Instagram story viewer> @deanprestond5> Posts

Dean Preston

@deanprestond5

10.3K

followers

1575

following

San Francisco housing advocate. Democratic socialist. Former D5 Supervisor. [email protected]

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

Download All

Two mayors. Two cities where the rent is high. Two very different approaches.

Mayor Mamdani froze the rent in New York. Mayor Lurie opposes rent relief for San Francisco. These two mayors may both be talking about affordability, but one is actively trying to make his city more affordable for working people, while the other is celebrating rising rents.

Here in San Francisco, Lurie could immediately declare a state of emergency on rents and take action. He could freeze rents, fund rent relief, and ban evictions. If state laws stood in his way, he could use his clout to change those laws. Instead he is doing the exact opposite.

Lurie is actively working to repeal funding for renters and to increase rents. He’s lowered affordable housing mandates. He’s called his own housing office a “slush fund” and he’s trying to slash its funding. He is fighting against a ballot measure that will fund rent relief and eviction defense. He has publicly stated that he opposes expanding rent control and won’t even try to freeze the rent.

Lurie and Mamdani both talk about affordability, but here’s the real difference. Mamdani is using government power to lower the rent and make life better for working people in New York.

Landlords are getting everything they want from Lurie as rents go up, up, and away. He could do something about it like his counterpart in NYC, but unlike Mamdani, Lurie is not in power to help the working class. by @deanprestond5

28k

774

a month ago

Mass evictions are a huge part of gentrification and the tactics they use are unethical. @deanprestond5 breaks down the different types of eviction tactics used to displace families and long term renters in my newest documentary.

The City of Sensitive Frauds out now on YouTube
#sanfrancisco #renters #gentrification #eviction taken in San Francisco, California by @deanprestond5

927

65

a year ago

After coughing up over $100 million in one year for the San Francisco Police Department's overtime, we now know that this isn't as simple as "understaffing." The latest audit of SFPD's overtime confirms that there is little oversight or accountability for overtime abuse, and it's costing taxpayers without making us safer. by @deanprestond5

16k

3k

2 years ago

Surprise! Another TERRIBLE far-right take from GrowSF 🙄🤢👎👎

GrowSF is taking the OPPOSITE position from every single Democratic member of our state legislature, all of our local leaders, and hundreds of community organizations.

San Franciscans! It’s time to see GrowSFs far-right billionaire backed agenda for what it is. #sf #politics #taxtherich #left #growsf by @deanprestond5

3

5

11 hours ago

Many people are asking me for ballot recommendations, so welcome to the first edition of Dean’s List.

The oligarchs we’re up against are pushing anti-democratic measures, spreading misinformation, and pouring money into defeating policies that would actually improve the lives of working class people. Amidst the attempted hostile takeover of San Francisco, there are candidates and ballot measures that offer us hope for a better, more compassionate, and more affordable San Francisco.

Vote by November 3, either by mail or in person.

Read more at link in bio. by @deanprestond5

436

21

4 days ago

Good news! After half his term wooing corporate landlords who are driving rents through the roof, Daniel Lurie broke his silence to finally recognize what everyone already knows: there is a rent emergency. Now he needs to take action. Here’s what the Mayor could be doing:

Strengthen rent control to lower rents for people who live in privately owned housing. That starts with a rent freeze like Mamdani did in New York. It also includes overturning the state Costa Hawkins law which limits City’s ability to cap rents. Daniel Lurie has been against expanding rent control. It’s time he changes his position and lobbies Sacramento to remove the barrier to the one thing that could immediately lower rents.

What else could he do? Direct the city to build affordable housing and acquire existing buildings to convert them to affordable homes. In San Francisco, only about 9% of the housing stock is not for profit. Compare that to Vienna where over 60% is permanently affordable social housing. We can do better in San Francisco by expanding housing that is for people instead of profit.

Meanwhile, there’s something the City can do immediately to mitigate the impact of high rents: scale up rent relief, especially for those facing potential eviction. This is what we did in 2021 and we stopped at least 20,000 people from losing their homes.

Fortunately, there’s a ballot measure Prop. I – the Affordable Housing Guarantee Act – on the November ballot that will fund all this and force City Hall to take action. It’s the only ballot measure that provides immediate funding to build affordable housing and provide tenants rent relief. It will dedicate a tax on the ultra-rich to housing.

Stronger rent control, more affordable housing, and rent relief for those at risk of eviction. It's time for City Hall to deliver for San Franciscans who are being crushed by rising rents! by @deanprestond5

602

36

7 days ago

“Care vs. Criminalization: Rethinking Our Street Response to Homelessness" is this Tuesday!

