San Francisco mayoral candidate Ellen Lee Zhou is one of two plaintiffs in a suit against several guaranteed income programs in S.F.

Three years ago, San Francisco launched an experiment to give 150 pregnant Black and Pacific Islander women $1,000 a month, no strings attached, for the duration of their pregnancy and six months after the birth.

Half of all maternal deaths in San Francisco each year are Black women, even though they make up only 4% of births. The highest rate of infant deaths — more than 15% — are Black babies, while 10% are Pacific Islander American. San Francisco’s program was a desperate attempt to bridge these health disparities.

Now, that effort is almost certainly about to come to a screeching halt. And another guaranteed income program to assist San Francisco’s transgender residents — who are 18 times more likely to experience homelessness than the general population — already has been shut down. Participants were only given a month’s notice before being cut off.

Advertisement

Article continues below this ad

This was not for lack of local support.

“When the data shows Black expectant mothers have far worse health outcomes or trans people are more likely to end up homeless, we know we can and should invest in these areas to make real change,” Mayor London Breed said in a statement provided to me. “Personally, I’ve seen firsthand how targeted programs like this can transform lives. It’s not just good for the individuals, but for our entire city.”

So, how could two successful programs, lauded by Breed as good-faith efforts to address systemic inequities, be on death’s door?

Put simply: right-wing organizations are targeting local California governments, limiting their ability to help people as they see fit. And they’re winning.

A lawsuit filed in November........

© San Francisco Chronicle