{"id":34575,"date":"2024-06-27T13:56:10","date_gmt":"2024-06-27T20:56:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=34575"},"modified":"2024-06-27T13:56:12","modified_gmt":"2024-06-27T20:56:12","slug":"meet-the-district-5-candidates-do-you-support-safe-consumption-sites","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2024\/06\/27\/meet-the-district-5-candidates-do-you-support-safe-consumption-sites\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet the District 5 candidates: Do you support safe-consumption sites?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/missionloca.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/cropped-IMG_6941-scaled-1.jpg 2x\" height=\"80\" width=\"80\" src=\"https:\/\/missionloca.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/cropped-IMG_6941-scaled-1.jpg\" alt=\"A smiling person with glasses standing in front of a red background.\"> by\u00a0<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/author\/elenib\/\">ELENI BALAKRISHNAN<\/a><\/strong> JUNE 25, 2024 (MissionLocal.org)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/newspack-missionlocal.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/District-5-Banner.png?fit=1200%2C800&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"Illustration of District 5 with 2024 supervisorial race candidates Bilal Mahmood, Dean Preston, Allen Jones, Autumn Looijen, and Scotty Jacobs depicted below the skyline.\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><em><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2024\/06\/%e5%92%8c%e7%ac%ac-5-%e9%80%89%e5%8c%ba%e7%9a%84%e5%80%99%e9%80%89%e4%ba%ba%e8%a7%81%e9%9d%a2%ef%bc%9a-%e6%82%a8%e6%94%af%e6%8c%81%e5%ae%89%e5%85%a8%e5%90%b8%e6%af%92%e5%9c%ba%e6%89%80%e5%90%97\/\">\u9605\u8bfb\u4e2d\u6587\u7248<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Here\u2019s the latest in our \u201cMeet the Candidates\u201d series for District 5, in which we ask each candidate to answer one question per week leading up to the election. Four candidates are challenging incumbent Supervisor Dean Preston to represent District 5, which spans from the east end of Golden Gate Park through Haight-Ashbury, Japantown and the Western Addition, the Lower Haight and Hayes Valley, and most of the Tenderloin.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p>Amid the ongoing debate over how to approach the drug epidemic and homelessness, two San Francisco supervisors introduced a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sfchronicle.com\/sf\/article\/s-f-officials-push-for-sober-homeless-housing-19518858.php\">plan<\/a>&nbsp;earlier this month to prioritize abstinence-based housing options for formerly homeless people, which would be a shift away from current \u201cHousing First\u201d state policy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Stay informed on local elections \u2014 sign up for&nbsp;<strong>Mission Local&#8217;s free daily newsletter<\/strong>&nbsp;today!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This week\u2019s we asked a simple question on a divisive topic:&nbsp;<strong>Do you support safe drug-consumption sites?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Two of our District 5 candidates say they would. The others range from wanting drug-free options to compelled substance abuse treatment to deportations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Supervision at these sites can help prevent overdose deaths among people who would otherwise consume drugs elsewhere. Meanwhile, critics consider the sites to be enabling substance abuse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We have&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2024\/02\/meet-the-candidates-all-2024-district-5-supervisor-answers\/\">already asked<\/a>&nbsp;our candidates related questions, like&nbsp;their thoughts on law enforcement crackdowns on drug dealing or their planned approaches to fentanyl overdoses. Read the rest of the District 5 questions&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2024\/02\/meet-the-candidates-all-2024-district-5-supervisor-answers\/\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Note: I will be at Urban Ritual Cafe, 201 Steiner St, on Thursday, June 20, at 4:30 p.m. Come say hi and share your thoughts about the election or District 5.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/missionloca.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/D5-Allen-Jones-640x640.png?resize=640%2C640&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"District 5 candidate Allen Jones\" class=\"wp-image-582664\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-allen-jones\">Allen Jones<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Job<\/strong>: Activist<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Age<\/strong>: 67<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Residency<\/strong>: Tenant in District 5 since November 2021<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Transportation<\/strong>: Wheelchair<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Education<\/strong>: Teaching Bible studies at juvenile hall<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Languages<\/strong>: English<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>We don\u2019t need to give drug addicts a safe place to do drugs; we need to give them a safe place away from drugs.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>June 2016, my brother died of a drug overdose while housed in an otherwise encouraging city program. Against public health policy, it placed my brother, a known drug addict, in a hotel known to have drug dealing literally at its front door. Will the Department of Public Health ignore its safe drug-consumption sites policy too? My guess: Yes!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/missionloca.