2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997
KATHERINE MUNTER
President
CAROLENE MARKS
Vice President
ANDREA EVANS
Commissioner
KAY GULBENGAY
Commissioner
DORKA KEEHN
Commissioner
JING XU LEE
Commissioner
ANDREA SHORTER
Commissioner
EMILY MURASE, PhD
Executive Director
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COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES
Members Present
Commissioner Kay Gulbengay Executive Director Emily Murase, Ph.D.
Commissioner Dorka Keehn (4:50) Administrative Analyst Laura Marshall
Commissioner Jing Xu Lee Policy Analyst Kim-Shree Maufas
Vice President Carolene Marks Policy Analyst Carol Sacco
President Katherine Munter Senior Policy Analyst Jill Tregor
Commissioner Andrea Shorter Commission Secretary Cynthia Vasquez
Excused: Commissioner Andrea Evans
I. CALL TO ORDER/AGENDA CHANGES
President Munter called the meeting to order and welcomed newly appointed Commissioner Kay Gulbengay to her first meeting. President Munter reported that minutes from June 27 and July 20 will be approved at the September meeting.
Action: Approved amended agenda. m/s/c/ (Marks/Gulbengay/Unanimous)
No public comment.
II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Minutes will be approved at the September 26 meeting.
III. EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS REPORT DISCUSSION
A. Executive Directors Report
Dr. Murase highlighted from her report that Administrative Analyst Laura Marshall attended a meeting hosted by Supervisor Alioto-Pier's office regarding the exotic dancer legislation. The meeting addressed concerns that arose as the planning group scrutinized the ordinance's enforcement mechanism. The legislation is currently being reviewed by the City Attorney's office.
Dr. Murase reported that the Friends are having a conference call on August 16 to discuss setting a new date for the Commission's 35th Anniversary Celebration luncheon. Commission Secretary Cynthia Vasquez is currently contacting event planners and requesting proposals. (The new event date is Wednesday, December 12)
Dr. Murase informed the Commission that City Administrator Ed Lee called a meeting of several agencies to discuss language access issues. The new Office of Language Services is exploring the creation of a team of language interpreters who would respond to emergency calls. The effort is in direct response to the Domestic Violence Safety and Accountability Audit's recommendation on language access.
Dr. Murase was pleased to announce that the Family Violence Council Legislation was approved by the Board of Supervisors on August 14. The Family Violence Council will have a launch date in early October.
IV. CONSENT AGENDA
All matters listed hereunder constitute a Consent Agenda and are considered to be routine by the Commission on the Status of Women. They will be acted upon by a single roll call vote of the Commission. There will be no separate discussion of these items unless a member of the Commission so requests, in which event the matter shall be removed from the Consent Agenda and considered as a separate item. Members of the public may speak on each item listed on the Consent Agenda.
Action: To approve the Consent Agenda. m/s/c (Shorter/Keehn/Unanimous)
A. Resolution Recognizing the Women's Equality Day Parade.
B. Resolution Recognizing the Asian Women's Resource Center Annual Benefit.
C. Resolution Marking Women's Intercultural Network's 12 Years of Connecting Women's Voices.
D. Resolution Recognizing the 5th Anniversary of Exhale, a Post-Abortion Counseling Talkline.
Commissioner Marks requested adding Arleen Chow for her contribution to the Asian Women's Resource Center.
V. REPORTS
A. Health
Commissioner Marks reported that over 1,000 uninsured residents have been enrolled in Healthy San Francisco. Commissioner Marks and Policy Analyst Kim-Shree Maufas continue to work on the upcoming town hall meeting to address reducing breast cancer mortality rates of African American women in San Francisco, scheduled for October 4.
No public comment.
B. Justice and Courage
Executive Director Murase reported that the Justice and Courage Oversight Panel is currently engaged in a strategic planning process to develop a 3-year plan. Commissioner Keehn, Executive Director Murase, Senior Policy Analyst Jill Tregor, and Beverly Upton met with Police Chief Heather Fong and other members of the Police Department (SFPD) regarding the rollout of JUSTIS, which at this point is a year past due. Commissioner Keehn suggested working with veteran staff of the SFPD to assist in moving along the implementation of JUSTIS. The Department also expressed its concern in regards to the staffing and location of the Domestic Violence Response Unit (DVRU). Executive Director Murase reported that the Department is in the process of setting up a meeting with the SFPD to further the JUSTIS program and request a timeline.
