Anyone who's surprised that there's tension between those who've recently moved to San Francisco for jobs in the tech industry and those who lived here before this new wave arrived — well, you're probably not reading SFist anyway. But new fliers that have been posted in the city suggest that some folks are considering converting that tension into violence...or at least, rudeness.
As NBC Bay Area reports, "Tech Workers in San Francisco Feel Threatened by Long Term Residents," citing "hateful messages" like the flier posted above, which has been circulating on Facebook since last week.
Naming several notable local tech companies, as well as the tech news website TechCrunch, political player Ron Conway, and District 8 Supervisor Scott Wiener, the flier tells employees of the organizations/people to "leave the Mission."
"Your next warning will not be so polite," it reads.
Reportedly spotted in the Mission, it's the second anti-tech flier seen in the area in recent weeks — the other one cited by NBC is a little older, and was noted by Capp Street Crap back on September 10. (It incited a nice little discussion when we linked to it back then!)
Flier target Wiener weighed in on the issue over the weekend, saying on flier target Facebook that
Threatening a group of people if they don't move out of a neighborhood, as stated in this flyer? This isn't ok, yet sadly that's where the political rhetoric on our very real housing crisis has gone, though usually more coded than this flyer. We all need to work hard toward real solutions that reduce displacement by creating more housing - including lots of affordable housing - and reducing evictions. Demonizing San Francisco residents and telling them they'd better get out or else is an awful message and not the way we should be doing things in our city.
But that demonization has tech workers scared, NBC reports, saying ominously that "Workers riding the so-called tech buses are easy to spot at drop-off points."
But now, they say, tech workers are trying to avoid strife by trying to pass as folks who work in other industries, by "leaving computer bags and clothing with tech company logos at home." Yeah, that should do it!
Related: 'No Tech Zone' Sign Appears At Alamo Square, Gets Promptly Removed