San Francisco Mayor London Breed and three race-based guaranteed income programs are currently facing pushback from conservative groups with a lawsuit alleging racial discrimination. The lawsuit asserts that the city of San Francisco, California, awards millions of dollars each year exclusively to minorities and transgender women through three specific initiatives.
The lawsuit highlights three programs: the Black Economic Equity Project, the Guaranteed Income Project for trans people, and the Abundant Birth Project. The Black Economic Equity Project grants $500 per month solely to young Black Bay Area residents. The Guaranteed Income Project for trans people provides $1,200 per month exclusively to individuals who identify as Black, Indigenous, Latino, and transgender. Lastly, the Abundant Birth Project offers $1,000 per month to pregnant Black and Pacific Islander women.
Critics argue that these initiatives qualify or disqualify individuals based on their race, leading them to label the programs as discriminatory. One of the initiatives, the Abundant Birth Project, defends its aid by stating that Black and Pacific Islander women face higher rates of premature birth, which is primarily attributed to both structural racism and the racism experienced by these individuals when interacting with healthcare providers.
Despite this defense, opponents of the programs argue that it is illegal to exclude individuals based on their race, particularly white and Latino women who may also have high-risk pregnancies. Mayor London Breed, however, continues to support all three initiatives, even though none of them require recipients to work. The Guaranteed Income Project, for instance, provides the monthly stipend to ensure that participants can prioritize their physical and mental health without worrying about their income.
Both the programs and the mayor's office have declined interviews on the matter. The office claims that the initiatives are legal and express their readiness to defend their position in court.
The outcome of this lawsuit will likely have significant implications for San Francisco's race-based guaranteed income programs. It will determine whether providing financial support exclusively to certain racial or ethnic groups while excluding others is lawful or if it constitutes racial discrimination under the law. The final verdict will not only impact the fate of these specific initiatives but may also have broader implications for similar programs implemented in other cities across the United States.