Commissioner Keehn reported that the Domestic Violence Cross-Training Institute has completed its training for this year. She stated how impressed she was with the trainer's participating in this project. She added that the Blue Shield of California Foundation was also enthusiastic with the completion of first session of the Institute.
Commissioner Shorter thanked Commissioner Keehn for her years of leadership with the Justice and Courage project, and thanked Department staff.
No public comment.
C. Violence Against Women Prevention and Intervention (VAW) Grants Program
The FY07-08 grant agreements have all been completed. Executive Director Murase reported that all agencies had spent their supplemental funds. The Department is currently working on contract amendments to reflect the 25% across-the-board increase, made possible by a Board of Supervisors addback, which was awarded to the agencies.
Lisa Korwin will present findings from the VAW Needs Assessment at the September Commission meeting.
No public comment.
D. Family Violence Council
The Board of Supervisors approved the first reading of the Family Violence Council (FVC) legislation on August 16 without controversy. Final adoption is expected in September. The first meeting of the FVC is scheduled for October 2 at City Hall.
No public comment.
E. Girls Committee
Commissioner Shorter thanked the Commissioners for their participation in the 2007 GIRLFeST Bay Area. Commissioner Shorter also requested that staff set up a meeting with the Girls Committee members and the Mayor, the District Attorney, and Assemblymember Fiona Ma.
The next Girls Committee meeting will be held on Tuesday, September 10 at City Hall in room 34.
No public comment.
F. Language Access & Association of California Commissions for Women (ACCW)
Commissioner Lee reported that, on August 3, the Commission hosted the ACCW for their quarterly meeting. Executive Director Murase attended the meeting as well and provided an overview of the work that is being done in San Francisco by the Department and Commission. Executive Director Murase also provided the group with a CEDAW training. Many members were impressed on how far along San Francisco has moved with CEDAW implementation and expressed how impressed they where to see such a strong relationship between the Commission and the City. The next meeting will be held in September in Santa Monica. Commissioner Lee anticipates she will participate.
Commissioner Lee expressed her willingness to work with the Language Access Task Force. However, at this point, the work of the task force has been completed. She will be in communication with Tomas Lee, the Executive Director of the City's new Office of Language Services to assist with language access. and represent the Commission as appropriate.
No public comment.
VI. OLD BUSINESS
A. Nominations of Officers for 2007-2008
Action: To nominate Katherine Munter for President. m/s/c (Marks/ Keehn/Unanimous)
Action: To nominate Carolene Marks for Vice President. m/s/c (Shorter/Keehn/Unanimous)
Elections will take place at the September Commission meeting.
No public comment.
B. Girls Committee Update
Eileen Li, a member of the Girls Committee, reported on the good learning experience she had working on GIRLFeST activities as a member of the GIRLFeST Bay Area Youth Steering Committee. The Girls Committee members participated on every level in the festival. They assisted with compiling goodie bags, setting up rooms for the different workshops, giving opening remarks at the Friday and Saturday conferences, serving as guides to the variety or breakout groups, participating in the UCSF Health Summit and even enjoying the free concert at Dolores Park.
Ms. Li reported that the Girls Committee is currently working on the Girls Services Directory, which is near completion. When the Girls Committee reviewed the services provided to girls in San Francisco they found that there was not a centralized document that would included all services specifically for girls. In developing the directory, Committee members decided to include art, poetry and pictures to make the document lively as well as interesting to girls. Girls have done 90% of the artwork that will be included in the directory. Assemblymember Fiona Ma has generously agreed to print 5,000 copies of the Girls Services Directory in color at no charge to the Department once the state budget is approved. The Girls Committee plans to distribute the directories to high schools in the San Francisco Unified School District, private schools, agencies that work with young girls, and have copies available at the Department. Ms. Li reported that the Girls Committee is currently recruiting for the two vacant seats, with a focus on girls from the Lesbian, Gay, Bi-Sexual, Transgender, Queer and/or Questioning (LGBTQQ) and disabled communities. Recruitment materials for the Girls Committee is currently available in English and Spanish and the committee is looking to having it translated into Chinese. Commissioner Lee volunteered to review recruitment materials once they were translated into Chinese.
