, this january 8th, 2019 inaugural meeting of the san francisco board of supervisors will come to order. we will begin with the roll call for attendance, pursuant to the role and we will begin at the top of the alphabet. [roll call] [laughter] [cheers and applause] [roll call] [cheers and applause] [cheers and applause] [roll call] [cheers and applause] [roll call] >> we have a quorum. most members are present. [laughter] will the newly elected and continuing members, and all gas in the chamber, please stand for the pledge of allegiance -- and all guests in the chamber, please stand for the pledge of allegiance. [pledge of allegiance] >> thank you ladies and gentlemen. to communicate the predictor his credentials, the office of the court of the board is in the receipt of the certificates of election which are being handed out to the newly elected members who received the majority of votes cast at the election held on november 6th, 2018, and additionally we are in receipt of the controller's official certification of the surety bond and they have been met. namely, and in district order, for representing district two, catherine stefani, representing district four, gordon mar, representing district six, matt haney. [cheers and applause] >> representing district eight rafael mandelman. [cheers and applause] >> and representing district ten , schumann walton. and now to the oath of office. i would like to introduce a fourth-generation san franciscan who grew up just ten blocks from city hall. the honorable presiding judge, garrett al wong of the superior court of california for the county of san francisco who will present the oath of office to our newly elected members. judge wong? >> thank you. [indiscernible] >> happy new year and happy day. >> we are here to witness and celebrate the swearing in of five new supervisors who stood for election last year, and are about to begin their new terms for districts two, four, six, eight and ten. i think we need a cheer there. [cheers and applause] >> and is a fourth-generation san franciscan i am deeply honored to administer the oath of office to those who are so committed to serving the public good. let's get going. let us begin. i will have the supervisors of two, four, six, eight, and ten stand in the order that there district numbers are. [laughter] >> it starts left and then goes right. okay. all all right. very well. please raise your right hand, and i want you to start with catherine stefani, and repeat after me. [repeating oath] >> congratulations. [cheers and applause] >> thank you presiding judge long. before we move onto the next issue, i would like to acknowledge and thank mayor brady for being in the chamber with us today to witness the oath of office. [applause] -- mayor breed for being in the chamber with us today to witness the oath of office. [applause] >> at its meeting on the eighth day of january, in a large number of years, the board of supervisors, thereby will buy a majority vote select one of its members for a two year term. before i read the principles for the nomination, would members clear their names from the roster if there are any? okay, thank you. and you may place your name on the roster once i opened nominations. we will then take public comment on the nominations, and then we will return to general discussion of the nominations before we take the vote. as far as principals the principles are concerned for nominations, members may nominate one person. either themselves or another member. nominees stayed on the record if they accept the nomination. nominees may stay in the chamber , they do not have to leave. nominees may withdraw their own nomination without a second at any time. at the completion of nominations , nominations will be closed. the board may adopt a motion to reopen nominations with the majority vote. when nominations are reopen to, those members who have yet to nominate may nominate one, or they may withdraw their nomination and renominate another member. are there any questions on nominations? see no questions, nominations are declared open. i will call in your name as i see your name appear on the roster. supervisor fewer. >> yes, thank you. it is my honor to nominate today supervisor norman he. i have known him for many years and served with him on the board of education. when he was the only man on an almost all women board. i have always known supervisor yee to lead with integrity, thoughtfulness and deep compassion, and it has been such an honor to serve with him not only on the san francisco board of education, but also for the last two years on the san francisco board of supervisors. as a woman of color, who grew up in san francisco, as a fourth-generation san franciscan , there is no doubt in my mind that supervisor yee upholds the values that are so important to me, and to the people of san francisco, and that he will work to defend the most vulnerable communities as he has done all of his career. children, seniors, low-wage workers, women, people of color and immigrants. i believe that supervisor yee will further this collective vision through strong compassionate and steady leadership as the president of the board of supervisors. i am honored to nominate him today to serve as a president of the board of supervisors of the city and county of san francisco thank you. >> thank you supervisor fewer. supervisor viewer it has nominated supervisor yee. are there any other nominations while supervisor haney? >> i'm very proud to nominate my friend, supervisor hilary ronen. [cheers and applause] >> thank you supervisor haney. supervisor haney has nominated supervisor ronen. are there any other nominations? seeing there are no other nominations, i will close nominations. nominations are declared closed. ladies and gentlemen, at this time, you have an opportunity to speak during general public comment on the nominations, or anything related to the election , we will take general public comment for up to two minutes. if you are using interpretive assistance, you will be allowed twice the amount of time to testify. we will continue with public comment until all of the members have spoken. if you wouldn't mind, if you intend on speaking, line up to your right of the chamber near the windows, please. don't be shy. first speaker, please yes there, come on up. don't be shy. >> thank you. i am liam. i want to take this chance to thank my supervisor, gordon mar, for his support of hilary ronen. i think she is an inspiration to everyone in the city. she fights like heck for the forest and the dose the poorest and the most vulnerable people here. she has really good experience two years on the board already, and she would be the leader we need right now in city hall. thank you for everything you have done for us and our city, and thank you to my supervisor for supporting her. