COLUMN: San Francisco Priorities - Public Safety at 16 th St. BART Plaza, Pt. 1
- Jason Wyman
- Aug 19
- 4 min read
Seventeen years ago, I was part of the Youth Development Peer Network, transformed 16th Street BART Plaza into a site of peace in collaboration with a number of local community organizations, artists, musicians, healers, Danza Azteca, and more on August 23, 2008. It was all part of an effort by the Mission Community Council to activate the 16th BART Plaza as a site of arts, culture, and community, and it was funded by the City of San Francisco through an initiative called Community Conveners. The organizations awarded the funds were tasked with cultivating events, activations, and projects that brought the various stakeholders together within a particular geography (i.e. The Mission between 16th and Cesar Chavez Streets and Church and Folsom Streets.)
The funds were never enough to do all that they were tasked with doing, and still the Community Conveners were creating opportunities for public activations, like the one I was involved with called, Our Path to Peace. We brought a performance by Alphabet Rockers to the plaza along with organizations that provided services to Mission families. Between the saplings that are on the edge of the plaza, we hung a clothes line and invited people to hang their paths to peace. Below the clothes line was a community altar of clothes, food, plants; all of which was given away to passersby.
It was exactly the kind of thing one wants to see within the public sphere: arts, culture, and community of, by, and for the community.
Funding for the activation of the 16th Street BART Plaza has been cut over those 17 years. The Plaza itself has never been fully funded towards the well-being and “safety” of the community. Instead, conditions at the Plaza were intentionally made worse by City policy and priorities, and now there is a constant police and policing presence, which IS FUNDED (even amidst a current budget deficit.)
This begs the question, “What is safety?” And “Who (or what) are we keeping safe?”
San Francisco Priorities continues in September 2025.
Please check out the blog post below published on Facebook August 26, 2008, about the activation of 16th Street BART Plaza. I also included the Our Path to Peace Toolkit, which was collectively created by the Youth Development Peer Network. You can download it below.
AND! If you want to read more about the ongoing (and futile) police presence at 16th Street BART Plaza, Mission Local has got you covered.
August 26, 2008
On Saturday, August 23rd the 16th Street BART Station was transformed into a public space of peace. The Youth Development Peer Network and the Mission Community Council gathered youth workers from across the Bay Area to ask people “What is your path to peace?” This question took different formats at the BART Station including informational tables from Mission Graduates, the San Francisco Buddhist Center, GirlVentures, and Public Allies of Silicon Valley; performances from Danza Azteca and Alphabet Rockers; a community peace altar; and a community art project where passersby completed the statement “My path to peace is…”.
Dana Mandolesi, from Honoring Emancipated Youth, volunteered all day at the event. She was amazed at how inspiring the event was for all involved, including herself. “I came to help out, and I also got my professional and personal needs met. I am thinking about mentoring a girl through GirlVentures, and I am thinking about doing a meditation class at the Buddhist Center.”
This sentiment was echoed by others as well. Emily Claassen of the Mission Community Council (MiCoCo) was thrilled at the transformation of the BART Station into a peaceful place. MiCoCo is the Community Convener of The Mission District, a role that brings services together in an effort to increase collaboration and effectiveness. Emily noted that people were really engaged in the conversation about peace. “I am surprised at how happy people are to be asked. Everyone is giving this question some deep thought.” She hopes that this event can bring some much needed peace to her community.
Our Path to Peace: The Mission District was conceived using the philosophy of the Shinnyo-en Foundation’s Six Billion Paths to Peace. Part of their philosophy includes acknowledging that “we live in an interconnected world. The actions of the people around us impact us every day […and] like a ripple in the water, each tiny act of peace reverberates out into the world expanding the experience of peace for all of us.” The goal of Our Path to Peace: The Mission District was to be a ripple.
Jason Wyman, the Program Manager of the Youth Development Peer Network, said, “This event is only the beginning of a small and quiet revolution. Too often we see ourselves as separate communities disconnected from one another. By having this event at a BART Station, we draw attention to the fact that we are all interconnected and that one ripple here in San Francisco can be felt all the way from Pittsburgh to Colma just via BART. Who knows, maybe this ripple will become a tidal wave.”
At the end of the event, items placed on the community peace altar were handed out to passers-by. Items included plants, flowers, clothes, and art. Jason handed a basil plant to one passer-by. She then asked, “What? These are free. Why?” Jason responded, “This is an altar of peace, and we are handing out peace to those that come on by.” She responded “Thank-you. The Mission needs more of this.”
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