San Francisco APEC Cleanup Controversy

Overview

San Francisco APEC Cleanup Controversy, also known as San Francisco China Cleanup Controversy, refers to outrage over reports that the city of San Francisco had removed homeless encampments and taken other steps to beautify the city ahead of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders’ Week 2023, which would be attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping, among others. This led to frustration that the city was perceivably undertaking measures the city's residents had been demanding for years only to impress foreign leaders, as well as jokes and memes that the continued presence of Xi Jinping in San Francisco would lead to further, rapid beautification efforts, eventually leading to a paradise.

Background

On November 8th, 2023, the San Francisco Chronicle^[1] reported that the city of San Francisco was clearing "homeless hot spots" ahead of APEC 2023. The move attracted criticism from both political sides, as many criticized the city for displacing the homeless and putting undue strain on the city's shelter system,^[2] while the right characterized it as the city attempting to impress foreign leaders,^[3] particularly Xi Jinping, who would be meeting with President Biden during the conference.

Developments

California Governor Gavin Newsom appeared to confirm the city was displacing the homeless in an effort to impress foreign leaders when he said on November 13th, 2023, during a press conference, "I know folks say, 'Oh, they're just cleaning up this place because all these fancy leaders are coming into town.' That's true because it's true, but it’s also true for months and months and months prior to APEC we’ve been having conversations."

The statement by Governor Newsom subsequently sparked a wave of controversy and mocking jokes aimed at him online over the following day.^[8]

Online Reactions

As a result of the cleanup, Twitter /X users, particularly on the right, began joking that Xi Jinping was the impetus for San Francisco "solving" its longstanding homeless problem. For example, on November 12th, 2023, Twitter user @JacksonHinklle^[4] joked "Patriots LOVE President Xi," gaining over 3,400 retweets and 20,000 likes in two days (shown below, left). User @ElysiusThor^[5] made a similar joke that day, thanking Xi Jinping for cleaning up San Francisco, gaining over 120 retweets and 520 likes in two days (shown below, right).

The controversy also inspired jokes and memes about the idea that if Xi stayed in San Francisco for longer than the APEC conference, the city would become a utopia. For example, on November 12th, Twitter user @AutismCapital^[6] posted an artistic rendering of a futuristic utopia (similar to The World If meme format), joking it represented the city if Xi stayed longer than three days, gaining over 1,500 retweets and 19,000 likes in two days (shown below, left). The same day, user @kinleyai^[7] made a similar joke, gaining over 400 retweets and 3,400 likes in the same timeframe (shown below, right).

Search Interest

Unavailable.

External References