Message from the Executive Director

Welcome to the San Francisco Department on the Status of Women! In 1998, San Francisco became the first city in the world to adopt a local ordinance reflecting the principles of the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). In the intervening years, the Department has used the CEDAW human rights framework to guide our work and we have developed a number of innovative programs and tools to advance women's human rights. We have conducted gender analysis of City Departments as well as City Commissions and Boards to identify areas of gender inequality and make recommendations. Our flagship grants program, the Violence Against Women Intervention & Prevention Program, funds 24 community-based agencies to address domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking. Together with domestic violence response policy reforms initiated by our Justice & Courage Oversight Panel, domestic violence homicide has plunged 80% from an annual average of 10 murders a decade ago to 1 or 2 today, which is still too many, but a major improvement. For our work, the UN Institute for Research and Training awarded San Francisco the 2010 Gender Equality Award. We invite you to join us in our efforts to promote the human rights of women and girls, not just in San Francisco, but everywhere.

Emily M. Murase, PhD

News Alerts:

February 28, 2013

Today, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) to include expanded coverage for native, immigrant, and LGBT communities! Click here to read the Department's Statement.

January 31, 2013

Join us on Thursday, February 14, 2013, 4-6 pm for One Billion Rising San Francisco. We will host an event on the steps of City Hall where Mayor Edwin M. Lee, District Attorney George Gascón, Commission on the Status of Women President Julie Soo, among others will be there to stand up and dance with One Billion Rising. Click here for details.

January 15, 2013

The San Francisco Collaborative Against Human Trafficking is proud to announce the 2013 teen poster contest winners. Click here to view the poster submissions.

1st Place: (pictured above with Mayor Lee) Community Youth Center of San Francisco, Young Asian Women Against Violence: Jennifer Chan, Kimberly Ho, Erika Lam, Ally Li, Adriana Nguyen, Diana Nguyen, Amy Ung

2nd Place: Tiffany Cheung, 12th Grade, Abraham Lincoln High School

3rd Place: Shelly Liu & Stella Li, 8th Grade, James Denman Middle School

November 30, 2012

The Family Violence Council releases its 2011 Comprehensive Report on Family Violence in San Francisco.