This thread from Chris Sacca talking about his efforts 15 years ago to provide the city of San Francisco with free Internet is all too telling of how badly politics can screw over entire cities of people, especially when your elected officials care more about beating the other side than they do serving their constituents.
It’s nuts.
Read the whole thing.
15 years ago, I co-led a team trying to give 100% free Internet access to all of San Francisco starting with the poorest neighborhoods first. The network would be anonymous, with no ads, no cookies, etc. Approximately a $20-25 million gift. The result? We were chased out of town. https://t.co/U1azq6S4SQ
— Chris Sacca ?? (@sacca) March 28, 2021
Chased out of town.
Seriously.
Keep reading.
One SF Supervisor told us she would vote against it unless we promised to fund quarterly field trips (eg to the zoo) for the kids in her district. Another promised to vote against it because we wouldn’t give free laptops to all of SF.
— Chris Sacca ?? (@sacca) March 28, 2021
Give them an inch … or something.
Oh, it gets worse.
One Supe rejected it because poor people needed “training to use the Net.” Countless low/no-income residents spoke at hearings about how they had computers and knew how to use the web, but couldn’t afford Comcast. Supes mansplained back to those very people that they were wrong.
— Chris Sacca ?? (@sacca) March 28, 2021
Gosh, this sounds like this ‘Supe’ was letting his or her own bigotry of low expectations keep the people from having free Internet.
Crazy, yes?!
We built a demonstration network in a public housing project in Hunters Point. It was saturated with use. Those residents testified that laptops and phones weren’t expensive, cable and data plans were the problem. The Supes just couldn’t accept that those people were Net savvy.
— Chris Sacca ?? (@sacca) March 28, 2021
Reminds us of when Biden said minorities couldn’t figure out how to use the Internet.
Ultimately, one Supervisor told us straight up: He didn’t care what this meant for the people of his district, he was blocking it because it would give the mayor a win in a political year. He was the deciding vote and I will never forget what he said…
— Chris Sacca ?? (@sacca) March 28, 2021
Blocked truly beneficial assistance to his constituents because it would give the mayor a win.
Check this out:
“Stop lecturing me about the digital divide, because I don’t give a fuck. Now get the hell out of my office.” Our team walked out stunned, sat in the lobby of City Hall, and realized it was over.
— Chris Sacca ?? (@sacca) March 28, 2021
Always keepin’ it classy.
My partners and I had done Q&A sessions in every Supe’s district and in community and senior centers all over town. Support for the network was off the charts, particularly among those who needed it most. But it was clear that the Supes didn’t care about poor San Franciscans.
— Chris Sacca ?? (@sacca) March 28, 2021
They just care about getting elected.
They wouldn’t listen to their own constituents. They perpetuated racist tropes and demeaning stereotypes about their poorest residents. And for what? It was all a big game to the politicians. The winners were the Supes’ egos and the losers were the people they supposedly served.
— Chris Sacca ?? (@sacca) March 28, 2021
Ding ding ding.
San Francisco is a wonderful city that I was lucky to call home for years. But I’ve never seen any place in the world better at cutting off its nose to spite its face. My heart aches for what that city was and could be. Cheers to those of you still trying to help.
— Chris Sacca ?? (@sacca) March 28, 2021
Epilogue: After SF rejected our offer, we built a free, city-wide network in Mountain View, CA. About 12-15,000 people used it every day for years. The majority of them spoke Spanish as their primary language and told us they couldn’t afford regular Internet access.
— Chris Sacca ?? (@sacca) March 28, 2021
And he was just trying to give the city free Internet. Think about THAT.
***
Related:
Join the conversation as a VIP Member