SF Announces Program To Pay Basic Income To Black And PI Mothers

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Mayor London Breed announced Monday the launch of a unique pilot program that will provide basic income to Black and Pacific Islander women during pregnancy and after giving birth amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The pilot will place a monthly $1,000 payment in the hands of 150 Black and Pacific Islander women in San Francisco for the duration of their pregnancy and for the first six months of their child's life.

The Abundant Birth Project is the first of its kind in the United States and is rooted in racial justice following the massive Black Lives Matter movement that has swept the nation since the death of George Floyd.

The project will roll out over the next two years as organizers work with local prenatal care providers and the City’s network of pregnancy support services to identify and enroll recipients.

Organizers will look for low-income and middle-income women to participate.

“Providing guaranteed income support to mothers during pregnancy is an innovative and equitable approach that will ease some of the financial stress that all too often keeps women from being able to put their health first,” Breed said in a Monday news release.

The Abundant Birth Project will work with local prenatal care providers and the City’s own network of pregnancy support services to identify and enroll eligible clients over the next two years. The project will target low-income and middle-income pregnant people with the income supplement given the high cost of living in San Francisco.

“Thanks to the work of the many partners involved, we are taking real action to end these disparities and are empowering mothers with the resources they need to have healthy pregnancies and births,” Breed wrote Monday.

The goal, according to the news release, published Monday, is to eventually provide a supplement for up to two years after the child is born.

Dr. Zea Malawa for the San Francisco Department of Public Health will study the results and health impacts of the program with the support of the Hellman Foundation and the University of San Francisco California Preterm Birth Initiative.

“Structural racism, which has left Black and Pacific Islander communities particularly exposed to COVID-19, also threatens the lives of Black and PI mothers and babies,” Malawa said. "...It is exciting to be in a city that not only calls out racism as a problem, but also takes steps to heal the wounds left by decades of injustice and anti-Black sentiment.”

A large inspiration for the ground breaking project was the growing racial wealth gap in San Francisco. According to the City of San Francisco, even before COVID-19, Black and Pacific Islander households faced some of the largest instances of income inequality in the city.

The median annual household income for Black and Pacific Islander families in San Francisco is close to $30,000 and $67,000 respectively, compared with over $104,000 citywide, according to the city's news release.

“Providing direct, unconditional cash aid is a restorative step that not only demonstrates trust in women to make the right choices for themselves and their families, but could also decrease the underlying stress of financial insecurity that may be contributing to the high rates of premature birth in these communities," Malawa said.

In 2018, Malia Cohen, member of the California State Board of Equalization and San Francisco Police Commissioner, assisted in launching a citywide doula program. As a mother who gave birth outside of a hospital with the help of midwives and doulas, Cohen applauded the effort.

“The Abundant Birth Project is a smart, groundbreaking proposal that will enrich childbirth for so many, helping pregnant women and new mothers navigate an extremely delicate moment in life," she said.