By JANIE HAR
SAN FRANCISCO — Mourners are paying their respects Wednesday to the late U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein in San Francisco City Hall, where she launched her groundbreaking political career and where she spent a decade as the city’s first female mayor.
Feinstein’s casket was carried into the City Hall rotunda, where it was draped with an American flag, with San Francisco Mayor London Breed and Feinstein’s daughter and granddaughter following behind. Former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, also of San Francisco, was among the officials in attendance. Feinstein died Thursday at her Washington, D.C., home after a series of illnesses.
A steady line of people solemnly waited for their chance to honor Feinstein.
Jose Romero Cooper, 61, and 73-year-old Mark Cooper, a married couple, were among the first. They said they followed Feinstein’s career with pride.
“What I’m gonna say is thank you for everything, for being strong,” he said.
He stood before the casket, genuflected and crossed himself. He walked away with tears streaming down his face.
Feinstein was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in 1969 and was board president in November 1978 when a former supervisor assassinated Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk, the city’s first openly gay supervisor, at City Hall. Feinstein became acting mayor, and she went on to serve as mayor until 1988.
San Francisco would not be San Francisco without her. She steered the city through the HIV and AIDS crisis, bringing attention to an epidemic ignored by President Ronald Reagan. She also secured federal and private funding to save the city’s iconic cable cars from death by deterioration.
Feinstein led the city as it played host to the Democratic National Convention in 1984. Another San Francisco tradition — “Fleet Week” — was started by Feinstein in 1981, and this year’s annual celebration of air shows, naval ships and military bands is dedicated to her.
Beyond…
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