Dog walking while Black in SF parks: Why we need the CAREN Act

Alamo Square – Terry Williams of Terry & Roxy’s Dog Walking is a professional dog walker and doggy daycare owner born and raised off Alamo Square Park in San Francisco. He’s seen many changes to his neighborhood in the historically Black Fillmore, and one of them is the whitening of Alamo Square Park along with parks all over San Francisco and the subsequent pushing out of Black dog owners who don’t feel safe going to the parks. “My friends won’t take their dogs to the park anymore. They go to the one over there, in the projects. After all this happened, I get up at 5 a.m., before anyone else is out, to take my dogs out.”

On Tuesday, May 4, one woman’s small dog was playing with several dogs in Alamo Square, including Terry’s Rottweilers in the off-leash area, when she started screaming and yelling that her dog was attacked and then that she was attacked. She proceeded to call the police and attempted to charge Terry with “assault and battery – dog attack.” She claimed her dog and herself were bleeding; but when the ambulance came, there was no evidence of harm. Word has spread around the park that Terry and his dogs are dangerous. This couldn’t be farther from the truth. The repercussions are such that Terry knows that if the woman does decide to pursue charges or continue pushing these rumors, she could have his dogs taken away and his business – his livelihood – shut down.

The Bay View fully backs Terry Williams’ pursuit of legal support via the CAREN act to make known that behavior like this woman’s is unacceptable and dangerous. Support Terry: 415-574-1440, CashApp $Terryandroxydogwalk.

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