2020 Year In Review

The Defining Work of the Year

Addressing the COVID-19 Pandemic

It was clear from the very beginning of the pandemic that seniors and people with disabilities would be hit the hardest, in terms of facing sickness and death, dealing with isolation, and tragically, being seen as expendable.
With support from allies, we:

Shared resources for food and other services, and kept people connected online, through Senior and Disability University and Survival School: Pandemic Edition.
With Bay Resistance, set up Cross-Bay Mutual Aid Project: community members helping each other with food deliveries, home care, and phone calls.
Successfully pushed San Francisco to include shelter-in-place updates on 311,
to allow access for people without internet.
Raised awareness of the threat of care rationing, through town hall meetings
with several hundred people in attendance.

Photo depicting a livestream of Black Lives Matter action, with ASL interpreter. — Photo: Livestream of Black Lives Matter action, with ASL interpreter

Taking on Racism

SDA recognizes that racism and white supremacy are built into the fabric of this country and must be addressed if we are to win justice for seniors, people with disabilities, and all people. In 2020, SDA:

Coordinated with racial justice organizers after the killing of George Floyd to livestream protests on Facebook, with captioning and ASL interpreting, to allow seniors and disabled and Deaf people to participate without going out in person during the pandemic.
Shared social media tools and other ways for people to take action remotely to support the Black Lives Matter movement.
Launched AARSEJA, SDA’s African-American Racial and Social Equity and Justice Alliance, to celebrate and support each other, and address racism and white supremacy.

Senior & Disability Action Mission

San Francisco Senior and Disability Action mobilizes and educates seniors and people with disabilities to fight for individual rights and social justice. Through individual support and collective action, we work together to create a city and world in which seniors and people with disabilities can live well and safely.

Programs

Healthcare Action Team
Consumer Rights for
Community Living
Pedestrian Safety & Transit Justice
Housing Collaborative
SRO Workgroup
Mad Mob SF
Senior & Disability Survival School
Senior & Disability University

Pie chart showing a breakdown of SDA finances. — SDA Finances: FY 2019-20
Total Expenses: $974,950

“In a troubled world and yes, hopeful at times, SDA’s work is a comfort for community.”
–SDA Member Steve Leeds

Photo of SDA Member and Phone Canvasser Greg Ledbetter holding a sign saying: “Yes on I – It Ain’t No Lie!” — SDA Member and Phone Canvasser Greg Ledbetter holds a sign saying: “Yes on I – It Ain’t No Lie!”

Election 2020

• Made 3,227 phone calls to talk about disability and aging in voting decisions, and to urge yes votes on Propositions I, 15, and 17

• Helped shape and pass Proposition I, which will provide rent relief and affordable housing to San Franciscans.

• Educated people around the state and country about voting rights for people in skilled nursing facilities and other long-term care facilities. Worked with nursing homes and elections officials in San Francisco and Oakland to ensure that individuals could vote.

SDA Staffmember Sarah Jarmon (right) turns ballots in to Voter Registrar staff at an Oakland
nursing facility. — SDA Staffmember Sarah Jarmon turns ballots in to Voter Registrar staff at an Oakland
nursing facility.

Honoring those we’ve lost this year: Denise D’Anne, Esther Savignon, Geraldine Earp, Hadley Dale Hall, and Ethel Silverstein.

Screenshot of a Zoom video conference meeting with many attendees.

Care Rationing

Hundreds of people attended online teach-ins and town halls about care rationing based on age and disability, and COVID in care facilities.

Census Outreach

Partnering with Diversability, we used newspaper and radio ads in multiple languages, phone calls, presentations and social media to urge thousands of seniors and people with disabilities to participate in the census, to protect critical programs like health care, nutrition, housing, education and employment.

Other Accomplishments of 2020

Photo of a woman holding a sign that reads "30 percent RIGHT NOW"

SDA members and allies in the #30RightNow Coalition took over the Mayor’s Office in March to demand rent relief for hundreds of residents
of supportive housing – and they won!
Stopped the MTA bus fare increase.
Helped save Adult Day Health Centers and other senior and disability programs in the state budget.
Grew SDA’s membership by nearly 100 new senior and disabled members.
Secured 40 units of deeply affordable senior housing units (affordable to extremely low-income people) at Casa Adelante, 1296 Shotwell.
Highlighted books and films by disabled authors, especially people of color, through Disability Book Readings and a film showing of Crip Camp.
Helped pass a city budget that expands food programs in communities of color, plus rental subsidies and digital access for seniors and disabled people.

Looking Ahead

Mutual Aid Organizing: We will continue to support community networks and will mobilize participants to fight for food security, home care, and other ongoing needs.

Taking a Regional Approach: SDA members and allies are exploring expanding SDA to the East Bay to build our power on housing, transportation, and climate change to address racial, social, and economic justice.