Did the CIA help Abu Sayyaf

Is San Francisco Racist?

San Francisco, City Of Tolerance, May Hide Its Racism

By Sandip Roy

Pacific News Service

Article Dated 10/21/2001

EDITOR'S NOTE: San Francisco has long been known as a city that tolerates -- indeed, celebrates -- racial, cultural and sexual diversity. But a new survey of the city's voters --conducted after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington -- suggests that many in the city's most liberal communities hide their true feelings toward immigrants. PNS contributor Sandip Roy (sandiproy@hotmail.com) is host of "Upfront" - the Pacific News Service weekly radio program on KALW-FM San Francisco.

SAN FRANCISCO--Despite San Francisco's reputation as one of the most tolerant cities in the country, surprising numbers of residents here appear to view immigrants with mistrust, according to a new voter survey taken earlier this month.

The survey, commissioned by the Chinese American Voters Education Committee (CAVEC) and conducted by David Binder Research, found that while voters appreciate the role immigrant's play in building America, almost 30 percent would hesitate to elect a foreign-born person as mayor. The unease came from across the political spectrum.

The key phrase in the survey seems to be "foreign-born." Over 90 percent of respondents said they had no problem voting for an Asian American or a Latino mayoral candidate. And despite the post-Sept. 11 anti-Arab sentiments afflicting much of the country, an Arab American mayor was not an issue for over 80 percent of those surveyed.

Does the ethnic neutrality of the phrase "foreign born" allow many of the city's residents to express views on race they would not admit to if racial or ethnic backgrounds were stated more explicitly? Would people have been more comfortable if they knew how long the foreign-born candidate had been in the country?

David Lee, executive director of CAVEC, is unsure.

"You have to be aware that this is an incredibly smart and stiflingly politically correct population. They will work really hard not to appear racist," Lee says.

Clearly, almost 70 percent of those polled had no problem with the idea of a foreign-born mayor. But Lee is interested in the 30 percent who are uncomfortable with the notion.

One might assume this wariness would come from white, conservative Republicans, who have crafted or supported many anti-immigrant measures in the state. But a cross-tabulation of the results found that white Republicans and Democrats were only 6 percentage points apart on the issue.

The unease came from the traditional bastions of liberal politics in the city, such as the gay community and renters. Those uncomfortable with electing a foreign-born mayor include:

* Almost 40 percent of gay renters.

* 58 percent of African American voters

* 39 percent of those who would vote for lesbian politician Carol Migden for mayor.

* 26 percent of gay supervisor Tom Ammiano's supporters, considered the core of the city's liberal voters.

Lee contrasts Ammiano's supporters with those who said they would vote for comparatively conservative supervisor Sheila Kaufman: only 16 percent of Kaufman supporters said they were uncomfortable voting for the foreign-born. And more people who identified as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender were uncomfortable electing an immigrant than those who identified as heterosexual.

"What does this mean?" Lee asks. "Has the terrorist act exposed a latent anti-immigrant strain in these progressive, supposedly enlightened groups?"

California, as a state, is no stranger to anti-immigrant feelings. Former Gov. Pete Wilson pushed through anti-immigrant ballot measures in the '90s. "People do tend to become concerned and resistant when there are sustained, tremendous waves of immigration, as in the 1890s and the first decades of the 20th century," explains Rufus Browning, a senior researcher at the Public Research Institute of San Francisco State University. "That led to anti-immigrant legislation like the Exclusion Act."

But Browning feels that the immigrant picture in the United States is very different now. "Large parts of the country may still have little exposure to immigrants, but in states like California, New York, parts of Illinois, and Texas, immigrants have much more political sway than they ever did, and are much more politically aware.

"Something like Sept. 11 can cause people to get fearful and strike out, like Senator (Dianne) Feinstein wanting to cut off foreign student visas for six months," Browning says. But he finds much room for optimism in a 1998 survey conducted by one local daily, which found that most people in San Francisco did not care what race their neighbors were.

That racial tolerance is echoed in the new poll as well. San Franciscans in general were very appreciative of the roles immigrants have played in building the economy. Almost 80 percent believe that immigrants who achieve more success than native-born Americans do so through hard work. Eight-three percent have had a boss of a different ethnicity than themselves, and three-quarters said it made no difference.

The survey's results are likely to put many of the leaders in the city's progressive community on the defensive, especially now that progressives hold a majority in the city's Board of Supervisors. Lee is very sensitive to concerns that the survey could be seen as stirring up divisiveness within the progressive community. "San Francisco is not a racist city," he says. "It is light years ahead of other cities in that area.

"But something is going on here."

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