Angela Alioto
Encyclopedia
Angela Alioto is an attorney, a politician
, and a member of the Secular Franciscan order and Democratic Party
. She is a member of one of the best known political families in San Francisco, and her family is generally associated with the liberal democratic side of the city's politics..
. Her father was Joseph L. Alioto, the former mayor of San Francisco. She was the President of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and served for 8 years. Her son, Joseph Alioto Veronese serves as a San Francisco Police commissioner.
degree in English, French literature and Italian Renaissance, in 1971, from Lone Mountain College
, and a J.D.
, from the University of San Francisco School of Law in 1983. She was admitted to the California State Bar in 1987.
from 1988 to 1997 and ran unsuccessfully for Mayor of San Francisco
in 1991, 1995 and 2003.
Since leaving the Board of Supervisors, Alioto opened her own law firm and specializes in Anti-Discrimination law. Alioto won the largest Civil Rights verdict in the history of the United States in 2001, against IBC/Wonderbread for 135 million dollars. San Francisco employment law
office, and has won a number of cases against corporations — including Mary Kay Cosmetics
. She also served as Vice Chair of the California Democratic Party
.
In the November 2003 mayoral election, Alioto came in third behind candidates Gavin Newsom
and Matt Gonzalez
. During the run-off election between Newsom and Gonzalez, it was expected that she would endorse Gonzalez, especially since she had been such a vocal critic of Newsom's anti-homeless
policies. Nonetheless, she eventually endorsed Newsom.
Angela Alioto married Adolfo Veronese on December 8, 1968. They have four children together - Angela Mia, Adolfo Virgilio, Joseph and Gian-Paolo. The eldest child, Angela Mia Veronese, graduated from University of California at Berkeley. Angela was married to Jason Lind in a beautiful medieval church in Ceri, Italy. Angela Mia & Jason have a daughter, Chiara Mia Veronese Lind, who was born October 26, 1999 and a son, Sebastiano Veronese Lind, who was born on July 11, 2003.
Alioto served as Board President from January 1993 to January 1995. As President, she served as Vice-Chair of the Board's Finance Committee. After Angela's term as Board President expired, she served as the Chair of two Board Committees: the Health, Public Safety and Environment Committee and the Select Committee on Municipal Public Power, the committee she created as President. On January 8, 1997, Angela left the Board of Supervisors due to term limits.
During her tenure on the Board, Alioto fought tobacco companies with several pieces of legislation, including the first anywhere anti-smoking ordinance in the United States. She also focused on protecting neighborhood health care, created a comprehensive homeless plan, increased funding for AIDS services, wrote the City's needle exchange legislation, cosponsored the minority business laws, crimes legislation, protected workers rights, assured environmental protection, helped small business, and furthered efforts to municipalize the City's electrical utility system. She also created the San Francisco Film Commission and the San Francisco Youth Commission.
Early in her career, Alioto helped produce a video designed to provide AIDS education for teenagers throughout the school system. The video depicts teenagers with AIDS, vividly bringing home the message of awareness to teenagers who are now one of the highest risk groups in the country.
Alioto served in 1985 as the Co-Chair of the State Democratic Party's Platform Committee. She served as First Vice-Chair of the California State Democratic Party from 1991–1993 and served as Second Vice-chair. She was selected as a super delegate to the 1992 National Convention, and was elected Co-Chair of the California Delegation. She also served as California Chair of the Jerry Brown for President Campaign in 1992.
Alioto has served as a member of the Golden Gate Bridge District and has served on the Outer-Continental Shelf Board of Control, as Vice-Chair of the San Francisco County Transportation Authority, and as Chair of the Transportation Authority's Finance Committee, as a member of the Association of Bay Area Governments, lifetime member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the San Francisco Mental Health Board.
Alioto is a lifetime member of the Dante Society of America, The Society for Professional Journalists, The Bar Association of San Francisco, and The American Trial Lawyers Association. She also serves as Chair of the Board of Directors for the National Shrine of St. Francis of Assisi, and has supported such groups as the Equal Rights Advocates, Raoul Wallenberg Jewish Democratic Club, Bay Area Young Positives, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the Harvey Milk Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender Democratic Club, San Francisco Tomorrow, and many other Democratic clubs and neighborhood groups.
