us where we have come from, and it focuses us on the future of where we must go. so stay woke and stay ready. i want to recognize my colleagues on the board of supervisors. we've got supervisor yee, we've got supervisor sandy fewer. we've got our public defender, we've got our district attorney, george gascon. we've got alex randolph from the community college board trustee. i also want to lift up and welcome shimon walters from the school board, former president. let's see...i don't think i'm missing any other elected. of course our sheriff, vickie hennessey who stands with us. i want to recognize our fire chief, our police chief. we've got judge jackson in the house. we've got commissioner eric -- last name, i forgot. it doesn't matter. i love him. sorry -- remember, i was talking about getting older? i just can't remember. want to also recognize karen roy who's also joining us. thank you, karen. and of course, we cannot forget the kelleys. we've got harlan kelley. want to recognize theo miller, who's keeping hope alive, making sure that folks in public housing get housing and jobs. all rig all right. i've gone down my list, and there's a whole host, a whole host of community members that are here. i just want to take one moment of silence to recognize those community members that we have lost who have made that great transition. if we could just bow or heaur for a moment of silence. all right. thank you. and now, we raise our hands and we standup on our feet and we get ready to fight. my name is malia cohen, and i love you. thank you very much. [applause]. >> thank you, supervisor cohen. that takes half of my job up. there are a couple of other people. there's -- commissioner joe marshall is here with us from the police commission, and i think there are a few other people that will -- i'm sorry? i'm sorry. a couple of judges, lillian sing and judge burrell. glad to have you all with us. thank you so much for being here with us this afternoon. i would also like to mention -- one of the things, you know, when you do something like this, there's always something that's left out. i want to just mention a couple of people that were left out in addition to the committee for making this happen. ginger smiley, who is a sponsor of this event, we inadvertently left her name off the program. ginger's a real trojan and our hero four or efforts. also want to acknowledge the mayor's office of neighborhood services, derrick brown. he's been here working with us. cheryl davis from the human rights commission has worked with us. san francisco public library, luis herrera and all of his people over there have been tremendous assets as well in terms of putting this program together. with that, we will now have the project level will come and provide -- these wonderful young ladies from project level will come and provide some entertainment for us. a . >> hello, everyone. my name is chloe young, and i thank everyone for coming. let's give a hand for malia cohen and london breed again. i work with project level and for those of you who don't know what project level is, we're an organization where we teach our students in music, fashion, dance, film, photography, and production, and for us today to be here it's an honor, so i want to thank you all for letting us be a part of this moment here today, and without further ado, i would like to introduce our project level dance artists. thank you. >> hi. my name is marina. i'm 15 and i go to john co o'connell. >> hi. my name is robin, and i'm 14, and i go to john o'connell. >> and my name is malia, and i'm 15, and i go to john o'connell. [ students rapping and singing ] [applause] >> they will be back later in the program, wonderful project level. two of the quick things i need to mention -- i get shot if i don't acknowledge these people. we have joyce armstrong and liola dan with the public housing tenants association. here, pastor aurelius walker from bayview true hope church of christ. another mistake in the program states that i will be introducing the key note speaker. that is not true. marisa williams will be introducing the key note speaker. >> so i asked my dad last night if i could introduce dr. fisher, and i'm beyond honored to do so. she is the chair of africana studies at san francisco state university. her impact on and contribution to education is recognized nationally. her ability to excite, empower and educate her audience made her a no brainer to ask her to come be our key note speech today. i'm elated to be able to invite such a phenomenal black woman to this stage today to deliver our key note address. so without further ado, please help me in giving a big round of applause for dr. fisher. [applause]. >> i am moved. i see all of you here. i'm so excited to see so many familiar faces. i want to keep us on time, so i'm going to give you a short message, but i also want to hear a little bit from you all before we get started. can i hear -- you have, at any moment in time passed through the campus of san francisco state university, can i just hear a little from you. [applause]. i see you. and my son included, i see all the students here today, our college students, our high school students, if you are able and willing, please stand, starting with all the way in the back. can we give it up for our students in the