Vote may give 'reparations' to poor section of San Francisco

Small business, such as this beauty salon, would not have to pay city payroll taxes for five years if Proposition F passes

March 3, 2000
Web posted at: 1:29 p.m. EST (1829 GMT)

In this story: Pro: Justified payback Con: 'Makes no sense' RELATED STORIES, SITES

SAN FRANCISCO (CNN) -- In a city known for its social conscience, some San Franciscans think Proposition F goes too far. Supporters, though, say Tuesday's ballot measure authorizing "reparations" to a poor neighborhood is justified following decades of civic neglect and economic racism.

VIDEO Go to the communities of Bayview and Hunters Point, with CNN's Rusty Dornin. Windows Media 28K 80K

If San Francisco voters approve the proposal, the city government would be asked to provide these benefits for Bayview and Hunters Point, two adjacent and mostly African-American communities:

  • Waive property taxes for five years on area homes valued at less than $500,000

  • Allocate $150 million for jobs in the Bayview-Hunters Point area

  • Forgo city payroll taxes for five years for all the area's small businesses

Carlos Petroni, an immigrant rights activist who edits the monthly leftist newspaper San Francisco Frontlines, helped write Proposition F, also known as the Bayview-Hunters Point Reparations Act.

It's a payback he considers long overdue. "Reparations means you give back something to people from whom you took away things without justification," he told CNN. "Bayview-Hunters Point is a clear example of that."

According to The San Francisco Chronicle newspaper, supporters of Proposition F include the San Francisco chapter of the National Organization for Women, the San Francisco Green Party, the San Francisco Tenants Union and the Rainforest Action Network.

Also on the list is Willie Ratcliff, editor of the San Francisco Bay View newspaper, who alleges economic racism has to the neighborhood's 40-year decline. "We've been neglected here for years," he told CNN.

Other neighborhoods have gotten a boost from city projects, Ratcliff argues, so why not his. "It gives opportunity to people out here, small business that haven't been able to borrow (and) developers that want to build houses for people."

Property taxes for some homes would be waived for five years

Cheryl Towns, a 20-year resident of the area, agrees her neighborhood needs help, but not like this.

Proposition F "makes no sense," she told CNN. "It's part of a lot of political rhetoric. It's not thought out, it's not discussed in the community. It's dangling a carrot in front of people who, in fact, do want and need a break."

It's a break Mary Lee Taylor would welcome. As the owner of Bayview-Hunters Point Place, a beauty salon she opened in 1959, Taylor has seen the area's economic slide firsthand. If Proposition F passes, she'd be exempt from payroll taxes.

But the initiative's critics, including San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown, say Proposition F would cost the city too much with no guarantee of success.

"The likelihood that it will have any positive effect is probably nil," said Jim Chappell, president of the San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association, a public policy research agency. "How is the ($150 million job fund) going to be spent? There are no criteria," he told the Chronicle.

Critics also question whether the plan is even legal, raising the possibility of a lawsuit if Proposition F passes.

San Francisco Bureau Chief Greg Lefevre and Correspondent Rusty Dornin contributed to this report, written by Jim Morris

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Cityspan - City and County of San Francisco Official Web Site
Proposition F: Bayview Hunters Point Reparations - San Francisco County, CA
Frontlines San Francisco: Prop F
Case Study: Bayview Hunters Point

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