FEB. 28, 2014 — This past Tuesday my bar, Virgil’s Sea Room, played host to a tech community meet up organized by folks hoping to bridge the gap between San Franciscans fighting to stay in their homes and the tech workers who have come to represent their exodus.
The tension wasn’t anywhere near as cut-it-with-a-knife thick as The Chronicle made it out to be. I mean, “S.F. tech workers, housing activists clash at happy hour,” is as sensational a headline as you could have put on the damn thing. If by clash you mean had to gently elbow past each other as they made their way through a crowded bar to get drinks, then, clash they did. Also, who puts periods between “S” and “F”?
That said there certainly were some moments of heightened emotion, which is to be expected in such settings. Perhaps calling it a “necessarily difficult dialogue” hour would have been more appropriate. Ultimately, though, it seemed that folks were able to get their points and experiences across. The SPUR magic bullet of building more market-rate housing was mentioned far too many times, but there seemed to be a sense among attendees on both sides that there were opportunities to come together.
One option thrown out there was to help support the Anti-Speculation tax headed for the November ballot (more on that below). Another, which seems like a good idea for those of us who are less angry at tech workers themselves and more angry at the corporations that employ them, was to go up to their bosses and demand that they contribute REAL community benefits, not just hackathons and beach clean-up days. (more after the jump)
