Protesters in San Francisco blockaded several tech commuter buses with a pile of electric scooters on Thursday morning, according to local news reports.
Bearing signs that read “sweep tech, not tents,” and “Techsploitation is toxic,” about 50 people gathered in a popular intersection in the Mission District, blocking the route of several buses, including at least one from Google.
Several signs targeted Google, though the protest focused more broadly on the tech industry’s economic impact on the Bay Area, where billionaires share the streets with a growing homeless population.
The demonstration was organized by housing advocates from San Francisco and San Jose and was “generally against the continued techsploitation of our public space, workers and environment,” according to an email sent to media outlets ahead of the event.
Silicon Valley is one of the wealthiest regions in the country thanks to the flourishing technology industry, but it has caused housing prices and the cost of living to swell. The inequality is particularly stark in San Francisco.
Mark Farrell, the city’s mayor, said in April that there would be an “aggressive” push to clear tent encampments out of the Mission District.
In addition to banners and chants, the protesters used a pile of electric scooters, largely from the startup Lime, as a roadblock. Critics in San Francisco say the recent deluge of electric scooters has led to cluttered walkways and sidewalks.
Google and Lime didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
Here are some photos and videos from the protest:
Source: Tech CNBC
'Techsploitation' protesters in San Francisco blocked buses with a pile of electric scooters