Alioto has also continued her involvement in community issues. She served as legal counsel for a grass-roots based organization, "Citizens for Lower Utility Bills." CLUB was successful in placing a ballot initiative establishing a municipal utility district for San Francisco on the local November 2001 ballot. She has worked on this issue for over 13 years. In 2004 she was appointed Chairwoman of the San Francisco Ten Year Plan Implementation Council. The Council is dedicated to abolishing chronic Homelessness in San Francisco and has been recognized as a national model.
Alioto has also written a book about her experiences in San Francisco politics, entitled Straight from the Heart.
In 2005 she partnered with Cardinal William Levada to create the Porziuncola Nuova. The Porziuncola Nuova, an exact replica of the original little chapel that Saint Francis himself built in Assisi Italy, was opened on September 27, 2008. It is located at the corner of Columbus Avenue and Vallejo Streets in the heart of San Francisco's North Beach district. the "Creation of the Porziuncola" DVD has just won the Aurora award for the most informational DVD of the year 2009 and the new DVD part two is up for the same national award. The DVD can be purchased at the Francesco Rocks Gift Shop ot on line from www.knightsofsaintfrancis.com. Certain chapters of the DVD can be seen on YOUTUBE>COM....under the word Porziuncola or under Angela Alioto.
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
, and a member of the Secular Franciscan order and Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
. She is a member of one of the best known political families in San Francisco, and her family is generally associated with the liberal democratic side of the city's politics..
Biography
Alioto was born in San Francisco, CaliforniaSan Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
. Her father was Joseph L. Alioto, the former mayor of San Francisco. She was the President of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and served for 8 years. Her son, Joseph Alioto Veronese serves as a San Francisco Police commissioner.
Education
Alioto received a B.A.Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree in English, French literature and Italian Renaissance, in 1971, from Lone Mountain College
Lone Mountain College
Lone Mountain College was a college acquired by the University of San Francisco in 1978. It was founded by the Religious of the Sacred Heart as Sacred Heart Academy in Menlo Park, California in 1898 and became College of the Sacred Heart in 1921...
, and a J.D.
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
, from the University of San Francisco School of Law in 1983. She was admitted to the California State Bar in 1987.
Political career
Alioto served on the San Francisco Board of SupervisorsSan Francisco Board of Supervisors
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors is the legislative body within the government of the City and County of San Francisco, California, United States.-Government and politics:...
from 1988 to 1997 and ran unsuccessfully for Mayor of San Francisco
Mayor of San Francisco
The Mayor of the City and County of San Francisco is the head of the executive branch of San Francisco's city and county government. The mayor has the duty to enforce city laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, the legislative branch....
in 1991, 1995 and 2003.
Since leaving the Board of Supervisors, Alioto opened her own law firm and specializes in Anti-Discrimination law. Alioto won the largest Civil Rights verdict in the history of the United States in 2001, against IBC/Wonderbread for 135 million dollars. San Francisco employment law
office, and has won a number of cases against corporations — including Mary Kay Cosmetics
Mary Kay
Mary Kay, Inc. is a privately held company that sells skin care and cosmetics products. Mary Kay World Headquarters is located in Addison, Texas, United States, a Dallas suburb. Mary Kay Ash founded Mary Kay Inc. on Friday, September 13, 1963...
. She also served as Vice Chair of the California Democratic Party
California Democratic Party
The California Democratic Party is the state branch of the Democratic Party in the state of California, headquartered in Sacramento. It is chaired by veteran Democratic politician and former United States Representative John L. Burton, who succeeded Art Torres in April 2009. It is the majority...
.
In the November 2003 mayoral election, Alioto came in third behind candidates Gavin Newsom
Gavin Newsom
Gavin Christopher Newsom is an American politician who is the 49th and current Lieutenant Governor of California. Previously, he was the 42nd Mayor of San Francisco, and was elected in 2003 to succeed Willie Brown, becoming San Francisco's youngest mayor in 100 years. Newsom was re-elected in 2007...
and Matt Gonzalez
Matt Gonzalez
Matthew Edward Gonzalez is an American politician, lawyer, and activist prominent in San Francisco politics. He currently serves as chief attorney in the San Francisco Public Defender's office....