Join a hybrid community panel to discuss San Francisco's current street response to homelessness and reimagining a new approach.

Tuesday, October 6th, 2026

6:30 - 8:00 p.m.

On Zoom and in-person at @medicinefornightmares

Medicine for Nightmares, 3036 24th Street, San Francisco, CA 94110

Our panel will include:

Dean Preston, Former San Francisco Supervisor of District 5

Couper Orona, Street Medic and Advocate

Maurice Byrd, Clinical Training Director at Harm Reduction Therapy Center

Hannah Beazley, Investigator at the ACLU of Northern California

Carolyn Goosen, Local Policy Director at the San Francisco Public Defender's Office

Lukas Illa from Coalition on Homelessness moderating (& majorly organizing)!

This panel will be translated into Spanish, with live interpretation via provided headsets.

To register to attend in person, please register here (DM for link if easier than copying):

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSehMzUktIhnsFJ9frmAcelp9DAZYIJdDuR_yjVjVDY9C1JFtg/viewform?usp=dialog.

To register to attend via Zoom, please register here (DM for link if easier than copying):

https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_AJIc0M-GQ1qCM2SHJGOPnQ.

I am a part of the team putting this on & obviously would love to see you there! ~ Jessie

Song: "if only" by SF friend and artist @slykstah ~ also on the @mixtapeforpalestine ❤️ taken in Medicine for Nightmares by @deanprestond5

154

8

14 days ago

And our final panel member—the one and only Dean Preston! @deanprestond5
Dean Preston is an attorney, affordable housing advocate, and a former member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. He was the first democratic socialist elected in San Francisco in 40 years. Preston banned evictions during the COVID-19 pandemic, taxed the rich to fund rent relief and social housing, and authored the first ceasefire resolution on Gaza passed by a major U.S. city. Prior to serving in office, Preston founded California’s only statewide tenants rights organization and established a right to counsel for tenants facing eviction in San Francisco. His outspoken advocacy for human rights and economic and racial justice has earned the ire of real estate and tech billionaires, including technofascist Elon Musk.

Join us Sunday 9/27 at 4pm for this killer lineup of Bay brilliance! All proceeds to our friends in Gaza, 855 Treat Ave @sftroupers by @deanprestond5

191

3

23 days ago

“I welcome (the Mayor’s) “rent emergency” declaration, largely because it breaks his silence about the impacts of his policies and leadership and finally talks about the struggles working people face as a result.

There is an acute affordability crisis hitting the working class. Press releases and instagram reels won’t pay the rent or defend people from evictions. We need bold solutions immediately to address this crisis.“

Read my new post, "5 Things Mayor Daniel Lurie Could Do If He Were Actually Serious About Lowering Rents in San Francisco" (link in bio) by @deanprestond5

413

27

24 days ago

You've probably heard the terms "NIMBY" and "YIMBY" before — but what do they actually mean?

Well, it depends who you ask. According to San Francisco housing advocate Dean Preston, the YIMBY movement began in SF in the 2010s in response to "Not In My Backyard" communities who opposed new housing developments to exclude low-income, Black and brown residents from their neighborhoods.

While pro-development YIMBY proponents may appear to align politically with housing advocates, their backers tell a different story. Funded by big tech and real estate lobbies, YIMBYs have successfully co-opted messaging from housing justice movements to advocate for the removal of regulatory barriers, to incentivize housing development in SF.

But the YIMBY movement isn't interested in expanding rent control or tenant protections. Their goal is to deregulate SF's housing market to maximize developer profits, often by removing opportunities for community input on proposed developments.

Watch our full interview with Dean Preston ➡️ INTHERED.ORG by @deanprestond5

624

74

24 days ago

Folks there’s less than 2 months until Election Day and we need your help getting the word out about Prop I.

Help us pass over $120 million/per year in affordable housing funding, eviction protections, and more this November by getting involved at one of our events (link in the bio). by @deanprestond5

363

12

a month ago

I’ve learned that the $54m the mayor announced yesterday as new is in fact money that was already in the budget approved months ago.

I’ve tried to give the benefit of the doubt, and welcomed his declaring a “rent emergency,” but it is not ok to mislead people like this.

Media reported it as new money when in fact it is not. This underscores why it’s so important to fact check anything released by the Mayor’s Office before reporting. Mayor’s Office (Lurie and previously Breed) count on media adopting and not scrutinizing their assertions. by @deanprestond5

709

36

a month ago