After an evening in Dolores Park in San Francisco last year, two of my friends and I were walking through the well-known Latin Mission area when I saw a man on the other side crying in frustration.
He was screaming, hissing, shaking his hands. Shortly thereafter, I heard a cry. My companions and I fell to the ground, leaning against the back of a large white truck to hide. The man grabbed a shotgun and fired. Then he disappeared into the night.
What was even more disturbing than my brush with a live shooter was that the incident was not registered – after a few minutes, everyone was back, and the culture resumed.
It seems that everyone living in San Francisco has a similar story to tell right now. At the time of the epidemic, economic diversity that already existed has been expanded. By 2020, the amount of drugs exceeded the death of Covid more than twice. Homeless shelters along the rows of colorful towns of various colors.
Systematic and opportunistic theft is commonplace, especially theft of property and vehicles. A friend who came to film in the city said his team had to hire security guards after terrorists encountered cameras and guns. Last month, the video appeared people are leaving the car doors open so that thieves do not break their windows. “The real problem is poverty,” said one friend, in the midst of a lively discussion on the city’s situation.
For some vulnerable citizens, unable to cope with the frustration and injustice, the solution may be to flee. This month, the Silicon Valley management began sharing statistics indicating that the number of registered laborers in the city and surrounding areas has declined sharply in recent years. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong says that in the first quarter of 2019, 30 percent of the company’s employers were outside the Bay Area; in the last quarter of 2021, it was 89 percent.
The change was due in part to the technicality of being “global” and fragmented – from a large group of applicants. But I wonder if it can also be explained by the departure of the Silicon Valley group to other parts of the city (with lower taxes).
Founders, computer engineers and capitalists have been leaving the city of peace, romance and progressive politics – many leaving behind the diatribe for the reason they want to get out.
“In 2000 or 2010, it was logical to build in San Francisco. That’s where all the talent was, but not anymore,” said Joe Lonsdale, venture capitalist and founder of Palantir. he wrote on leaving the city in November 2020.
LinkedIn data indicating that many arrived in Austin, then in Manhattan Silicon Alley and a balloon. The Miami-based professional mayor is trying to attract a downtrodden talent. Last week, Airbnb boss Brian Chesky tweeted was rushing to San Francisco to launch Airbnb-hopping: “in a town or city every family [of] weeks “.
In the 1990s and early 2000s, modern workers with their meetups, uniforms (Patagonia jacket) and coins looked like San Francisco. But the cost of housing since 2012, a nightmare of the night and the explosion of annual fire extinguishers is hard to ignore when security is high again.
Some criticize the extremist views of district attorney Chesa Boudin, who came to power in 2020 promising to reduce prison sentences and prevent poverty. His alleged failure to ensure public safety is now being held by Republicans, and he is remembered in June. The mayor of democracy, London Breed, has stopped preaching “mercy” to go “strong love”; from refund to refund police.
What is needed is a wise attempt to address the roots of the “poverty epidemics”. Margot Kushal, who heads the Center for Vulnerable Populations at the University of California at San Francisco, says the first step is to tackle the problem of affordable housing. “Homes for the poor are in short supply in our area. Every day we see people homeless, ”he said. “It’s a big problem for all governments.”
Endurance in the face of adversity is essential. But if the city wants its professional crown to be returned, unlike the evening mass at Mission, it will not be able to continue as usual.