. During the run-off election between Newsom and Gonzalez, it was expected that she would endorse Gonzalez, especially since she had been such a vocal critic of Newsom's anti-homeless
Anti-homelessness legislation
Anti-homelessness legislation can take two forms; legislation that aims to help and re-house homeless people, and legislation that is intended to criminalize homelessness and/or send the homeless to homeless shelters compulsively.-International law:...
policies. Nonetheless, she eventually endorsed Newsom.
Angela Alioto married Adolfo Veronese on December 8, 1968. They have four children together - Angela Mia, Adolfo Virgilio, Joseph and Gian-Paolo. The eldest child, Angela Mia Veronese, graduated from University of California at Berkeley. Angela was married to Jason Lind in a beautiful medieval church in Ceri, Italy. Angela Mia & Jason have a daughter, Chiara Mia Veronese Lind, who was born October 26, 1999 and a son, Sebastiano Veronese Lind, who was born on July 11, 2003.
Alioto served as Board President from January 1993 to January 1995. As President, she served as Vice-Chair of the Board's Finance Committee. After Angela's term as Board President expired, she served as the Chair of two Board Committees: the Health, Public Safety and Environment Committee and the Select Committee on Municipal Public Power, the committee she created as President. On January 8, 1997, Angela left the Board of Supervisors due to term limits.
During her tenure on the Board, Alioto fought tobacco companies with several pieces of legislation, including the first anywhere anti-smoking ordinance in the United States. She also focused on protecting neighborhood health care, created a comprehensive homeless plan, increased funding for AIDS services, wrote the City's needle exchange legislation, cosponsored the minority business laws, crimes legislation, protected workers rights, assured environmental protection, helped small business, and furthered efforts to municipalize the City's electrical utility system. She also created the San Francisco Film Commission and the San Francisco Youth Commission.
Early in her career, Alioto helped produce a video designed to provide AIDS education for teenagers throughout the school system. The video depicts teenagers with AIDS, vividly bringing home the message of awareness to teenagers who are now one of the highest risk groups in the country.
Alioto served in 1985 as the Co-Chair of the State Democratic Party's Platform Committee. She served as First Vice-Chair of the California State Democratic Party from 1991–1993 and served as Second Vice-chair. She was selected as a super delegate to the 1992 National Convention, and was elected Co-Chair of the California Delegation. She also served as California Chair of the Jerry Brown for President Campaign in 1992.
Alioto has served as a member of the Golden Gate Bridge District and has served on the Outer-Continental Shelf Board of Control, as Vice-Chair of the San Francisco County Transportation Authority, and as Chair of the Transportation Authority's Finance Committee, as a member of the Association of Bay Area Governments, lifetime member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the San Francisco Mental Health Board.
Alioto is a lifetime member of the Dante Society of America, The Society for Professional Journalists, The Bar Association of San Francisco, and The American Trial Lawyers Association. She also serves as Chair of the Board of Directors for the National Shrine of St. Francis of Assisi, and has supported such groups as the Equal Rights Advocates, Raoul Wallenberg Jewish Democratic Club, Bay Area Young Positives, Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the Harvey Milk Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender Democratic Club, San Francisco Tomorrow, and many other Democratic clubs and neighborhood groups.
Alioto has also continued her involvement in community issues. She served as legal counsel for a grass-roots based organization, "Citizens for Lower Utility Bills." CLUB was successful in placing a ballot initiative establishing a municipal utility district for San Francisco on the local November 2001 ballot. She has worked on this issue for over 13 years. In 2004 she was appointed Chairwoman of the San Francisco Ten Year Plan Implementation Council. The Council is dedicated to abolishing chronic Homelessness in San Francisco and has been recognized as a national model.
Alioto has also written a book about her experiences in San Francisco politics, entitled Straight from the Heart.
In 2005 she partnered with Cardinal William Levada to create the Porziuncola Nuova. The Porziuncola Nuova, an exact replica of the original little chapel that Saint Francis himself built in Assisi Italy, was opened on September 27, 2008. It is located at the corner of Columbus Avenue and Vallejo Streets in the heart of San Francisco's North Beach district. the "Creation of the Porziuncola" DVD has just won the Aurora award for the most informational DVD of the year 2009 and the new DVD part two is up for the same national award. The DVD can be purchased at the Francesco Rocks Gift Shop ot on line from www.knightsofsaintfrancis.com. Certain chapters of the DVD can be seen on YOUTUBE>COM....under the word Porziuncola or under Angela Alioto.