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> while, congratulations to all the new supervisors, my name is laurel and i am a proud member of the san francisco electoral democratic club and the bernal heights democratic club, but i'm here today to share with you the story of a fierce, highly skilled, compassionate and experienced negotiator, and her name is hilary ronen. the d9 supervisor. the district that i live in. i have seen hilary in action. when neighbors had had it with needles, feces, and trash on the doorsteps, and angrily called for the removal of the homeless encampments in front of their homes, hilary did not call in the cavalry, she organized, negotiated, and held open, transparent community meetings. hilary took personal hits, but did not let her feelings get in the way of finding a solution. she made herself available to anyone, and everyone. i am proud to say that that solution was a navigation center that culminated in a win for the neighbors and the un- housed. today supervisors, you have an opportunity to elect a fierce fighter and a highly skilled negotiator to lead the board in these challenging times. i urge you to vote for supervisor hilary ronen for board president. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. [applause] >> next speaker, please. >> good afternoon and congratulations to the new members of the board of supervisors. i am susan solomon, president of united educators of san francisco, but i'm speaking on behalf of the san francisco labor council as a delegate and a member of the executive committee. i'm speaking in favor of hilary ronen as president of the board of supervisors. she is a flawless and fierce advocate for organized labor and workers in the city of san francisco. there is nothing that we have needed through the labor council and organized labor that supervisor ronen has not done. i grew up in this city, and we always knew this as a union town , i still remember when i was in high school and the first nonunion restaurant moved into san francisco, and so we have a constant battle to keep our city union, have union jobs, good paying jobs, prevailing wages, all of that, and we see in hilary ronen and advocate for the work we need to do on behalf of the workers of san francisco. i urge you to vote for hilary ronen. thank you. [applause] >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon. can graduate just congratulations to matt haney. i want to say how happy i am that we have a super majority. i am sad this is a majority mail board and i think hilary ronen would be good mitigation for that. i said hilary supports truly affordable housing and she supports by deed and word, immigrants, transients people, artists, tenants, including those in s.r.o.s, and it is a progressive future that the people of san francisco voted for last fall. most of all, she is a kind, caring, for giving, and compassionate person, and it is a pleasure working with her and her staff on gender-neutral issues. as hers just as for supervisor yee, i have to penalty box them for -- two supporting wiener georgia anti- homeless legislation over the objection of milk clubs, and not cosponsoring gender-neutral bathrooms in s.r.o.s. he was the only person in this room not to cosponsor that. moreover, i am sick and tired of the sexism lobbed against this. >> please keep your comments formal. >> hilary wears her heart on his sleeve. she is unstable and unsuitable for this role. you have a choice. see a big f. you to sexism to elect hillary, or turn the? back to the madman era of the early to thousands when below was the norm. the world is watching. do the right thing. [applause] >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hello. i came here to tell you to do the right thing. the right thing would be to elect hilary ronen as the president of the board of supervisors. that would be the right thing for all working people in san francisco, it would be the right thing for all immigrants of san francisco. it would be the right thing for the working people of san francisco, and also it would be the right thing to have a wonderful and strong, independent, fierce, loving woman be the president while you have a good woman also being the mayor. a woman that can get san francisco fixed up, and get things done. i don't know half of you here. i usually do not come to the halls of city hall walking around and mingling with politicians but i do know hilary and i do know hilary because she made her business to come to the communities, and to, back in, if i am doing this right, or what is going on. i really need is to talk to about this. and this was from the beginning that she was elected. therefore, our community, our immigrant community in san francisco are not just the mission, this takes the support of hillary, and we want you to do the right thing today. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon. i'm executive director to supports the selection of hilary to the president's his seat. for many reasons, i think i am echoing some of what people have said and i certainly want to emphasize that hilary has always been a very good listener to the community. i've seen her many community sessions. she responds to our asks for the town halls that we are putting together around violence prevention issues, immigration rights issues, housing issues, so i think she is very versed. she is very informed about the issues that this city faces. the complex issues and i think that people have stated very clearly she has a very high commitment to progressive politics. that is who she is. she has been well a mental word in many ways through the work that she has done with other people who have held these positions, and i think i am here just to say to them, i support her, i hope that today at the end of the day, we will be calling you president hilary ronen for the board to. thank you very much. is a tough choice, i understand that, before me, it is a clear choice. thank you for delivering and taking our words into consideration. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hello. i apologize. i'm a district six residents. i wanted to speak in favor of hilary ronen for very specific reasons. every reason that has been put out to support her and also to detract for her are the reasons why we need to give her the board president see. one of the biggest reasons we need to elevate her is because tonight our president is going to a nomination where there is a huge crisis going on and we need to both of you to counteract that. i really have respect for all of our supervisors, but i do believe that hilary ronen has proven to us time and time again that she has the skill set and the support of the community needed to push us forward to. thank you so much. [applause] >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hello. today, i come here to support supervisor norman yee because for one, i know he is a very gentle and calm man, and then -- and also, i find out he is a long time community advocate and he works for working families. he is always doing something for the early educator who are often women of color. and then also -- [indiscernible] actually, we find out he is doing a lot of things for the citizens in the area. he also built up a senior center for the area. because -- [indiscernible]. >> seniors are very, very happy that they have a place to go. norman yee has done a lot of things for the people there. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> in the afternoon. my name is paul, and i just want to show that here in san francisco, we have no shortage of exceptional political leaders today we have the tremendous privilege of selecting a board president among very qualified pool of leaders in san francisco some of the best leaders that the city has to offer. i would like to add my voice and during the course of community to support hilary ronen for board president see hilary is a type of person who stops and thinks to herself, what can i do today to serve those who are hurting most among us while those who need most among us while she is a person who shows up for us every single day. she shows up for homeless families, she shows up for immigrant communities, and she shows up for public school families. we have two years left in the trump presidency. right now we have the opportunity to elect a president to a standard form and defend our values as san franciscans. we are above the double standard of awarding the ambitious men pursuing leadership and questioning ambitious -- ambitious women who are questioning leadership. hilary is qualified. she is exceptional, she is intelligent, and she will work closely with our mayor to steward the city into the next decade. i ask that you support her presence -- presidency today. >> thank you for your comment. >> good afternoon. i'm here on behalf of of the democratic club. i am the incoming president. i'm also here on behalf of the community. as a recipient to be the president of the credit club, i am here to show my strong support for supervisor hilary because i believe she has the intelligence, the initiative, and the ability to lead this board, she has the values that represent our community. i represent a vulnerable community that hasn't had a voice, and i am confident that supervisor hilary will work with mayor london breed to ensure that we are a leading san francisco towards the right direction, and she has been a strong ally, and i have worked with her myself, and i have learned a lot from her. she has a passion. especially in this climate where there is a lot of sexism, i by myself face a lot of that as a president of the democratic club , and i'm here because i believe in her potential to lead , and her initiative, and her passion, the progressive movement and allies should empower more women to lead and should empower more women to be the face of the movement. it's about time, and it is the 21st century. women are capable. we get the job done, so thank you for your consideration. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hello everyone. i am with the san francisco latino democratic club, and first of all i like to thank each and every one of you for the opportunity to speak here today. it is exciting to see a progressive supermajority on the board of supervisors for the first time in a really long time many of you have personal relationships with me and i ask you to keep the movement in mind we need a supervisor who will no longer be satisfied with the status quo and push the envelope for more progressive policies and benefit the most marginalized communities. there is no leader better equipped than my supervisor, hilary ronen. or ties the community are deep. she listens, his thoughtful, and thinks of the greater community. she will take these values as board president. it is good to have a leader who will keep all the testosterone in check. without, i ask you to support hilary ronen for board president thank you. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hello. i am born and raised in san francisco, a former nonprofit a/d. i work with the democratic club. i am a home girl from the mission, and hilary ronen is my supervisor. i'm very proud of that. i'm getting emotional, sorry. i'm very proud of that because of the fact that we needed a supervisor, and we needed to continue to have a supervisor who would be responsive to our needs as a working-class community, is a community that is being displaced every minute of the day. when people criticize being passionate, i'm passionate, and i don't find that as a negative. it is a positive. i want people to work with their hearts. i don't need them to work -- i need them to obviously work with their intellectual side, but i want to work them don't have them work with their hearts because at the end of the day, the most impactful work will be done with the hearts. i'm also very upset that we are critiquing a woman's leadership style, and i think that is quite embarrassing for our safety. i will and was saying roof just ruth bader ginsburg said, when is it enough, when is it enough for people to be their? i say that to you today. when is it enough? it won't be enough until all women are supervisors, board president, and as we have right now, to our mayor. i urge you guys to vote for hilary ronen as board president. the communities asking for it. she is a board president the city deserves. thank you for your time. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: good afternoon to everybody. i am here representing district nine in support of hilary ronen, our supervisor. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: supervisor ronen is distinguished by integrity, justice, i'm sorry -- [speaking spanish] >> integrity and justice. i'm sorry. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: i'm here to be very proud to be able to speak in support of the half of hilary ronen, because she does this work with a lot of heart, and she does it for our community. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: and she not only fights with integrity, she fights for justice and social justice and equity [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: she is more than able to meet the duties of being president on the board. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: we need a supervisor like her who is a mother, daughter, a wife, and who fights for issues in the community, particularly, environmental issues. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: i am here not only to support hilary, but i support the fact that she is leading and fighting for women and for social justice. thank you [speaking spanish] >> next speaker, please. >> good afternoon. my name is christopher, i am with the international longshore and warehouse union, and i am here in support of hilary ronen for san francisco supervisor chalked up board president. she has integrity, she has honesty, she gisele joe she has compassion and she is passionate right now, we are going through a contract battle with the bca that tech workers -- hilary has championed that fight for us. she has stood side-by-side with us for every single rally, for the negotiations that they're going through right now, she has helped them to bargain, to fight for what they deserve, good healthcare, pension, and wages. we are in support of hilary ronen for board president. the only choice for board president. thank you so much. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: , good afternoon, i live in san francisco. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: i'm here in support and to recognize the great leadership of this woman, hilary road and. >> voice of translator: she is the best candidate to be board president. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: she deserves that because she is a fighter for our community, not only our immigrant community, but our low income community. >> voice of translator: -- [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: she also advocated for the lgbtq community, and fought against domestic violence and sexual assault. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: that is why we're here today to show support and that's why you should vote for hillary for board president. thank you. [speaking spanish] >> next speaker, please. >> i'm back. sorry, you guys. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: i'm here to support hilary ronen because i have seen her out in the community working with community and fighting for community. it is really important to see that and that is why she should be board president. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: she works hard, she is honest and listens to the community, that is why i would like her to be president so she can keep on helping the community. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: adjustable dose i just want to remind you guys that she fights for everybody -- i just want to remind you guys that she fights for everybody. >> next speaker, please. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: my name is brenda garcia. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: i am here today in support of hilary because she is a fighter for community and for women, and we need something like that as board president. