Mayor Breed Announces Loan Fund to Help African American-owned Businesses Impacted by COVID-19

San Francisco Mayor London Breed is establishing a fund of more than $1 million to be used for loans for the city's African American-owned businesses affected by COVID-19, she announced Friday.

Loans used for the new African American Small Business Revolving Loan Fund will be supported by a $1.5 million investment from the city's COVID-19 response and recovery fund Give2SF.

The zero-interest loans of up to $50,000 will provide access to capital and financial help for Black-owned businesses and African American entrepreneurs who've experienced sudden loss revenue and other disruptions as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Breed's office said.

"For generations, Black-owned businesses have been marginalized and discriminated against all too often having difficulty securing the financing they need to open and operate," Breed said in a statement.

This new loan fund is a step in the right direction to right past wrongs and help San Francisco businesses stabilize and thrive," she said.

"Our Black owned small businesses have suffered for years trying to survive through high rents, outmigration of community, gentrification and isolation," Supervisor Shamann Walton said.

"Without this support, we would be complicit in the possible complete eradication of Black businesses in San Francisco," he said.

The pandemic has only worsened already existing inequities faced by Black-owned businesses, disproportionately pushing them into further financial despair. The loan program aims to enable businesses to sustainably maintain or increase business and will be prioritized for long-standing San Francisco Black-owned businesses, Breed's office said.

The loan fund is made possible through a partnership between Breed, the Office of Economic and Workforce Development, the organization Main Street Launch and the San Francisco African American Chamber of Commerce.

—Bay City News