SAN FRANCISCO — More than 100 residents and union workers marched through San Francisco City Hall on Thursday, June 18, 2026, protesting proposed budget cuts they say would devastate safety-net services and cost thousands of jobs. Protesters stopped at the mayor’s office to demand that city leaders reverse changes they argue threaten low-income communities as the city confronts a projected budget deficit.
According to a press release from the protesting groups, San Francisco faces a $1 billion deficit over the next five years, leading to proposed cuts to safety-net programs. The statement reports that these rollbacks would strip critical services from 25,000 residents and eliminate more than 1,500 city and nonprofit jobs.
The distributed media release notes that next week, the Budget and Appropriations Committee will vote on whether to forward the proposed budgets to the Board of Supervisors. Protesters organized the rally to pressure city leaders immediately before this crucial vote.
As detailed in the press release, the demonstration included political theater and drag performances inside City Hall. Organizers stated that the budget cuts would halt vital services that support immigrant communities, seniors, families, people with disabilities, unhoused residents and LGBTQ+ residents.
Speakers at City Hall explained how the cuts threaten local families, according to the press release. Michelle Magee of Indivisible SF stated, “Today we stand together with our most vulnerable communities to say it loud and proud: Find the money. Restore the cuts. Do not turn SF into a billionaire’s playground. Indivisible SF did not expect to have to fight to protect the most vulnerable in our own backyard. The Mayor promised economic recovery for all San Franciscans. Instead, the Mayor’s budget will sabotage SF’s economic recovery by cutting essential services to more than 26,000 low-income, vulnerable San Franciscans. In addition, 1,000 nonprofit and city workers who keep our city running every day will lose their jobs. Fund our city’s economic recovery. Don’t sabotage it by protecting the rich and betraying our trust. No cuts. No layoffs. Use our money to fund essential services.”
“This year, we’re here to make a clear statement: we will not let you pass a budget that hurts San Francisco,” Worley-Ziegmann stated. “One hundred percent restoration of every budget cut is just the beginning of what we’re fighting for.”
The press release notes that these cuts heavily impact essential minority workforces. Lucia Obregón Matzer of the SF Parity and Equity Coalition stated that Latino workers represent 67% of waste and cleaning workers, 47% of domestic workers and 50% of construction workers, yet face a 74% funding cut.
“We are fighting for the lifeline that keeps our community members going,” Matzer stated. “We are at risk of losing our case management programs and workforce development programs. Our city must stand with us.”
The press release also reported that advocates for health care and LGBTQ+ rights spoke out against the proposed budget rollbacks. Justice Dumlao of the HIV Advocacy Network stated, “I spent years fighting to ban conversion therapy in California. When we won that fight, I moved to San Francisco, thinking that the city would stand with the LGBTQ+ community. Instead, we face millions of dollars worth of cuts to HIV/AIDS research and healthcare, including clinics that serve trans youth. I’m here today to demand that the Mayor and Board of Supervisors do the right thing and give us our funding.”
In conclusion, the press release describes the independent People’s Budget Coalition as a network of more than 150 community organizations, labor unions and nonprofits. The group stated that its members remain committed to fighting for an equitable budget that supports local neighborhoods.
Follow the Vanguard on Social Media – X, Instagram and Facebook. Subscribe the Vanguard News letters. To make a tax-deductible donation, please visit davisvanguard.org/donate or give directly through ActBlue. Your support will ensure that the vital work of the Vanguard continues.
