Started Facebook Group Campaign Today

As part of our fight to save our clinic and to give voice to the unheard, we activated our first ever Cyber-campaign via Facebook Group. As of this writing we have over 100 new group members who joined. My goal is to have at least 1,000 people join us (give or take a few hundred) in solidarity. We want to send the message to the powers that be that people care about other people. WE ARE WATCHING.
Join our Facebook group at Unheard Voices of San Francisco Speaking Out.

Proposed Budget Cuts by DPH Target the Most Vulnerable in San Francisco

This past week, i found out that our Citywide & Community Focus Center, which provides intensive case management services to over 700 of the MOST SEVERE & CHRONICALLY MENTALLY ILL PATIENTS in the city of San Francisco, was the target of DPH's (Department of Public Health) largest proposed budget cuts for any outpatient mental health clinic in the city.

Wow! It just doesn't make sense. Imagine how much more it would cost the city if our 700-plus clients lose vital services--spikes in hospital & emergency costs, increased homelessness, and possibly crime. I think it may even affect the tourist industry in San Francisco given that many of our clients live in/near the Tenderloin area which is right next to the hub of San Francisco's major tourist attraction: Union Square/Powell St./Cable Car...

As is often the case in economically troubled times, those who are most marginalized and poor suffer the most. "The measure of a civilization is how it treats its weakest." I wonder if the current proposed budget cuts reflect what is best about San Francisco.

We Win The Spirit Award at City Shorts Film Festival

At the City Shorts Student Film Festival tonight, our film "Under His Wings", won the Spirit Award which was one of only three awards given out at this 10th annual film festival at Diego Rivera Theater. There were approximately 90-95 submissions for the film festival, and it was good enough for me that our film was chosen. But to win the Spirit Award was an exhilarating experience! One minor blot to this incredible evening was that the film festival misrepresented the title of my film. The award certificate reads, "Underneath His Wings", when in fact it should have been "Under His Wings." But in reality, they both mean the same, so no big deal.

10th Annual City Shorts Student Film Festival

Last weekend I was informed by the Cinema Dept. of City College of San Francisco that one of the films I submitted (i.e. "Under His Wings") was chosen to be shown at their 10th Annual City Shorts Student Film Festival next Thursday. "Under His Wings" is an 8 minute short about a young African American woman who finds strength in her faith. I feel fortunate to be selected given the fact that I waited to the last possible minute to submit the film. I heard that there were almost a hundred submissions and only 13 of us got selected!

The City Shorts Festival may not be a Sundance or a Cannes, but I feel very honored to be a part of this event sponsored by the Cinema department at City College of San Francisco, especially given that I am a product of this college. This is where I learned how to make movies while working full-time doing social work stuff...taking a night class in film editing, then taking another evening class in documentary filmmaking the following year, etc. for a measley $100.00 per class. In fact, I should take this time to thank Denise Bostrom, a writer/filmmaker who helped me write this film while I was taking her "Nonfiction Scriptwriting Course" last fall semester. Thank God for public education and community colleges such as CCSF where second chances and dreams can be nurtured.

For those of you in the local area who want to support this nonprofit event full of wonderful shorts by local filmmakers, come to the Diego Rivera Theater at the main campus. That's next Thursday May 13th at 7:00PM. Suggested donation of $2.00 at the door.