"I was newly out, queer, and from Utah, still learning how to claim space in rooms not designed for people like me. San Francisco became my teacher. What I learned about belonging and dignity matters now, as democratic institutions weaken and authoritarianism gains traction. Local government is not powerless in moments like these, and it must choose courage over caution."
"My first project at what is now the Office of Civic Engagement and Immigrant Affairs was the 2010 Census, a process that determines who counts. Counting is never neutral. Who is included? Whose households matter? Which identities are named, and which are erased? San Francisco chose to be bold-challenging the federal government and insisting that everyone in our communities mattered. That moral and principled conviction stayed with me over the next 15 years of my public service."
A civic leader helped build an Office of Immigrant Affairs and led programs that centered immigrant and marginalized communities. The 2010 Census effort prioritized inclusive counting, asserting that who is counted reflects power and belonging. The office sustained funding for day laborers and domestic workers, expanded language access, and launched grants for immigration legal services, fee assistance, and community-led civic engagement. In response to violence and neglect in Bayview and Visitacion Valley, the Community Ambassadors Program hired diverse, multilingual neighborhood residents into stabilizing city jobs. Over 15 years more than 500 low-income San Franciscans served as ambassadors, saving lives, protecting community programs, and building trust.
Read at 48 hills
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