“When we started with this advocacy, it felt like people were not taking it seriously, and they didn’t know the intentions, if it was political or self-interest. And now I feel like people are taking this seriously,” said Alondra Esquivel Garcia, President of the San Francisco Women’s Political Committee. “But it took a few years and a few bumps in the road and some new DCCC members to get here.”
Those challenges included difficult conversations as the committee formulated its policies, particularly around unsubstantiated accusations. Esquivel Garcia said that’s made it hard for some survivors to participate in the policy-making process or even to come forward.
“I definitely got uncomfortable,” she said about a recent meeting. “[False accusations] have been a topic of discussion since 2021, and being a survivor myself and brown woman, it’s hard to come forward and to be in those spaces.”
The vast majority of sexual assaults are never reported as survivors often face barriers or scrutiny, according to data from the National Sexual Violence Resource Center. The prevalence of false reporting is extremely low, estimated between 2%–10%, according to the center.
This year, several high-profile members of the city’s Democratic Party and political circles came under scrutiny after facing allegations of sexual assault and harassment. That included renewed attention and reporting on a 2010 incident when Jay Cheng, who leads the moderate political group Neighbors for a Better San Francisco, attempted to sexually assault a former girlfriend in college.
Cheng resigned from his post as a student regent at the University of California following the accusations. Irvine police and the Orange County District Attorney’s Office did not bring charges against Cheng, and he denies the allegations. Cheng wrote in a letter earlier this year that he supports the creation of the committee on sexual assault and its mission.
In meetings, members of the committee who stressed the need for stronger language around false accusations in the policy included representatives from the Latino Democratic Club, which is currently investigating one of its own members, Kevin Ortiz, who was publicly accused of sexually assaulting multiple women in the political community.
Before the women publicly reported the incidents, Ortiz sent them cease-and-desist letters. The accusations came to light following a San Francisco Standard story about Jon Jacobo, another local political leader who was accused of sexual assault and domestic violence.
“I wouldn’t feel comfortable participating in that investigation, and with so many people in the DCCC working group meetings, they are pushing for punishment for people who falsely report,” Esquivel Garcia said.
Another member of the committee, Christian Kropff, who is a survivor of sexual assault, felt “heard and safe” despite reservations participating. “Anytime I spoke up on something I thought should be included, it was discussed in detail and incorporated into the policy,” he wrote in a letter obtained by KQED, in support of passing the policies, that was sent to DCCC members on Tuesday.
But, he expressed a lack of confidence in the Democratic Party’s ability to follow-through with the new processes in a fair manner.
“I believe that all this hard work will get shelved because of some political bullshit. I have seen it for a decade and have lost all hope that the DCCC as a whole will get [past] hating each other more than caring about victims and survivors,” he wrote.
Members of the committee hope that the additional reporting option through the DCCC will offer survivors more options to come forward.
“I truly do hope having a third-party investigation takes away from the political element,” Esquivel Garcia said. “Hopefully this is a uniting factor and will make people feel safe.”
Ivy Lee, a civil rights attorney and Director of San Francisco’s Office of Victim and Witness Rights, praised the DCCC for taking the steps to come up with the policy. She added, however, that the group inherently runs some risk of political bias, despite efforts and language in the policies aimed to promote independence and confidentiality.
“They have elevated the issue and acknowledged that sexual violence happens in political spaces. That’s a big step. Whether this policy is effective is unknown,” Lee said. “I would be most impressed if a perpetrator who is running for office and they take immediate action to say you are not even eligible for us to endorse. Their response will be much more telling about how seriously this issue is treated. Show me, don’t tell me.”
At Wednesday’s meeting, members of the DCCC will weigh in on the policies and further adjustments could be made, according to Ho.
“We would be remiss to not acknowledge this is a learning lesson for a lot of people, and then you have at the same time the natural dynamic of the political environment, which is ripe for abuse,” Ho said. “I feel really good about creating a space where survivors and leaders of clubs are empowered and part of the solution.”