Commissioner Shorter was glad to see how far along the Girls Committee has come in its short time of being a Committee (the committee was launched in January). Committee members have been active in the community and have even appeared in the media. Commissioner Shorter acknowledged what a great asset the Girls Committee is to the City and County of San Francisco.
VII. NEW BUSINESS
A. New Language Access Initiatives
Tomas Lee, Executive Director of the City's new Office of Language Services under the General Services Administration, explained that the goal of his department is to work on implementing a city-wide language diversity and cultural competency plan. The budget for the Office of Language Services is $150,000 for FY07-08, which is for one Executive Director and two support staff.
As an initial step, 311 is rolling out a 3-month pilot program to provide departments direct access to the 311Customer Service Center's Language Line translation telephone service which supports over 140 languages.
Mr. Lee reported that the Office of Language Services is working with 10 key departments in providing translation services for their websites. They are currently working on getting the website system transformed so when changes are made to the page in English the changes will be made in all languages that the website is made available. Mr. Lee explained that in implementing this pilot program with the 10 identified departments, his office will determine whether this project can be handled by the City's Department of Telecommunications and Information Services (DTIS) or if it must be handled by an outside vendor. When changes are made to the websites, the identified vendor will be notified so that all pages will be updated within 24 hours.
In response to the Mayor's Executive Directive on Domestic Violence Response, the Office of Language Services is working with 5 agencies to identify gaps in language services for victims of domestic violence. They are also scheduled to meet with Partner Agencies to identify and discuss gaps in service they can identify since they have direct contact with the victims. The Office of Language Services is also working on the quality of translation services and the lack of availability of services during "off" hours. The office is entertaining the possibility of having a pool of city personnel or certified translators or advocates for victims of domestic violence, or some combination, provide translation services or a possible combination.
Beverly Upton, Executive Director of the Domestic Violence Consortium, expressed her concern about advocates providing translation as they cannot represent the victim in court because of confidentiality issues. Ms. Upton suggested possibly having advocates train interpreters on sensitive approaches to domestic violence situations. There is a strong push by the community to continue discussing possible solutions with the Office of Language Services.
Mr. Lee announced that on Saturday, September 15th, his office will be holding an Immigrant Rights Summit, where Harry Bellafonte will be the keynote speaker. There will be workshops and information on city services available. Mr. Lee thanked the Department and Executive Director Murase for their participation.
Commissioner Lee expressed her willingness to work with Mr. Lee and the Community as this project moves along.
B. Women with Disabilities
Susan Mizner, Executive Director of the Mayor's Office of Disability, reported that there are 85,000 women in San Francisco with disabilities. On an average, women with non-severe disabilities will earn $1,200 a month in income whereas a woman with severe disabilities will earn $1,000 or less. Disabilities include sensory, mobility, developmental, acquired, and mental conditions. It is believed that 1 in 5 women has some form of disability.
On a national level in San Francisco, 62% of women with disabilities are victims of domestic violence. The factors that play a role in such a high percentage is that people with disabilities are considered asexual and that many women with disabilities cannot advocate for themselves. There is also the factor that law enforcement does not have adequate training to serve those with disabilities. They do not know the questions to ask to get the information they may need. Much of the violence occurs in institutions, which is hard to monitor as many are private facilities.
Ms. Mizner reports that women with disabilities have limited access to healthcare. It is reported that 1/3 of disabled women are being denied health care services. There are a large percentage of disabled women who do not receive routine check-ups, pelvic exams, and other basic healthcare. One basic factor is the lack of accessibility to services for disabled women. Many of the machines and exam tables are not designed for those with disabilities. Another factor is the lack of training or insensitivity of medical personnel when examining women with disabilities.
In working on the rollout of Healthy San Francisco, the Mayor's Office of Disabilities is working with providers to assist them in better serving people with disabilities. They held focus groups, checked facilities, and conducted surveys to assist with providing better access to healthcare and health facilities for those with disabilities. One crucial finding from their research is the importance of securing physical assess to services.