room. [applause] >> and all the veterans, all the leaders, we see you. and that's what this is about today, leadership during wartime. we are the tomorrow people, the people who could fly. we are survivors. yes, virginia hamilton and know we're excited. i'm going to say that one more time. we are the tomorrow people, the people who could fly. we are survivors. for centuries, african americans have brought the message through art and action. to put it in vernacular, we don't just talk about it, we be about it, and we stay woke. throughout this month, the san francisco african american historical and cultural society emphasizes events and opportunities to explore our resilient spirit as we cannot african americans in times of war. please, this is our kickoff, and we will be meatieting on sundays at moab. we will continue to improve our resilient spirit in times of war. this month we revisit the wars our annecestors joins, but we visit them for the fight to freedom, and freedom of all. a noble effort from the revolutionary war, the civil war, world war i, world war ii, all the wars that are continuously going on and labelled by our state, and lesser wars, like the war on drugs, the war on equitiable education, the war on housing, and more. indeed, we are never not in a time of war, yet we fight on many fronts simultaneously. and yes, we thrive. we bring messages to masses through music, entrepreneurial innovations, and civic engagement like voting and making the freedom we want. not just for us, for us and everyone. again, a noble humanistic achievement. to list just a few of our achievements for global freedom and peace, let us reflect on that what we have achieved for us and everyone, not limited to access to public education, an equity lens and public education, increased degree completion and economic success, and much, much more. african americans consistently invest in education and access to that which proves sustained impact and improvement for all. be it marry mccloud berthune, or may aangelou, the people in this room, we see you, too. we founded the discipline of black studies. i see you, the veterans, the people who were here 50 years ago and have continued to be here, who were on our campus in spring 2016. you have kept this movement going. and why do black studies matter in our moment, in our time as we reflect on our resilient spirit at a time of war? because we must educate the soldiers. without knowledge of self-there is no progress, and those of you in this room, i can see we're part of what made it possible. the department of black and africana studies at the department of san francisco state university was the first department in the united states and it was the first of a discipline, a global discipline. [applause]. >> again, a noble and humanistic effort. i want to bring a few examples to share what we've been doing over the past 50 years. the legacies -- and i want to share this as an example because this is something -- this is one of the many things that san francisco -- this is one of the many things that san francisco brought not only to our city but to the world. so why does black study matter? well, we helped emphasize this thing called chaired governance and equity lens, and if i have to bring it up, black lives matter. yes, in addition to the people in the room today, some of the people that you may know that have come through as faculty and staff as san francisco, include angela davis, erica walker, wade noble, alicia garza, and danny glover. our role in the activists of the future, sustaining scholars and opportunities for better life is an example of a better life. people often say to me as chair of the department that milennials only care about themselves. not true. you see that from today and you see that from the student sitting next to you, and it's not just doing it on your own, we're doing it in partnership. we're reaching back to move struggle. this is how we win. we know that the converse of war is peace. histo i i want to hear you say, this is how we win. this is how we win. this is how we win. thank you. [applause]. >> thank you so much. thank you so much for that wonderful presentation, those inspiring thoughts, and on behalf of the society, the committee, we'd like -- [ inaudible ] thank you very much. okay. in your program booklet, there is a page that talks about other events, and this is a listing of other activities. in the program and booklet, there's a list of other events that are going to be occurring at the societies involved in working with -- that we really encourage you to participate in and support going forward. these are a lot of hard work is going into putting these programs together and i think they'll be outstanding things that you'll enjoy. in addition to that -- let's say, let's give another round of applause to dr. fisher, and let's say this is how we win. this is how we win. this is how we win, that's going to be our mantra going forward. and with that, we are going to have another number by project level to see us on the way out of the door, but again, we wanted to thank you all for being here today. it's been a wonderful program. we've had -- enjoyed it, and i hope you've enjoyed it and appreciated it. i'd like to, before we go, acknowledge the members of the board. drst phil-hossl dr. phil hoskins is here, fanny