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/Autumn-Looijen-640x640.png?resize=640%2C640&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"Illustration of a smiling woman with glasses and long hair in a circular frame.\" class=\"wp-image-594267\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-autumn-looijen\">Autumn Looijen<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Job<\/strong>: School board recall co-founder<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Age<\/strong>: 46<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Residency<\/strong>: Tenant in District 5 since December 2020, landowner<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Transportation<\/strong>: Public transit<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Education<\/strong>: Bachelor\u2019s degree from California Institute of Technology<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Languages<\/strong>: English<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Safe drug-consumption sites are illegal, and ineffective<\/strong>. If we don\u2019t get users treatment, they will die.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Unfortunately, fentanyl is 50x more addictive than heroin: Users choose it over their limbs. They have a steam shovel to dig themselves into drug use, and a spoon to dig themselves out. They need our help, and time is short.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>We need effective street intervention, more treatment and mental health beds, a willingness to compel treatment, and&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kqed.org\/news\/11990693\/san-francisco-lawmakers-want-sober-housing-to-be-part-of-homelessness-plan\">sober housing options<\/a><\/strong>. (<a href=\"https:\/\/sfstandard.com\/2024\/06\/18\/san-francisco-homeless-sober-housing-overdoses\/\">71 percent of SRO residents want drug-free housing<\/a>, but city and state policies give them no choice. And they cannot afford to move away.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em><strong>Endorsed by<\/strong>: San Francisco police union.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/missionloca.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/D5-Bilal-Mahmood-640x640.png?resize=640%2C640&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"District 5 candidate Bilal Mahmood\" class=\"wp-image-582662\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-bilal-mahmood\">Bilal Mahmood<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Job<\/strong>: Founder of private and philanthropic organizations<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Age<\/strong>: 37<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Residency<\/strong>: Tenant in District 5 since May 2023<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Transportation<\/strong>: Walking<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Education<\/strong>: Bachelor\u2019s degree from Stanford University, master\u2019s degree from University of Cambridge<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Languages<\/strong>: English, Urdu<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>I support safe-consumption sites<\/strong>, but as part of a holistic approach to help those battling addiction in our community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As a city,&nbsp;<strong>we need to support the ability to operate safe-consumption sites and abstinence based treatment in parallel<\/strong>, so both options are available for those who are ready for it.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And more importantly,&nbsp;<strong>the Tenderloin cannot, and should not, be the containment zone<\/strong>&nbsp;for the city. We need to make sure that more districts are doing their fair share and collaborating to address the drug epidemic on our streets.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em><strong>Endorsed by<\/strong>: San Francisco YIMBY, State Senator Scott Wiener and DCCC Chair Honey Mahogany.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/missionloca.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/D5-Dean-Preston-640x640.png?resize=640%2C640&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"District 5 Supervisor Dean Preston\" class=\"wp-image-582663\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-dean-preston\">Dean Preston<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Job<\/strong>: Incumbent, tenant attorney<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Age<\/strong>: 54<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Residency<\/strong>: Homeowner, in District 5 since 1996<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Transportation<\/strong>: Public transit<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Education<\/strong>: Bachelor\u2019s degree from Bowdoin College, juris doctor degree from University of California Law, San Francisco<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Languages<\/strong>: English<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Safe-consumption sites have played an essential role in curbing overdose deaths and public drug use<\/strong>&nbsp;in other cities, including our sister city, Zurich. In the U.S., New York City and Providence, Rhode Island, are following the evidence by opening and approving safe-consumption sites.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Don\u2019t believe the lie that our city cannot do this \u2014 they\u2019re in our city\u2019s Overdose Prevention Plan, and we already piloted one for eleven months with&nbsp;<strong>the Tenderloin Center, which reversed 300 overdoses<\/strong>. These sites will help save lives, move drug use off our streets, and get people connected with the help they need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em><strong>Endorsed by<\/strong>: Bernie Sanders, United Educators of San Francisco, San Francisco Labor Council, San Francisco Tenants Union, National Union of Healthcare Workers<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/newspack-missionlocal.