San Francisco’s liberal mayor, London Breed, called to replace “bulls**t progressive policies” with “aggressive policing,” after proposing to strip $120 million from the city’s police department.
“It’s time that the reign of criminals who are destroying our city, it is time for it to come to an end,” Breed said at a press conference last week.
“And it comes to an end when we take the steps to be more aggressive with law enforcement, more aggressive with the changes in our policies, and less tolerant of all the bulls**t that has destroyed our city, we are going to turn this around.”
San Francisco endured a spike in headline-making crime that has seen criminal mobs looting luxury stores in massive “organized thefts,” and chain pharmacies forced to close stores over unchecked shoplifting, due to lax laws and cashless bail policies.
Larceny theft is up 18.3% this year, with 3,375 reports across the city last month. Assault jumped up 9% compared to 2020, and homicide rates soared by 15%.
“All of our residents, our workers and everyone who visits our city should feel safe no matter what part of town they are in. I know San Francisco is a compassionate city. We are a city that prides ourselves on second chances and rehabilitation,” Breed continued. “But we’re not a city where anything goes. Our compassion should not be mistaken for weakness or indifference.”
But Breed’s own policies are responsible for making the city vulnerable. She proposed stripping $120 million out of the San Francisco Police Department and allocated it towards social justice programs in July of 2020.
The majority of the funds were allocated towards mental health and services for the black homeless population, with supplements for education, youth services, and job programs.
“For those who truly believe that Black lives matter, it’s important that we listen to Black voices. It’s important that we allow Black people to lead this movement,” she said at the time.
Now the mayor plans to increase policing, review no bail policies, and introduce legislation that gives law enforcement real-time access to surveillance video.
“What I’m proposing today, and what I will be proposing in the future will make a lot of people uncomfortable, and I don’t care,” Breed concluded. “We are past the point where what we see is even remotely acceptable.”
