As the Blue Angels roared overhead, about 1,500 mourners gathered in front of San Francisco City Hall Thursday to remember the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who made history here as the city’s first female mayor in the aftermath of two political assassinations that shook San Francisco to the core, and then as California’s first woman Senator, a post she held for 31 years. She was the longest-serving female senator in U.S. history.
The state’s biggest political stars, including Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Gavin Newsom, were among those gathered to pay respects to a woman who broke numerous glass ceilings over her decades in politics.
“Dianne commanded respect and she gave respect,” Harris said. “She was a serious and gracious person who welcomed debate and discussion, but always required that it would be well informed and studied. And I believe that this city where she started had a lot to do with that.”
“To the uninitiated here, I will let you in on a well-known secret. San Francisco politics is rough and tumble,” Harris added, to laughter from the memorial’s attendees.
Feinstein died last week in her Washington, D.C., home at age 90. She had struggled in recent years to fulfill her senatorial obligations as her health declined — but in true Feinstein fashion, she showed up to cast a vote hours before her death.
That tenacity and grit was honored by many of the speakers Thursday, who in addition to Harris included San Francisco Mayor London Breed, U.S. Representative Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Feinstein’s only grandchild, Eileen Mariano.
“Senator Feinstein, that is her official title. It’s how Californians and people all over the world knew her. But to us San Franciscans, she was Mayor Dianne Feinstein,” Breed said in opening remarks.
Breed recounted an old memory of playing French horn in a junior high school band in San Francisco, which was nicknamed the “Dianne Feinstein Band.” She told KQED last week that playing for Feinstein was one of her most cherished memories.
Feinstein as a role model
Feinstein inspired a generation of women, including Breed.
“She showed us a world where women lead, where we lift each other up, so that girls like me could follow in her footsteps,” Breed said.
High-profile memorial attendees also included Democratic Reps. Barbara Lee and Adam Schiff, who are competing for Feinstein’s Senate seat. Other attendees included Christine Pelosi, former Mayor Willie Brown, California Attorney General Rob Bonta, Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg, and newly sworn-in U.S. Sen. Laphonza Butler, who Newsom appointed this week to Feinstein’s seat.
Feinstein was also honored in the skies above, as the Blue Angels soared over the memorial. They are set to perform a “Missing Woman” formation this weekend in her memory, an appropriate homage to Feinstein who is credited with bringing Fleet Week to San Francisco in 1981.