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/Scotty-Jacobs-640x640.png?resize=640%2C640&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"Cartoon illustration of a man with short hair, glasses, a beard, and a blue collared shirt, set inside a circular teal background.\" class=\"wp-image-635044\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-scotty-jacobs\">Scotty Jacobs<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Job<\/strong>: Marketing<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Age<\/strong>: 30<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Residency<\/strong>: Tenant in District 5 since November 2022, homeowner<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Transportation<\/strong>: Public bicycle<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Education<\/strong>: Bachelor\u2019s degree from Washington University<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Languages<\/strong>: English<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>We need a fundamentally different approach in order to end the rampant addiction crisis; without policy changes, those experiencing addiction on our streets will continue to die from overdoses, with or without safe-injection sites. We need serious leaders who will take the necessary steps to end the addiction crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>We must refer convicted, undocumented drug dealers to ICE<\/strong>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<strong>ensure that those revived with taxpayer-provided Narcan are compelled toward recovery<\/strong>. I am unwavering in my commitment to ending the addiction crisis, and will work with law enforcement at the local and federal level to ensure we do so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p><em>The order of candidates is rotated each week. Answers are capped at 100 words, and may be lightly edited for formatting, spelling, and grammar. If you have questions for the candidates, please let us know at&nbsp;<a href=\"mailto:eleni@missionlocal.com\">eleni@missionlocal.com<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Read the entire \u201cMeet the Candidates\u201d series&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/tag\/meet-the-candidates\/\">here<\/a>. Illustrations for the series by Neil Ballard.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>You can register to vote via the&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/sf.gov\/register-vote\">sf.gov<\/a>&nbsp;website.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">READ MORE CANDIDATE ANSWERS<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2024\/02\/meet-the-candidates-all-2024-district-5-supervisor-answers\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/newspack-missionlocal.s3.amazonaws.com\/mission\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/District-5-Banner-1.png?resize=800%2C600&amp;ssl=1\" alt=\"Meet the Candidates: San Francisco\u2019s District 5 supervisor race\"\/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2024\/02\/meet-the-candidates-all-2024-district-5-supervisor-answers\/\">Meet the Candidates: San Francisco\u2019s District 5 supervisor race<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/author\/elenib\/\"><\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/author\/elenib\/\">ELENI BALAKRISHNAN<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"mailto:eleni@missionlocal.com\">eleni@missionlocal.com<\/a><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/miss_elenius\" target=\"_blank\"><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>REPORTER. Eleni reports on policing in San Francisco. She first moved to the city on a whim more than 10 years ago, and the Mission has become her home. Follow her on Twitter @miss_elenius.<a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/author\/elenib\/\">More by Eleni Balakrishnan<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Source:  <a href=\"https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2024\/06\/meet-district-5-candidates-week21-safe-consumption\/?utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=Mission+Local&amp;utm_campaign=9a4d42a840-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2024_06_25_06_16&amp;utm_term=0_-9a4d42a840-[LIST_EMAIL_ID]\">https:\/\/missionlocal.org\/2024\/06\/meet-district-5-candidates-week21-safe-consumption\/?utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=Mission+Local&amp;utm_campaign=9a4d42a840-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2024_06_25_06_16&amp;utm_term=0_-9a4d42a840-[LIST_EMAIL_ID]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>by\u00a0ELENI BALAKRISHNAN JUNE 25, 2024 (MissionLocal.org) \u9605\u8bfb\u4e2d\u6587\u7248 Here\u2019s the latest in our \u201cMeet the Candidates\u201d series for District 5, in which we ask each candidate to answer one question per week leading up to the election. Four candidates are challenging incumbent Supervisor Dean Preston to represent District 5, which spans&#8230; <a class=\"continue-reading-link\" href=\"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2024\/06\/27\/meet-the-district-5-candidates-do-you-support-safe-consumption-sites\/\"> Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr; <\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34575"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34575"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34575\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":34576,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34575\/revisions\/34576"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34575"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34575"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34575"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}