Ahhh, San Francisco… the liberal utopia where the streets are public toilets, drug addicts get free needles, criminals have free rein, and law-abiding citizens get punished based on their success has outdone itself. The city's latest progressive experiment? Speed cameras that charge different fines based on how much money you make. Yes, you read that right — the more successful you are, the more you'll pay for the exact same violation.
This absolutely outrageous program, with the backing of none other than Gov. Gavin Newsom himself, launched on March 20. It's a perfect example of how the left twists the concept of "equity" to punish success and undermine equal justice under the law.
The Speed Safety System Pilot Program was signed by Newsom in October 2023 and allows cities across California to use speeding cameras to fine drivers. Those considered lower-income are eligible for a steep discount if they receive a speeding ticket.
Violations for speeding range from $50 to $500, but individuals with a household income at or below 200% of the federal poverty level are eligible for a 50% discount, according to the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency. Indigent persons, or individuals who are homeless, are eligible for an 80% discount on the speeding ticket.
The program's defenders hide behind the façade of safety, claiming that these cameras are placed in "high-injury zones" where pedestrians have been killed. But here's the million-dollar question they can't answer: If these areas are so dangerous that people are dying, why are we giving discounts to anyone? Isn't every life equally valuable? Or does the radical left think poor people should get a discount on endangering lives?
This dangerous precedent opens a terrifying door. What's next — different prison sentences for theft based on the criminal's income? Will we start charging people of different ethnicities different fines in the name of "equity"? It’s not exactly far-fetched because that was the point of California’s Proposition 47. Passed in November 2014, Prop 47 reclassified felony theft offenses under $950 as misdemeanors. Back in 2020, the Public Policy Institute of California noted that “Prop 47 also led to notable decreases in racial/ethnic disparities in arrests and bookings.”
The African American–white arrest rate gap narrowed by about 5.9 percent, while the African American–white booking rate gap shrank by about 8.2 percent. Prop 47 has not meaningfully changed the disparities in arrest and booking rates between Latinos and whites, which are still only a small fraction of the African American–white gap.
Let’s not kid ourselves: The Speed Safety System Pilot Program isn’t just about revenue; it’s about race, too. Democrats push the idea of systemic racism and operate under the absurd belief that only white people can be wealthy. And, of course, they think government intervention can “fix” this supposed imbalance. This program openly enshrines economic discrimination into law, treating citizens differently based on their financial status. It’s a blatant attack on the American ideal that justice should be blind.
Even more concerning, Los Angeles is already planning to follow suit with its own version in 2026. This isn't just San Francisco's latest descent into leftist madness—it's a preview of what Democrats want to implement nationwide.
This isn't about safety or equity; it's about progressive politicians finding new ways to punish success and whiteness while pretending to care about the poor. It's time to call this what it is: a direct assault on equal justice under the law and another step toward the left's vision of a two-tiered justice system.
While the mainstream media celebrates San Francisco's "equitable" speed cameras, we'll keep exposing the left's assault on equal justice. Get exclusive access to our uncensored coverage of Democrat-run cities' descent into madness. Join PJ Media VIP today using code FIGHT for 60% off and help us continue speaking truth to power.
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