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San Francisco passed a ballot measure in the election on November 2, 2004. It passed with two-thirds of the vote in favor of bringing the troops home.
Resolution
It is the Policy of the people of the City and County of San Francisco that:
The Federal government should take immediate steps to end the U.S. occupation of Iraq and bring our troops safely home now.
George W. Bush disgracefully lied to the American people to make the case for war in Iraq. His message was one of deceit and fear mongering, linking Saddam Hussein to al Qaeda and weapons of mass destruction. There was never a legitimate case for a pre-emptive war. Overruling global public opinion and objections from allies, Bush relentlessly led us into a war that has (as of 6-28-04) cost more than 850 American lives and left more than 5,100 wounded.
The U.S. invasion and occupation cost the lives of roughly 10,000 Iraqi civilians in addition to maiming and wounding countless more. It has led to incredible environmental degradation as well as the destruction of homes, schools, sanitation and water treatment plants, and hospitals. Hunger, homelessness and suffering are widespread.
The war and occupation has perpetuated the denial of many labor and human rights. It has sharply increased violence against women and girls. A law issued by Saddam Hussein prohibiting unions where most Iraqis work has continued to be enforced. Systemic and illegal abuse of detainees has been found in the Abu Ghraib prison facility and in other detention centers. During the past two years, there have been consistent allegations of brutality and cruelty by US agents against detainees in violation of international law.
At home, we have witnessed the erosion of civil liberties under the USA PATRIOT ACT, while racism, religious intolerance, and discrimination against immigrants is on the rise. With Congress appropriating over $150 billion dollars, the war and occupation in Iraq has benefited corporate military contractors while widening economic inequality at home. It has diverted resources away from vital public services and community programs. The war and occupation of Iraq has cost California over $19.5 billion dollars. San Francisco's share of that burden is estimated at over $520 million dollars. With these resources, San Francisco could fund for the next 10 years: health coverage for 1,000 uninsured youth, meals for 5,000 seniors, pre-school for 500 low-income children, 100 new school teachers, and supportive housing for the City's estimated 3,000 chronically homeless individuals. Rather than squander more of our precious public resources and sacrifice many more American and Iraqi lives on the occupation, monies should be used to restore life-affirming efforts -- public health, welfare, education, jobs, arts and the environment in our country and around the world. The war and occupation in Iraq has fueled, not lowered, the risk of terrorism here and around the world. We are less safe today than we were when the Bush administration put the nation on this failed course.
We need peace.
The Federal government should take immediate steps to end the U.S. occupation of Iraq and bring our troops safely home now.
Press coverage
SF Voters Hope to Send Anti-War Message to Washington
By Monica Mehta, November 2, 2004 09:32 AM
SAN FRANCISCO -- In what looked like a scene from the 1960s, several hundred people gathered at an anti-war rally at Lowell High School October 20. Against the backdrop of an exhibit commemorating thousands of dead soldiers and civilians, veterans and military moms talked about the horrors of combat while students signed an anti-war petition and called themselves the "social conscience of society."
"People our age are going to be affected if the draft comes along," said freshman Emily Mock. "We have to speak out about it now."
In a coalition that has cut across age groups, students and community members concerned about everything from a possible draft to the death of loved ones serving in Iraq were in attendance to support San Francisco's Proposition N, which would make it city policy to urge the U.S. to withdraw all troops from Iraq.
"We know San Francisco is one of the international epicenters against the war," said Supervisor Chris Daly, who wrote the measure and collected the signatures of three other Supervisors to add it to the ballot. "This gives San Francisco voters the opportunity to officially weigh in."
According to the Institute for Policy Studies, at least 170 city and county councils across the country have passed resolutions opposing the war, including San Francisco in October 2002. Although the measure is symbolic, if approved, it would make San Francisco the first city whose voters have officially called for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq.
"It's not uncommon for San Francisco to lead the way in where our nation is going or should go as far as having innovative policies," said James Suggett, a research associate at the Institute for Policy Studies.
