Ross Mirkarimi

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Ross Mirkarimi

Ross Mirkarimi (b. 1961) is a progressive on the Board of Supervisors at City Hall in San Francisco, California. He was elected in 2004 to represent the city's fifth district, which encompasses the Haight-Ashbury, parts of Hayes Valley, Western Addition, Alamo Square and a portion of the Inner Sunset neighborhoods. Mirkarimi co-founded the California chapter of the Green Party.

As a supervisor, Mirkarimi has made a name for himself by spearheading efforts to promote medical marijuana clubs in San Francisco. On April 20, 2006, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws honored Mirkarimi with its Rufus King Award for outstanding leadership in the reform of marijuana laws. [1] In a speech accepting the award, he said:

That particular logic (of being in favor of medicinal marijuana but not wanting dispensaries in the neighborhood in which you live), as complex as it is, was emblematic of what certainly concerned me, that we continue to drive back in the shadows the very idea of what we're all congregated here for, and that is to mainstream the issue so that marijuana should not be criminalized and medical canabis should not be criminalized and that we should do everything we can to build that kind of resiliancy, to shore up even in the face of adversity, that while there's any attempt at pushback or blowback from our efforts to try to proliferate Prop 215 states throughout all fifty states of the United States, that we should not shrink at all with that ever particular kind of adversity once again.

And he added emphatically:

Politicians, local, state, or federal, who are not for the decriminalization of marijuana, and certainly not for the legalization of the use of medical cannabis, should not be in elected office at all.

Mirkarimi was instrumental in the crusade to extend San Francisco's ban on smoking tobacco at bus shelters to the city's public golf courses. Not extending the law to golf courses, Mirkarimi declared, "has this undertone of elitism." [2]

As Supervisor, Mirkarimi sponsored legislation to require police foot patrols -- where San Francisco police officers would have to walk a beat in high-crime neighborhoods, rather than sit in their cars. The Board of Supervisors approved this, but Mayor Gavin Newsom vetoed it. However, by a 9-2 vote, the Board overrode the veto -- making it the first time that Newsom has had a veto overriden since becoming mayor.[3]

Besides co-founding California's Green Party in 1991, Mirkarimi coordinated Ralph Nader's 2000 presidential campaign in California. He had also managed local campaigns in San Francisco, including the 2001 campaign for Public Power, the March 2002 campaign to elect Harry Britt to the State Assembly, the November 2002 campaign to re-elect Supervisor Chris Daly, and the 2003 campaign to elect Matt Gonzalez Mayor of San Francisco.

Mirkarimi has been involved in these civic and community service activities: Director for SF Nuclear Freeze Zone Coalition; union negotiator for DAI Association union; member of the IFPTE Local 2; member of the Harvey Milk Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender Democratic Club; member of the Iranian-American Chamber of Commerce; environmental analyst for the Harvard Study Team (Iraq) Bayview Hunters Point, California Base Closures; and member of the National Organization for Women (NOW).

Mirkarimi's ethnic and cultural background is Iranian and Russian-American. He was born in Chicago, Illinois and grew up in Rhode Island. He has a Bachelor's degree in political science from St. Louis University, a Master's degree in international economics and affairs from Golden Gate University, and a Master of Science degree in environmental science from the University of San Francisco. He has lived in San Francisco since 1984.

In March 2007, Mirkarimi introduced legislation that bans non-biodegradable plastic bags, making San Francisco the first city to ban such bags. Mirkarimi said "Instead of waiting for the federal government to do something about this country's oil dependence, environmental degradation or contribution to global warming, local governments can step up and do their part. The plastic bag ban is one small part of that." Many supermarkets opposed such legislation. The bill passed 10-1 and became an ordinance.

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San Francisco Board of Supervisors
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