“We have much more work to do, but this apology is most certainly an important first step,” Shamann Walton, San Francisco supervisor, said during the meeting before the resolution was passed.
The document said the city’s “intentional discriminatory and exclusionary policies and practices … systematically robbed black San Franciscans of opportunities to build generational wealth.” It called such “sophisticated racism.”
Evidence presented by the resolution supporting such claims includes statistics from the San Francisco Police Department that reveal black people represented 6 percent of the population while accounting for 35 percent of all arrests in the first quarter of 2023.
Citing proposals slated for the March primary election—supported by Mayor London Breed and others—to expand police authority and drug test welfare recipients to identify those in need of substance abuse treatment, one supervisor argued that such policies represent a continuation of discriminatory behavior.
“This is not just history; we face similar issues right here today,” Supervisor Dean Preston said during the meeting. “This city has policies that are doing harm, and we see new policies being proposed ... particularly in the context of political campaigns that will compound harm.”
He agreed the apology resolution will lay a foundation for providing more support for residents.
“This must be seen in context as a necessary part of accountability in reparations and not as an end in itself,” Mr. Preston said. “It is meaningful and lays the groundwork for further commitments to the black community here in our city.”
Similar sentiments were offered by officials responsible for writing the reparations report at a Feb. 15 meeting of San Francisco’s Government Audit and Oversight Committee.
“The issuing of this formal and public apology is notable and significant,” Eric McDonnell, chair of the San Francisco African American Reparations Advisory Committee, told supervisors at the committee hearing. “However, it will ring hollow if it isn’t followed by active and even aggressive efforts to address the pains of the past through monetary repair and to disrupt the inequities.”
In the reparations plan released in July 2023, recommendations made by a 15-member panel include several financial considerations. Payments of $5 million to each eligible person are proposed, in addition to supplemental income reflecting the area median income—$97,000 in 2022—for at least 250 years.
It is unclear, however, where such funding would originate, as the city currently faces a projected $800 million deficit, and Ms. Breed, the mayor, has repeatedly said that reparations are best handled at the national level.
The plan also suggests clearing all debts and introducing tax credits, sales tax abatements, and the elimination of property taxes for qualifying individuals.
Seeking to address housing concerns, the plan additionally recommends offering public housing for $1; providing free home, renters, and commercial insurance; and making accessible 0 percent interest housing loans for 50 years, among other things.
While elements of the plan received widespread support from public speakers and some supervisors, no such proposals have been moved forward by the board.
Some critical of the lack of progress on direct cash payments criticized the board of supervisors during the audit committee hearing and suggested the crime impacting the city is directly correlated with slavery.
“People can’t eat an apology,” one speaker said. “Our black youth are forced to break into cars because their wealth was stolen by this city, this state, and this country.”
One official with the reparations committee advised leaders to take immediate action to bring forth more comprehensive proposals that offer financial benefits.
“Take it a step past apology and show your leadership,” Tinisch Hollins, vice-chair of the city’s reparations committee, said during the hearing.
Nine states have issued similar apologies for their role in slavery—including Connecticut and New Jersey which like California were never slave states—and Boston was the first city to do so in 2022.
The California Legislature is currently considering two similar resolutions that would offer formal apologies.
Recognizing that some residents are asking for more than words, one supervisor said the board is contemplating future action.
“This apology is a historic move,” Supervisor Hillary Ronen said during the meeting before the resolution was passed. “It is meaningful in and of itself, but it’s just the beginning and not nearly enough.”