Currently, the Mayor's Office of Disabilities staffing is as follows:
· 1 staff person to provide planning and on-site review for city-funded projects
· 1 staff person to oversee implementing the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) translation services in city buildings (700 facilities)
· 1 staff person to work on training issues (e.g. training Executive Directors and staff in disaster awareness for those with disabilities)
· 1 staff person to provide technical assistance, and staff the Mayor's Disability Council
· 1 staff person to handle the ADA complaints, public requests, and referral services
· 1 staff person to provide administrative support.
Commissioner Shorter expressed how eye opening it has been to hear of the lack of services being provided to women who are disabled. Commissioner Marks expressed her concern with the lack of access to gynecological and mammogram services. She would like to work the Ms. Mizner and her office in addressing these concerns.
Commissioner Keehn thanked Ms. Mizner for her informative presentation and expressed her hope to further discuss the needs of women with disabilities when reviewing the Needs Assessment as it is clear that women with disabilities are an undeserved community.
C. Disability Support Group
Patricia Berne, a member of the San Francisco Women Against Rape (SFWAR) Board of Directors, reported that SFWAR is launching "Our Bodies Give Voice": a support group for women and transgender survivors of sexual violence with disabilities. This support group is a free, confidential, 9-week long group that will offer survivors with disabilities a supportive place to share their experiences and listen to other survivors to begin the healing process. The group will provide free transportation and English as a Second Language (ESL) services for participants is set to begin on August 29.
SFWAR is piloting this program and investing resources in a service that is very much in need. The agency plans to outreach to isolated disabled communities, on the internet, and by going out into a variety of communities and letting them know about the group.
SFWAR is participating in the Department's Needs Assessment and hopes to help change approaches to disabilities.
Commissioner Gulbengay thanked Ms. Berne for her touching presentations and the services she was providing to the disabled community.
D. Themes for Commission Meetings
Commissioner Marks requested input from Commissioner on what goals should be accomplished when developing Commission agendas. Commissioner Munter suggested postponing this topic until September when the Department is scheduled to report back to the Commission on the Strategic Plan and the Commission will hear the findings of the Needs Assessment.
Commissioners strongly agreed that a report on the status of women in San Francisco should be developed. Executive Director suggested having Anu Menon, the newly hired CEDAW Policy Analyst, work on this project.
VIII. PUBLIC COMMENT
Silvia Johnson gave comments.
Beverly Upton, Executive Director of the Domestic Violence Consortium, expressed her concern with the Language Access plan to have city personnel respond to domestic violence calls that need translation services. It is possible that the person responding to provide the translation services knows the victim in another capacity, which could cause the victim to feel shameful of the situation. It could dramatically change the way victims report domestic violence. There are also court implications and safety concerns. If a translator is questioned in court, it is possible that she/he will give her/his own account of the situation or episode, rather than actual testimony of what actually happened. It is also not known if the interpreter can be alerted ahead of time about the situation and if it is safe when responding to a domestic violence incident.
Commissioner Shorter expressed her concern about liability issues involved in having city personnel respond to domestic violence calls for translation services. It would be to the city's benefit to have trained interpreters available. She stated that because these efforts are a direct result of the Safety Audit, it is very important that has an effective and well thought out policy surrounding this topic.
Becki Masaki, Executive Director of the Asian Women's Shelter, thanked the Commissioners for their leadership. Ms. Masaki explained that the Community Advisory Committee is a national model for expertise in providing services to bilingual and bicultural individuals. Asian Women's Shelter trains its own staff to provide services to multicultural clients. Experts in the field of domestic violence could assist in the efforts to provide services in a variety of languages.
IX. ADJOURN
Motion to adjourn. m/s/c (Shorter/Marks/Unanimous).
Meeting adjourned at 7:35 pm.
The ringing of and use of cell phones, pagers, and similar sound producing electronic devices are prohibited at this meeting. Please be advised that the Chair may order the removal from the meeting room of any person(s) responsible for the ringing or use of a cell phone, pager or other similar sound-producing electronic devices.
Explanatory documents: For copies of explanatory documents listed in this agenda, and other related materials received by COSW, please contact the Department on the Status of Women at 25 Van Ness Ave, Suite 130, San Francisco, CA 94102; phone: 415-252-2570, fax: 415-252-2575. Also, to the extent possible, documents will be available on the COSW website at http://www.sfgov.org/cosw.
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