OUR NEIGHBORHOOD
Because Justice Matters has been actively present and invested in the Tenderloin neighborhood of San Francisco for nearly 15 years. Our neighborhood is often defined by its most difficult challenges. But we know that our community is complex, diverse, and that brighter futures are possible, because justice matters. Below are a few snapshots of our community, it's beauty and it's challenges:
“People talk about the Tenderloin as having the worst reputation in the city, but this is my neighborhood and I will defend it.
I have found a valuable community here. I know that I am loved by God, as are my children, as are the people on the street.
There is a hope that things will get better.
There is a motivation to create a different landscape.
And ultimately, there is a better life with God, regardless of circumstances or surroundings.
This neighborhood is beloved by God.”
- From the Blog ‘Hope Dwells Here’, by Maria
Video By: Lindsay, Age 14, Tenderloin Resident (2019)
“Walking around the Tenderloin can make you feel unsafe and scared at times, because you never know what could happen.
[One day while walking] we saw a mural on the corner of Golden Gate & Jones. It’s a 3-part mural: One side shows the Tenderloin of the past, in the middle shows what the Tenderloin is like right now, and the last one is what the artist hopes it looks like in the future.
It shows a big, green community. You see family and kids walking around, riding bicycles.
This gives us hope for the Tenderloin, that it will one day be a better place”
-Katelyn, age 13, Tenderloin Resident (2018)