Given the city's liberal bent, local pollster David Binder said the resolution, which reads, "Shall it be City policy to urge the United States government to withdraw all troops from Iraq and bring all military personnel in Iraq back to the United States?" has a good chance of passing.
"Antiwar sentiment would indicate voters would agree with the opinion, but you never know what's going to happen in an election," said Binder.
Supporters of Prop. N hope its passage will encourage other cities to follow suit. "If this measure went on the ballots of other cities, it would be a message to the administration that a majority of Americans are against the war," said Daly.
Indeed, members of the city council of Amherst, Massachusetts are planning to put a "bring the troops home" measure on the town ballot in March.
According to the measure's wording, it will "send a forceful message to President Bush and Congress that we, the people of San Francisco, will not continue to watch the sacrifice of more American and Iraqi lives, and the squandering of our precious public resources."
In 1970, San Francisco adopted a similar measure during the Vietnam War. Two years later, responding to political pressure, Nixon announced he would start withdrawing troops. Howard Wallace, who was a coordinator of that campaign and is now the coordinator of the Yes on N campaign, said the measure's passing symbolized a hardening of public opinion against the war.
"Other cities started following suit after San Francisco," said Wallace. "That created a societal change that ultimately ended in the U.S. pulling out of Vietnam."
Troop deployment to Iraq is not the first Bush administration policy that has moved city voters to register their dissent. Since January 2002, governments of four states and 355 local governments have passed resolutions critical of the USA Patriot Act. Voters in four cities in Vermont, Massachusetts and Rhode Island have approved ballot measures against that law. According to the Bill of Rights Defense Committee, which monitors such efforts around the country, the Patriot Act threatens civil liberties by giving the government greater rights to screen conversations and detain people.
Proponents of Proposition N, who include Senator John Burton, the San Francisco Labor Council, and the San Francisco Green Party, say the war has cost the city $520 million so far. Daly said the money could be used on local programs. "With $520 million we could do some amazing things," he said at the Lowell High School protest. "We could hire a hundred new school teachers, house 3,000 homeless people, provide health coverage to 1,000 youth, provide meals for 5,000 seniors and preschool for 500 children for 10 years." But if the measure passes, it will have no financial impact on the city.
Opponents have three major reasons for not supporting the measure. Many say city government should focus on local issues and needs, not foreign policy. The San Francisco Chronicle's editorial against the measure said it was "written by a group of politicians who have enough trouble solving problems in the streets of their own city."
"They have to be custodians of city services," said Gail Neira, Republican State Assembly candidate for District 13. "They should take care of our city's destitute first. When you can solve the problems in your own backyard, then you can focus elsewhere."
Past county chairman for the California Republican Party Terence Faulkner said voting yes on N would be a sign that San Franciscans supported Saddam Hussein's brutal regime. "The supporters of proposition N ... are arguing for a disgraceful cause," he said in a statement.
Supervisor Sean Elsbernd said it would not be practical or safe to pull out of Iraq without a well-thought-out plan. "The immediate withdrawal of troops called for in the legislation is not a plausible option," he said.
Suggett said Elsbernd's concerns about immediately withdrawing from Iraq echoed other cities' hesitation in putting forth a similar proposition. "The main question within these ballot measures is not whether to bring the troops home, it's when and under what conditions," said Suggett. "And because of the complexities a lot of cities might have trouble reaching consensus."
Suggett said the trend might continue with cities that are more uniformly liberal, such as Oakland and Berkeley.
Neither George Bush nor John Kerry support immediately withdrawing troops from Iraq, so proponents of the measure are not necessarily Democrats. "If Kerry wins, Kerry will need to be held accountable," said Daly.
They are also not all of voting age. Lowell High School students Jake Blanc and Linda Newman are circulating a petition to San Francisco high school students in support of Prop. N. They plan to present it to City Hall during the election. To date, they have collected almost 500 signatures.
"We decided we're against this war and we're not going to just sit back," said Newman. "We're the future, and we don't want this to be our future."
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