Tenderloin Neighborhood, San Francisco CA

About Tenderloin Neighborhood

The Tenderloin is named after New York City's Tenderloin neighborhood, which purportedly got its name after a police captain was overheard saying that he was able to afford better cuts of meat with the money he collected on the side by extorting illegal businesses in this area in exchange for not shutting them down.

It has long been an area known for its homelessness, prostitution, drug use, liquor stores, and strip clubs. These have earned it the reputation of being the worst neighborhood in San Francisco, and while the neighborhood continues to struggle, it has also been a haven for alternate sexualities and lifestyles and a site of remarkable culture and resilience.

It is often considered dangerous, and while crime is a little higher here (especially drug and robbery-related crime), walking quickly and with confidence, avoiding eye contact, tucking away flashy items, and staying aware of your surroundings will discourage most from making you their target.

History of Tenderloin Neighborhood

The moniker is thought to have been coined by police Captain Alexander S. Williams circa 1931, when the area was riddled with corruption. Officers who accepted bribes were alleged to be able to afford more expensive cuts of beef for their dinner tables at the time.

Demographics of Tenderloin Neighborhood

Tenderloin residents are 35 percent Asian, 29 percent White, 20 percent Latino, and 10% Black, according to 2014 American Community Survey data – albeit those percentages may already be out of date, given that the citywide population of Black people has been gradually declining since the 1970s.

Transportation in Tenderloin Neighborhood

San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA, transit, streets, taxi)

Politics in Tenderloin Neighborhood

The position held by policy-makers regarding gentrification is often divided, with one side of the debate arguing that it is of benefit to the public economy and revitalization of the built setting, while the other side argues that the huge social costs and displacement of people, especially the poor, outweigh all potential strengths of the process.

Lifestyle in Tenderloin Neighborhood

The Tenderloin, located close downtown, has long defied gentrification, retaining a filthy reputation and a reputation for violence. The neighborhood has a shady image due to squalid circumstances, homelessness, violence, illegal drug trafficking, prostitution, booze stores, and strip clubs.

Schools in Tenderloin Neighborhood

The Bay Area Women's & Children's Center's advocacy work in the 1990s resulted in the construction of Tenderloin Community School.

Real estate in Tenderloin Neighborhood

Raphael House, the city's first provider of shelter for homeless parents and children, has been located in the Tenderloin since 1971. Families, young people living in affordable flats, downtown bohemian artists, and new immigrants from Latin America and Southeast Asia make up this ethnically varied community.

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