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San Francisco Chronicle Logo6 MONTHS FOR 99¢
Opinion//Open Forum


AL SHARPTON: SAN FRANCISCO ESCAPES THE DOOM LOOP. NOW IS THE TIME TO RESHAPE ITS
ECONOMY

By Al SharptonSep 5, 2024




Can San Francisco's economic recovery be enjoyed by everyone — including the
city’s Black and brown families?

Minh Connors/The Chronicle

By most accounts, San Francisco has escaped the worst-case fears of a doom loop,
in which downtown office vacancies would create a series of reinforcing public
problems. An artificial intelligence boomlet is driving new office leases. And
last year, for the first time since the pandemic, more people moved to the city
than left. 

What remains to be seen, however, is whether the fruits of this recovery will be
enjoyed by everyone — including the city’s Black and brown families.

Since 2020 alone, tech companies have received over $100 million in state tax
subsidies to grow their local workforces. But these millions in taxpayer dollars
subsidizing new tech offices come with a price. These tax incentives — doled out
with little scrutiny for the promise of new jobs and investment — contribute to
higher housing costs and an acute affordability crisis for working people.
Moreover, that many of these companies have no real interest in diversity and
face serious allegations of discrimination may further explain why, as San
Francisco’s economy and population rebound from the pandemic, Black and brown
families are worse off than ever. 

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Take the case of human resources management software developer Rippling. In
October, the company received nearly $13 million in state tax credits to expand
its office space in the city. Current and former employees have described in
detail a toxic workplace led by a leadership devoid of Black and Latino
employees, where qualified women and people of color have been overlooked for
promotion by a “boy’s club” that discriminates against them. 

Rippling also has allegedly engaged in punitive and bullying behavior toward
employees — from asking a court to sanction an employee who sought to recover
her family and medical benefits to retaliating against former employees who left
to work for competitors. This is all par for the course for Rippling’s CEO,
Parker Conrad, who previously had to surrender his California insurance license
and was singled out at his last company and fined by the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission for misleading investors and the U.S. Department of Labor
for underpaying employees. In an only-in-Silicon-Valley fairytale story, Conrad
was rewarded with millions in venture capital funding for his new startup and
now millions in taxpayer subsidies.

Elsewhere, tech firms big and small have been hit with discrimination lawsuits
by Bay Area employees, even as they successfully preserve tax breaks from
lawmakers in Sacramento. Okta, an identification software company (the Chronicle
uses its products) valued at $14 billion, received over $70 million in state tax
credits for research and development and was sued in May for widespread gender
discrimination and retaliatory layoffs. 

A few of Silicon Valley’s most prominent tech titans have used their personal
wealth and company resources to level the playing field. Open AI CEO Sam
Altman’s $60 million universal basic income study released findings this week
and found that in the third year of receiving unrestricted cash payments Black
recipients were 26% more likely to start a business. Far more of Altman’s peers,
however, have gone full MAGA as they raise millions for Donald Trump’s
presidential campaign. 

None of this is particularly surprising. Indeed many of us have become immune to
outlandish stories of tech bros behaving badly. But the buck should stop before
handing out blank checks to these companies that don’t reflect San Francisco’s
values. 

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To its credit, San Francisco has done more than most cities to grapple with the
historical impacts of structural racism and institutionalized segregation. Last
year a city committee proposed unprecedented economic reparations that would
have begun to address San Francisco’s racial wealth gap. That plan was largely
shelved given recent budget shortfalls. And, so far, all Black residents have
gotten is an apology.

About Opinion


Guest opinions in Open Forum and Insight are produced by writers with expertise,
personal experience or original insights on a subject of interest to our
readers. Their views do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Chronicle
editorial board, which is committed to providing a diversity of ideas to our
readership.

Read more about our transparency and ethics policies



But saying sorry isn’t enough. We can and should hold elected leaders
accountable to ensure the harms of discrimination and displacement never happen
again — which includes giving tax breaks to companies who contribute to the
wealth and economic inequity in the city. 

The decades-long erosion of San Francisco’s Black neighborhoods means we can’t
recapture overnight what was once the Harlem of the West. But the soul of the
city — one that embraces diversity and counterculture over corporate interests —
is still within reach. Now that the worst of the doom loop is over, San
Francisco has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reshape its economy so the
city doesn’t become an exclusive playground for the rich. (Mayor London
Breed’s proposal to bring a Historically Black College and University campus
downtown is a good start.) Until then, state and local leaders should think
twice before selling that soul to fill a few office spaces.

The Rev. Al Sharpton is a civil rights activist and president of the National
Action Network.






Sep 5, 2024
Al Sharpton





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