Auckland mayor-elected Sheng Thao will have few politicians in common as she begins to tackle the city’s burgeoning homeless crisis. She was 37 and homeless herself.
Thao broke down in tears when I pointed out that he had received public assistance 10 years before the historic election. On January 9th, she becomes mayor of the same city where she used to live in her car.
“It’s very emotional to hear you say that. It’s like day and night. I’m sorry, but please wait a moment,” Sao said, framing herself in Friday’s conversation. , a kind of subduction.”
As the seventh child of 10 children, a single mother, a survivor of domestic violence, and now the first Hmong American to lead a major American city, the stages of her journey are testament to her drive and resilience. is.
Her challenge now is to use her inspiring lived experience to become a mayor who gets things done in one of the toughest political jobs in the country. increased by 24% to about 5,000.
“I’ve been through a lot to get to where I am now, but lenses were never about me,” Sao said. “It’s always just fighting for the most disadvantaged. I know what I’ve been through and I don’t want my family to go through what I had to go through.”
Thao’s journey to the mayor’s office begins with his parents, whom he met in a Thai refugee camp fleeing a CIA-sponsored secret war in Laos during the Vietnam War. Thao inherited some of her grit from her mother, who left for camp as a young widow after being shot in the arm on the run.
Her parents emigrated to Stockton and started a family there. For some time they lived in public housing. Ms. Tao said she grew up in a patriarchal household with six boys and her four girls.
“Growing up, it provides insight into my personality,” Thao told me during the campaign. “said.”
She laughed and said, “I was rebellious.”
Thao left home for Auckland after high school. She took a low-paying job at Walgreens and she soon became involved in violent relationships. Her partner forced her to cut ties with her family and most of her friends. She is 20 and she is pregnant.
She vividly remembers the night she left. Her partner started dragging her hair and kicking her in the stomach.She was six months pregnant.
“I couldn’t leave for myself, but I definitely can’t stay here and allow my son to be born,” Sao said.
Like many survivors, she felt alone. She hadn’t spoken to her family for two years. “I thought her parents and family wouldn’t accept me because I chose him,” she said. “And to be honest, I was just embarrassed.”
She couchsurfed and slept in her car. Martinez Contra When she gave birth to her son at Costa County Hospital, she recalled: I was completely alone. ”
However, as she prepared to leave, a nurse gave her a used car seat and some clothes that had been donated for the baby.
For the next two weeks, “I don’t even know how they did it, but they found me wherever I was. In the car, couch surfing, or wherever I was.” I taught her how to take care of her. her young son. “That’s why nurses hold a special place in my heart. They knew I was alone.”
Not only was she lonely, she was isolated. “When you’re in a domestic violence relationship[with someone]for four years, it just tears you apart,” she said, adding, “My growth felt really stunted. and promised to return to school so that she could provide for her son.
Thao enrolled in the Paralegal Program at Merritt College and chose the Oakland Hills campus in part because of the panoramic views of the Bay Area. As she hit rock bottom in her life, she said:
“Seeing the whole city, its beauty and its vastness gave me a kind of hope that this need not be my story. My story could change.” But I think it will.”
Community college as a single mother wasn’t easy. When her son was ill, she often took her son to class.This happened once on the day of an important biology finals, when she took her son’s locomotive Thomas toy gathered and sat on the floor next to her.
Soon, complications arose. “Midway through the final, he said, ‘Mom, you have to poop,'” recalls Sao.
The instructor didn’t give him extra time to complete the test, so Thao took his son to the bathroom. Not only did she pass the exam, she was named valedictorian.
She then enrolled at UC Berkeley and, on a scholarship, lived with her son in the family home. She had a stable place to live, but she could not afford food. She found that some of her new friends and fellow students were also “embarrassed to say anything.”
Thao and others asked local restaurants, including the Cheese Board Collective Pizzeria in Berkeley, if they could donate unsold bread and pizza. Afterwards, we collected unsold fruits and vegetables at the Smart & Final supermarket.
Thao remembers a student friend sending a note to listserv saying: Please bring your own bag and come pick up as many as you need. ’” The initiative evolved into a food pantry funded by the university.
With graduation nearing, Sao was due to enroll in law school. However, when his son was no longer growing up, he accepted an internship from an organization aimed at recruiting students from the Asia-Pacific Islands into local government. She interned with Oakland City Councilman Rebecca Kaplan and never left City Hall. She became a full-time staff member and she was elected to the council four years ago.
When she got into politics, she knew very little about what local governments were doing. Or how it worked. She soon realized that few people who worked in the government had the same background as her.
“They were doing their best through anecdotes, but they didn’t have the life experience of living in public housing. They didn’t have the life experience of growing up and participating in social services.”
Now renting a house in the city, Thao must show how he can use his first-hand experience to tackle Auckland’s myriad challenges. In his October survey, conducted by the Oakland Chamber of Commerce, 97% of respondents said homelessness was, or is, a very serious problem. Nearly four out of five were against allowing camping in parks and public places.
Thao understands this concern. After her appointment, she said she will focus on finding more suitable land owned by the city or Oakland school districts to house homeless people living in RVs and other vehicles.
She also wants to work better with other East Bay cities and county officials to ensure Oakland doesn’t burden more than Alameda County’s share of the homeless population.
Oakland’s homeless crisis isn’t going away anytime soon. But those looking for solutions will see how a mayor who has lived on the margins of society will tackle challenges that have plagued many who have not.
Joe Garofoli is a senior political writer for the San Francisco Chronicle. Email: jgarofoli@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @joegarofoli
