The San Francisco Bay Area is one of the wealthiest and most productive economic areas in the whole world. Its working people are in a constant state of crisis and forced to endure wave after wave of austerity. San Francisco public schools face layoffs and school closures, even before teachers were forced to strike for modest gains. MUNI, the transit agency operating in the city of San Francisco, cut services last year. BART, the transit agency operating the high-speed trains throughout the Bay Area, admits it will have to close stations and run fewer trains unless voters pass a tax on themselves. The California College of the Arts (CCA), one of the last art schools in the Bay Area and an institution which has provided a pathway for Bay Area artists for nearly 120 years, is closing, to be replaced by a Vanderbilt extension campus. San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie, continuing his ever-present and chronically positive media presence, paused briefly to acknowledge CCA’s legacy before promptly spinning Vanderbilt’s acquisition of the campus as a win for the city. Just this week, Lurie’s office announced that 500 positions across city government would be cut. This follows tens of millions in cuts to the city’s budget, particularly in the Department of Public Health, in order to make up a $400 million budget shortfall.
Of course, not all of this is Mayor Lurie’s fault. Trump and his billionaire allies’ war on the federal government played a large part in creating such a massive shortfall. But the fact remains that Lurie is presiding over yet another campaign of austerity, exposing the broken logic of capitalism and the warped priorities that that logic creates. This past week, Lurie demanded tens of millions in cuts to Public Health, youth and elder services, and tenants’ rights services, while at the same time promoting a plan to cut taxes on real estate transactions over $10 million. SFPD and the Sheriff’s office both got larger budgets this year, surviving the “necessary” cuts forced on programs and departments that working people depend on. Lurie’s office has stated the 500 jobs cut will save the city around $100 million. Conveniently, the Mayor also has a plan to hire 500 new police officers at a cost of around $150 million, all while crime is at historic lows in every category. One might remember San Francisco’s billionaire son, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff, complaining that the city’s supposed lack of cops forced him to reach into his own pockets to hire private security (many of whom were likely SFPD who had called in sick, earning double pay for the day), nearly triggering a federal invasion of the city. It certainly does seem, despite Mayor Lurie’s constant attempts to appear relatable and portray his administration as for the whole city of San Francisco and all of her residents that, in fact, he is just another millionaire prioritizing the whims and desires of mega-corporations and his billionaire allies, at the cost of working people.
