San Francisco, CA — Mayor London N. Breed today took the Mayoral Oath of Office and delivered a speech in the City Hall Rotunda before a crowd of approximately 700 people. Today’s ceremony was Mayor Breed’s second inauguration and marks the beginning of her first four-year term as the Mayor of the City and County of San Francisco. Mayor Breed was reelected in November 2019 with 70.7% of the vote.

Mayor Breed spoke about the challenges of housing affordability and homelessness in San Francisco, and laid out a vision for addressing them. She called for building at least 50,000 new homes in the next decade, supporting policies that allow for more multi-family housing, meeting her goal of opening 1,000 new shelter beds, adding additional mental health beds and services, and opening more Permanent Supportive Housing.

Homelessness

“Homelessness isn’t just a problem; it’s a symptom. The symptom of unaffordable housing, of income inequality, of institutional racism, of addiction, untreated illness; and decades of dis-investment. These are the problems. And if we’re going to fight homelessness, we’ve got to fight them all.

To be clear, with these efforts will come a measure of ‘Tough Love.’ We are no longer accepting that “compassion” means anything goes on our streets. Yes, many people are sick and we will offer them help, but if they don’t want—or can’t—accept services, then we will bring them into treatment. We will continue to expand our services, shelter, and housing so that there is a place for everyone in need. And when we have a place for people to go, we cannot allow them to languish on the sidewalk. It’s not humane, it’s not compassionate, and it’s not safe for anyone.”

Housing

“Frankly, I am tired of hearing about our ‘housing crisis.’ Crises are unpredictable; they happen suddenly, and policymakers generally try to avoid them. Our housing problems were entirely predictable. They are the result of decades of almost intentional under-building, and the decision decades ago to down-zone almost three-quarters of the city and ban apartments.

We don’t have a housing crisis. We have a housing shortage.

I’m committed to working with my fellow Mayors across the region and the state to create more housing, because, just like homelessness, this is a regional and statewide issue. I will be going to Sacramento to fight for these changes. Because we need more homes for workers, families, and seniors. Because our retail shops and restaurants can’t hire people who can afford to live here. Because San Francisco should be viable for all San Franciscans.

We cannot say we need more housing, and then reject policies that allow us to actually build that housing. I was not here decades ago when we imposed restrictive laws to prevent new housing, but I will be here when we start building more homes throughout San Francisco and the entire Bay Area again.”

For the complete text of Mayor Breed’s inauguration speech, go to: https://sfmayor.org/mayor-london-n-breeds-2020-inauguration-speech.

For the video of the Inauguration Ceremony, go to: https://sfgovtv.org/mayorbreedinauguration.

Kayla Smith of Project LEVEL emceed the event, and Father Paul J. Fitzgerald, S.J., President of the University of San Francisco, delivered the invocation. The Galileo High School JROTC conducted the Posting of the Colors. Musical selections during the Inauguration Ceremony were performed by the George Washington High School Marching Band and Katie Kadan, musical artist and former competitor on “The Voice.”

The Honorable Judge Teri L. Jackson of the San Francisco Superior Court administered the Mayoral Oath of Office to Mayor Breed. Following Mayor Breed’s speech, Carlos Santana concluded the ceremony with a musical performance.

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