Dear Bay Area artists, culture bearers, arts administrators, arts advocates, and allies,
Budget and ballot season is in full swing. The Mayor and Board of Supervisors need to hear from the arts community now. The City’s Charter Reform agenda and commission streamlining efforts continue to evolve and shift, so the moment to articulate the importance of the arts – of artists and cultural workers for San Francisco’s future – is at hand.
This newsletter provides information on important upcoming community advocacy events. Show up! Be heard! Join us!
RALLY! Arts Advocacy Day in San Francisco
Tuesday, April 28, 11:30am-1:00pm
San Francisco City Hall Steps (One Carlton B. Goodlett Place / Polk Street) It’s time to rally for the arts in San Francisco! While California Arts Advocacy Day will be in full swing at the Sacramento Capitol, gather with us locally at SF City Hall to advocate for our local arts community. Attend the rally, be part of trumpeting these messages to elected leaders:
- Stop the disinvestment in the San Francisco arts sector!
- Uphold the Hotel Tax Fund for the arts baselines!
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Save the Arts Commission!
Come to the event and make sure our community’s collective voice is loud and clear at City Hall. Visit the Supervisors after the event. Attend the Board of Supervisors meeting and submit public comment.
For more info about the program and what to expect at this event check out the San Francisco Arts Advocacy Rally event page.Want to bring a sign or be part of a performance protest at the rally? Then read the next item below!  Artists Live Here 2.0
Friday, April 17, 5-8pm
SOMArts, 934 Brannan Street, San FranciscoJoin the arts community for the second "Artists Live Here!" convening, focused on community mobilization strategies, sharing resources, and learning how to advocate in meetings with our legislators. It’ll be an evening of learning, collaborating, and doing. The event includes drop-in workshops and resource tables where you’ll get to:
- practice giving public testimony
- plan performance-based protests
- make signs for the 4/21 City Hall Rally
- document your story as a San Francisco artist for a video reel from SF PROPEL
- give direct input to the Mayor’s Budget Office on the upcoming City budget
- write letters to your Supervisor, the Mayor and his staff
This is your chance to help shape the collective action plan for the arts and make your voice heard. This isn’t just about showing up. It’s about understanding what's happening at City Hall and taking action to protect arts infrastructure in San Francisco. Register here!
Key Legislative Deadlines for Charter Amendments ABBA has repeatedly been talking about these next few weeks and months being a critical period for the Board of Supervisors to decide exactly what will be on the ballot in November that will shape civic life for generations. What are these dates, when should we show up to City Hall, and why are they significant? Click here to find out.  Propel SF Blog on the Importance of an Arts & Culture Master Plan and Other Arts Coverage SF PROPEL's Executive Director Sunny Angulo (and ABBA Steward!), wrote an excellent and thorough blog post that details why San Francisco needs an Arts & Culture Master Plan, and what it would mean to our community and our city as a whole. Read it here. And to catch up on other important 2026 media coverage on our arts sector, its recent challenges, and what we’re doing about it, click here. If you have questions, please email [email protected]. Thank you for all you do to support our Bay Area arts ecosystem. Let’s keep the pressure on! Rachelle Axel ABBA DirectorSunny Angulo, Maria Jenson, Joen Madonna, Susie McKinnon, Vinay Patel, Ernesto Sopprani ABBA Stewards
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