Rally in San Francisco surrounding state’s proposed billionaire tax comes with controversy

By John Ramos

In San Francisco on Saturday, a small group gathered for a city hall march to offer their support for billionaires. It drew a crowd of media and opponents and quickly became a spectacle that focused more on satire than substance.

The issue of income disparity is a serious one. But Saturday’s advertised March For Billionaires took a serious turn to the absurd.  Organizer Derik Kauffman seemed to know it would happen.

“So, I sort of guessed that it would be provocative,” he said.  “I also think if it were not called what it was, then it would not have gotten the attention that it did.”

The gathering at Alta Plaza Park in the Fillmore District only drew a handful of supporters. But they seemed sincere in their opposition to California’s proposed asset tax on billionaires, which they said will drive wealth and innovation out of the state.  

“You know, I know a lot of people disagree with the framing of this,” said Kauffman, “but I do really believe that most billionaires have had a greatly positive influence on the economy.”

A woman from Berkeley, who gave her name as Annie, said she came up with the original idea of a support march for billionaires.

“I am a Christian. I swear on my God that I am being completely genuine here,” she said. “We are being serious. We like billionaires. We want them to stay.”

But the unusual notion of a march to support the wealthiest people in the world also drew a lot of media, and some snarky opposition.  

A couple wearing formal clothing carried signs saying, “IT’S A CLASS WAR, AND WE’RE WINNING” and “KEEP CALIFORNIA UNEQUAL.”  

One man wearing a business suit and a crown poured on the sarcasm as he discussed the plight of the downtrodden billionaires.  

“You don’t know when you look at somebody what their story is, what their inner struggle is,” he said. “So, you can’t tell if somebody’s carrying the weight of billions of dollars. It really is a heavy burden.”

Razelle Swimmer said she spent all day Friday creating a giant puppet of a chef wielding a butcher knife with the slogan, “EAT THE RICH.”

“I wanted to match their absurdity with my absurdity,” said Swimmer.  “And point out how ridiculous they look, by having a 10-foot puppet to chase them around.”

With that, the march began, heading for city hall.  Along the way, it drew plenty of stares and a bit of outrage from small business owner John Quillinan, who said he supports the idea of a 5% tax on billionaires’ wealth.

“The fact that that is not acceptable to them makes me sick to my stomach,” he said.  “I would give up five percent of my net worth over five years to help my community. I own a small business. I’m not doing amazingly, and I would still do it to help people. What’s wrong with you that you won’t?”

But Michele and Jesse Foster just seemed confused when the procession passed them on the street corner.

“At first we were horrified, and then, ‘I’m not sure if they’re joking.’ They have to be joking. It’s a joke, for sure. Has to be,”  they said. 

Michele said she didn’t think it was real, but it was hard to tell.  

“It’s a little scary these days. You can’t trust anything, right? I was on the phone with my daughter and I’m like, ‘I gotta hang up. I gotta go yell at these people,'” Michele said.

When the group of supporters and detractors reached city hall, they were still arguing. But it was still hard to know what to take seriously.