preston, devares cameron. let's give the members of the society a round of applause. oh, ginger reminds me that the society of a membership based institution. we are open to membership towards those who want to work towards documenting and preserving the history of african americans in san francisco. would all of the people in the room who are members of the society please raise your hand. okay. all these people are memory bef the society, so all of you who didn't raise your hand, take your program out and your pen out, fill it out and before you leave, pass it out to ginger -- engine ginger rogers? -- ginger smiley, and we'd like to have your improvement in the program. with that, i'm being ushered out. with that, the next generation pushing me off the stage. we'd like to have project level close out with a final number, and thank you all again for being here. again, project level. [ rap music playing ] [applause] >> thank you all, enjoy the rest of black history month. . >> working for the city and county of san francisco will immerse you in a vibrate and dynamic city on sfroert of the art and social change we've been on the edge after all we're at the meeting of land and sea world-class style it is the burn of blew jeans where the rock holds court over the harbor the city's information technology xoflz work on the rulers project for free wifi and developing projects and insuring patient state of at san francisco general hospital our it professionals make guilty or innocent available and support the house/senate regional wear-out system your our employees joy excessive salaries but working for the city and county of san francisco give us employees the unities to contribute their ideas and energy and commitment to shape the city's future but for considering a career with the city and county of san francisc. >> my name is naomi kelly the single-story for the 775 i started with the city and county in 1996 working for the newly elected mayor willie brown, jr. not only the chief of staff a woman but many policy advisors that were advising him everyday their supportive and nourished and sponsored united states and excited about the future. >> my name is is jack listen and the executive director of a phil randolph institution our goal to have two pathways to sustaining a family here in san francisco and your union jobs are stroen to do that i have this huge way to work with the community members and i think i found my calling i started in 1996 working for willie brown, jr. i worked in he's mayor's office of housing in the western edition and left 3 years went to law school of san francisco state university and mayor brown asked me to be the director of the taxicab commission and through the process i very much card by the contracting process and asked me townhouse the city purchaser and worked with me and i became the deputy administrator and . >> having trouble struggling to make ends meet folks will not understand what importance of voting is so we decided to develop our workforce development services after a couple of years offering pathways to sustainable jobs. >> (clapping.) >> we've gotten to a place to have the folks come back and have the discussion even if participation and makes sense we do public services but we also really build strong communities when i started this job my sons were 2 and 5 now 9 and 6 i think so the need to be able to take a call from the principal of school i think that brings a whole new appreciation to being understanding of the work life balance. >> (clapping.) >> i have a very good team around me we're leader in the country when it comes to paid and retail and furiously the affordable-care act passed by 3079 we were did leaders for the healthcare and we're in support of of the women and support. >> in my industry i feel that is male dominated a huge struggle to get my foot in the door and i feel as though that definitely needs to change this year needs to be more opportunities for i don't know women to do what tell me dream i feel that is important for us to create a in fact, network of support to young people young women can further their dreams and most interested in making sure they have the full and whatever they need to make that achieveable. >> education is important i releases it at my time of san mateo high ii come back to the university of san francisco law school and the fact i passed the bar will open up many more doors because i feel a curve ball or an where you can in the way can't get down why is this in my way we have to figure out a solution how to move forward we can't let adversity throw in th >> they tend to come up here and drive right up to the vehicle and in and out of their car and into the victim's vehicle, i would say from 10-15 seconds is all it takes to break into a car and they're gone. yeah, we get a lot of break-ins in the area. we try to -- >> i just want to say goodbye. thank you. >> sometimes that's all it takes. >> i never leave anything in my car. >> we let them know there's been a lot of vehicle break-ins in this area specifically, they target this area, rental cars or vehicles with visible items. >> this is just warning about vehicle break-ins. take a look at it. >> if we can get them to take it with them, take it out of the cars, it helps.

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