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: thank you to everyone, and to hilary for being such a great fighter, i forget, i apologize what the translation was, but it was a good word. [laughter] [speaking spanish] >> next speaker, please. [indiscernible] >> she listens to people, and is accessible to people, in and the most important is she knows the power is in the people. we want to come here as a community and support her. she is the person most experience right now to take the position and she will bring people together, and try to find the best solution. not for the community group, but for the community. it is important for the district nine that has been affected by displacements that we have more power in the system and this city belongs to people. the working class people. this is a guarantee to have someone who tackles these issues >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> i'm a district five resident. i wanted to see how good i look on t.v., okay, there we go. i came here and i wish someone had nominated supervisor rafael mandelman. he would have been my support -- first choice. he is to be to humboldt to nominate himself. supervisor ronen will make a good president. i was completely inspired when she and supervisor fewer stood up for raising the minimum wage for city employees -- is that right while the city employee health care workers pick a lot of passion. that is a type of person we need to combat the policies of london breed and her vindictive nature. i think supervisor ronen would make a great board president, and could i tell jokes? okay, fine,. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hi everyone. i am the chairperson for the youth commission, but i am here is a private resident to support hilary ronen for board president the reason i am supporting her is because for me as a youth, especially a youth of color, is important i am hurried heard and listens to. i have seen her bring people together and discussing the issues that affect us the most, and she listens, and she creates policy not with just her and her own staff, but with the community. that is something that is very vital. i believe hilary ronen would be a great way of making city hall more transparent, but also having more community involvement within city hall, which means we have more voices, diverse voices within city hall, helping making decisions for the entirety of san francisco. it is both transparent, ethical, moral, and that shows integrity. that is a leader that i want to lead city hall. i want hilary ronen to be president not for her policy, but for the way she works with the community. i admire and respect you, and as a young person, i look up to you for the leadership that you have demonstrated. all of us young people have seen this and for the entirety of san francisco. thank you and congratulations to the supervisors being sworn in. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hello, i'm a district from five resident. thank you. i will be very brief because i think prior speakers have covered hilary ronen's endless qualifications for this job. i will keep a very personal. as a woman of color, i've been extremely disturbed by the rhetoric being used during hilary ronen's run for board president. if hilary ronen isn't selected to be board president today, i want you to seriously consider the message you are sending to your constituents in san francisco. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: my name is maria. and i also live here in san francisco. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: i haven't known hilary for a long time -- [speaking spanish]. >> voice of translator: everything i have learned inside of my community -- [speaking spanish]. i have liked it a lot because i'm a woman like she is. and i am a mother. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: i know she supports a strongly. [speaking spanish] [applause] [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: good afternoon. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: i'm here to support mrs. hilary ronen. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: she has supported a lot of different kinds of people. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: she is a mother, she is a wife. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: she still has dedicated time for us. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: i think her and i'm here to support her 100%. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: good afternoon. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: my name is monica martinez. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: i'm here to support hilary ronen [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: mostly because of other community members have already said, i am a mother, she is a wife like me, like many of us here, and she supports families. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: that is why we, as women, are here supporting her because she really stands for the community. she someone very admirable. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: thank you for your time today and the attention you gave to our community. [speaking spanish] [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: good afternoon everybody. my name is alayna. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: and i'm here to support hilary. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: because she is someone who has been concerned for immigrants and gives them value and worth that we deserve in this country. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: those who have been immigrants we deserve to be valued in this country. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: i admire her because she is a woman. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: and she deserves all of my respect. [speaking spanish] >> voice of translator: i would work for her. thank you. [speaking spanish] >> next speaker, please. >> at afternoon. my name is callie wong from a.p.i. council, and on behalf of the council, we are advocating see the much more needed leadership throughout city hall including city departments, commissions, and including this board president see. supervisor yee has proven to be a true advocate and one who always comes through for our community year after year. he defence at risk low-income programs for our most vulnerable , and we hope that this board will elect him as the next board president. >> thank you for your comments. >> i'm coming to support supervisor yee. he is a great leader and has been for the past 20 years that i have known him. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hi, everyone. my name is breanna gonzalez. i'm here to advocate for supervisor ronen to be the next board president. she has always been a very inspirational person to me into many others. she is a courageous, courageous, caring and empathetic leader. one of the reasons why have so much admiration for her is a fact she is a fighter. she will fight tooth and nail to defend marginalized communities. you all know her, you have all witnessed her push and push and push for her residents in d9 and the city. you all know she is passionate, dedicated, extremely intelligent , and is consistently coming up with creative solutions to our city's problems she does not back down, and she will not do -- she will do everything in her power to give a voice to the voiceless. tell me, are both the qualities you would want in a board president? there is now a progressive majority, that i wholeheartedly believe that supervisor ronen is the best person to lead this board to create new and exciting progressive policies. you all have the pot -- the power to change a landscape of san francisco, and with hilary ronen as your president, you can make san francisco whole again, because right now, it is only a skeleton of what it once was. but what is even more amazing is that you all have the power to not only change san francisco, but the rest of the country as well. many people in power -- and due to the current state of our country, we need people in power who will, as we like to chant in march is, stand up and fight back, and hilary ronen is that person. and her two years as being a supervisor, she has shown time and time again how effective she is, how she gets things done, and how she fights until the very end and isn't afraid to get her hands dirty and do the dirt work. i really -- i strongly urge you to choose hilary ronen as your board president. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hi, everyone. my name is maja, and i wanted to personally congratulate rafael mandelman, as supervisor, and supervisor matt haney. i'm really excited to see what you guys do. i am a district waffle resident, and i am here to support supervisor hilary ronen for board president. i had the pleasure of working in her office, and i just saw firsthand how she is willing to fight everyone that has stood up here, they could not have said it better. i didn't really have a speech planned and i did not even plan on doing this, but i would regret it later. i'm here to strongly urge all of you to please, please, please, listen because it is pretty loud and clear who the community wants as board president, and thank you so much. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. i will ask that the audience hold their applause until after the board president has been elected. we will get through this quicker next speaker, please. >> it afternoon. my name is lana, i may san francisco native. i am born and raised in the mission district, and i am fortunate enough to still live in mission district. i work in the community. we have an afterschool program. supervisor ronen has supported us through many, many years when she was working with other supervisors. >> please hold the microphone closer to your face. >> i am a native of san francisco, mission resident, born and raised, fortunate enough to still be there. i'm here to voice my support for supervisor ronen. i think she is a wonderful person, and a wonderful supervisor, and i think she will make a great board president for the city and county of san francisco. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hello, my name is patricia. >> please pull the microphone close. thank you. >> okay. it doesn't want to come down. thank you. my name is patricia hernandez, and i am a native of san franciscan -- of san francisco. i was born and raised in the mission district, and i'm here to support hilary ronen, and i also work at the afterschool mission education project inc., please, please, she has done so much, she is warm, she really does care about our community. please, i am advocating for her to be the president of the board of supervisors. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hello, my name is mckenzie. some of you may recognize me. i worked from rafael mandelman and matt haney on their incredible campaigns. i'm here to support hilary ronen for president of the boards. i saw her come out really hard for these guys in their campaigns, and i have seen her fight for the district that i live in, district nine, and being a newcomer to san francisco, i have been here for almost two years now, i was excited to come to a city that was progressive, and doing all the right things, but i do see a lot of infighting and splits within the democratic party here , and i think it's time that somebody with a bold and strong progressive voices voice is on the board. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> hi, my name is sonya, i live in district six. congratulations to the progressives are having a super majority on the board of supervisors. what this means is if homelessness is not ended in the next two years, it is no one's fault but this board. the funders of american cities have been able to end street homelessness in their own cities , which means the power exists at the municipal level to end street homelessness, and if this board can't get it done in two years, them that will be a huge failure. i know that it is something that is a priority for progressives, and it is a priority for me, and for people who live in district six. the path to ending street homelessness is to prioritize spending on shelter, and housing , and mental health, and the kind of programs that help people get their way out of homelessness, and prevented in the first place. this is something that i will ask you to do every day, wake up and ask yourself, in my decisions today, have i prioritized the thing that is the biggest issue for san franciscan his? every two years, the controller does a study where they ask san franciscan his, are the biggest issues, the number 1 issue is housing affordability, the number 2 issue was homelessness. those are both the same issue. i know it is a priority. please make it a priority when you decide how to spend the hundred and $81 million soap -- surplus. i know that when i was running, when i talk to people, over and over, that was the number 1 thing that people asked about, why do we have this terrible problem, and i honestly couldn't give them a straight answer. i don't know why the city hasn't been able to get it together to fix it but now you guys have a super majority, and i trust that you will be able to get it done. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon. i'm the executive director of the dolores community service is i'm here on behalf of our organization, and the communities we serve to ask that the board of supervisors support hilary ronen as president of the board. our city deserves a proven leader who is committed to addressing the pressing social problems that our city faces. i have had the opportunity to work at the family shelter and innovative and responsive solutions to the families at the school who are facing homelessness. the school of family shelter was tapping -- championed by hilary. she is a leader in the criminal justice reform, she is a leader in criminal justice reform, a labor rights advocate, and an ally to the lgbtq community. we are grateful to have a relentless immigrant rights advocate who we know will ensure that san francisco remains a sanctuary city. hilary has earned the opportunity to serve as president of the board of supervisors because of her impeccable leadership, hard work , and innovative solutions. we need her leadership now more than ever. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> it afternoon, everyone, my name is anna herrera. and codirector of the deportation defence program at the community services. i am here to provide my support for hilary ronen as president of the board. i have worked with supervisor ronen for almost seven years. first when she was chief of staff for a supervisor, and now as district nine supervisor, and hilary has been an incredible leader and ally of the immigrant community in san francisco. back when we had a real crisis at the border of unaccompanied children and families in 2014, it was hilary's idea that san francisco should be one of the first cities to provide a legal representation for unaccompanied children and families in our city, and since that time, she has continued advocating for more services, and more services for immigrant community and our leaders in san francisco. in this time of attacks against immigrant communities, we will hear more of it tonight, there is no one more fit to lead as the president of our board that supervisor ronen. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon. thank you for letting me speak. my name is tom, i'm a resident of san francisco, and for the last four years, i have been the president of the greater west portal neighborhood association. i'm not here to speak against anyone whose name has been put forward, but i'm here to speak in favor of someone that i have had the chance to work with directly, and that is supervisor norman yee. it seems incredible to me that with san francisco voting so strongly in favor of one outlook on how the city should be, that at the same time, we having such infighting about it. what we are looking for right now is leadership. leadership that will solve problems, and leadership that will bring people together. i have watched norman yee solve problems, fight for what he believes in in our district and across the city, bring people together, he does it quietly, he doesn't do a lot of shouting, but if you define success as getting the most done when no one really cares about who gets credit, i think that is norman yee. i think it might be time for us to have a client leadership which leads through service to get the best kind of leadership. that is why i would add my voice to those who are asking they consider normandy and vote for him as board president. thank you. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. [speaking foreign language] >> we are here to support norman yee. he has been dedicated to support families in the city. we are thankful for his leadership, and most important of all, he puts his heart into this community. so we support norman yee. >> thank you for your comments. >> high, we serve families who are dealing with extreme poverty , but we are able to provide child development services, not just of the families, but also to the entire household, and with the support from norman yee, we would not be able -- we would be able to continue to do this. not only are we championing the child, we are championing the entire family. >> thank you for your comments. next speaker, please. >> good afternoon, supervisors. my name is mullane, and i am here to voice my support for supervisor ronen for president of the board of supervisors. supervisor ronen is someone with whom i've had the pleasure of working in my capacity as a woman's rights advocate. i'm a resident of district five in san francisco, and i advocate for women's policy issues in the city. supervisor ronen is incredibly intelligent, compassionate, and a remarkable leader. i admire her, and i am so very disappointed to hear some of the criticism of supervisor ronen, which i personally find to be very sexist, and i hope that the board makes the decision based on her record of supporting the communities of san francisco that really are the most vulnerable in the city. our immigrant communities, the lgbtq communities, and our victims of sexual violence. i want to remind the board of the incredible work that she did this year of leading the unanimous vote of the sharp ordinance, which will protect -- i hear that, and i just want to say thank you, and that this ordinance will protect women and others that are at risk and thank you. 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